Disappointed IM match. How competitive for future?

[sloppyBandit]

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New Account for this post so as not to reveal. As stated I'm one of those hit (what I think as hard for match).

I was from a top 20 school, with high I/CK scores, but I didn't know what I wanted during medical school, had failed research projects with bad surgical mentors (I know they were bad because I've had many pubs with good mentors during undergrad), and I realized late that I loved cardiology.

I got great interviews at top 20 IM programs, but ended up matching decently low on my list at BUMC, shunned by even my home institution.

Now, i'm looking to know how hard will it be to get back into top academic cardiology fellowships.

-how much will BUMC (which has an interesting past on on SDN) hold me back from a top compared to if I had at least stayed at a top 20 IM? (what tier for IM is BUMC considered here?) (they were on my list because they seem to have a lot of time for research, 3+1, lots of 2nd year elective, and their recent match lists have been consistently pretty good)

-How bad is no research during medical school in the long run for cards?

-How do I right this? (I read a lot here about just getting in good with program directors, and cardiology chiefs). How early do I go about this? How do I find out whose best to work with and make those contacts early without seeming overeager and pushy?

Mainly, I went down pretty low on my rank list, and am looking for honest answers about what this means...

 

[jackdaniel]

BU has a very good rep. I have seen residents from BU match at MGH, BWH as well as JH..u r in good shape..dont worry.

 

[FreakofMeds]

BUMC match in cardiology last year:


2015 Fellowship / Career Choices
Cardiology
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA
Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA
Indiana University Hospital of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN
Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD
Temple University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA
Tufts University Medical Center, Boston, MA
UMASS Medical Center, Worcester, MA
University Of Texas Medical School, Houston, TX
Yale University Hospital, New Haven, CT



Suffice to say, relax you will be alright.

 

[Serous Demilune]

BUMC match in cardiology last year:


2015 Fellowship / Career Choices
Cardiology
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA
Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA
Indiana University Hospital of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN
Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD
Temple University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA
Tufts University Medical Center, Boston, MA
UMASS Medical Center, Worcester, MA
University Of Texas Medical School, Houston, TX
Yale University Hospital, New Haven, CT



Suffice to say, relax you will be alright.

Get this pile of **** out of my face. Man's Greatest Hospital or bust.

 

[sloppyBandit]

Get this pile of **** out of my face. Man's Greatest Hospital or bust.

🙂 ty... this made me laugh... I was never going to get into top 10 schools cause of my lack of research. It's more a blow to move from a 10-20 med school to BUMC when I had soo many good interviews.

If anyone want's to answer my questions about how much harder it may be, what to do, where is BUMC seen in the IM world, or just reassurance that BUMC is just as good as lower top 20 school for cards fellowships, that would be nice.

 

[Dr Love]

What exactly are your goals long-term? Do you just want to get into A cardiology fellowship, one with high clinical volume, one with basic science research, one with name recognition, or what? Your goals tailor the approach you use.

The reality is that for cards and most IM specialties it is easier to get a better fellowship if you come from a more prestigious institution, which means it is harder from a less prestigious institution (but still definitely doable).

As for the match itself, it is of course disappointing to go far down your list. That said, it happens to a lot of people and BU is fairly decent. You are not out of the running for anything except for MGH/BWH which basically recruit from within only.

 

[sloppyBandit]

I don't even care for MGH/BWH, I'm actually looking one day to get into a top NYC program (Columbia, sinai, nyu, cornell) after IM residency.

 

[IMhopeful1]

What about for a program like Michigan or WashU? Do I have the option of going to a top cardiology program on the east coast?

 

[P Diddy]

I don't even care for MGH/BWH, I'm actually looking one day to get into a top NYC program (Columbia, sinai, nyu, cornell) after IM residency.

you'll be competitive for sinai, NYU, and cornell.

p diddy

 

[P Diddy]

What about for a program like Michigan or WashU? Do I have the option of going to a top cardiology program on the east coast?

Yes.

p diddy

 

[IMhopeful1]

More specifically, my wife and I are trying to stay either near her parents (in MI) or mine (MO) next year for while our daughter is still a baby. But we are hoping to go back to the east coast where we lived for a while (Boston and NY) and have a lot of friends, if I do fellowship. I saw very few "top" east coast cardiology programs in both of their match lists...

 

[Mr. Hammersmith]

This is my first time replying to anything on this network.

