info on residency in general please...

[voodoodoctor]

hello, i'm a newbie to med school and i'm finding the adjustment rather hard. I know i have probably messed up the first semester all ready...

i'm afraid i have messed up bad and my future as a neurosurgeon (eh? maybe not) is shaky. i think i would fair better if i had a goal to strive for like i did in college. but i can't find any averages for USMLE and class rank for any kind of residency. i know when i was in undergrad my first year i could easily find the average GPA and MCAT scores for any school and that helped me set my goals...

so could anybody tell me where i can find just overall averages of USMLE scores and class rank for each kind of residency? and could someone tell me how important grades are? cuz i am now worried that i am quickly closing off my options on what kind of physician i can become.

thanks,
voodoo

oh yeah and how important are extracuricular activities?

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[j7chico]

I believe you shouldn't worry about averages and numbers! Just learn the material in order to become the best physician you can be. Don't strive for anything but the best you can do. Your patients will thank you for it in the future.

 

[platinumdoc]

We enter medical school with dreams of becoming neurosurgeons, cardiothoracic surgeons, or even family practioners. However, with experience, we find that niche that suits our personality, talents and abilities. Do the best that you can and in the end you will achieve your dream.

 

[Winged Scapula]

I am unaware of any centralized source of information for average USMLE scores and gpas/class ranks for the various specialties. You can check sources like Iserson's "Getting into Residency" and "First Aid for the Match" which will give you general ideas about the competitiveness of each field, as well as information from individual programs.

Bear in mind that all of the above and other sources will only provide you with averages and these say NOTHING about you as a candidate. For example, my USMLE Step 1 score is undoubtedly below the average for a Categorical Surgical applicant, however, I was fairly successful on the interview trail. This is because USMLE scores are not the be all/end all of residency applications. This is not to say that you will be the best applicant with less than average scores for Neurosurgery, but that great scores are no guarantee either.

Extracurriculars vary with importance to program; they don't make up for less than stellar academics but if they are meaningful to your future career goals, make you a more interesting person and help differentiate you from the pack, all the more reason to pursue them. Besides I would much prefer to work alongside someone with some outside interests than a resident who did nothing outside of pre-med and medical school for 8 years. Get outside and do something otherwise interesting with your life.

 

[Whisker Barrel Cortex]

Although there is no stats on grades and boards for most specialties, many of the San Francisco (early) match specialties do have average board scores on their website. Neurosurgery, neurology, optho, ENT, and combined plastic surgery are the specialties in this match. The website is: http://www.sfmatch.org Then you can go to match stats for each specialty. I agree with the above statements, however, that there are many factors to admission. Good luck.

 

[Winged Scapula]

Just a little clarification: The SF Match does not provide matching services for the Combined Plastics residencies but for further training in Plastics AFTER at least 3 years of General Surgery. The Combined Plastics (ie, "Integrated") programs either utilize ERAS or their own applications and match through the NRMP.