OMS externship

[KY2007]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I just received a email from henry ford hospital in detroit saying that i can participate in an externship this summer. Is this a good program. Strengths, weaknesses.

 

[ems5184]

I'm from Michigan and I've heard a lot of great things about the Henry Ford Hospital OMS program. I have actually shadowed down there and it's a great experience, I'm sure you'll love it - but definitely come check it out first if you can, it's not in a great area, but the hospital and all the staff are excellent.

 

[OMFSdoc]

I just received a email from henry ford hospital in detroit saying that i can participate in an externship this summer. Is this a good program. Strengths, weaknesses.

Congratulations,

You should be diong externships at programs that you are very interested in attending. They are a good opportunity for you to see if you really like to program and for the program to see if you are good for them. I don't know much about the program, but if you have researched it and think it would be a good place for you, then good luck and work hard while you are there.

 

[KY2007]

Thanks guys. There were only a few programs that I emailed that would let me extern as a 2nd year, so i'm glad to hear that this program has a good reputation. Could someone post the names of some other good 4 year oms programs.

 

[Jediwendell]

Are you at KY? Rich Haug should give you an earful on where to go.

 

[KY2007]

I am at Kentucky. Did you do an externship here.

 

[Jediwendell]

I graduated from there in 2001. And I did an externship there. Long story, but I did three years of OMS at San Antonio then have switched to ortho. I still know a lot about the oms track and all of the texas programs. Houston and Parkland both have good four years. If you want a good private practice type education with a pretty cush lifestyle, galveston is the bomb.

 

[KY2007]

Wow, ortho and oms. You really are a Jedi. You don't happen to know where I can get a list of applicant to acceptance ratios for oms do you.

 

[KY2007]

If you would have hung in there for 1 more year then went to ortho you could have done your own orthognathic surgeries. Probably not too many orthodontists out there that do that.

 

[Jediwendell]

six year program. Only half done. Sounds great on paper. I have no desire to operate any more.

 

[north2southOMFS]

six year program. Only half done. Sounds great on paper. I have no desire to operate any more.

Do you think you'll be the only DDS, MD out there that is practicing Ortho?

 

[LestatZinnie]

Thanks guys. There were only a few programs that I emailed that would let me extern as a 2nd year, so i'm glad to hear that this program has a good reputation. Could someone post the names of some other good 4 year oms programs.

can you please tell us which schools allow you to do externship in 2nd year? i only know of U Washington.

 

[KY2007]

There were only a few. The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, the University of Iowa, The University of Florida Health Science Center Jacksonville, and the University of Michigan.

 

[KY2007]

I forgot to mention that the Medical College of Georgia also allows you to do an externship as a second year.

 

[tjb]

We had a second year come to Pittsburgh and do a 3 week externship this past summer.

tjb

 

[Yah-E]

I went to LSU NO for a month during the summer between my 2nd year and 3rd year. 👍 Great exposure and had a blast! I suppose the summer after your second year, you would be considered as a D3. I don't know, but I strongly recommend LSU if you really want to see, do, and learn a lot about OMFS. 👍

 

[VancouverDoc2b]

I have a question not really related to OMS externships, but pertaining to OMS nonetheless.

I was just wondering how valuable to your application research experience is? I have the opportunity to do some research over this summer and am just wondering if its really going to contribute significantly to my application for OMS, or does it not really matter. Im leaning towards actually doing the research anyways, but still just wanted some 2nd and 3rd opinions.

Thanks

 

[Yah-E]

I was just wondering how valuable to your application research experience is?

Research would look great on your app to omfs. Standford Fencer (research guru) on SDN will be a great resource for you as he is a 3rd year dental student who will apply to omfs this june. Great guy!

 

[BSSO]

I did an extership at the Mayo Clinic after my second year (during the summer). Great experience

 

[Jediwendell]

Something I found when I was doing externships was the the best places to extern weren't the best places for me to do my residency. I can say from experience that while I wouldn't really recommend San Antonio as an externship, I would wholeheartedly recommend it as a residency. The idea that you have to extern somewhere to get in there is not really true. Tons of people get into places that they haven't externed. You are getting a good view of what the program is like, however, so there is some give and take. If you are looking for good experience as a second year extern, I bet UK would let you do it. You would get more dentoalveolar and trauma experience than you could shake a stick at. Nobody asked me about research during my thirteen interviews.

