match question

[hatothebib]

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hey everyone. i am a 3rd year med student applying to radiology next application cycle & have heard about how intense the competition is this year (much like every other year). my numbers are a touch below the average for radiology and i have a question about not matching...if one does not match and doesn't get a spot in the scramble, i know they can go ahead an do a prelim year and then reapply the next year. can these people match straight into radiology that next year, though? for instance, next year we will be applying for 2010 starting spots. so if i didn't match and did a prelim year, how do i get a 2010 spot when the next cycle would be for 2011? sorry if this is confusing. thanks in advance & good luck to all of those in this year's madness.

 

[novado]

If you do not match, you would have to hope for a spot of PGY2 to open while completing your internship. It happens, but those spots often fill internally with people from that same place changing their minds from surgery, medicine, peds, etc. Your best bet is to make sure you match the first time. Do as many away rotations as you can at places you have the best shot of matching, and follow proper radiology etiquette while on these aways. You can start trying to schedule them now. Take Step 2 early and study hard for it. Try to show that you can improve your Step 2 score. If you do not match, you would have to reapply and try to figure out what you are going to do for another year in btwn because you are matching into PGY2 year during the match (some programs even have their internship year included already, so you would have to repeat that). This would also be expensive to reapply, and it is difficult to get time off during your internship year for interviews.

 

[hatothebib]

thats what i was afraid of. a ton of good information, though. thanks for the reply.

 

[threemae]

and follow proper radiology etiquette while on these aways. .

Could you talk a little bit about this?

I understand that you should never pimp or show-up a resident in front of an attending, etc., but what else should I know about making a good impression beyond generally, "don't be a jerk?"

 

[DCMDtobe]

if your step one is a couple point below the average for those who match in radiology (i.e. low 230s), you'll match. Assuming you have no red flags and your 3rd year grades are decent, you'll match. Just try to maximize your application (get some research in, good grades, good letters, maybe an away or two) and apply to some community / less competitive programs.

 

[novado]

and follow proper radiology etiquette while on these aways. .

Posted in another message on this forum.
It is actually more difficult than you think to not accidentally show up residents. Simply put, most rads residents do not do much radiology during their often brutal internship year. When they do get time to study, they are busy doing so for Step 3, not radiology. You have more time to study than they often get. There are going to be times where you know more than some first years, and the more away rotations you do....the more likely this is going to happen. As a med students, you can simply move to another station to see more cases while the residents are busy dictating or editing their dictations. You often see more pathology than they will see in the same time period. So, do not get cocky, just realize it is fact of life sometimes. Recognize that when you are a first year rads resident, there may be some fourth year med students that may know more than you. These fourth year med students are doing their away rotations while first year rads residents are just starting.

So, be courteous. Treat them with the respect that you would want in a few years. But, also realize that if you are finding that you often know more than the upper level residents, that does not look good on the program. This should only be reflected in your rank order list. However, you will not even be able to rank them if you do not get an interview to begin with.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=290159