Need Advice please

[Bballer]

Hey guys, how are you? So let me be straight up and tell you i didnt pass the boards the first time around, passed them the second though. Have average scores, go to an average U.S. medical school, and i really fell in love with my internal medicine rotation when i did it. I worked my but off, did well on it, and learned a lot. I think i can be a good internist and would like to pursue this career. Can anyone give me advice on how hard it is gonna be for me to get a medicine residency? I would like to do a university based one in the south. Places i would love to go include UNC, UVA, UMD, Emory, UF, UT, ect ect. I have lived in a small city all my life and would really like to go to a big city like Atlanta, DC, Houston, Baltimore, type cities. I'm a third year student looking for any advice you might have. Thanks in advance.

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[ss00991]

Just do the best that you can in your clerkships. Do a clerkship at the programs that you are very interested in. While on the rotation work very hard, know everything about your patients, look up articles and bring them for the residenst/fellows/attendings, ask questions: just be enthusiastic. Ask for a letter of recommendation after the clerkship from the attending ylu wroked with.
During your fourth year aply early.

 

[Bballer]

Thanks for the response man. I guess thats all I can do at this point. Is there anyone out there with a similar story like mine who went through the internal medicine match process and wouldnt mind sharing their experience?

 

[joelee955]

Bballer,

don't worry too much about failing your boards or your average scores. Also, honoring is overrated. I think ss00991's comments are helpful. IM is not competitive right now at all and you should not have any problem matching in one of the places that you listed.
Many IM programs that had only taken AOA type candidates a few years ago are now taking IMG and DOs. Some are not filling even with this. I can't guarantee that you'll get a spot at a Yale or Johns Hopkins, but you should be able to get into the type of program you're seeking.
Also, if you're interests are not academic or you're not interested in going into a fellowship, there are many community programs that you can essentially have your pick of.
I think you should spend more time looking at programs that you might enjoy and not worry about getting in somewhere since I think that's a guarentee for most US Grads.

JL

 

[smackdaddy]

you will have no problem getting a position. you will have no chance at getting into one of the name programs unless you have another HUGE reason to get in and a good explanation for not passing.

don't sell yourself short and be afraid to apply to programs you want to get into but are afraid of. the worse they can do is say no. they say no to people who pass to.
once you get to the interviews, half of them won't even know you didn't pass. the other half will just be interested in what you think happened.

good luck