 

[KY2007]

Jediwendell how many programs did you apply to and is there a way to calculate the PASS costs for applying to say, 30 programs.

 

[Jediwendell]

Jediwendell how many programs did you apply to and is there a way to calculate the PASS costs for applying to say, 30 programs.

I applied to twenty five programs. I believe it is something like 150 base and then 10 or 15 for each program. I don't remember exactly. You should be prepared to shell out up to 750 to 1000 bucks if you want to apply to that many places because some residencies have their own fees (this really sucks).

 

[KY2007]

Jediwendell. When do you rank the programs for the match. Is it before or after you have been invited for interviews. Is the best stategy for getting matched applying to as many programs as you can afford (say 50), then hopefully getting interviews at 20. Then rank the programs that you like the best.

 

[Jediwendell]

Jediwendell. When do you rank the programs for the match. Is it before or after you have been invited for interviews. Is the best stategy for getting matched applying to as many programs as you can afford (say 50), then hopefully getting interviews at 20. Then rank the programs that you like the best.

Kindof. What I did was first decide if I wanted six or four year. Then I looked at what the "best" programs were and tried to decide how competitive I was. I applied to twenty five. That was too many, because I got interviews at all of them except Harvard, I believe. I interviewed at thirteen, which was also too many. I think eight is enough to get in somewhere. In the end, it depends on how your board scores and grades are. If they are 85 and upper third, you may want to apply to fifty. If you got a 97 and are number two, apply to ten to twelve. The basic rule is, don't rank somewhere you don't want to go. If there are places you know you wouldn't rank, don't apply there. If there are places you know you don't have any interest in and you have enough interviews, don't interview there if they offer. You rank after you interview, but you should have an idea of what you are interested in going into the interview process.

 

[OMFSdoc]

A note on externships...

Externships are a very good way for a program to get to know you and to see your work ethic. Programs understand that if you are externing there, you are probably interested in them. Also, doing an externship at a place that you are interested in will allow you to really see if that program is for you. Programs do the same and see if you are for them. The 20 minute intervew in the fall/winter is not always a good indicator for the program that you are a good candidate for them. Doing an externship at programs that you are interested is very important. Don't use your externship experience just to get proficient at dentoalveolar procedures, do that at your own dental school by hanging out in the OMFS dept. for as long as you can.

Good luck

 

[zipkosucks]

Quick question: Does your undergraduate GPA count as much as externship experience. Or better yet, does it count at all?

 

[KY2007]

What I've heard is that only a few schools look at your undergraduate G.P.A. Not sure which ones.

 

[LSR1979]

What I've heard is that only a few schools look at your undergraduate G.P.A. Not sure which ones.

Six year programs care much more about undergraduate GPA than do 4 year programs because you must also be accepted by their respective medical school. For 4 year programs I really don't think it makes any difference at all.
1)Board Scores
2)Class Rank
3)GPA
4)Externship experience
5)Research

#4 and #5 can arguably be switched around.

 

[Jediwendell]

I had a 2.8 in undergrad. The only place I didn't get an interview was Harvard, and I really didn't want to go there anyway. I did get an interview at Parkland, Columbia and North Carolina, which are all very highly ranked medical schools. If you do well enough in dental school, you have nothing to worry about. I think externship experience is much more important than research experience. Every place I went asked me detailed stuff about my externships and what I learned there, etc. Not one asked me about my research.

 

[OMFSdoc]

Actually, I know people who didn't get interviews at some 6 year programs because of their undergrad GPA's. AND on some of my interviews, we were told that the medical schools evaluate us as well and that our undergrad GPA's are considered by the med schools. The undergrad GPA's do not need to be spectacular, but I believe that they may need to meet a cutoff. However, on the same token, other programs (ie Columbia) stated that the medical school allows the OMFS program to make the decisions for them and that if the candidate was good enough for the OMFS program, they are good enough for the med school. It is program dependent. Boards, class rank and dental GPA are still the big 3.

