competitive residencies

[sunny9505]

I am applying for a Psych residency and wanted to end up in California. Is there a way to figure out how competitive programs are? I haven't found a source that lists the number of applications a program receives or their average board scores... Also, how important is it to rotate through a hospital if you are applying there? Thanks for any help anyone might have.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[ktat72]

with psych you do not have to worry about getting a residency - you can match anywhere you want (take my advice with a grain of salt, i am an MS 3 not interested in psychiatry)

 

[Idiopathic]

http://www.careermd.com

http://www.scutwork.com

also the FREIDA part of the AMA website (better for stats)

I consider it a must to rotate through any prospective residency spot, just to familiarize yourself with the place. Also, if you shine there (which should be a priority), at least they will remember you

 

[gwen]

well, its easy to say the psych is sooo easy to get into. my good friend, who was in AOA and all that good stuff, didn't get his first choice of psych at UCLA. some psych programs are much tougher. just my 2 cents.

 

[TulaneKid24]

I know someone who failed Step 1 on first attempt, was in the bottom half of his class, and got into a decent california university psych residency (UC-Irvine, I believe).

So, it can be done. Good Luck

 

[MBK2003]

I interviewed at a couple of California programs last year. If you are seriously interested in UCLA or UCSF, definitely do an away rotation. These are felt to be the two most selective programs in the state. Two other well-regarded, but somewhat less competitive programs are UCSD and Stanford. I absolutely loved UCSD and would have ranked it first if I didn't have a spouse with employment considerations.

If you want ideas about how competitive programs are, you might want to ask the psych residents at your school their perception of the California residencies when they interviewed.

Good luck!

MBK2003