Match / Residency Advice for Future Applicants

[RainbowYoshi]

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So basically we 4th years are getting closer to submitting our final ranklist in the coming days. I wanted to create a forum for anyone who has any general advice or insite about things to consider before we submit or about neuro residency in general they may want to share.

 

[Postictal Raiden]

1. Salary, benefit package (at some programs you may pay up to $600 a month in premiums if you have dependents while at others everything is paid for by the program), food budget, free parking, etc

2. Location. Think about how you like to spend your little free time. Also consider the climate. Are ok shoveling snow in Michigan, heat stroking in AZ, or soaking in your sweat in Miami?

3. class size. Bigger the size the more scheduling flexibility and less night coverage. But also small size has its benefits (more resources, more scholarly opportunities, and more face time with faculty)

these are few things to consider that many people tend to overlook when selecting a residency program

 

[Shas72]

iam in my 3rd year of medical school in the US. Im an international student. I have got step 1 score of 251. Will I be able to get into speciality residency programs ? How bright are my chances considering Iam not a US citizen?

 

[Thama]

If you have a US MD, good scores and grades, and no visa issues (presumably because you're already here for med school), then you won't be seen differently than any other US MD grad and would have a good shot at whatever specialty you have the CV to be competitive for. If you have a green card then that's just as good as being a citizen for residency purposes.

If you need your residency program to sponsor a visa, that gets a little stickier but it's still done routinely and wouldn't be a major problem if you're otherwise a good applicant.

 

[Shas72]

If you have a US MD, good scores and grades, and no visa issues (presumably because you're already here for med school), then you won't be seen differently than any other US MD grad and would have a good shot at whatever specialty you have the CV to be competitive for. If you have a green card then that's just as good as being a citizen for residency purposes.

If you need your residency program to sponsor a visa, that gets a little stickier but it's still done routinely and wouldn't be a major problem if you're otherwise a good applicant.

Can you pls explain the visa issues I can face?

 

[Thama]

Can you tell us what your actual situation is?

 

[Chibucks15]

How should we go about building our lists of programs to apply to? I’m very much trying to stay in the middle of the country geographically but obviously there aren’t many programs in certain areas.

On top of this, I don’t want to waste application money applying to places I won’t be remotely close to competitive for. I can provide scores and stats and all that but I’m basically an average applicant with scores on the slightly low side but above average in research experiences, etc (according to residency explorer)

Any tips? Thanks!

 

[Spinothalamic]

How should we go about building our lists of programs to apply to? I’m very much trying to stay in the middle of the country geographically but obviously there aren’t many programs in certain areas.

On top of this, I don’t want to waste application money applying to places I won’t be remotely close to competitive for. I can provide scores and stats and all that but I’m basically an average applicant with scores on the slightly low side but above average in research experiences, etc (according to residency explorer)

Any tips? Thanks!

This is the fun part! Think about your desired location and then pick a few random states or cities that sound interesting. After that, just use a search engine to look for residency programs around that area. Many of them have good websites where you can get an idea of their curriculum (inpatient vs outpatient, exposure to EMG/EEG, electives), fellowships offered, and track record of alumni. You can see which ones may seem like a good fit on paper.

As for gauging your competitiveness, there isn’t really any magic formula. If you don’t have an amazing application you statistically are not likely to get into so-called
“top-tier” (aka brand name) programs but will have a great shot everywhere else. I would still apply to some reaches that sound interesting.

For most people, the potential benefits of applying to say 25 programs instead of 15 far outweigh the monetary cost (increased flexibility, peace of mind), but is mostly overkill. (See probability of ranking in Charting Outcomes in the Match PDF for allopathic seniors who rank 10 programs.)

 

[Chibucks15]

This is the fun part! Think about your desired location and then pick a few random states or cities that sound interesting. After that, just use a search engine to look for residency programs around that area. Many of them have good websites where you can get an idea of their curriculum (inpatient vs outpatient, exposure to EMG/EEG, electives), fellowships offered, and track record of alumni. You can see which ones may seem like a good fit on paper.

As for gauging your competitiveness, there isn’t really any magic formula. If you don’t have an amazing application you statistically are not likely to get into so-called
“top-tier” (aka brand name) programs but will have a great shot everywhere else. I would still apply to some reaches that sound interesting.

For most people, the potential benefits of applying to say 25 programs instead of 15 far outweigh the monetary cost (increased flexibility, peace of mind), but is mostly overkill. (See probability of ranking in Charting Outcomes in the Match PDF for allopathic seniors who rank 10 programs.)

I don't mind not getting into top tier or whatever I just want to be in a decent area haha thanks!

 

[DerpyNeuroMD]

For most people, the potential benefits of applying to say 25 programs instead of 15 far outweigh the monetary cost (increased flexibility, peace of mind), but is mostly overkill. (See probability of ranking in Charting Outcomes in the Match PDF for allopathic seniors who rank 10 programs.)

Thoughts on how virtual interviews will affect this?

 

[carrots28]

Does one need to do a medicine sub internship for an internal medicine? Or can I ask someone I have worked with in the past in outpatient internal medicine?

 

[bigfootisreal]

What kinds of scores excludes someone from “top-tier” programs?

 

[EmilKraepelin55]

What kinds of scores excludes someone from “top-tier” programs?

From the data I have seen, a lot of those top programs have Step 1 230 - 240 as the low end of their average range while 240+ is sort of the Goldilocks zone. But I am spitballing based on my look at residency explorer and FRIEDA. So it looks to me like 220-230 is circling the drain and <220 is a no-no.

 

[bigfootisreal]

From the data I have seen, a lot of those top programs have Step 1 230 - 240 as the low end of their average range while 240+ is sort of the Goldilocks zone. But I am spitballing based on my look at residency explorer and FRIEDA. So it looks to me like 220-230 is circling the drain and <220 is a no-no.

So if you’re a 230+ those are your “reach” schools so to speak.