Do I really need to apply to 50-60programs?

[Terps1011]

Most of the advice I have seen online and on the Texas STAR survey recommends applying to 50-60 programs. My advisor is not sure what to recommend. I have a list of 30 mostly community programs I feel I am competitive for in my geographical location. I have read their websites and I think I would be happy at these places too. My step scores are pretty average. I am US MD student. Any thoughts? Experience?

If I do not get enough interviews outright can I just add on more programs later or is it better to add them on upfront?

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[Newhorizons21]

No! Check out this graph from the AAMC. Applying to 40+ programs absolutely does not increase your chance of matching

 

[Terps1011]

No! Check out this graph from the AAMC. Applying to 40+ programs absolutely does not increase your chance of matching
View attachment 272164

Applying to only 16 seems crazy since my advisor said I ideally should rank 10-12 programs. I would need an interview offer from practically everyone. Did you apply obgyn recently?

 

[anonperson]

Most of the advice I have seen online and on the Texas STAR survey recommends applying to 50-60 programs. My advisor is not sure what to recommend. I have a list of 30 mostly community programs I feel I am competitive for in my geographical location. I have read their websites and I think I would be happy at these places too. My step scores are pretty average. I am US MD student. Any thoughts? Experience?

If I do not get enough interviews outright can I just add on more programs later or is it better to add them on upfront?

Depends on your application and if there are red flags.

I had a couple of red flags. Matched at the near bottom of my list (something like #35 out of 38 programs). So I know AAMC lists their stats, but the are outliers.

Main issue now is that there are more and more students applying for residency.

If you do not get enough interviews you technically can add more programs. Interviews are typically offered on a first come basis so there is no guarantee they would have space to interview you even if they liked your initial application. Also, even if you are offered an interview, sometimes they extend offers to more people than they can accommodate so if you sign up too late for an interview, you may be SOL.

Realistically, you probably would be fine applying to 30 programs based on what you describe. There is always a small non zero chance you could not get enough interviews and this could impact your ability to match.