geographic prejudices in EM and away rotations?

[ExistentialistPhilosopher]

This is my first time in an eternity, posting on SDN. Wow. How time flies.

Anyway, I'm a rising fourth-year, and I'm sure I want to do EM. I've scheduled an away EM rotation for July and my home rotation for August. The downside? Both are in NYC (where my med school is), and although I'd be happy to stay in NYC, I'm also open to any location on the Eastern seaboard and some areas of the Midwest.

My question is, should I replace my currently scheduled away rotation in NYC with a rotation somewhere "different" to show residencies that I'm not limiting my options to NYC? I've been told that EM residencies often consider whether an applicant is likely to attend when interviewing/ranking, and I don't want to put myself at a disadvantage at non-NYC programs.

My concerns are mainly financial; my debtload is higher than expected (my fault, not my school's), and I'm loathe to consider airline tickets and the cost of rent in another location.

Any advice would be much appreciated!

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[gutonc]

My concerns are mainly financial; my debtload is higher than expected (my fault, not my school's), and I'm loathe to consider airline tickets and the cost of rent in another location.

I'll leave it to others to answer the away question. But if you're not willing/able to spend the money to fly out to another program for 2-4 weeks for an away and an SLOR, will you be willing to spend the money to fly to 5-10 places during interview season?

If not, don't bother leaving the area.

 

[ExistentialistPhilosopher]

I understand your point, but flying out for interviews is a necessary cost. Doing an away rotation is important, sure, but I already have one scheduled that will allow me to compare 3 vs. 4 yr, community vs. academic. I don't know if it would be worth the extra cost to drop that away rotation and schedule one elsewhere to try to gain credibility in the eyes of EM residencies that I am, in fact, willing to relocate for the right programs. There seems to be a widespread assumption that if you're in NYC and have family nearby, you'll probably not leave. I'm trying to figure out if an away rotation in another city/location will counteract that perception. If so, I'll suck up the extra cost, no problem.

 

[quicknss]

It could definitely help going to a region and doing an away. It shows commitment above and beyond other applicants. That being said I could not afford to do one on the West coast and only did one on the east coast and managed to match in my top west coast school so not doing one is not a death sentence.

 

[Dane07MD]

I'm more interested in your decision to do an away prior to your home EM month.

From current MS4s: If you interview out of regions where you did aways, be prepared to answer the question as to why you only did aways in NYC. They will all ask, and you need a good explanation. I doubt cost issues are really a great reason, but if that's all you got, and the truth, might as well admit it. Be honest with yourself too, if you really want to be in NYC, 2 aways there looks even better to programs in the city. It's not like NO ONE will grant you an interview because of it, just be ready to offer explanation.

 

[roja]

NYC programs are fairly well known, so you are probably safe if you are looking to stay on east coast/midwest. If there is somewhere in the midwest you really want to be, its not a bad idea to do a rotation there.

California has a deep bias, so if you were interested in west coast, you absolutely need to do a rotation to get a foot in the door.

I'd say the same for NYC but your there.

 

[quicknss]

Definitely not true about needing to do a rotation out west. Plenty of peeps I know did rotations out west but didn't get interviews. Plenty did rotations in NYC and boston and matched out west! Just do well wherever you go. The west is more inclusive of the East but the East is skeptical that West Coasters are only ranking them as a fall-back.

 

[Venko]

I would never suggest over extending financially than you can truly afford.

If it falls within your possible budget to do an away elective outside of your home area it is worth your while to your career and understanding of available options. I don't think it adds terribly much to your interview process, but certainly the practice of EM is vastly different in different regions and types of hospitals and the more you get to experience the better. It is difficult to travel during some residencies and you may not get the experience of perspectives during residency like you will with some strategically placed away electives in medical school.

With that said, medical education has a never ending list of ideals, but do what you can do and don't sweat anything beyond it.