New MS4, supposed to be applying for the Match this cycle and still haven't settled on a specialty. I know that it's getting really late, but I'm just not sure how to decide. Apologies for the wall of text that follows.
For the most part, I didn't enjoy my clinical rotations; I didn't like sitting/standing around not doing anything for big chunks of time (that being said, I will take some responsibility for that, as I could have put myself out there on more rotations, gone and talked to patients more during down time, that kind of stuff). However, there were certain things about certain rotations that I enjoyed. Some examples:
IM: Once I was more comfortable with it, I enjoyed giving good presentations. I also enjoyed having difficult conversations with patients, and talking to patients in general. I do worry that this would be significantly less fun if I was carrying more patients, and I worry about the lifestyle, especially during residency.
Psych: Once again, I enjoyed having one-on-one conversations with patients, or at least the ones who were fairly lucid. I'm personally very interested in mental health, psychology, and philosophy, and feel like from an intellectual standpoint, psychiatry is the specialty most suited to those interests. I'm interested in the etiology of maladaptive beliefs/behaviors and think it would be rewarding to work with patients to identify where those stem from. However, I did my rotation on an inpatient ward, and didn't find working with very sick patients all that rewarding. I worry that for that reason, I would be miserable as a residency on my inpatient rotations, and that maybe this field sounds more interesting in theory to me than it would actually be in practice. The lifestyle aspect of psychiatry is definitely another plus.
Radiology: I felt like the personalities on this rotation were the most compatible with my own. I enjoyed how chill and friendly the residents were, and I felt like it was one of the few rotations where it felt like it was understood that I was there to learn rather than be penalized for not already knowing the answer to something. I also found the process of describing findings and combining it with the clinical context enjoyable and rewarding. However, I'm not sure if I could see myself reading study after study, day after day, especially at the pace it seems most radiologists are expected to read nowadays.
Pathology: This is actually the field I was interested in coming into med school, as I'd been (and continue to be) involved in pathology informatics research. I definitely find the basic science aspect of pathology interesting, and there's a lot of really cool tech/big data stuff coming up in the field now also, which I have the background to get involved in. However, while I find this stuff interesting on an intellectual level, I wouldn't say that I'm necessarily passionate about it the way I am about mental health, and I worry that I would be picking this specialty because it "sucks the least", so to speak.
Right now, I'd have to say I'm between pathology and psychiatry. I'm leaning more towards pathology, because I don't know if I necessarily need to see patients to be happy, and not seeing patients may actually be more sustainable for me in the long run. I think the most important things in a career for me are making an impact and having a sustainable lifestyle that allows time for other interests, which both pathology and psychiatry could fit the bill of. However, the main thing keeping me from making this decision once and for all is a worry that I'm not necessarily passionate about it, and that I would regret not choosing a field that aligns more with what I'm passionate about intellectually. I've also considered taking a year off to do research and clear my head a bit, and maybe learn more about myself and my values so that I could make a better-informed decision. This would also give me more time to possibly shadow other settings in psychiatry other than inpatient. I'm not really concerned about losing a year of attending salary.
Sorry for the wall of text, and if you've read this far, thank you. I appreciate any perspectives anyone is willing to share.
For the most part, I didn't enjoy my clinical rotations; I didn't like sitting/standing around not doing anything for big chunks of time (that being said, I will take some responsibility for that, as I could have put myself out there on more rotations, gone and talked to patients more during down time, that kind of stuff). However, there were certain things about certain rotations that I enjoyed. Some examples:
IM: Once I was more comfortable with it, I enjoyed giving good presentations. I also enjoyed having difficult conversations with patients, and talking to patients in general. I do worry that this would be significantly less fun if I was carrying more patients, and I worry about the lifestyle, especially during residency.
Psych: Once again, I enjoyed having one-on-one conversations with patients, or at least the ones who were fairly lucid. I'm personally very interested in mental health, psychology, and philosophy, and feel like from an intellectual standpoint, psychiatry is the specialty most suited to those interests. I'm interested in the etiology of maladaptive beliefs/behaviors and think it would be rewarding to work with patients to identify where those stem from. However, I did my rotation on an inpatient ward, and didn't find working with very sick patients all that rewarding. I worry that for that reason, I would be miserable as a residency on my inpatient rotations, and that maybe this field sounds more interesting in theory to me than it would actually be in practice. The lifestyle aspect of psychiatry is definitely another plus.
Radiology: I felt like the personalities on this rotation were the most compatible with my own. I enjoyed how chill and friendly the residents were, and I felt like it was one of the few rotations where it felt like it was understood that I was there to learn rather than be penalized for not already knowing the answer to something. I also found the process of describing findings and combining it with the clinical context enjoyable and rewarding. However, I'm not sure if I could see myself reading study after study, day after day, especially at the pace it seems most radiologists are expected to read nowadays.
Pathology: This is actually the field I was interested in coming into med school, as I'd been (and continue to be) involved in pathology informatics research. I definitely find the basic science aspect of pathology interesting, and there's a lot of really cool tech/big data stuff coming up in the field now also, which I have the background to get involved in. However, while I find this stuff interesting on an intellectual level, I wouldn't say that I'm necessarily passionate about it the way I am about mental health, and I worry that I would be picking this specialty because it "sucks the least", so to speak.
Right now, I'd have to say I'm between pathology and psychiatry. I'm leaning more towards pathology, because I don't know if I necessarily need to see patients to be happy, and not seeing patients may actually be more sustainable for me in the long run. I think the most important things in a career for me are making an impact and having a sustainable lifestyle that allows time for other interests, which both pathology and psychiatry could fit the bill of. However, the main thing keeping me from making this decision once and for all is a worry that I'm not necessarily passionate about it, and that I would regret not choosing a field that aligns more with what I'm passionate about intellectually. I've also considered taking a year off to do research and clear my head a bit, and maybe learn more about myself and my values so that I could make a better-informed decision. This would also give me more time to possibly shadow other settings in psychiatry other than inpatient. I'm not really concerned about losing a year of attending salary.
Sorry for the wall of text, and if you've read this far, thank you. I appreciate any perspectives anyone is willing to share.
