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I'm just curious as to how difficult it is to get into a cardiology residency. On a scale of 1 to 10, how difficult is it relative to the other types of residencies?
Cardiology residency?
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To specialize in cardiology you have to do a three year residency in Internal Medicine first. Then you do a 3-year Cardiology fellowship, although many academic cards programs are moving to 4 years of fellowship. Getting into an IM residency is not that difficult compared with other programs, but out of the subspecialties you can do from IM, cardiology is one of the most competitive fellowships.
I've heard that to improve your chances in getting into a cardiology fellowship, that you need to go to one of the academic IM programs that place a lot of fellows. Many of those programs are more difficult to get into than the average IM residency. I don't know how important it really is to go to an academic program, though.
I've heard that to improve your chances in getting into a cardiology fellowship, that you need to go to one of the academic IM programs that place a lot of fellows. Many of those programs are more difficult to get into than the average IM residency. I don't know how important it really is to go to an academic program, though.
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What I perceive to be the most difficult residencies to get into are dermatology (of course, that's what I want to do!), ENT, ophthalmology, and orthopaedics. Everything else isn't that tough.
Do you folks agree?
Do you folks agree?
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You've forgotten plastics. 82% UNMATCH rate!
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Guys,
How tough would radiology and Emergency Medicine be on the scale? I've heard it's significantly easier than ortho--is that so?
Would one need to be AOA to get a res. in one of those two?
How tough would radiology and Emergency Medicine be on the scale? I've heard it's significantly easier than ortho--is that so?
Would one need to be AOA to get a res. in one of those two?
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Radiology has been getting much harder to get into over the last few years. I think it would be easier than the most difficult residencies, and I would bet that you could still get a position without AOA. I don't remember how tough EMed is -- I think it's easier to get into than Radiology. But I'm getting beyond the extent of my knowledge of these residencies, so I should just shut up.
Either way, both of them are significantly easier to get into than ortho -- ortho is a highly competitive field. By the way -- another difficult one that was left out of the earlier list is neurosurgery.
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The number of applications to Radiology has quadrupled this past year. It, and other lifestyle friendly specialties, are becoming increasingly difficult to match into. Not suprising, pretty much everything works on 5 year cycles or so.
Emergency Medicine is down a tad; still not an easy match but easier than Ortho. I would rank Ortho along with the most difficult matches.
Emergency Medicine is down a tad; still not an easy match but easier than Ortho. I would rank Ortho along with the most difficult matches.
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Not sure...perhaps Neurogirl has some insight?
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Except path...haha.
I read last night from one of the links someone gave me that most people can get into the specific path program they want, let alone just the residency. It might have something to do with a .2% unmatch rate. No, that's not a typo...it really is a "point 2" percent unmatch rate.
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Yeah, I'd heard that even the dead could get a path residency. In some financially strapped programs that might even help as they'd have more cadavers to practice on!
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I posted these links in another thread -- I'll post them here as well.
http://www.ama-assn.org/cgi-bin/freida/freida.cgi
http://nrmp.aamc.org/nrmp/
http://www.aamc.org/eras/start.htm
http://www.sfmatch.org/general/welcome.html
http://scutwork.com/
Hope that helps!
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Back to cardiology....
I think that I would like to go cardio, but I am scared to go 3 years in IM and fail to match in a cardio fellowship. My second choice is definately not IM. What should a person do if the 1st choice is cardio and the 2nd is something like surgery or ent? Should they go IM and gamble?
I think that I would like to go cardio, but I am scared to go 3 years in IM and fail to match in a cardio fellowship. My second choice is definately not IM. What should a person do if the 1st choice is cardio and the 2nd is something like surgery or ent? Should they go IM and gamble?
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You'll find that things get much easier to sort out once you are in clinics for a while. You don't need to decide on anything until the end of your 3rd year or beginning of your 4th year. I am in a similar situation as you, in that I am planning on going into pulmonary or cards after IM residency (I'm in my 4th year now...). I also could never do general Internal Medicine. Yes, there is a bit of a gamble in that, but there are SO MANY options available to you from an IM residency, with TONS of subspecialties, that you should be able to find something that you would want to do in that field.
Also, if you can get into ENT or surgery, you wouldn't have a problem getting a cards fellowship. Meaning, ENT is MUCH harder to get into than cardiology (not that you can do cards from ENT
). So be patient, and scope out possibilities. Chances are your career choices will change as you progress through med school.- Joined
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Originally posted by Kimberli Cox:
•You've forgotten plastics. 82% UNMATCH rate!
According to SFMatch.org, the unmatched rate for plastics has been steady at 33% over the last 10 years. 82% unmatched??!!! Where the heck did you get such a number?
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Originally posted by Fah-Q:
•According to SFMatch.org, the unmatched rate for plastics has been steady at 33% over the last 10 years. 82% unmatched??!!! Where the heck did you get such a number?
