Good/Avg Board Scores - No Pubs - What Can I Do :(

[To be MD]

Hey SDN,

I'm applying into Med-Peds this upcoming fall, and I have a 235-240 step 1 score and a 250-255 step 2 score. As far as those board scores alone are concerned, I'm right at the average of a matched allopathic Med-Peds resident.

That being said, I am not a researcher. I have had a couple of research experiences, chart reviews, that have not resulted in any publications, posters, or abstracts.

Am I dead on arrival applying this fall? I didn't have research experience coming into medical school, and, though I'm interested, I've never been mentored through the process. I'm totally not opposed to research--I'm actually interested in it, but I'd need to go somewhere that could really dumb down the process.

I am couples matching, and I am seriously concerned that I won't even get an interview invite. Let me know what y'all think 🙁.

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[rukia013]

I had lower board scores than those which you posted and 0 research/publications and ended up with more interview invites than I could physically attend (I ended up attending 17 which looking back was waaay more than I needed to attend) and matched into my top 3. From my experience MP seems to take a more holistic approach when viewing applications and unless you do absolutely nothing outside of med school, have a terrible personality, and/or have negative letters of rec you should be perfectly fine. You may not get into a "top tier" or research heavy program but I don't see why you wouldn't get invites. Just a heads up that if your partner is also going into MP then that might be a little tougher when it comes to making a rank list/matching since the majority of programs have a small class size ie. 4-6 interns/year. Best of luck! 🙂

 

[andrek82]

Rukia013 said it well. You'll be fine. The most exclusive places demand all the things. Most programs don't. Med peds is all about fit.

 

[To be MD]

Rukia013 said it well. You'll be fine. The most exclusive places demand all the things. Most programs don't. Med peds is all about fit.

I had lower board scores than those which you posted and 0 research/publications and ended up with more interview invites than I could physically attend (I ended up attending 17 which looking back was waaay more than I needed to attend) and matched into my top 3. From my experience MP seems to take a more holistic approach when viewing applications and unless you do absolutely nothing outside of med school, have a terrible personality, and/or have negative letters of rec you should be perfectly fine. You may not get into a "top tier" or research heavy program but I don't see why you wouldn't get invites. Just a heads up that if your partner is also going into MP then that might be a little tougher when it comes to making a rank list/matching since the majority of programs have a small class size ie. 4-6 interns/year. Best of luck! 🙂

Thank you both for the encouragement. Understood!

 

[tantacles]

Hey SDN,

I'm applying into Med-Peds this upcoming fall, and I have a 235-240 step 1 score and a 250-255 step 2 score. As far as those board scores alone are concerned, I'm right at the average of a matched allopathic Med-Peds resident.

That being said, I am not a researcher. I have had a couple of research experiences, chart reviews, that have not resulted in any publications, posters, or abstracts.

Am I dead on arrival applying this fall? I didn't have research experience coming into medical school, and, though I'm interested, I've never been mentored through the process. I'm totally not opposed to research--I'm actually interested in it, but I'd need to go somewhere that could really dumb down the process.

I am couples matching, and I am seriously concerned that I won't even get an interview invite. Let me know what y'all think 🙁.

Med-peds is not research heavy. People below the average often match. People above the average have a chance at not matching. rather than looking at that median, I would suggest that you look at the charts from charting the match I have attached. To summarize:

Of US MD Seniors:

50/62 (76%) applicants who applied to med-peds with a Step 1 score of 231-240 matched.

100% of applicants who ranked 8 or more programs matched.

What does this tell you? Those 12 applicants who did not match must not have ranked more than 7 programs. Did they not rank them because they didn't get interviews? Possibly. Why didn't they get interviews if that's the case? Well, most likely because they overestimated their own competitiveness and did not apply to enough programs. You can see in those same charts that 14/18 (77.8%) of US seniors who applied to med-peds with scores of 221-230 matched. Whaaaaaat. Why do those applicants have a higher success rate?

No idea. I have a ton of guesses, but it all boils down to small sample size. In addition, "preferred specialty" refers only to the very first program ranked, so if you ranked Case Western's med-peds program #1 and University of Michigan's pediatrics program #2 and matched to U of M pediatrics (edited), you did not match to your preferred specialty and are thus in the green "not matched" column.

I DO know, though, based on the very first chart, that 223/226 people who applied to only med-peds programs matched.

Odds are looking pretty good for you. Relax. Take a breath. Apply broadly. Interview at 15 places you like that are close to a program your partner likes. Rank them in the couples match, and take the time to also rank the possibilities that are not ideal so you have the maximal possibility of matching.

These statistics can only help you if you look at them critically and don't fixate on one aspect of them.

Edit: added words for clarity