Wow...in my brief foray into looking up some information for you, WBC has done a great job of summarizing the two fields. First off let me say that I am by no means an expert or even very knowledgable about either of these two fields.
As WBC notes, Heme-Onc is one of the more competitive of the IM subspecialties, albeit not nearly as much so as procedural based fields like Gastro. It is generally 3 years (sometimes with an additional lab year) after 3 years of IM or Peds. The following from the AMA web site:
FREIDA Online Specialty Training Statistics Information
Hematology and Oncology (IM)
General Program Information
Academic year
2000
Number of accredited programs
116
Length of accredited training
3
Minimum number of prior years required
3
Offers graduate year 1 positions, available immediately upon medical school completion
No
Application Information
Average number of program year 1 (PY1) applications
79.7
Average number of PY1 interviews
13.7
Residents
Total number of active residents/fellows
855
Average number of residents/fellows
7.4
Average percent female
31.3%
Average percent international medical graduates
50.9%
Faculty
Average number of full-time physician faculty
17.8
Average number of part-time physician faculty
1.0
Average number of volunteer physician faculty
3.3
Average ratio of full-time physician faculty to resident/fellow
2.7
Resident Work Hours (PY1)
Average hours on duty per week
47.7
Average maximum consecutive hours on duty
16.7
Average days off duty per month
Work Environment and Compensation (PY1)
Average percent of training in hospital outpatient clinics
37.9%
Average percent of training in non-hospital ambulatory care community settings
1.2%
Average resident/fellow compensation
$40,119.9
FREIDA Online Physician Workforce Statistics Information
Hematology and Oncology (IM)
Data From Physicians as they Complete a Residency or Fellowship Program
Survey Population
Academic year
1997-1998
Survey period
1998
Response rate (interpret accordingly)
48.2%
No. of resident physicians who reported completing a GME program
94
No. of resident physicians eligible to enter the workforce (excludes those who entered another
program or fulfilled military obligation)
78
Confirmed Employment Status Upon Program Completion
Not employed upon program completion
5.1%
Non-medical career or other plans
14.1%
Academic position
32.1%
Non-academic clinical practice in specialty
47.4%
Non-academic clinical practice in another specialty
1.3%
Work Environment for those Entering Practice in their Specialty
Working less than 30 hours per week
0.0%
Working in a group practice
70.3%
Working in a town with population less than 50,000
13.5%
Working in a different state than where GME took place
56.8%
Experienced significant difficulty finding a preferred position
13.5%
Salary equal or higher than expected
80.0%
Data From Physicians in the Workforce for 2 Years
Survey Population
Academic year
1996-1997
Survey period
1999
Response rate (interpret accordingly)
33.3%
No. of physicians who reported entering the workforce 2 years ago (includes those who fulfilled
military obligations)
57
Current Employment Status
Not employed
2.6%
Administration, non-medical career, or other plans
0.0%
Military position
5.1%
Academic position
43.6%
Non-academic clinical practice
48.7%
Work Environment for those in Academic and
Clinical Practice Positions
Average hours per week spent in patient care
46.6
Employed less than 30 hours per week
0.0%
Working in a group practice
74.3%
Working in a group/staff model HMO
7.1%
Working in a town with population less than 50,000
21.4%
Working in a federally designated underserved area
3.6%
Profile of Impact of Market Forces for those in Academic or
Clinical Practice Positions
Current salary equal or higher than expected
55.6%
Overall satisfaction with current practice arrangement: (1=very unsatisfied, 5=very satisfied)
3.6
Likelihood of changing jobs in the next 2 years: (1 = very unlikely, 5 = very likely)
2.4
Average number of job offers received
6.1
Experienced significant difficulty securing a preferred position
13.2%
Average number of positions held since completing GME (including current position)
1.3
Radiation Oncology is also fairly competitive - definitely better lifestyle (few if ever any emergencies) and pay. Not very many residency programs so it does tend to be a "who ya know" field. A colleague of a friend of mine doing Rad Onc was offered $260K right out of residency with an additional $60K "signing bonus". Not bad - she was apparently going Mercedes shopping that day!
The same stats from AMA:
FREIDA Online Specialty Training Statistics Information
Radiation Oncology
General Program Information
Academic year
2000
Number of accredited programs
75
Length of accredited training
4
Minimum number of prior years required
1
Offers graduate year 1 positions, available immediately upon medical school completion
No
Application Information
Average number of program year 1 (PY1) applications
69.2
Average number of PY1 interviews
14.0
Residents
Total number of active residents/fellows
411
Average number of residents/fellows
5.5
Average percent female
27.3%
Average percent international medical graduates
23.6%
Faculty
Average number of full-time physician faculty
8.5
Average number of part-time physician faculty
0.4
Average number of volunteer physician faculty
1.8
Average ratio of full-time physician faculty to resident/fellow
1.6
Resident Work Hours (PY1)
Average hours on duty per week
48.8
Average maximum consecutive hours on duty
15.3
Average days off duty per month
Work Environment and Compensation (PY1)
Average percent of training in hospital outpatient clinics
72.6%
Average percent of training in non-hospital ambulatory care community settings
5.1%
Average resident/fellow compensation
$36,419.6
FREIDA Online Physician Workforce Statistics Information
Radiation Oncology
Data From Physicians as they Complete a Residency or Fellowship Program
Survey Population
Academic year
1997-1998
Survey period
1998
Response rate (interpret accordingly)
50.0%
No. of resident physicians who reported completing a GME program
68
No. of resident physicians eligible to enter the workforce (excludes those who entered another
program or fulfilled military obligation)
56
Confirmed Employment Status Upon Program Completion
Not employed upon program completion
1.8%
Non-medical career or other plans
3.6%
Academic position
21.4%
Non-academic clinical practice in specialty
71.4%
Non-academic clinical practice in another specialty
1.8%
Work Environment for those Entering Practice in their Specialty
Working less than 30 hours per week
5.3%
Working in a group practice
76.9%
Working in a town with population less than 50,000
21.1%
Working in a different state than where GME took place
75.0%
Experienced significant difficulty finding a preferred position
30.0%
Salary equal or higher than expected
75.0%
Data From Physicians in the Workforce for 2 Years
Survey Population
Academic year
1996-1997
Survey period
1999
Response rate (interpret accordingly)
43.9%
No. of physicians who reported entering the workforce 2 years ago (includes those who fulfilled
military obligations)
54
Current Employment Status
Not employed
0.0%
Administration, non-medical career, or other plans
0.0%
Military position
0.0%
Academic position
22.0%
Non-academic clinical practice
78.0%
Work Environment for those in Academic and
Clinical Practice Positions
Average hours per week spent in patient care
49.5
Employed less than 30 hours per week
4.0%
Working in a group practice
87.0%
Working in a group/staff model HMO
9.8%
Working in a town with population less than 50,000
11.9%
Working in a federally designated underserved area
5.0%
Profile of Impact of Market Forces for those in Academic or
Clinical Practice Positions
Current salary equal or higher than expected
62.0%
Overall satisfaction with current practice arrangement: (1=very unsatisfied, 5=very satisfied)
3.6
Likelihood of changing jobs in the next 2 years: (1 = very unlikely, 5 = very likely)
2.5
Average number of job offers received
3.4
Experienced significant difficulty securing a preferred position
30.0%
Average number of positions held since completing GME (including current position)
1.4
