Audition/Elective Rotations and Radiology

[D0cHopeful]

I was wondering how important it is to do audition or elective rotations for radiology and how much you can really contribute to a radiology rotation for them to see you as a good fit for the program? I have heard in the past that these rotations may only hurt you more than help you as you are a student and there isn't too much independence that is given to students in a radiology rotation. How true is this statement? Is doing one or two rotations at your home institution good enough for strong consideration for many radiology programs, given that you receive 1-2 LOR from attendings?

Thanks for the help.

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[LoveIR]

Potentially helpful to:

- (maybe) get you an interview at a dream program that would ordinarily be a reach (though an interview does not guarantee a match, and many programs directly state that they don't give an interview to everyone that rotates there). This assumes you are really likable.
- get a letter from a big name (assuming you get to work with them, and that you can impress them for the 2-4 weeks you're there)
- Really learn about a program. I've seen classmates decide NOT to apply to a program after doing an away there because they realized it wasn't the right program for them. This is probably the most useful reason to do one.

Potentially harmful for exactly the reason you give--you aren't given much to do. As an M3 or M4 you just don't know enough. It's hard to impress and you run the risk of making a bad impression. Not to mention it could be expensive to do an away, and interviewing is costly enough.

Away rotations are not at all required. Sticking to your home institution is a better way to get good letters (ideally from attendings you already have strong relationships with.)

 

[HandOfMrsRoentgen]

Aways are certainly not required, and have the potential to hurt you if you aren't likeable in person. However, they certainly have the potential to help you if you demonstrate that you get along with the people in the department, show your interest, and maybe do a small research project. If there is a specific place you really want to go to, certainly consider it - getting interviews is always a crapshoot even if you are well-qualified.

 

[shark2000]

If you are not likable don't do away rotation.

It your application looks very good on paper and you are likable, an away rotation won't help you unless it is MGH or UCSF or a very competitive program.
If your application is mediocre or weak, an away rotation can help you a lot if you are personable. If you are not personable, then it will definitely hurt you.

Don't make anybody angry even a first year resident or a tech. This will hurt you a lot. Be friendly, but also be professional. Don't tell people about crazy things you've done in college. Try to be helpful but don't overdo. If they don't need your help, don't push. The only way to help people in radiology is to review patient's chart, history and ... Don't think that you can help people by telling them the imaging findings. Ask questions. But if they are busy, don't interrupt the workflow. If they ask you to leave, please leave. They are probably very busy and want to get things done on their own. Don't push to stay. NEVER EVER correct a resident even if he makes lots of mistakes unless an attending asks you. You may think you can shine by telling something that a resident does not know. Believe me. It does not help. You may think it helps. But no. Even if you are correct, at most people will think that by chance you know something or you have heard it from someone else. But you will make enemies. During interview season, all PDs will ask from residents about their experience with medical students and this can hurt you.

In one line: During an away rotation, nobody is going to be impressed by your knowledge in radiology. There is no such thing as "magic good eye" or "born to become a radiologist". People mostly evaluate your personality and your character.

 

[je355804]

For what it's worth... telling me about your keg stand days in college automatically bumps you up 25 spots on my rank list.

 

[Gadofosveset]

For what it's worth... telling me about your keg stand days in college automatically bumps you up 25 spots on my rank list.

It probably would be +25 for me, too... but med students gotta be cautious. When I was interviewing for residency, my buddy was telling all sorts of interesting stories to an interviewing resident... and not to a resident who seemed too uptight. Later, I overheard that resident cut him off at the knees when discussing him with an attending: "sounds like he might be a handful". "untrustworthy" are what I remember.

Point: be conservative as a med student. The same awesome story that goes over well as a first year resident can get you killed as a med student. Think of it as a job interview.

I would also echo the comments made above. Away rotations are tricky stuff: the likelihood of annoying a resident or attending to impressing them are about 99:1. At the same time, you want to get your face known, right? My advice... if you want to want to impress a program with an away rotation, sit at the workstation as little as possible. Pick a junior faculty member involved in the residency program and a resident and start two small projects/case reports. Ask them if they are interested in making a powerpoint on a radiology topic for med students and make one for them to use (e.g. "stroke imaging for med students" or whatever). You're closer to med students than they are, and they should appreciate you making up something at the correct level for them to use. I would think of the away rotation as mostly networking/project time, not workstation time.

 

[D0cHopeful]

Is there a magic number for numbers of LORs from radiologists to apply for diagnostic radiology residency? Based on the replies, it seems as though radiologists would look for personality/character traits to assess your potential for a spot in the program. How important are radiology LOR in the application process?

 

[ilovemed1]

How do you go about getting a case report?

 

[Want2DoRad]

Don't do it--more risk than reward. You can't do radiology, so there really is no audition.

Consider a second look where you hang out in a couple of reading rooms all day.