How screwed would I be for matching neurosurgery if I only had pubs in another surgical sub?
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Started by MilesDavisTheDoctor
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If basic science you will be fine, if clinical, you need to show you have commitment to neurosurgery - research is part of that.
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Obviously the rest of your application matters too but not having research and neurosurgery will definitely hamper your competitiveness relative to having the same number of publications in neurosurgery
So it sounds like I would pretty much have to take a research year even if I had a bunch of ortho pubs but no neurosurgery?
“Have to” is relative. Do you want to match in general? Do you want to match at a top tier academic program? Do you envision yourself in community practice or a sub specialist at a major medical center with your own research lab/team? If you have a 260+ and a handful of ortho pubs, you will likely match at least a mid tier program that will prepare you well for the former.
Hmm. That's surprising. I'd always heard that neurosurgery-specific research was non-negotiable for matching period.
If you have a good relationship with your ortho department, knock out some quick spine papers and get them published before you apply
I don't think this is true. I was very involved in the match last year and a number of students had a ton of ortho papers (in stuff like joints and hand, not even spine) and they ended up matching at some top places (with otherwise great apps as you'd expect). If you decide that you want to apply into neurosurgery, you could salvage this pretty easily with a couple of clinical neurosurgery papers that you can list at the top of your research CV. This would show your commitment to the field (along with your Sub-Is) and also demonstrate that you're productive in research and can add to the program. Good luck!