I'm speaking of the Integrated Plastics Programs which don't match through the SF Match - they are much more competitive than the Independent programs. I should have been clearer in my earlier post; much apologies.
wooo;
More specifics about Cardiology. I also was sure I didn't want to do primary care but opted for IM residency so I'd have Fellowship options. I just matched in Cardiology starting in 2002. As was mentioned in an ealier post, there are several subspecialty options available after IM. Cardiology and GI are very competitive. (Most medicine subspecialties are becoming more competitive as the push for primary care wanes...) >2000 applications for CV last year for 350 positions nation-wide.
If you're sure you want cards, there are things you can do to improve your odds: Board scores and medical school performance play some role but aren't as important as what you've done since graduation from med school. It'll help if you match in a competitive IM program (and certainly a University based program: most program directors feel community programs in IM are geared to produce generalists, whether it's true or not). Also, research is very important: start now! You'll need to get published. It's not terribly difficult to get an abstract published or to do a poster presentation at a nat'l mtg. However, most residents that applied from my residency program didn't start soon enough to get this done. If you can get out a manuscript, it'll be a significant boost to your application and CV. Some forth year students from my program are getting involved in some research projects now. Get in touch w/ a CV fellow or attending that you know to hook up w/ a project; they'd prob'ly love the help and will include you as a co-author.
Doing something above the call-of-duty will help. Some CV programs I interviewed at primarily offered interviews to only Chief Residents. Others looked for masters degrees or PhD's.
Recommendation letters are important: Ask the Cardiology program director from your SOM to write you a letter. Do a rotation w/ them, do reseach w/ them. Be sure to ask if they'll write you a strong letter of support. If not, don't get one from them. Strong letters may get you in the door, weak letters will kill your chances.
Also, many programs will take internal canidates. So consider doing your IM residency where you'd be interested in getting your CV training. Then all you have to do is kick-ass during residency and particularly during your CV rotations.
Good luck
More specifics about Cardiology. I also was sure I didn't want to do primary care but opted for IM residency so I'd have Fellowship options. I just matched in Cardiology starting in 2002. As was mentioned in an ealier post, there are several subspecialty options available after IM. Cardiology and GI are very competitive. (Most medicine subspecialties are becoming more competitive as the push for primary care wanes...) >2000 applications for CV last year for 350 positions nation-wide.
If you're sure you want cards, there are things you can do to improve your odds: Board scores and medical school performance play some role but aren't as important as what you've done since graduation from med school. It'll help if you match in a competitive IM program (and certainly a University based program: most program directors feel community programs in IM are geared to produce generalists, whether it's true or not). Also, research is very important: start now! You'll need to get published. It's not terribly difficult to get an abstract published or to do a poster presentation at a nat'l mtg. However, most residents that applied from my residency program didn't start soon enough to get this done. If you can get out a manuscript, it'll be a significant boost to your application and CV. Some forth year students from my program are getting involved in some research projects now. Get in touch w/ a CV fellow or attending that you know to hook up w/ a project; they'd prob'ly love the help and will include you as a co-author.
Doing something above the call-of-duty will help. Some CV programs I interviewed at primarily offered interviews to only Chief Residents. Others looked for masters degrees or PhD's.
Recommendation letters are important: Ask the Cardiology program director from your SOM to write you a letter. Do a rotation w/ them, do reseach w/ them. Be sure to ask if they'll write you a strong letter of support. If not, don't get one from them. Strong letters may get you in the door, weak letters will kill your chances.
Also, many programs will take internal canidates. So consider doing your IM residency where you'd be interested in getting your CV training. Then all you have to do is kick-ass during residency and particularly during your CV rotations.
Good luck
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The med school I am attending has an IM residency as well as a cardio fellowship. Would it be wise to stay with one program throughout the entire process? (I also intend to ask this question to the IM director at my school.)
Can you get in an IM residency w/high boards and get a "nod" from the director about a future spot in cardio?
Are deals ever made?
Can you get in an IM residency w/high boards and get a "nod" from the director about a future spot in cardio?
Are deals ever made?
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I've heard from numerous attendings and program directors that they feel it's better for residents to "branch out" from their home institution to experience what medicine is like at another program. That doesn't mean you can't get into an IM residency at your medical school -- in fact, programs often have a large proportion of their residents who are from that medical school.
But I see their point -- your training in IM and further subspecialties, or any other specialty for that matter, can become very limited if you only learn from the same people the entire time -- that's how programs get inbred. If you leave to do IM residency somewhere else, then come back for cardiology, then you can come back with fresh ideas and a broader perspective of your field.
But I see their point -- your training in IM and further subspecialties, or any other specialty for that matter, can become very limited if you only learn from the same people the entire time -- that's how programs get inbred. If you leave to do IM residency somewhere else, then come back for cardiology, then you can come back with fresh ideas and a broader perspective of your field.
