How to target programs for auditions?

[GroupMeLegal]

DO student at a new/untested school, USMLE in the low 230s.

I obviously have no home anesthesia department. How do I evaluate which programs I would be competitive for on paper so I can look into doing my auditions there? I've looked at Freida but have heard mixed things about its accuracy/reliability. Plus not every program doesn't fill it out completely. Are any programs that aren't a part of the Big 10/20/whatever roughly the same competitive-wise?

It's frustrating that I don't have any faculty members in the field with their ears to the ground about the current landscape.

I have *some* geographic preference but am much more worried about matching at all vs secondary concerns.

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[NEU305]

Auditions aren't necessary and are sometimes frowned upon. I won't go more into this, but there's plenty to read on this topic that comes up every year in the forms. Your best shot are programs that are in your region that are receptive to DOs. You can find this either by looking at individual programs websites at their residents or by looking at similar applicants' stats and interview offers on the Official Anesthesia Application and Interview Sheet. You shouldn't have an issue matching. IMO, as far as program strength or competitiveness there's roughly a top 25, bottom 25, and everybody else. Those "everybody elses" are solid university-affiliated programs that you've probably heard of.

 

[GroupMeLegal]

My chief concern is being able to get good anesthesia letters... So maybe I shouldn't go for auditions per-se, but anesthesia sub-I's at well-regarded places? I'll have to look at my "local" options.

 

[NEU305]

My chief concern is being able to get good anesthesia letters... So maybe I shouldn't go for auditions per-se, but anesthesia sub-I's at well-regarded places? I'll have to look at my "local" options.

Ah, I see now. Do you have any anesthesia rotations available inside your hospital network? You don't necessarily have to have a letter from an outside program or a PD, so you could get all of your letters from a rotation like this. You should also have a Department Chair in Anesthesia who you could work with and get a letter from as well.

If you don't have any internal rotations available, then you're probably going to have to go through VSAS for a rotation or two. For the most part those rotations aren't hard to get (even at those "top 25" programs), but it is hard to look good in them.

From what I've gathered from faculty and PDs on the interview trail, letters aren't incredibly important. They all are glowing recommendations that say that you are amazing. I really doubt the letterhead makes too much of a difference in the grand scheme of things.

 

[nimbus]

Earlier this year I slept in and missed an exam for my Clinical Skills Lab (CSL) course. I don't think I'm going to pass and will probably have to remediate it. I've really wanted a shot in this field, dedicating my past summer towards research. Will CSL be the red flag that kills me? Everyone gets an A in this class so I'll probably be at the bottom of the class rank now. I go to a low tier MD school with no home program.

I might not be thinking very clearly right now, the reality just hit me all at once. Sorry if this is disorganized. I've been told all summer by people how hard it is to match and I'm afraid my app will be immediately thrown out. Assuming the rest of my app is on par with the rest of the pool, do I have a prayer? Or should I start exploring other interests. Thanks for reading, I hope this was not an inappropriate post to make.

Edit: I'm an M2.

Did you transfer?

 

[GroupMeLegal]

Did you transfer?

Nope. Ended up passing that class. That should have said "DO".

 

[WillieTrill]

Not to hi-jack this thread or anything, but I was wondering is it necessary to do an away rotation in Anesthesia if your home institution doesn't have a residency? I've done an elective but it was basically me following/learning from an attending preceptor. Is there anything I could gain from doing an away?

 

[AdmiralChz]

Not to hi-jack this thread or anything, but I was wondering is it necessary to do an away rotation in Anesthesia if your home institution doesn't have a residency? I've done an elective but it was basically me following/learning from an attending preceptor. Is there anything I could gain from doing an away?

Not necessary, but useful to give you an idea of what day to day life is like for an anesthesiology resident.