HELP! Where to do my away cardiology elective?

[Handsome]

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Hi everybody

After browsing tens of web pages, I decided to post my problem here. I'm starting my PGY-2 and planning for Cardiology elective in Nov, 2010. I'm an IMG in an affiliated prog where there is no card fellowship 🙁 , so where do you think I can apply for an away elective to get either strong LOR or boost my chances in matching in that program?

Appreciate your participation in advance guys, anything can be of a great help

 

[dragonfly99]

There are two basic strategies:
1) is to do an elective at a place with a good name/bigger reputation, but those type places will be very unlikely to take an IMG from a community program as a fellow, so you'd be doing it strictly to get a LOR from a prominent faculty member
2) is to do an elective at a program where you might actually have a chance to match. This would be somewhere that you know takes IMG's, and perhaps that has taken IMG's from your particular program in the past.

I don't really know which strategy is better.

 

[cardio2012]

I would prefer the second strategy ,doing an elective at a program that had already accepted IMGs or accepted a residents from your program previously would help you more than a just LOR from a very famous faculty ,just an opinion !!!
Good luck 🙂

 

[dragonfly99]

I think that I agree with that. Based only on an "away" elective, even if you got a LOR from some famous person, it probably won't be very descriptive or help a ton...unless maybe you spent a long time doing research with him. If you rotate somewhere that you might actually match, that gives you a leg up when it is time for them to decide who to interview. Also, I'm not sure this is true but even if a certain place doesn't take you, perhaps if the person/people know someone (say at an affiliated program(s) or other programs in the same region) it still may help you. The famous people at places like Harvard, Columbia, etc. tend to know other faculty at other famous places, and those type places probably aren't going to interview you anyway.

 

[Rhode Island]

Thank you very much, I prefer the second approach too. Best wishes for all 🙂