Going for AOA ortho. Do I need an ACGME back-up?

[cherryvanilla11]

Hi all,

MS4 here. Going for ortho.

Step 1/Level 1: 232/ 730s
Step 2?Level 2: 248 / 760s

No research, average # of volunteer/work experiences. Currently on auditions and have gotten good feedback. Feel like in fit in pretty well with the ortho crowd. My question is, if i'm applying to AOA ortho programs, is it generally a good idea to apply to a lesser competitive speciality in the NRMP match? (i.e. anesthesia). If I do, would Ortho PD's be able to see this? I just don't want to spread myself too thin.

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[ChiDO]

The match program doesn't show us where applicants have applied to, but you could be asked that question in an interview. When we interviewed, the top four programs basically were competing with each other for the best applicants Lansing, Doctors, Harrisburg, PCOM. I had friends at every other place, thus I could tell applicants the pros n cons of each and then also text my buddy and ask about you and where they were gonna rank you. The cream usually rises to the top.

From what I understand, your usmle scores are below average so I wouldn't even bother with ACGME.