One More Question: About The Match

[CT4]

Hello,

I have applied to various radiology programs for PGY-2 positions. I am also soon going to apply to transitional years. My question is what happens if I match with a transitional year but not a PGY-2? Would I have to complete the internship and then apply for PGY-2 again the following year (assuming I'm not able to scramble one)? And how about vice versa...if I match to a PGY-2 but not an internship, how hard is it to scramble for one of those? Thank you for any information that you can give me.

Robert, MS IV

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[Jim Picotte]

Don't worry about matching PGY-2 and not a PGY-1 spot. If you're competitive enough to get a radiology spot you'll have no problem getting a preliminary spot although it just might not be the most desirable spot if they're open after the match. The really cush transitional year and prelim med spots are highly sought after.

If you fail to match into radiology and rank some transitional year programs at the end of your priimary rank list then you would be obligated to do that year. Forget about the scramble it really doesn't exist in radiology. There will be very few spots open and the spots that are left won't be filled right after the match (remember that the radiology spot starts 15 months after the match so they have plenty of time to be very selective). Some people are lucky or fortunate enough to find an open spot in radiology while doing their internship starting right away but this is fairly rare so what you'll likely have to do is apply through the match again or just get a little lucky and jump into an open spot.

Good luck.