MS3 seeking guidance/advice

[medstuffs]

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Hey guys, sorry to add another "here's my story, what should I do?" thread.. I've been lurking on SDN for ages trying to figure out what to do with my situation, but decided to finally just ask and see if anyone can help. I'll save everyone a lot of the details unless you'd like more info, but long story made shorter:

I'm an AMG, current MS3, and received a 209 on Step 1, 2nd attempt, and because of issues with scheduling at my school, my options are either to 1) take Step 2 CK/CS too late to submit scores to residencies before interview season is almost over for Match 2015 (I would be taking them this upcoming Nov/Dec) and graduate late June.. about 1-2 weeks before July 1/residencies officially start, or 2) I can delay graduation by a couple months and finish classes in late Aug/Sept and apply for Match 2016 as a senior instead of Match 2015. I could take the remainder of the extra year to do research, gain more volunteer experience, get an MBA or something, etc. I've spoken with the advisers at my school and they are recommending I delay graduation and find a way to be productive with my time the extra year. If I could choose, I'd rather take the extra time to find more ways to gain experience in this field.

What do you guys advise? Would it be worse to interview without Step 2 scores (assuming I even get interviews) or push back graduation- hopefully getting a great Step 2 score and more experience in this field so I match to 2016. If I don't push back graduation it will be extremely difficult scheduling everything, as I won't have any vacation time, and this is the only time my school allows us to take off for interviews and Step 2 study. I only just found out about the PM&R field a few months ago and have absolutely loved it. Just nervous about figuring out which course is the best action to take. Again, if anyone wants more details about the situation let me know.

 

[Eilat87]

Why would you willingly push your graduation off a year later (you like school or something?).

I'd never do that.

That's a year of attending salary to me.

Plus, you're an AMG, and that step 1 score isn't terrible.

You'll be fine.

 

[medstuffs]

Eilat87, I know it'd be hard to lose a year of extra salary.. but if it's the difference between matching or not matching, I would definitely sit out the extra year. Just trying to figure out which path looks less detrimental on applications 🙂 But thank you for the reassurance with the Step 1 score... wasn't sure since it was a 2nd attempt.

 

[Eilat87]

Eilat87, I know it'd be hard to lose a year of extra salary.. but if it's the difference between matching or not matching, I would definitely sit out the extra year. Just trying to figure out which path looks less detrimental on applications 🙂 But thank you for the reassurance with the Step 1 score... wasn't sure since it was a 2nd attempt.

If you're that scared about not matching, why not just apply to more programs.

Unless what you're really worried about is not matching to your top choice.

 

[medstuffs]

If you're that scared about not matching, why not just apply to more programs.

Unless what you're really worried about is not matching to your top choice.

I already planned on applying to as many places as I could. More worried about matching at all.. I had just been told by my school that applying with mediocre Step1 score after a fail without any Step 2 to show improvement may not go well for getting interview invites. Being honest, I really would prefer to delay a year unless I'd be shooting myself in the foot for matching in 2016. Thanks again for the quick response 🙂

 

[hashtag]

Medstuffs,

I think that you already made your choice- and are simply running it by us SDNers to see what our take is. Being that PM&R is getting more competitive every year, I personally think that your preference to delay a year is a valid one. BUT, and it's a huge but, Eilat87 makes a valid point. You will be sacrificing tens of thousands of dollars to make yourself a more attractive candidate. Should you decide to take a year off, I would definitely recommend researching programs that interest you, trying to see if there is one subspecialty in PM&R that you like more than others, doing away rotations at some of these cool programs, conducting research and getting a poster or something in, and of course, studying for and doing well on Step 2. Your heart seems to be in the right place, and your interest is genuine, but without a lot of exposure to the field that you can cite and bring up during interviews, it wouldn't be as easy to "prove" your interest. Several interviewers on my trail asked SPECIFICALLY what rotations/exposure I have had to PM&R. They really want to make sure you understand the pros AND cons of the field and its patients, in order to ensure fit (I presume).

