I am a second year HPSP medical student with the Air Force, and had a few questions about rotations and residencies. The first question that I had was concerning residencies. When you are applying for a military residency, do you have to stay within the AF, or can you apply to any military residency, regardless of what service it is?? I am pretty clueless on how this all works, so any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!!
AF Rotations & Residencies
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smcc716 said:
you have to stay within your service. historically, the air force has allowed many of its students to apply for and receive a deferment to do their residency at a normal civilian program, but it really all depends on which specialty you choose, the number of applicants for that year group, and, of course, the needs of the air force.
colbgw02 said:
Thanks for the reply. I know that there is a list of residencies and clerkships on the AFIT website, but does anyone know if there are any other websites with a list of all the AF residencies and specialties?? Also, on the AFIT site (residency list), they have tons more clerkships than residencies, and some only have clerkships but not a residency for that specialty. I believe I am correct but aren't clerkships the same thing as rotations in your third and fourth year?? And if I am correct why would you want to do a clerkship at a site that did not have that residency if you were interested in that area??
yeah, you get to see a different part of the country at the AF's expense. Granted, AF bases are not in the most spectacular locals, but it's still nice to have a change of scene.
By doing a different clerkship at the same place that you want to do residency, you get to know the hospital and how the system works. Then, when you return to do your 4th year "audition" rotation, everything is not new and you know your way around a bit.
Depending on the specialty, some programs will not let you repeat the same clerkship at the same location. For competetive residencies like rads and anesthesia, they barely have enough spots for prospective apps to rotate once through.
By doing a different clerkship at the same place that you want to do residency, you get to know the hospital and how the system works. Then, when you return to do your 4th year "audition" rotation, everything is not new and you know your way around a bit.
Depending on the specialty, some programs will not let you repeat the same clerkship at the same location. For competetive residencies like rads and anesthesia, they barely have enough spots for prospective apps to rotate once through.
I went to Eglin AFB last March for an Allergy/Immunology and basically enjoyed a month at the beach. It was a lot of fun and very low stress. Then I used my 4th year ADT to do a SubI at Lackland where I wanted to go for residency.
So is the list on the AFIT site accurate with the locations of all the AF residency programs? Are there any other websites that may be of help when looking for programs? Thanks for all the help so far!!
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smcc716 said:
As it currently stands, the list on the AFIT site is accurate. The AF has a limited amount of residencies compared to the other services. But the AF also gives a fair amount of civilian deferments for training.
smcc716 said:
I wouldn't count on going to Keesler any time soon.
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Heeed! said:
True. I was doing my ADT in San Antonio when Hurricane Katrina hit. I saw first-hand the re-alignment of Keesler residents. I never got confirmation that Keesler would be closing for good, but I wouldn't bet that it will be reopening in the near future.
What would be the best way to go about doing audition rotations then if they give a fair amount of deferments? Should I just do one audition rotation with the AF and the rest with civilian programs? Or should I just do as many rotations at the site I want to end up with in the AF?
