away rotation / SLOR timing

[MD13]

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In terms of applications, will doing away rotation in September and October put me at a disadvantage considering I will try to get a letter from the September rotation (ie ask someone at the end of September)

WIll that delay my applications? Also - I guess I'm a bit confused as to the suggested deadlines (vs actual deadlines).. What is the ideal date by which you want to have your application and LORs submitted?

Also - I understand that applications may be moving earlier this next year.. how does that affect interview timing? Which months will have the majority of interviews? I have a rotation scheduled for Nov/Dec, but I can take January off if that would help... any thoughts on that?

Thanks!

 

[b-real]

I was in that same situation, and it hasn't been a problem. By the time I submitted my app (1st week of September), I only had 1 LOR (non-EM) in. I started getting invites by the following week. I had SLORs from my home institution in by the end of September and the flood gates opened as far as invites. You won't be at a disadvantage if you try to get your other recs in ASAP. If you do a rotation that ends in late October, figure at least 1 month for the SLOR to arrive. Just notify programs that they should keep an eye out for it.

Biggest piece of advice: APPLY EARLY, as in have your app, personal statement and whatever LORs are available by EARLY/MID SEPTEMBER. It really does matter in terms of getting invites. The dean's letter (MSPE) will be released October 15 starting next year, but that doesn't really matter. I had about 20 invites before the dean's letter (and my away SLOR) was released.

Also, regarding Step 2: I'm a huge proponent of taking it early. Most people improve over Step 1, and programs do pay attention to it. Also, it's one less thing to worry about over the course of your 4th year. However, if you destroyed Step 1 (240+), you may want to hold off, but in general I would say to take it early.

 

[Nervous Ned]

I was in that same situation, and it hasn't been a problem. By the time I submitted my app (1st week of September), I only had 1 LOR (non-EM) in. I started getting invites by the following week. I had SLORs from my home institution in by the end of September and the flood gates opened as far as invites. You won't be at a disadvantage if you try to get your other recs in ASAP. If you do a rotation that ends in late October, figure at least 1 month for the SLOR to arrive. Just notify programs that they should keep an eye out for it.

Biggest piece of advice: APPLY EARLY, as in have your app, personal statement and whatever LORs are available by EARLY/MID SEPTEMBER. It really does matter in terms of getting invites. The dean's letter (MSPE) will be released October 15 starting next year, but that doesn't really matter. I had about 20 invites before the dean's letter (and my away SLOR) was released.

Also, regarding Step 2: I'm a huge proponent of taking it early. Most people improve over Step 1, and programs do pay attention to it. Also, it's one less thing to worry about over the course of your 4th year. However, if you destroyed Step 1 (240+), you may want to hold off, but in general I would say to take it early.

I agree with all of this.

MD13, I applied the first week of September with one non-EM letter and one SLOR from my home program. My away rotation SLOR came out in late October even though I did the rotation in August, and it was no problem whatsoever. You'll be fine with rotations in September and October. Just make sure that you meet with the PD at each program and let them know that you need a SLOR.

For when to interview, I think January is a good month to take off. That way, you will have time to schedule interviews in advance, especially since some of your top programs may not start sending out invites until late October/early November. The only bad thing though is that if you miss an interview for bad weather, you have a limited opportunity to reschedule, compared to if you did the bulk of your interviews in November.

 

[MD13]

Thanks a lot for the advice.

In terms of interview timing.. do many programs offer January interviews? As in--is it worth scheduling that month off so that I can do a large number of interviews during this time, or will it be minimal such that I can just miss some days here and there during my rotation?

Also - Is it unfavorable to interview in January instead of scheduling the interview earlier?

I will have to take a rotation in October and November, but can certainly take time off for interviews as long as I make it up. In your opinion, would it be wise to schedule January 'off' (vs. doing a light rotation vs. doing a normal rotation) and if so, would it be wise to try and schedule a bulk of the interviews during that off month?

Thanks again!

 

[RPedigo]

Thanks a lot for the advice.

In terms of interview timing.. do many programs offer January interviews? As in--is it worth scheduling that month off so that I can do a large number of interviews during this time, or will it be minimal such that I can just miss some days here and there during my rotation?

Also - Is it unfavorable to interview in January instead of scheduling the interview earlier?

I will have to take a rotation in October and November, but can certainly take time off for interviews as long as I make it up. In your opinion, would it be wise to schedule January 'off' (vs. doing a light rotation vs. doing a normal rotation) and if so, would it be wise to try and schedule a bulk of the interviews during that off month?

Thanks again!

Almost all programs do offer January interviews. You can certainly schedule a month off (I scheduled research weeks which are flexible, so I essentially had as many days out as I needed from early November to late January). Just check to see what your institution's MS4 requirements are and plan accordingly. My institution requires 30 weeks of "stuff", but not all of it has to be clinical. So I can do 24 weeks of clinical rotations and 6 weeks of research in the almost 52 weeks of 4th year. Lots of time off, and I've even scheduled more than 30 weeks this year.

They actually studied whether or not it mattered if you interviewed early or late and how that affected the match. Turns out it doesn't matter when you interview. Just don't overextend yourself and also realize that flights may be delayed/canceled depending on where you're interviewing geographically. (I'm pretty much only interviewing in California, so in this case it's not really an issue, but for those with East Coast heavy interviews, it may be.)

Good luck!

 

[b-real]

Definitely take time off. As far as when, your call. Programs typically interview from November-end of January/beginning of February. Most med schools will cap the number of days off you can get for interviews, so it's a good idea to use vacation time so as to minimize that hassle.