To apply with all those credentials and a better step 2 should be more reassuring for programs for sure. In terms of the 2nd attempt on Step 1, it may be a red flag for some programs and it should sway you towards taking the year off (as I'm sure it did). Then again, I am only an MS4 who is freaking out over my rank list (I am also couples matching), so my experience and knowledge are limited. Would I make the same decision knowing what you know and feeling the way you do? I think I would. But a year off is a LONG time away from medicine and you will have to fight the temptation to get complacent, especially if you are someone like me who needs structure in order to learn more...responsibly lol.

Lastly, after doing all of that, the hope is that not only will you get more interviews, but you will score interviews at a few more competitive programs and have more options. By and large, the candidates I have met on the trail have mostly all been extremely interesting, diverse, compassionate, and intelligent- so I'm sure for quite a few programs, the numbers DO end up mattering somewhat when deciding rank, whether they admit it or not.

Any attendings/faculty/residents out there who are reading this who know anything that I say to be false, please correct me!

 

[hashtag]

oh yea, one thing I am NOT sure about is taking a year off BEFORE graduation, or graduating and taking a year off... I think if you take the year off BEFORE graduation, and start MS4 year after a year (I know someone who did this to do a year of research at NYU for PM&R), you will be applying as a US Senior, NOT a US Grad. I think the former is preferable. and like before- people please correct me if I am wrong.

 

[rads214]

.

 

[Xardas]

I will simply echo what others have said and say that your return on investment of waiting one year and not getting into the work force earlier is, no offense, a very bad idea. Get yourself out there, get trained and get in to the work force.

Unless you are doing someting with that year which is going to be a life changing type experience then its not worth it. Frankly, many people are going to ask you why there was a gap in the first place.

 

[medstuffs]

Thank you all for your replies. Hashtag, yes, it is true I would prefer the choice of pushing out graduation for various reasons, but was initially trying to present the situation in a neutral manner in an attempt to hear downfalls to each decision, uninfluenced by my opinion. I've spoken with a few people at my school, and most seem to agree that even though it is possible to have things scheduled to match in 2015, there is no guarantee that courses/away rotations/interviews will actually line up perfectly on such a tight deadline considering I will have no allowance of vacation time on the off chance all the rotations don't line up back to back. I will definitely weigh the consideration of missing an extra year of an attending's salary and double check that I would still apply as a senior (and not a graduate). However, overall it sounds like delaying graduation would not mean shooting myself in the foot for matching in 2016 vs applying in 2015 with late board scores and less experience in the field?

Thank you all again for taking the time to read through this thread and for your input!

 

[RangerBob]

Thank you all for your replies. Hashtag, yes, it is true I would prefer the choice of pushing out graduation for various reasons, but was initially trying to present the situation in a neutral manner in an attempt to hear downfalls to each decision, uninfluenced by my opinion. I've spoken with a few people at my school, and most seem to agree that even though it is possible to have things scheduled to match in 2015, there is no guarantee that courses/away rotations/interviews will actually line up perfectly on such a tight deadline considering I will have no allowance of vacation time on the off chance all the rotations don't line up back to back. I will definitely weigh the consideration of missing an extra year of an attending's salary and double check that I would still apply as a senior (and not a graduate). However, overall it sounds like delaying graduation would not mean shooting myself in the foot for matching in 2016 vs applying in 2015 with late board scores and less experience in the field?

Thank you all again for taking the time to read through this thread and for your input!

I think it depends--if you are considered a graduate, then I believe you will unfortunately be shooting yourself in the foot. However, if I'm not mistaken, programs will also consider it a red flag if you take more than 4 years to graduate, even if you're able to apply as a senior. It's could be worth asking some program directors what they think about your situation. Perhaps you can ask program directors at your school--in internal medicine, neuro, etc, in case you don't want to divulge too much info to the directors of PM&R programs you're applying to.

I do believe that if you will only be considered a US senior if you are still enrolled at the time you apply. If you graduate a few months late then you will probably be considered a US graduate, which puts you at a disadvantage. You apply in September, the Dean's letter goes out in early October, so you'd still have to be enrolled at least through then (maybe longer, as some programs may ask your school for updates when it comes to finalizing their rank list, and/or your school may be expected to update your transcript at that time--unfortunately I don't remember). Unless you have a really great research assignment lined up, I don't think there's much you can do in that year off that will make up for taking an additional year to finish medical school.

