My child is MS3 at a state med school. Her Step 1 is 240+ (I don't remember the last digit). She wants to be an eye doctor. I understand she has to get a match to enter residency. I have a few questions about the match.
1) She said she would apply to about 30 places. Is she applying to that many programs in order to get ONE match? Or to get a BETTER match?
2) I checked SF Match statistics. Apparently, many are not matched. Can one improve match probability by ranking lower programs high? In other words, is match outcome determined by careful ranking or her overall standing in the competition? Is she likely to get a match in your opinion (soley based on Step 1 score)?
3) She has applied for externship at 5 places and received acceptance from 2 places. Are the programs that didn't offer externship not likely offer residency? Or are residency and externship two different things?
Thank you in advance for your answer(s). I am not trying to educate myself so that I can counsel my child. I just want to be able to understand the process a little better and understand her stress level.
1) She said she would apply to about 30 places. Is she applying to that many programs in order to get ONE match? Or to get a BETTER match?
2) I checked SF Match statistics. Apparently, many are not matched. Can one improve match probability by ranking lower programs high? In other words, is match outcome determined by careful ranking or her overall standing in the competition? Is she likely to get a match in your opinion (soley based on Step 1 score)?
3) She has applied for externship at 5 places and received acceptance from 2 places. Are the programs that didn't offer externship not likely offer residency? Or are residency and externship two different things?
Thank you in advance for your answer(s). I am not trying to educate myself so that I can counsel my child. I just want to be able to understand the process a little better and understand her stress level.
