Preliminary and Transitional Years?

[tpham1030]

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I was looking up info on residencies and I got a little confused on preliminary and transitional years. What are the difference between the two? Is one of them considered better?

Also, I think I read somewhere that some specialties require a preliminary or transitional year. Does this mean you apply to a transitional/preliminary program first and then the next year apply again for the specialty? Or is it like one program where you just start as a transitional/preliminary year?

Thanks!

 

[BigRedder]

I'm no expert, but I was just discussing this with a 4th year the other day. As I understand it, a preliminary year is like being a surgery or medicine intern, with all the work and responsibility attached. A transitional year is like another year of rotations, and apparently is considered easier. Most people I know applied to both the transitional year and the specialty in the same match, but it can be done separately. Google will probably be more helpful.

 

[werd]

preliminary years entail 1 year of training in a particular specialty (usually medicine, surgery, or peds). you're essentially an intern in that department. transitional years are a combination of rotations in various different fields (ie surgery month, gyn month, medicine month, elective month) rather than being in one particular department. transitional years have a reputation for better hours and more elective time than prelim years.

people usually do a prelim or transitional year prior to starting specialties that begin at pgy-2 and require a prelim or transitional year before starting (neuro, derm, radiology, ophtho, anesthesia, etc). you apply for your prelim/transitional year at the same time you apply for your pgy-2 specialty position, which is usually during the fall and winter of your ms-4 year.

 

[Encephalectomy]

The other reason that people do preliminary years is if they don't match. I.e. you don't match in a surgical field and then do a preliminary general surgery year and either re-enter the match or try to get into one of the spots left by someone who washes out of their surgical residency (I think there is something like 10-20% attrition in surgical residencies, mostly in the first couple of years).