I don't think away rotations are necessary--though a PM&R rotation definitely is. You only need one or two rotations. I did three, which was probably overkill. But I think as long as you can do one then you're at no disadvantage compared to those who do two or three, as long as you get a strong letter of recommendation. Doing additional rotations only helps you possibly get into the program you rotate at, though one of my current attendings was telling me about a study that showed away rotations in general don't help an applicant match into that program, probably because rotations can hurt you just as much as they can help you. I think the main benefit of an away is you getting a thorough idea of what a program is truly like. PM&R could be different, and there are legitimate reasons to do aways, but away rotations are definitely not necessary.

Programs usually don't care a whole lot about Step 2 scores--though they want to know you can pass it since you can't start residency without passing. This will be more important for you to prove since you retook Step 1, but I think as long as you can send your scores to programs by early/mid-January (in time for them to see before they come up with their rank list), you should be ok. It'd be ideal to have your scores back by the time applications go out, but as long as you apply broadly I think you'd be ok--I don't think not having your Step 2 scores in will close that many doors.

I will note, however, that it's very difficult to study for Step 2 and interview at the same time--interview traveling and preparation is a lot more work than it seems. So it really might be best to take it by Oct/Nov at the latest if possible.

Having time to interview is a big issue--if you don't think you'll be able to get time off to go to as many interviews as possible, then that's something that could really change things--you have to go on a lot of interviews because you also have to interview for preliminary programs. I'd recommend ranking a minimum of 8 PM&R programs, and maybe the same number of prelims. You may not rank every program you interview at, and you probably want more than 8 PM&R programs--I thought a good number of interviews to aim at was 10-15. Chances are if you interview at and rank 10 programs, you will match. I think the last "Charting Outcomes in the Match" gave you about a 95% chance of matching if you are a US senior and ranked 8 programs.

You say that if you graduate on time you'll have 1-2 weeks off at the end of June, but keep in mind most residency programs will start orientation sometime between the 2nd (in my case) and last week of June. Obviously you can find out which prelim/categorical programs would be incompatible ahead of time so that you don't waste your time applying/interviewing at them, but that's something to consider as well. Don't forget you may need need to move as well!

While there's a number of things there to think about, I'd highly recommend graduating on time if it's possible to make it work. I think you do yourself much more harm than good if you wait a year. If you can take Step 2 and get your score before rank lists are in (not essential, but helpful), do a PM&R rotation (I'd consider that essential), and will be able to get time off to interview wherever you get offers, then you should really aim to graduate on time. If you can't do that, I suppose you could consider waiting a year, but keep in mind that you'll probably be considered a less competitive applicant (you may need to apply to non-PM&R specialties as a "back up"--we might not be competitive score-wise, but there just aren't that many positions available) and as others mentioned, you will lose a year of attending salary. With a retake Step 1 score of 209, decent clerkship grades, a PM&R rotation/LOR, you should definitely be able to match somewhere if you apply broadly.

Best of luck.

 

[medstuffs]

I think it depends--if you are considered a graduate, then I believe you will unfortunately be shooting yourself in the foot. However, if I'm not mistaken, programs will also consider it a red flag if you take more than 4 years to graduate, even if you're able to apply as a senior. It's could be worth asking some program directors what they think about your situation. Perhaps you can ask program directors at your school--in internal medicine, neuro, etc, in case you don't want to divulge too much info to the directors of PM&R programs you're applying to.

I do believe that if you will only be considered a US senior if you are still enrolled at the time you apply. If you graduate a few months late then you will probably be considered a US graduate, which puts you at a disadvantage. You apply in September, the Dean's letter goes out in early October, so you'd still have to be enrolled at least through then (maybe longer, as some programs may ask your school for updates when it comes to finalizing their rank list, and/or your school may be expected to update your transcript at that time--unfortunately I don't remember). Unless you have a really great research assignment lined up, I don't think there's much you can do in that year off that will make up for taking an additional year to finish medical school.

