Matching into a prelim program

[wrkndply]

How hard is it to match into a prelim program? I'm not very competitive for categorical general surgery so also applied to several prelim general surgery spots. Just want to get a sense of what the numbers are or how competitive these are (as in can I assume this is a safe backup?)


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[kemper6036]

How hard is it to match into a prelim program? I'm not very competitive for categorical general surgery so also applied to several prelim general surgery spots. Just want to get a sense of what the numbers are or how competitive these are (as in can I assume this is a safe backup?)


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

your run of the mill prelim spot is not going to be very competitive. many of these will not match and instead fill during SOAP. the good preliminary spots will be somewhat more competitive as they will provide more educational, networking and clinical opportunities. you will get a sense of how competitive you are based on the number of interviews you get but i would still rank the prelim spot at the end of your list. keep in mind that doing a prelim year and going through the match again will not change where you went to school (IMG) or your board scores (if they suck). but occasionally the networking factor will help you. make sure you have a plan. good luck