Application

[pd72vette]

Hey everyone, I'm starting my Internal Medicine residency in June and was hoping people on this forum could give me some advice on how to work towards a strong GI applicaton. Aside from Research and doing well as a Resident/good letters is there anything else I should focus on? I've noticed a lot of GI fellows have done Chief years... is that a must in order to get into a top university program??? Do programs really care about extra degrees - MPH, MS etc. Any advice would be great. Thanks

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[NEXUS 5]

Hey everyone, I'm starting my Internal Medicine residency in June and was hoping people on this forum could give me some advice on how to work towards a strong GI applicaton. Aside from Research and doing well as a Resident/good letters is there anything else I should focus on? I've noticed a lot of GI fellows have done Chief years... is that a must in order to get into a top university program??? Do programs really care about extra degrees - MPH, MS etc. Any advice would be great. Thanks

Chief year is not a necessity. In fact, at some programs chiefs are not chosen until late 2nd year or in 3rd year, making it irrelevant for traditional fellowship applicants. That said, it's not as if being a chief would hurt, either.

Extra degrees... I think a PhD is helpful, particularly when it is associated with significant research experience/publications. MPH, MS, etc... not so much in usual settings, but there are certain tracks of GI training that may value it.

I think amongst the most important factors is where you are for IM residency, and how you do as a resident there. Face time with GI attendings will be important to get good letters from them. Research is also very helpful. That's pretty much it. This is why, unless you are aiming for research-tracks where the quality and quantity of your research portfolio take the forefront, many GI applicants are relatively indistinguishable from one another. You end up having better chances of matching at your home institution and at nearby institutions rather than trying to match across the country.