I don't think away rotations are necessary--though a PM&R rotation definitely is. You only need one or two rotations. I did three, which was probably overkill. But I think as long as you can do one then you're at no disadvantage compared to those who do two or three, as long as you get a strong letter of recommendation. Doing additional rotations only helps you possibly get into the program you rotate at, though one of my current attendings was telling me about a study that showed away rotations in general don't help an applicant match into that program, probably because rotations can hurt you just as much as they can help you. I think the main benefit of an away is you getting a thorough idea of what a program is truly like. PM&R could be different, and there are legitimate reasons to do aways, but away rotations are definitely not necessary.

Programs usually don't care a whole lot about Step 2 scores--though they want to know you can pass it since you can't start residency without passing. This will be more important for you to prove since you retook Step 1, but I think as long as you can send your scores to programs by early/mid-January (in time for them to see before they come up with their rank list), you should be ok. It'd be ideal to have your scores back by the time applications go out, but as long as you apply broadly I think you'd be ok--I don't think not having your Step 2 scores in will close that many doors.

I will note, however, that it's very difficult to study for Step 2 and interview at the same time--interview traveling and preparation is a lot more work than it seems. So it really might be best to take it by Oct/Nov at the latest if possible.

Having time to interview is a big issue--if you don't think you'll be able to get time off to go to as many interviews as possible, then that's something that could really change things--you have to go on a lot of interviews because you also have to interview for preliminary programs. I'd recommend ranking a minimum of 8 PM&R programs, and maybe the same number of prelims. You may not rank every program you interview at, and you probably want more than 8 PM&R programs--I thought a good number of interviews to aim at was 10-15. Chances are if you interview at and rank 10 programs, you will match. I think the last "Charting Outcomes in the Match" gave you about a 95% chance of matching if you are a US senior and ranked 8 programs.

You say that if you graduate on time you'll have 1-2 weeks off at the end of June, but keep in mind most residency programs will start orientation sometime between the 2nd (in my case) and last week of June. Obviously you can find out which prelim/categorical programs would be incompatible ahead of time so that you don't waste your time applying/interviewing at them, but that's something to consider as well. Don't forget you may need need to move as well!

While there's a number of things there to think about, I'd highly recommend graduating on time if it's possible to make it work. I think you do yourself much more harm than good if you wait a year. If you can take Step 2 and get your score before rank lists are in (not essential, but helpful), do a PM&R rotation (I'd consider that essential), and will be able to get time off to interview wherever you get offers, then you should really aim to graduate on time. If you can't do that, I suppose you could consider waiting a year, but keep in mind that you'll probably be considered a less competitive applicant (you may need to apply to non-PM&R specialties as a "back up"--we might not be competitive score-wise, but there just aren't that many positions available) and as others mentioned, you will lose a year of attending salary. With a retake Step 1 score of 209, decent clerkship grades, a PM&R rotation/LOR, you should definitely be able to match somewhere if you apply broadly.

Best of luck.

RangerBob, thank you so much for taking the time to lay everything out. Very helpful, and I know I have a lot to consider. I have one last question in regards to potentially problematic complications.. I will not be able to start doing away rotations until at least mid-November, as this is when I finish core rotations because of timing for when my school schedules these. Considering this is during peak interview season, I feel like this would significantly throw a wrench in plans to graduate on time as I can't interview during away rotations, and doing any interviews before I actually have the away rotation would defeat the purpose. Thoughts?

Edit to clarify: We don't really have a PM&R rotation here in my school, so by "away rotation," I really mean a rotation in PM&R period.

 

[RangerBob]

RangerBob, thank you so much for taking the time to lay everything out. Very helpful, and I know I have a lot to consider. I have one last question in regards to potentially problematic complications.. I will not be able to start doing away rotations until at least mid-November, as this is when I finish core rotations because of timing for when my school schedules these. Considering this is during peak interview season, I feel like this would significantly throw a wrench in plans to graduate on time as I can't interview during away rotations, and doing any interviews before I actually have the away rotation would defeat the purpose. Thoughts?

Edit to clarify: We don't really have a PM&R rotation here in my school, so by "away rotation," I really mean a rotation in PM&R period.

