Cannot seem to honor any rotation...arrg.

[Red Beard]

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Well, 3 more rotations to go in my 3rd year, nothing but 'pass' so far. Planning on IM but would like to be able to get into a good program....

My school has Honors, Pass, Fail grading plus class rank. To honor a core rotation you have to 'honor' each of 3 components--shelf, eval, and OSCE. I honor the shelf and about 2/3 of my evals, yet miss the cut off on the OSCE every time.

Board scores very good, eval comments very good overall (no lukewarm or negative comments), I think probably top 1/3 in class. Is all "P" in my core rotations going to kill me?

 

[vtucci]

If it is the OCSE that is holding you back, I would ask your preceptors to see if you can see the comments. Are you consistently missing/doing something?

Maybe you are using too much medical terminology and the patients are downgrading you. Maybe the patients have an issue with the way you present yourself.

 

[cdql]

I matched into a highly competitive field with 0 3rd year honors. It can be done.

That being said, the top notch IM programs want to see oustanding sub-I grades so it's a situation that you'll still want to rectify before 4th yr

 

[Clemson Doc]

Board scores very good, eval comments very good overall (no lukewarm or negative comments), I think probably top 1/3 in class. Is all "P" in my core rotations going to kill me?

I don't think it will prevent you from doing well in the match. I am of the belief that strong LORs, performing well in your sub-i (getting an "H"), a really good score on Step 1 or 2 CK, and valuable leadership experience in the specialty of interest are the keys. I dare any program to turn someone down who meets the above four criteria.

I say that because the above measures stand out. They are clear indicators that you are going to make any residency program look good in all areas. In other words, they are evidence that others will like you, you will work hard, you take tests well, and you are a leader. Whether or not you got another couple of "H's" during clinical year or had a high grade in your first year biochemistry class doesn't matter (and why should it?).

 

[cdql]

i will say this, if you don't honors, at the very least, make sure your written comments are excellent

i got 0 honors but I had excellent written comments on every rotation (even our notoriously malignant OBGYN rotation)

as a result, my actual transcript looks wicked bad but my MSPE made me look like a saint

 

[Rogue Synapse]

I have a similar problem. My MSPE will look awesome based on comments so glowing they make me blush, but I *just barely* miss the cutoff for honors every single time - including an internal medicine grade of 3.81 (Pass). I have yet to honor anything, even in my chosen field of neurology - a rotation with comments that basically said "this student will single-handedly advance the field of neurology and be one of the best residents around". I have a great step 1, great awards/extracurriculars, a few publications, and I think I interview well, so I'm just going to let this one little dent roll off.

I think you'll be fine, too. It's true that third year performance is very important in residency application, but the comments that make up the MSPE are more important than pure grades from what I've heard. At least that's what I'm repeating to myself...

 

[JenHeart]

Will your school display each component on the MSPE or whatever your school uses? If so, it is fine as the residency programs will see you honored the eval / shelf / OSCE but maybe not all of them.