Ignore all outdated posts of BU on SDN. Having been a recently grad and matching into cards, it is a great place to train. Clinically, you learn an incredible amount as it is the city hospital of Boston. Second, the program director has made incredible strides to cut down anything that lacks educational value and is serious about pairing new interns with research mentors.

The cardiology department is incredibly strong with very well known physicians in the field (take a look at cocats guideline contributions).
Research is strong with Framingham research group. Also, you work with physicians from BI and BWH through the VA which increases your research options.

I have not heard of anyone having difficulty matching into cardiology. The department of IM and cardiology have a vested interest in your success and will do what they can to see you succeed.

Hope this helps make you feel better. You will love your training there. The attending a are great and your co residents are incredibly supportive.

 

[Sunburn74]

For reference, half that list of people who matched last year at BUMC are either chiefs or people who worked as a hospitalist/part time researcher for a year. They essentially needed an extra year to get things ready. What you really want to ask is "how many people wanted to apply but are now hospitalists or primary care because things didn't go right in that 2nd year?" That is really the most important thing to know and you only get that by asking people at that place.

To the OP, what you need to match into cards as a US grad is research and letters. At BMC you can get good to great letters (former AHA pres Alice Jacobs, Paul Dudley white winner Gary Balady, Bill Colucci, Emelia Benjamin are all nationally recognized) because all the staff have great ties to Brigham, but the research is very hard to get. Unfortunately, at BMC only a handful of true researchers are still around and they are tied up with fellows and do not really work with residents; research is really hard to find. Try and do everything at the VA (clinic, rotations, etc) which is run by 90% Brigham faculty. Get brigham staff on your side. They will connect you with researchers at brigham, mgh, BI etc, places which have more research than residents to work with and you also with get letters from those people in those departments which go a long way.

Finally, you should know that your view on cardiology and top programs will change. If you're thinking you'll be winning fame and fortune by going to a "top" program, you're wrong. Furthermore, if you think you will significantly improve your changes of fame or success at a tope program compared to an average program you're wrong. The reality is, at the end of the day, even if you absolutely nail everything (went to all the best schools and programs), you will still be a nobody to pretty much everyone, other cardiologists included. This is true of every field in medicine. Think about it. Name the top 6 cardiologists or neurosurgeons in your state. I bet you can't. And think about it. These are people who absolutely nailed it. Did everything perfectly, went to the best schools, did the best research, get talks at the best conferences, and despite all that 99.9% of people in their field still don't know them. At the end of the day when big time cardiologists die, nobody knows or cares other than a small collection of people who worked directly with them or at best in the same city. That's the thing you should think about now. At the end of the day, your life is what you judge it to be.

 

[IMreshopeful]

I find it nauseating when people find going to a very good program like BU a "downgrade" because now they're no longer in their top 10-20 bracket because it reeks of smug superiority.

You will match a cardiology fellowship despite going to residency somewhere other than Harvard or Hopkins or Penn, despite what this message board may have you believe. And surprisingly, just because you go to a cardiology fellowship that isn't "top tier" ultimately (let's just say hypothetically), you will most likely still come out an excellently trained cardiologist.

 

[IMreshopeful]

Finally, you should know that your view on cardiology and top programs will change. If you're thinking you'll be winning fame and fortune by going to a "top" program, you're wrong. Furthermore, if you think you will significantly improve your changes of fame or success at a tope program compared to an average program you're wrong. The reality is, at the end of the day, even if you absolutely nail everything (went to all the best schools and programs), you will still be a nobody to pretty much everyone, other cardiologists included. This is true of every field in medicine. Think about it. Name the top 6 cardiologists or neurosurgeons in your state. I bet you can't. And think about it. These are people who absolutely nailed it. Did everything perfectly, went to the best schools, did the best research, get talks at the best conferences, and despite all that 99.9% of people in their field still don't know them. At the end of the day when big time cardiologists die, nobody knows or cares other than a small collection of people who worked directly with them or at best in the same city. That's the thing you should think about now. At the end of the day, your life is what you judge it to be.

I couldn't have said it better myself. I genuinely feel that people put way too much stake into being "the best of the big time". It's perhaps expressed more rampantly on SDN I suppose.

Sure if you have a specific research interest which you are drawn to, and want to become the best at the expense of all other things, go for it. If you have other priorities in life, I'd focus on those other priorities and just work towards being a good doctor in whatever field you choose.

 

[Nivakia]

Then just do research in your residency, and publish lots and lots. You seem to be overreacting,