Rotations during interview season are tough--you don't want to miss an opportunity to interview at a program, but you also don't want to look like you're uninterested in the program you're rotating at (though they are often understanding about taking time off for interviews if needed). For those reasons it's generally recommended to not rotate during interview season if possible.

Is there a way to reschedule your core rotations? It seems a little odd that you won't have any elective time during the late summer/early fall of 4th year. I had a few required rotations 4th year but they were spread out. If I were in your shoes I'd try to talk with one of the deans and see if you can't move your July/August or September core rotation to later in the year so you can do your PM&R in the summer. You really want to get that letter of recommendation in before you send out your application, and you also want programs to see that you've done a rotation in PM&R and have exposure to the field (if you application shows extensive exposure already, it may not be as critical to get that rotation in early, and then you'd also presumably have a mentor you could get a letter of recommendation from).

Honestly I'd really push your dean about letting you move rotations around. I had a friend who was interested in a very competitive non-core specialty and she got permission to move one of her 3rd year rotations into 4th year so she could have exposure early to that field. My school has since learned and now gives a one-month elective in 3rd year.

You're paying a lot of money to go to medical school, and I think your school would want to work with you to help you graduate on-time and be as competitive as possible, as well as save you from paying tuition for a whole extra year. I would push the administration on this and see if there's anything they can do to accommodate you. If you're currently scheduled for two away rotations, I would also consider canceling one if it makes scheduling/interview/graduating on-time easier. Keep in mind on danger of doing your first rotation late is it's also always possible you'll do your rotation and feel PM&R isn't for you--lots of people have gone into a rotation thinking they'd love something and didn't, and it's good to know about that ahead of time so you still have time to look into other specialties. Hopefully you've already done a good amount of shadowing, talking with PM&R faculty/residents, and research into what the field is like, which should minimize the odds of that happening, but it's still a possibility.

 

[medstuffs]

Wanted to give you guys an update. I spoke extensively with several people at my school, and it looks like they will not be granting me permission to do an early rotation (none allowed until after I complete core rotations in mid-Nov) in PM&R and also will not allow me to take time off needed for interviews (they said I would need to do Saturday interviews, or to try to plan accordingly during easy rotations, etc). So it looks like my predicament has been decided for me; I'll be delaying graduation.

I will do my best to fill my application with things that will help convince residencies I would be a good candidate to have on their team since I have to delay graduation... but I'm curious if this is a situation where I should be worried about matching at all into a PM&R residency or just to a good one? And I'm also not sure whether it's a better plan to finish classes up as soon as possible (but still finish after July 1st so I qualify as a senior for Match 2016), or take a leave of absence for a semester before officially starting 4th year so that way I'm not out of medicine for more than 6 months at a time (both for keeping me sharp/ not out of practice, and also issues with starting loan repayments after the 6 month grace period).

Anyways, just wanted to update everyone, thanks! Any other feedback would be greatly appreciated 🙂

 

[RangerBob]

Sorry to hear that the school couldn't accommodate you. I guess the plus side is it made the decision easy for you--I recall getting offered only one program that offered an interview on a weekend days. Maybe I just by chance didn't apply to any other programs that had weekend interviews, but I believe it's extremely rare in PM&R--most programs only have a few interview days in the first place, so it's not hard for them to accommodate them all during the week. That would really make it essentially impossible to match into PM&R if you can't interview at any/most programs in the first place. So I think delaying graduation is really the only option for you here.

I think you can still match into PM&R--I do think it will hurt a bit not having graduated in 4 years, but there's not much you can do about that now. The big thing is making sure you're still considered a US senior when you apply. Perhaps taking a six month leave of absence at the beginning of the year--you can have 1-2 months to study for Step 2 and get that out of the way before application season, time to apply, probably some time for vacation (or PM&R research), and then if you have Nov/Dec (and ideally January) off, then you can interview extremely broadly with all that time off, to be safe. I don't know how others feel, but I would recommend applying to most PM&R programs to be on the safe side--it's better to spend a little too much money on applications and then cancel a few interviews than to spend too few and not get enough interviews. Obviously don't apply anywhere you wouldn't even consider living (though sometimes you'll be surprised by programs you didn't think you'd be interested in)

Just make sure if you do this that your school will certify you as a current student when you apply--I believe you are if you take a leave of absence, but I don't know for sure. The big thing is you want to be classified as a 4th year medical student, not a graduate. It seems like a silly distinction, but those in the later group are at a bigger disadvantage. I would check with your dean's office, and possibly the NRMP as well about the regulations as far as what status you are considered to have if on a leave of absence, or if you graduate in the fall, and then base whether or not you take time off on that.

