If you aren’t a us citizen then it’ll be more difficult to find a job but most IMGs do. Really depends on where you did your residency. If you did your residency at a strong program then you can skip the surgpath fellowship. It really depends on how you feel. Seems like most want you to be good at General surgpath for private jobs. A Cyto fellowship will get you an interview like I said.
Gi and Cyto are both marketable fellowships. Whether you pick gen surgpath or Cyto depends on how you feel in gen surgpath. If you feel comfortable at signing out breast, Gyn, GI, gu and derm then you can do Cyto. Remember private practices want you to be confident at signing out everything that includes derm and medical liver biopsies.
If you do surgpath I would go to all big places. Employers look at your cv and where you trained. Big names will open eyes. Do not train at lesser named places for fellowships.
If you choose surgpath, realize that you will have to signout Cyto in practice without a fellowship. If you choose Cyto, you will have to feel comfortable signing out General surgpath in practice.
Also depends if you want to join a group or do GI only in a corporate practice, which I don’t recommend because it will limit your jobs.
Like was mentioned earlier, I would look for a job after your first fellowship. You don’t need to do two fellowships. If you didn’t go to a strong training program then you may have to do a second fellowship to makeup your weak areas.
I would work hard and look at as many Cyto cases as you can. You should be looking at all the Cyto cases not just paps. Look at as many surgpath cases you can focusing on your weaknesses.
Pathology is broad and the amount you have to know and be able to diagnose is overwhelming. I know people who are out in practice who don’t even know cytopath but they learn on the job from the senior pathologists in the group.