 

[tjb]

I had a 2.8 in undergrad. The only place I didn't get an interview was Harvard, and I really didn't want to go there anyway. I did get an interview at Parkland, Columbia and North Carolina, which are all very highly ranked medical schools. If you do well enough in dental school, you have nothing to worry about. I think externship experience is much more important than research experience. Every place I went asked me detailed stuff about my externships and what I learned there, etc. Not one asked me about my research.

I agree, I got interviews at all which I applied except UConn and Buffalo, with a 3.0 undergrad GPA. The programs really don't care about undergrad. Even Harvard didn't find issue with it.

tjb

 

[Jediwendell]

I know people who didn't get interviews at some 6 year programs because of their undergrad GPA's.

How do you know they didn't get interviews because of their undergrad GPAs?

 

[BSSO]

I had a 2.8 in undergrad. The only place I didn't get an interview was Harvard, and I really didn't want to go there anyway. I did get an interview at Parkland, Columbia and North Carolina, which are all very highly ranked medical schools. If you do well enough in dental school, you have nothing to worry about. I think externship experience is much more important than research experience. Every place I went asked me detailed stuff about my externships and what I learned there, etc. Not one asked me about my research.

I would have to say that i was asked a lot about my research experience, as well as my externships. I think it all depends on what is on your CV, I know that for some of my interviews there was a seperate interview for the medical school (UKy, and UConn). Plus i think that most medical schools base your ability to perform well in the MD program on your part 1 scores since it is a standardized test, rather than just your undergrad GPA.

 

[KY2007]

Some of my friends are doing externships at big name schools like parkland, and LSU because it will look good on their cvs. Is it better to do this, or extern at places that you really want to go.

 

[Jediwendell]

Some of my friends are doing externships at big name schools like parkland, and LSU because it will look good on their cvs. Is it better to do this, or extern at places that you really want to go.

I can tell you from experience that externing at Parkland did great things for me. Not just from the CV standpoint, but I got to do a TON of stuff there. You basically get left alone in the clinic to take out teeth all day, then they let you do anything that walks in the door. Me and my co-resident at San Antonio externed there together and took this huge cyst off of a guys face and sent it in for path. You are suturing up anything that comes in the door on trauma. You are putting on arch bars in the ED with the intern. Plus, your dentoalveolar skills will go through the roof, because you have to learn to bail yourself out. Best think I did in dental school bar none. I hear the same sort of things about LSU. Again, I wouldn't really extern at San Antonio because I don't think you get the same experience as an extern. I loved the program and that is where I went in the end. I would do it again. Same for Baylor and Florida. Great programs, but not the same sort of externship experience.

 

[north2southOMFS]

I agree, I got interviews at all which I applied except UConn and Buffalo, with a 3.0 undergrad GPA. The programs really don't care about undergrad. Even Harvard didn't find issue with it.

tjb

Hey, same with me as well, I barely had a 3.0 in undergrad (yes i put partying before grades before I had some logic knocked into me.) And I ended up in the top of my class in dental school and got OMFS interviews at all but 1 of the 6 year programs I applied. I think it was oregon that didn't interview me. But none the less I applied to 22 programs and intervied at like 15 or 16,... way too many. If a medical school has the ability to knock applicants out of contention in an OMFS program, that means the medical school (which is not as crucial as your actual OMFS training) has too much influence on your training overall. I also think that LSR1979's weight list is wrong, most programs put GPA on the bottom b/c a dental schools grading policies are very different from each other so it really means nothing(if everyone gets a 4.0 there last two clinic years for showing up, what the he11 does that tell ya?, its all class rank, boards, externships and research.

 

[KY2007]

How many schools can you rank on your match list.

 

[tjb]

How many schools can you rank on your match list.

You should only rank programs you interviewed at. You can rank as many as you want.

tjb