If you're paying in-state tuition, there's also the option to just do extra electives to prepare for residency (remaining a student may help with having money for living expenses as well--I don't know if you're eligible for loans if you're on a leave of absence). You could do another SubI or two to get ready for intern year (skills atrophy over 4th year, and since you're essentially extending your 4th year, your skills may atrophy a bit more). You could also do an ortho surg, neurosurg, neuro, neuroradiology, rheum, sports, palliative care, cards, ID, (etc, etc.) rotation that will help prepare you for PM&R. Basically you could use that extra time to get more prepared for internship and for PM&R residency. I know there are a few more electives I wish I had the time to do.
Whatever you do, just make sure to make the most of the extra time you have--most, if not all, programs will ask you during interviews why you took 5 years to graduate. You already have an answer for that, but another thing is you want to show them you made good use of the time you had off. Research, more electives, another degree, etc., could all be good uses of your time. And don't forget to take time off for yourself somewhere in there--I took a month off prior to residency and took a long camping trip with my wife, and it was not only the best vacation I've ever hard, but great a great break prior to starting residency.

Lastly, I don't know how a leave of absence affects your loans--but certainly you could negotiate with your school to keep you on the books (and not charge you tuition) and keep your graduation date the same so you keep your grace period. Since you have 6 months of grace it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to use that up while in medical school--if you then file a tax return for 2015, when you start residency in 2016 you would start repayment right away--meaning you'd apply for IBR or PAYE just prior and use your 2015 tax return (where your income would be $0, presumably), which would be legit to do because until you start residency your salary is $0. Lots of people consolidate right away (so they lose their grace period and start repayment at the beginning of residency) or apply to consolidate and defer the application so that they can say their income was $0 when they applied. That'll get you $0 payments for all of intern year. (I'd still recommend paying off some debt regardless, but if your payments are $0 then you can selectively pay off the highest interest loans--or the smallest loans if you just want to knock some loans off the roster).

 

[pillowface]

Do you guys have any recommendations for away rotation for PM&R?

 

[medstuffs]

Thanks again RangerBob for taking the time to write out such helpful responses. As of now I have been reassured several times from my school that I would register as a US senior as long as I finish classes after July 1 for the following match season. I will double check with NRMP though, as you suggested. But it sounds like I would be considered a senior (at least for NRMP registration) for either scenario. So I think I just need to decide whether it is more important to finish classes up as quickly as possible (showing that it didn't really take me 5 years to finish.. Just 4 yrs + a couple months) then supplement with research/extra degree/etc, or take a leave of absence for a semester so I am actively enrolled in classes during interview season and not 'rusty' for intern year. Splitting it up in the latter scenario would make it harder to acquire another degree and would show that I took longer to actually finish schooling.

I suppose these are just things I need to think about and look into. Sorry if there are any typos in this post.. Using my phone currently. Again, your feedback had been appreciated so much!

 

[medstuffs]

Sorry to bring up an old thread, just wanted to comment about the results for this year's match.. No unfilled spots before the scramble! Now panicking a little about my chances of getting a spot in pm&r in match 2 years from now (maybe premature worry.. maybe not) since I have a failed board score and such a large gap after graduation before prelim yr would start.

But most importantly, congrats to all that made it this year!!

