Prior Matched Applicants Step 2 Comlex 2 Scores and

[sazz9]

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Hi all.

So I have been hearing a lot of rumors about how many programs to apply to; anywhere from 20 to 50 PM&R programs and anywhere from 10-70 Prelim/TY programs.

I dont want to scramble but also dont want to waste a ton of money on applying to a bunch of places if I dont need to.

My home institution does not have a PM&R program, thus my advisors have not really gave me much information on how the amount of programs to apply to... ANy help from Veteran ERAS-ers out there that have matched?

I dont want to post stats on here because that's not the point (if interested see recent COMLEX 2 thread), but any advice would be helpful. Thanks!

 

[Hextra]

Caveat #1, and it's been stated here before: better to over-apply and spend some loan money than to not match and spend a full year in limbo + however much that costs, both monetarily and emotionally.

I'm a PGY1 this year and went through the most recent match. When I began applying I believe the NRMP numbers showed a 90%+ match rate for people who went on 9+ interviews (+/- 1). Without going through stats and all that, figure anywhere between a 30-70% interview rate for all the places you apply. Of course this will differ with the perceived quality of the institutions where you apply, so a few "reaches", many "good shots", and a few "meh, I'd rather not live there" will cover your bases.

I operated (for better or for worse) on achieving 10+ interviews. I applied to 25ish programs, and with a Southeast region bias to boot. Depending on where you can stand to live and how competitive you are, I'd suggest 30 well-selected programs with the spread outlined above.

As for prelim/TYs, I don't know if there's more sound advice than to just shotgun it. TYs are more competitive, and if you're worried about matching at all there is always the dreaded surgical prelim. I applied to 15 TYs/med prelims total (again, regional bias), got 5 interviews, and then happened to match to a categorical program. My friends who matched to advanced programs applied to upwards of 30 prelims/TYs, and matched successfully.