Non-traditional/hidden advantages in residency application?

[Medstart108]

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I know these factors aren't typically listed as positives in your application like US clinical experience, research are, but are there any advantages during residency match for any of these factors?

1. English is your first language
2. Attending a highly ranked and reputable British medical school
3. Raised in English speaking country/knowing US culture well
4. Lots of travel in the US

 

[umean2tellme]

These are just my opinions, but I don't think 1 and 4 matter. As long as you speak English fluently it won't matter if it's your 1st language. And travel is cool but has nothing to do with the type of resident you'll be. If you did all your US rotations in one US town it would hold the same weight as if you did every rotation in a different city. Good luck with you application.

 

[gutonc]

I know these factors aren't typically listed as positives in your application like US clinical experience, research are, but are there any advantages during residency match for any of these factors?

1. English is your first language
2. Attending a highly ranked and reputable British medical school
3. Raised in English speaking country/knowing US culture well
4. Lots of travel in the US

#1 is important (and you share that with 80+% of applicants)
#2 is marginally relevant
3 and 4: nobody cares

 

[jtlc2345]

2. Attending a highly ranked and reputable British medical school

We talked about me attending a UK medical school in my interviews, but I don't think it made that much difference overall (but who knows).

Jonathan

 

[gutonc]

We talked about me attending a UK medical school in my interviews, but I don't think it made that much difference overall (but who knows).

Jonathan

When comparing it to a Caribbean or Polish med school it will make a difference. Comparing it to US MD schools will not.

 

[Law2Doc]

I know these factors aren't typically listed as positives in your application like US clinical experience, research are, but are there any advantages during residency match for any of these factors?

1. English is your first language
2. Attending a highly ranked and reputable British medical school
3. Raised in English speaking country/knowing US culture well
4. Lots of travel in the US

re #3, "US culture" isn't the issue. "US healthcare culture" (the expectations and rights of patients here, attending's expectations of residents, experience with US duty hours, the litigiousness of this society and expectations in terms of CYA and "loading the boat) is what most people really need to be competitive with graduates of the US med school system. As a result #2 and #3 are often in conflict, and why foreign grads are at a Disadvantage.

Travel doesn't matter. Speaking English well is critical, but that doesn't really make you unique in the applicant pool.

 

[Law2Doc]

When comparing it to a Caribbean or Polish med school it will make a difference. Comparing it to US MD schools will not.

The Caribbean grads are US residents who have in many cases done some form of their rotations here at US hospitals (even if these rotations were not really on par with US rotations). This gives some programs a greater comfort level plugging them in on the wards over European grads, for the "cultural" reasons in my prior post.

 

[gutonc]

The Caribbean grads are US residents who have in many cases done some form of their rotations here at US hospitals (even if these rotations were not really on par with US rotations). This gives some programs a greater comfort level plugging them in on the wards over European grads, for the "cultural" reasons in my prior post.

On the flipside, there are (a lot of) programs that won't touch a Carib grad with a 10 foot spinal needle but do take grads from the stronger European, Indian, Pakistani, Asian schools, assuming they have the USCE to go with it.

 

[Law2Doc]

On the flipside, there are (a lot of) programs that won't touch a Carib grad with a 10 foot spinal needle but do take grads from the stronger European, Indian, Pakistani, Asian schools, assuming they have the USCE to go with it.

Maybe, although from what I've seen, once you get past top students from certain better regarded European nations, the advantages of having had a US rotation start to outweigh other things.

 

[Andreji]

1. English is your first language
2. Attending a highly ranked and reputable British medical school
3. Raised in English speaking country/knowing US culture well
4. Lots of travel in the US

Allow me to distort your list here to give my .02 on what I feel was important and highly regarded as I applied:

1. You have a second language. Can't stress that enough, especially for those high in demand (spanish, mainly)
2. Rotated at a highly reputable US medical school. A good 2-3 mo at a highly ranked hosp for your desired speciality, and getting good letters from known names is priceless (even if you have to pay big dollars to go somewhere great in the northeast)
3. Raised in a culturally sensitive manner- and showing it. Some specialties more than other will appreciate lots of volunteering and community work (even if not med-related) which leads to the next point...
4. Lots of (or at least some) travel abroad for the purpose of volunteering in medical school. Global health is a sexy thing now, and residencies across the board (anywhere from ortho to peds) like to know their applicants went and helped in africa/central america/haiti, etc. Which is generally a poorly used advantage of FMGs from LMICs (who'd rather boast about the little they've done in their rotations in the first world)

All that=my opinion, but hope it helps some.