 

[lejeunesage]

=)
Remember that when you see a median board score for a specialty, it indicates that fully 50% of people under that score matched.
More than that, if you look at the percent of people who matched for a given score range, say 191-200 or 201-210, you see that the vast majority of people match.
The trick is to apply to as many programs as you can, the lower your stats are. Heck, if I thought I needed to, I'd apply to every single program in the country. There's fewer than 80 in PM&R and you'll likely end up somewhere if you apply everywhere.
Also, in your case, it might be especially useful if you do a away rotation at a place where you think you have a decent chance of matching, i.e. somewhere not too competitive.

 

[RangerBob]

I agree with lejeunesage. PM&R is likely to slowly keep getting more desirable/competitive, but I doubt it's going to become ROAD competitive in terms of scores, etc. Last year there was only one unmatched position, so this year isn't too different. As lejunesage said--apply broadly (possibly everywhere if you really want to increase your odds of matching as much as possible) and do a rotation at a program you think you could match into. That in turn will increase your odds of matching at that particular program (programs often prefer people they already know--it's less of a gamble for them). Just make sure to impress the attendings and residents at that program! And have fun while you're there--if the attendings think you're smart and interested, and the residents think you're a helpful member of the team and fun to work with, the odds are in your favor.

Also--since you're taking that extra time, you could always do more away rotations to be safe--you could do 3 or maybe even 4.

 

[lovetruth]

Sorry to bring up an old thread, just wanted to comment about the results for this year's match.. No unfilled spots before the scramble! Now panicking a little about my chances of getting a spot in pm&r in match 2 years from now (maybe premature worry.. maybe not) since I have a failed board score and such a large gap after graduation before prelim yr would start.

But most importantly, congrats to all that made it this year!!

Hey medstuffs,

I agree with what lejeunesage and RangerBob say, however, I do want to point out some realities as well (just so that you are fully aware! It is always great to know what is against you, so that you can work hard to overcome it!).
1. Some programs have Step 1 cutoffs (220 is a cutoff for some...I forget which ones, but it may be on FRIEDA or a program's website).
2. As you mentioned, all the spots were filled this time and many PM&R applicants did not match. One stat I got from a residency interview: about 600 applicants for 6 slots. Narrowed down to about 60 interviews for 6 slots. From that we can extrapolate that there were about 600 applicants wandering about for a PM&R position this past match....and there are only 104 categorical and 287 advanced spots (391 spots)...thus about 65% of those who interviewed matched. Interestingly, this approximately matches my schools match rate for PM&R: two thirds of us matched into PM&R.

How to overcome the above to issues:
1. Smash Step 2. You have time. You can do it! If you are applying for the 2015 match, take the exam during July (you have many months to study hard) and try to get a score well above the mean for PM&R (maybe > 250?). Try to have it on September 15th. Also, quick note here, DO NOT WAIT FOR YOUR STEP 2 to send in your application!!! I turned in my application late and had my first PM&R LOR in October, and this bit me in the back! Places that I wanted interviews at gave away their interview slots within the first week of applications being sent! I am confident that I would have gotten an interview at some of these programs if I had applied early!
2. Honor your clerkships and shelf exams. This will show that you are not a poor test taker and your failure in the past was an anomaly.
3. Its always better to aim for achieving the upper limit of your potential then settling for mediocrity and then coming short of your goal. Knowing that the odds are against you right now, strengthen your weaknesses by doing stellar on whatever tests or rotations you have left, honor everything you can, get involved in volunteer and research activities in the field of PM&R, network with attendings and residents and a chairman of PM&R (and let a select few, who you really trust (not everyone!), your specific situation and their recommendations for you. Also, keep contact with them so that they know that you are a honest and hardworking applicant (this can come in handy, because maybe they will advocate for you when you need it!)).

You CAN match in PM&R, you just need to reach your full potential (and show it to residencies in an electronic paper format). Once you get your interviews, I have researched that its more important that the program thinks you will fit in well there, so make sure you advocate for yourself being a great fit for this field. In interviews, I got many comments of how they loved my enthusiasm and motivation, which was evident on paper, however even more clearly evident in person. One interviewer even told me that my personal statement, if it came from someone else, he would have thought it cheesy....however, now that he knows me, he really loved it. (Lesson learnt = maximize what you are on paper and then in person during your interviews exude it in your character and persona). I hope this helps! Good Luck and Get at it!