Getting the most out of an Away rotation

[JetsSBXLIII]

Hey everyone,
I'm scheduled to start an away rotation at the beginning of Sept. and I was wondering if anyone had any advice as to how to get the most out of this time spent at this institution. Some context:

This Top Tier program is currently sitting at #2 on my rank list (pre-interview, obviously), and I love this program not only for the clinical training but because the institution could heavily cater to my particular research interests. So, while I am doing this Away to get my name and face in front of the Program Director to hopefully improve my chances of scoring an interview, I also would like to explore the research side of things while I'm there.

My plan is to request to meet with all of the faculty in my area of interest while I'm there, and also to meet with the Program Director. Does anyone have any thoughts/ideas about what else I should do that I'm overlooking? How can I be the best visiting student I can be without becoming annoying?

My stats if it helps offer advice:

-MD/PhD
-Step 1: 234
-Step 2: 258
-no AOA or Honors (my school doesn't do H, HP, etc)
-just found out that I'm 3rd quartile in my class for third year by HALF A freaking POINT (aaaarrrgh)
-several extracurriculars, with one that I'm hoping really sets me apart
-I have no ties to this program or region, which is also what worries me, and another reason I'm doing this Away

Gracias in advance muchachos and muchachas!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Strawman123]

Be friendly. Spend time with the residents outside of work. Get to know as many faculty as you can. I wouldn't recommend requesting formal meetings with all the faculty. That seems a little too aggressive/presumptuous in my opinion. Try to meet them in a more informal setting like grand rounds, before or after lectures, etc. If you really hit it off with one or two of them, then request a meeting. One strong faculty advocate can count for a lot.

 

[Radz123]

Agree with straw man. I wouldn't formally request meetings, just go up and start talking. You application isn't too bad so try not to let it stress you out.

 

[JetsSBXLIII]

Agree with straw man. I wouldn't formally request meetings, just go up and start talking. You application isn't too bad so try not to let it stress you out.

Thanks Strawman123 and Radz123 for your input. Admittedly, I was looking to meet with PhD's about their labs (and only 2 or 3 of them), but point taken. I can just stop by their labs and try to catch them. I'm glad you think my app doesn't look "too bad", haha. I hope you mean that when referring to top tier programs . No, seriously, that's good to hear. I knew that I had to deliver on Step 2 and I hope I did enough, but I realize that my application still has deficits.

 

[IJL]

Your main goal is to not be annoying. If you can hang out with the residents outside of work and they actually like you, then that is the most beneficial thing that you could do.

Sounds easy, but I've seen many students fail hard.

 

[g8orlife]

Agree with the above, the #1 feature that determines if I dislike a med student rotating thru radiology is by the level of annoyance. Please, don't worry about not knowing something, don't ask a million questions during the middle of my search pattern, etc.

If someone is chill/laid-back, easy to talk to, and professional, he/she stands out positively.

Showing interest is another positive, but please don't be over-eager (b/c it comes across as either fake or annoying). You can show interest by just showing up on time according to your schedule, not sleeping/yawning/texting-all-day, having questions saved for downtime/breaks during image interpretation, and asking to observe procedures.

 

[shark2000]

If someone tells you to go home, just go. Don't stay around.