Is going to a top tier IM program sufficient to guarantee matching into a heme/onc fellowship?

[TexasMed22]

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I'm starting intern year at a higher tier IM program (Penn Mayo Michigan Duke etc), and I'm trying to gauge how much weight the prestige of my program will carry when it times for fellowship application season. I am not interested in matching at a fellowship at a top academic program (more interested in a mid tier program in a nice city instead), and want to go into community/private practice after, so I was curious if I can just ignore the rat race at this point and instead focus on gaining clinical skills and enjoying my personal life for the next 3 years?

Or do I need to treat this like med school again and publish a bunch of meaningless research, volunteer in my nonexistent free time, and ass kiss in the clinic for the next 3 years?

 

[gutonc]

I'm starting intern year at a higher tier IM program (Penn Mayo Michigan Duke etc), and I'm trying to gauge how much weight the prestige of my program will carry when it times for fellowship application season. I am not interested in matching at a fellowship at a top academic program (more interested in a mid tier program in a nice city instead), and want to go into community/private practice after, so I was curious if I can just ignore the rat race at this point and instead focus on gaining clinical skills and enjoying my personal life for the next 3 years?

Or do I need to treat this like med school again and publish a bunch of meaningless research, volunteer in my nonexistent free time, and ass kiss in the clinic for the next 3 years?

You're still going to have to play the game a little bit. You're going to need the support of your PD and a few faculty to get good LORs for fellowship. And if you're in a gunner factory, you're going to need to look good compared to your peers, not some platonic median. And since gunners gonna gun, you'll need to be a similar level.

The good news is that you can focus your efforts on something you care about (hem/onc) and then be completely average at everything else.