Independent IR match - what are they looking for?

[MouseChair]

Apart from commitment to IR (shown by IR research, SIR involvement)

How about Step 1 scores? Medical School grades? I know these are a factor for IM fellowships again. ITE scores?

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[MadRadLad]

Step scores matter, research matters. IR is a small field so a good letter from a well known IR in the region can go a long way. They want to know you are a hard worker and can work well with people. Most of the other stuff is secondary if you can't meet that requirement.

 

[CyrusHabs7695]

is there such things as "away rotations" during residency, similarly like in medical school? Going to a DR program with no affiliated IR fellowship

 

[guytakingboards]

is there such things as "away rotations" during residency, similarly like in medical school? Going to a DR program with no affiliated IR fellowship

Not in the sense you're hoping for. You're not going to be able to do an away rotation at another random IR program for the purposes of auditioning for fellowship.

1) that would leave your home program down an upper level resident for a substantial amount of time
2) the amount of paperwork needed to be done to get you credentialed to actually scrub in on cases would overwhelmingly not be worth it for your program or the away place.
3) In instances where residency programs send residents on established out-rotations (e.g. peds, country hospital for trauma, etc...), the home program pays the away-site to teach/train those residents. Your program would likely have to cough up funds to send you out.

As for your strategy, it's no different then pre-IR pathway. Get letters from your home IR's, do some IR research there if possible, make some connections through SIR, and otherwise just do a good job (to generate a strong DR PD letter).

 

[LongDogLife]

Apart from commitment to IR (shown by IR research, SIR involvement)

How about Step 1 scores? Medical School grades? I know these are a factor for IM fellowships again. ITE scores?

I'm currently participating in the 22 match. From what I've gathered the most important qualities sought are: hardworking, team player, being teachable/moldable, demonstrating that you are trustworthy through letters/attending attestations, never complaining, not having an ego, and being generally pleasant to be around. Letters are extremely important and a personal phone call from your attendings/mentors also mean a lot. I think some programs put more emphasis on step scores over others but it's not the end all be all like the residency match out of medical school. Personal interests/hobbies are important too because it tells them a little bit about who you are as a person. Where you do residency has importance to but rather than name/pedigree, exposure to different procedures and autonomy is very important. Taking call and having clinical responsibilities also very important. I think most programs know that they can pretty much train anyone to be a good IR as long as they have some basic qualities like I listed above. I think it's also important to be vocal if you really want to go to a particular program and have your mentors/attendings reach out to them on your behalf. I may have forgot a few things, but I hope this helps.

 

[CyrusHabs7695]

Does Step 3 score have any impact at all in fellowship matching process?

 

[LongDogLife]

Does Step 3 score have any impact at all in fellowship matching process?

I don't think so because I took my step 3 this year at the end of January after applications were submitted and I had a lot of interviews including many at "top" programs. I was asked during two interviews what my plans were for step 3 because it has to be passed prior to starting fellowship. They didn't seem to care at all about score, they just want to make sure you passed it. I would definitely recommend taking step 3 in your first or second year of residency, just to get it out of the way. Another thing I would like to add to my prior reply is that involvement in SIR FRS is an important part of the application as well. It's not vital, but it will help you. Wish you all the best!

 

[SantosLHalper]

Not in the sense you're hoping for. You're not going to be able to do an away rotation at another random IR program for the purposes of auditioning for fellowship.

1) that would leave your home program down an upper level resident for a substantial amount of time
2) the amount of paperwork needed to be done to get you credentialed to actually scrub in on cases would overwhelmingly not be worth it for your program or the away place.
3) In instances where residency programs send residents on established out-rotations (e.g. peds, country hospital for trauma, etc...), the home program pays the away-site to teach/train those residents. Your program would likely have to cough up funds to send you out.

As for your strategy, it's no different then pre-IR pathway. Get letters from your home IR's, do some IR research there if possible, make some connections through SIR, and otherwise just do a good job (to generate a strong DR PD letter).

Away rotations like this exist, if uncommonly. My community program regularly sends out residents to large academic centers, usually we’re allotted at least one month during our 3rd year, and mine helped me secure my fellowship.

It’s true though that you can’t apply for an away anywhere in the country like you can in med school. There has to be an agreement in place between the two hospitals, and there is lots of paperwork involved in order to initially establish it. Most of the rotations we do are at one of two academic centers with which we already are established.