Non Rad 4th year electives

[2012mdc]

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What are some good/"necessary" electives to take 4th year?

Right now I'm thinking:
1 or 2 rads at the beginning of the year, sub-I later on
Neuro elective (not part of standard 3rd year curriculum at my school and I'm possibly interested in Neurorads)
Cardio elective - potentially interested in IR

I want to enjoy my 4th year but I also don't want to be unprepared.

Thanks in advance

 

[MrBurns10]

Personal opinion, but don't worry about taking electives so you're not "unprepared." The truth is that you're going to learn what you need to when you need to. For me, I took electives that a) allowed me the flexibility to miss time for interviews and/or b) I was interested in ("a" being more important).

 

[colbgw02]

Agree with Mr. Burns here. Think of this like the difference between college and medical school courses. If you took biochemistry in college, you might be ahead of your peers in medical school for all of about two or three days. If your radiology residency classmate is on a neurorads rotation before you, then he'll know more neuroradiology in about 6 hours than you learned during an elective neurology rotation.

The learning curve in radiology is going to incredibly steep in your first 6-12 months irrespective of your experience. Use your 4th year to relax and expose yourself to something you'll never see again but find interesting. If you're feeling particularly gung-ho, then find something that you think will prepare you to better survive internship. Don't worry about radiology until July 1st of your PGY-2 year.

 

[2012mdc]

Agree with Mr. Burns here. Think of this like the difference between college and medical school courses. If you took biochemistry in college, you might be ahead of your peers in medical school for all of about two or three days. If your radiology residency classmate is on a neurorads rotation before you, then he'll know more neuroradiology in about 6 hours than you learned during an elective neurology rotation.

The learning curve in radiology is going to incredibly steep in your first 6-12 months irrespective of your experience. Use your 4th year to relax and expose yourself to something you'll never see again but find interesting. If you're feeling particularly gung-ho, then find something that you think will prepare you to better survive internship. Don't worry about radiology until July 1st of your PGY-2 year.

Thanks for the advice. I probably should have phrased my question a little differently as in "Are there any non rad electives that have relevance" but that's a moot point as you guys are right. I should just make sure my schedule works for interviews and take advantage of the opportunity to see other interesting specialties.

 

[Pontifex Maximus]

Take the easiest/most interesting electives you can. You'll never get this kind of free time and ability to do whatever you want again.