AOA: junior vs Senior

[HtSht2BoneDoc]

IS it that big of a deal if you are Jr AOA? is it superior to Senior AOA I mean they are both AOA so whats the deal ? Is being inducted to AOA as a younger medical student make you some sort of all knowing medical god, b/c the criteria shifts substantially between the 2 elections. ONe is all grades and board scores and the other is practically all 3rd year honors.

INfo appreciated.

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[bigfrank]

I think making AOA is an honor regardless of the year. All schools have different criteria, making junior vs. senior selection criteria school-dependent. I recently ran the junior elections at my school and the individual with top grades was not chosen. So there is always an intangible component to it, in my opinion.

On ERAS, you can choose "member of AOA" but there is no M-3 vs. M-4 distinction. Being chosen early does alleviate a great deal of pressure though.

In the end, I don't think it matters in the least. It may be important, however, when your school chooses senior AOA if you're applying to an early match -- the sooner the better.

 

[intheworkings]

Anyone know if it matters? Couldn't find any recent info on this. TIA.

 

[COTA2Phys]

I don't think it makes any difference. Just like what is stated above, ERAS only asks if you're a member of AOA. It doesn't ask if you're junior or senior.

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[Shark7500]

This is a great point and I think it's an absolute travesty that there's not a place on ERAS where you specify whether you were Junior or Senior AOA. Because Junior AOA is absolutely a bigger deal than Senior AOA. I suggest casually bringing up the subject of AOA membership when mingling with your fellow applicants / residents / faculty and work it into conversation when you can. You want it to sound natural, so be tactful about it. If they ask you about it, make sure to tell them that you're an officer. In my experience, "holding an officer position" in AOA is pretty much the secret phrase for Junior AOA. At least this is how it works at my school due to elections being held in the spring.

 

[Psai]

This is a great point and I think it's an absolute travesty that there's not a place on ERAS where you specify whether you were Junior or Senior AOA. Because Junior AOA is absolutely a bigger deal than Senior AOA. I suggest casually bringing up the subject of AOA membership when mingling with your fellow applicants / residents / faculty and work it into conversation when you can. You want it to sound natural, so be tactful about it. If they ask you about it, make sure to tell them that you're an officer. In my experience, "holding an officer position" in AOA is pretty much the secret phrase for Junior AOA. At least this is how it works at my school due to elections being held in the spring.

Please bring up your junior aoa as often as possible so the residents can tell what a tool you are.

 

[intheworkings]

Thanks all. I guess I was mostly wondering if from the PDs perspective it mattered or if they even really cared to pay attention to such a difference since obviously at most schools the election process for junior vs senior is different (more difficult to get junior at most schools I believe).

 

[Jabbed]

This is a great point and I think it's an absolute travesty that there's not a place on ERAS where you specify whether you were Junior or Senior AOA. Because Junior AOA is absolutely a bigger deal than Senior AOA. I suggest casually bringing up the subject of AOA membership when mingling with your fellow applicants / residents / faculty and work it into conversation when you can. You want it to sound natural, so be tactful about it. If they ask you about it, make sure to tell them that you're an officer. In my experience, "holding an officer position" in AOA is pretty much the secret phrase for Junior AOA. At least this is how it works at my school due to elections being held in the spring.

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