DOs in Anesthesia

[WorldsBestNinja]

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Hi,
I'm a 4th year DO student applying for anesthesia this year. I've seen many posts about where FMG's stand in the competition, but not much about DOs. So where do we stand? Do you still have a great disadvantage compared to the US MDs? I don't really care about "top-tier" programs. But I want to stay in NY and most NY programs are very competitive. So what do you think my chances are with a 227(92) on Step 1 and 620(90) on Comlex? I honored all of my 3rd year rotations except psych.
Thanks,
Ninja

 

[ecCA1]

Vent is at Rush and doing well. I know a guy at Yale, and there are plenty of others out there beyond those two.

Some places may be resistant, but DOs are becoming more common in allopathic institutions of all types.

 

[ripped cheese]

DOs are definitely a presence at a number of programs. However, as evidenced within the last few years, anesthesia is competitive, so the top programs and California programs are interviewing very few or no DO students. The sheer number of available spots make anesthesia less competitive than ENT, rads, or ophtho (which can limit their spots only to MD grads, with the rare exception).

There are a lot of NY programs, top and not "top" tier, so I think you'll have no problem, with those scores, getting interviews. Good luck with the process and if you apply smart, you should be fine.

 

[VentdependenT]

Hi,
I'm a 4th year DO student applying for anesthesia this year. I've seen many posts about where FMG's stand in the competition, but not much about DOs. So where do we stand? Do you still have a great disadvantage compared to the US MDs? I don't really care about "top-tier" programs. But I want to stay in NY and most NY programs are very competitive. So what do you think my chances are with a 227(92) on Step 1 and 620(90) on Comlex? I honored all of my 3rd year rotations except psych.
Thanks,
Ninja

Its too late to worry about a disadvantage my friend. Never the less you should be fine for the match. There are plenty of spots available.

You are fine. Rotate, get some letters, do a SICU rotation. Hold off on USMLE step II, your step I score is good enough.

As for number of programs to apply to? Well apply WHEREVER you want and screw the bill for now. Interviews and ERAS come before saving money. As for a minimum number...uhh I dunno I'd say twenty five. Totally arbitrary. I applied to around 60 places. Big right? Well, nobody told me what to do. Good thing was that I could turn down interviews. My USMLE was the same as yours.

you have ranked 10 placed by the end of it you will match.

 

[Arch Guillotti]

What Vent said.

 

[WorldsBestNinja]

Thank you for all the replies!

 

[me454555]

Ninja,

I'm in a similar situaiton as you w/slightly worse board scores. I'm applying to 30 progams w/a strong emphisis on the east coast. I don't think it should be too much problem to match somewhere w/that many programs on my list but we shall see. I can always add programs later if I feel I need to

 

[Induc(junc)tion]

What about having a weak CV? I am comforatble with my scores, >90th percentile, my grades, and my letters. But my CV is very weak. 1 award, two small volunteer experiences and a couple of professional organization memeberships.

 

[WorldsBestNinja]

Induction,
I'm in the same boat. I don't have any awards and only a few volunteer activities. I guess my personal statement will have to really stand out.
Good luck.

 

[VentdependenT]

Don't sweat the CV. Unless you were a md/phd guy/gal your CV is gonna suck just as much as the next guys'. If you had undergrad research experience you can add it in there. Any special courses you took can be added as well (anatomy TA, advanced dissection, etc).

 

[Idiopathic]

While I didnt apply to Sinai or some of the other NYC programs, I didnt get a whiff of interest (or even an outright rejection) from:

Cornell
Columbia
MGH
BID
B&W
UCSF
Stanford

Now admittedly those are 7 of the top 20 most desired (and applied to) programs in the country and they had many applicants, but just keep in mind that you need to look for a way to distinguish yourself if you are wanting to stay in a high demand area (i.e. NYC). My CV was decent, I would try and find something to put in yours (to offer a slightly different opinion from Vent), even if its just a great LOR or well-written PS.

As a footnote, I ended up where I wanted to at a top institution, so things work out the way they should, I believe. Good luck!

 

[amyl]

what about research in psychology? would you put that on your CV or not?

 

[Idiopathic]

Put everything you can in your CV. Be sure to have some words ready about how it did/will help you.

 

[supahfresh]

yeah, pretty much what everybody else said. you'll be fine. spend the money on the applications. once the interviews come through, you can pick and choose and accept and decline them as you please.

i agree with holding off on step II. but i suppose that you could take it and not check the box that says you automatically transmit your score once you take the test. this way, if you bomb the test, you can withold that score from the programs.

 

[doc3341]

How important/helpfull is research?

 

[amyl]

i have asked the same question here and gotten the reply that it isn't that important. doc3341, going to pm you as i am from nsu as well.

 

[VentdependenT]

How important/helpfull is research?

It isn't important to match. However if you do have some under your belt it definitely wont hurt your app.

 

[doc3341]

It isn't important to match. However if you do have some under your belt it definitely wont hurt your app.

What about a MPH completed while in med school? Thanks

 

[VentdependenT]

Having an MPH under your belt isn't relevant unless you plan to apply it to anesthesiology in some fashion. Otherwise its just something else to have under your scholastic belt.

 

[vegasdo]

ok

 

[ohmygoodness]

Can someone help me out?

USMLE 215 (87)
COMLEX 612 (90)

Do you think I should include my USMLE scores when applying to allopathic anesthesia residencies........or will my COMLEX score alone get me interviews?

 

[supahfresh]

maybe both. you might want the programs to see that you took USMLE because some places may eliminate you if they see COMLEX only. not entirely sure about this one. 215 is not a bad score so why not submit it. you're not hiding anything this way.

 

[Sugar72]

I would submit it too. You don't have a bad score. If this is step 1, take step 2 and do better. You will be able to sleep better at night!

 

[ohmygoodness]

Thanks for the input. I think I'm going to submit both scores. I'm not looking to get into harvard or anything, I just want to do anesthesia. I would also like to think that I didn't spend all that time and money on the USMLE for nothing!

 

[WorldsBestNinja]

Ok, I know you guys suggested waiting to take step 2 until later b/c my step1 scores are ok. But at that point, I had already taken it. I got my score yesterday -- 226/92. My step 1 was 227/92. So I actually went down 1 point. Do you think this is ok? Should I re-submit my USMLE transcript on ERAS?

 

[badgas]

Ok, I know you guys suggested waiting to take step 2 until later b/c my step1 scores are ok. But at that point, I had already taken it. I got my score yesterday -- 226/92. My step 1 was 227/92. So I actually went down 1 point. Do you think this is ok? Should I re-submit my USMLE transcript on ERAS?

DO NOT SUBMIT THAT SCORE!! Most places have a 227 cutoff for step 2 so you totally blew it! You got the same damn score... submit it and impress everyone w/ your consistency. You know that they are both good scores.

 

[WorldsBestNinja]

thanks🙂