Question?
- Thread starter Hysty
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If you really want to do surgery 5 years + rads 5 years = 10 years after medical school, I commend you. If you've borrowed money you may want to start paying back your loans (its not really a choice). But even if you wanted to, it would be difficult to do two residencies because the government will no longer subsidize your training after your first residency. Without a government subsidy if a hospital wants to have you as a resident, it loses out on that money or may have to eat part of the cost of your training.
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They still subsidize the training, the amount is reduced by about 20k/year.
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Technically, yes you can if you want to. No one is going to tell you that you can't. If you are financially able and stable, then that makes it even easier. About the funding for residency - bigger hospitals and universitites can easily afford to employ a resident w/o gov't funding.
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There are two equally excellent candidates on paper, one will cost you 40K a year x 4 years.... who would you pick?
There are so many excellent 'first time around' applicants for residency, most places would prefer to take that candidate rather than one who has completed another residency. There are always exceptions.
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It is an issue, at some hospitals more than others. I had to overcome it and it can be done.
It used to be very common for people to get into rads from another specialty, many of the older faculty tends to have that history. Residency directors like to have people with clinical experience in their program (they b#*^%$ less and kiss the ground for only taking 1:x calls bc they know it would be worse as an IM attending).
I am also a PGY-1 and tryinig to switch to rads or complete my current resdency and then go to rads. So f_w what do u think are chances for interview calls after one year of US clinical experience. Do we need a PDs letter of rec as I fear he won`t be too happy to give one.
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If you want to switch out of your current residency, you will in all likelyhood need a PDs letter of recommendation. Now, this can be a very touchy subject and I don't know your PD. The reaction might be different from what you expect. The spectrum goes from:
- you are one of our brightest residents and we will hate to loose you, but I will do everything it takes for your to succeed in your plans (at times switchers find their out of match slots by their PD making calls for them)
- how dare you snub us. This is the Temple mound of internal medicine, how dare you think about leaving us (there are PDs that turn vindictive after they find out about a resident wanting to leave. they will forge evaluations, put the resident on probation and other dirty tricks to damage their career and make them look like they are a 'difficult resident')
So, good luck.
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Actually, they don't. It is rather the other way around.
If you start out lets say in categorical IM and you switch into radiology, your radiology program will have to eat the 20k for the last 2 years of your residency. If you start in a general surgery residency and switch into rads after internship, the entire training period is funded.
(the goverment starts a clock the day you start your first residency. the specialty you are in on that day determines the length of the 'initial residency' that the goverment will pay for. For IM it is 3 years, for surgery 5 etc.)
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f_w,
On a separate forum, I was reading how some residents apply to nuclear medicine after transitional year out of the hope to still get into a radiology program the year after. It was said that the nuc. med. year "might" substitute for a year of the rad. program, depending on the program. If a resident starts a Nuc. Med. residency which is 3 yrs., how can he transfer into a Rad. residency which is 4 yrs. and have all 4 funded for? Wouldn't the "clock" strike zero at the end of the 3rd year of Rad.?
On a separate forum, I was reading how some residents apply to nuclear medicine after transitional year out of the hope to still get into a radiology program the year after. It was said that the nuc. med. year "might" substitute for a year of the rad. program, depending on the program. If a resident starts a Nuc. Med. residency which is 3 yrs., how can he transfer into a Rad. residency which is 4 yrs. and have all 4 funded for? Wouldn't the "clock" strike zero at the end of the 3rd year of Rad.?
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Yes, in those scenarios the hospital won't get paid at the full rate for the last 2 years.
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Even if you don't supply a letter from your current PD, the Chairman or PD of the radiology dept you are applying to will want the scoop from your current PD, and might make a call directly to make sure things are on the 'up-and-up'.
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Actually, what you need is someone to tell the new PD that you are not a 'difficult resident'. And yes, there is that dark brotherhood of program directors who will gang up against you if they think you are 'difficult' (e.g. by insisting on a fair call schedule or getting legal representation after someone puts a unfounded formal complaint into your personnel file).
