IMGs and years after graduation

[NeedToStudy]

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Most residency programs say they want IMG applicants to have graduated within the last 5 years. However I'm now hearing from many people that residencies won't look at your application if you graduated more than 3 years ago. So which is it?

FYI, I'm mainly looking into FM and Psych residencies.

 

[gutonc]

Most residency programs say they want IMG applicants to have graduated within the last 5 years. However I'm now hearing from many people that residencies won't look at your application if you graduated more than 3 years ago. So which is it?

FYI, I'm mainly looking into FM and Psych residencies.

Does it matter? You can't turn back the clock. Apply and see. But note that just because they say 5 years is OK, they're going to have plenty of applicants with less time out than that.

 

[NeedToStudy]

Does it matter? You can't turn back the clock. Apply and see. But note that just because they say 5 years is OK, they're going to have plenty of applicants with less time out than that.

I guess if I've been out too long it brings up the question of whether or not I should be looking at other options. I haven't taken step 1 yet but if I've heard of applicants who had good scores who still got rejected because they were out too long.

 

[the argus]

It's totally program specific, there is no one size fits all answer. For the most recent match that we have data (2013), the average time since graduation for MATCHED foreign-IMGs was 4.7 years, and the average time for UNMATCHED foreign-IMGs was 7.5.

Broken down by specialty, 3.6 years for matched foreign-IMGs in FM, 6 years for psych.

~5 years since graduation is the norm, not the exception.

 

[McSap]

It also matters a lot what you have been doing in the years since graduation, which doesn't show in the NRMP data.

 

[NeedToStudy]

It also matters a lot what you have been doing in the years since graduation, which doesn't show in the NRMP data.

Studying for usmle and hopefully a research job.

 

[gutonc]

Studying for usmle and hopefully a research job.

Wait...how long have you been studying for USMLE? 5 years?

 

[NeedToStudy]

Wait...how long have you been studying for USMLE? 5 years?

No not 5 years. It's been a while though. I've been studying on and off. I'm hoping to take both step 1 and step 2 soon.

 

[the argus]

Answering these 3 questions will help us give you better answers.

1. Are you a U.S. citizen?
2. What country did you go to medical school in and what year did you graduate?
3. What exactly have you been doing since graduation (not your future plans)?