Im an M1 and seeing a lot of people get involved in different specialties but i have no idea what specialty interests me. But I also do not want to waste time.
How did you narrow it down? Any good resources for seeing what different specialties are like?
Knowing early has its advantages.
1.) Identify someone you have shadowed. Do you want their life in 30 years? What things of their life do you like/not like?
2.) What are your plans for the future and how long can you feasibly invest into training?
3.) How well do you handle stress? If not well but you're someone willing to work hard and make genuine connections every day maybe you'll be better in a less acute setting (outpatient).
4.) Do you want to be doing things with your hands/value quick results, etc. Then maybe something surgical is right for you.
Once you're done with this exercise there's tons of flow-sheets and charts online as well as MCQ tests but the first thing to decide on is medicine or surgery.
1.) Surgery or Medicine? Do you like to work with your hands, be certain of things, work long hours vs. do you like to talk to patients, be cerebral, etc. Don't worry that these are extremes but it's important to have an idea of which line of thought you identify with. There are also fields that do a bit of both like OB/GYN (ex.)
Surgery Pathway:
-What are your particular interests? Do you like bones, angles, and physics or cauterizing, snipping, and colons. How much do you value your income? How much do you value your time? Do you want to develop relationships with patients and see them in clinic regularly or just fix remove their appendix, follow up in a few weeks, and be done with it?
Medicine Pathway:
-What are your particular interests? Do you like the brain and thinking about pathways, figuring out where the lesion is, and are meticulous with your physical exam? How much do you value your income? Speaking of that, do you like procedures because GI/Cards offers both. Do you handle stress well? If not, maybe outpatient is a better setting for you. Do you like to be a generalist or specialist? Do you like to triage and stabilize? etc, etc.