Residency Program Help

[IMUNEEK]

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I am a final year med school student at a mid-tier school. My step 1 and step 2 scores are 233 and 240 respectively. I would like to go for surgery residency and later specialize in one of the sub-specialty. I prefer to be in the North west region. Could you suggest me some programs where I would be a good fit and are target programs for my scores and with a good chance to get into a sub-speciality.

 

[SooConfused]

I am a final year med school student at a mid-tier school. My step 1 and step 2 scores are 233 and 240 respectively. I would like to go for surgery residency and later specialize in one of the sub-specialty. I prefer to be in the North west region. Could you suggest me some programs where I would be a good fit and are target programs for my scores and with a good chance to get into a sub-speciality.

Are you a M4 or a premed? The post quoted below is not from 5+ years ago, but from 3 months ago!

Seems as though if you were in med school that you'd have access to advising that would shed some light on your question.

Assuming this is a prospective hypothetical question, my advice would be to get into med school first, and let things take care of themselves over time. Things fall into place for most people as they are exposed to specialties and see where they have and/or develop interest, talent, connections, etc.

Could you tell me if I should take a gap year, retake my MCAT and apply next cycle, if I have chance please suggest me a school list for MD.

cGPA: 3.75 and sGPA of 3.75
MCAT: 508
Asian Indian
State of Residence - MD
Case Western University Major-Biochemistry
Clinical Experience: 500 hours - Scribing and Medical assistant
Clinical Volunteering: 300+ hours helping patients get ready and recover from procedures
Student Research Assistant: Clinical research 3 years, (800 hours)
Also have a paper + presentation (not published) in a program
Shadowing: 500 hours in person
Non-clinical volunteering:
200 Tutoring
200 hours soup kitchen
200 Started a club to teach under privileged kids in the neighborhood.

 

[GoSpursGo]

So let’s be realistic—you have below average scores for a moderately competitive specialty. You are more likely than not to match (~75%) but you cannot be picky about your region or their fellowship match rate. By all means include all of the appropriate programs in that region, but you need to cast a wider net.

Unless there is some other amazing aspect in your application like substantial research, I would not aim for “name brand” programs like UWash or OHSU.

 

[IMUNEEK]

@GoSpursGo @SooConfused @Goro @Faha I am M4 from midtier med school step1 231 and step 2 240 initially I wanted to go to surgery and all my electives were surgery related, but with 1 month remaining to apply to residency, I want to apply to IM and specialize in cardiology. Can I still apply and match into a IM program and hope to go to cardiology? If so could you help me with where to apply?

 

[SooConfused]

@GoSpursGo @SooConfused @Goro @Faha I am M4 from midtier med school step1 231 and step 2 240 initially I wanted to go to surgery and all my electives were surgery related, but with 1 month remaining to apply to residency, I want to apply to IM and specialize in cardiology. Can I still apply and match into a IM program and hope to go to cardiology? If so could you help me with where to apply?

This feels like a very late question to have on the eve of your applications. What does your advising office think? It seems like they would be in the best position to guide you, having access to your academic record over the past 3 years, your full CV, your evaluations, etc.

More importantly, they have specific information about how people just like you end up doing in the match. It's hard for me to advise you, given that you were asking about applying to med school this year or retaking the MCAT and applying next cycle back in April, applying for surgery residencies earlier today, and now want advice on IM residencies with a cardiology subspecialty. Good luck!!

 

[TelemarketingEnigma]

OP how have you somehow been three different people over the course of all your posts? Do you want surgery or IM? Are you applying to med school or residency? Why do your scores keep changing?

 

[GoSpursGo]

@GoSpursGo @SooConfused @Goro @Faha I am M4 from midtier med school step1 231 and step 2 240 initially I wanted to go to surgery and all my electives were surgery related, but with 1 month remaining to apply to residency, I want to apply to IM and specialize in cardiology. Can I still apply and match into a IM program and hope to go to cardiology? If so could you help me with where to apply?

Do you have letters lined up for IM?

You can definitely match IM. Whether you can match cards depends on how well set up you are for an IM match

 

[Goro]

Med schools I can advise on getting into. Residency, no.

 

[IMUNEEK]

OP how have you somehow been three different people over the course of all your posts? Do you want surgery or IM? Are you applying to med school or residency? Why do your scores keep changing?

Ignore the med school question. I want to do IM

 

[IMUNEEK]

This feels like a very late question to have on the eve of your applications. What does your advising office think? It seems like they would be in the best position to guide you, having access to your academic record over the past 3 years, your full CV, your evaluations, etc.

More importantly, they have specific information about how people just like you end up doing in the match. It's hard for me to advise you, given that you were asking about applying to med school this year or retaking the MCAT and applying next cycle back in April, applying for surgery residencies earlier today, and now want advice on IM residencies with a cardiology subspecialty. Good luck!!

Ignore the med school question

 

[TelemarketingEnigma]

Ignore the med school question. I want to do IM

But five hours ago you wanted to do surgery, or maybe a surgical sub specialty. What changed?

 

[mrbreakfast]

Ignore the med school question

Kinda hard when, in the same thread, you have assigned yourself two separate career trajectories, let alone two separate Step 1 scores...

Regardless of your step one score: your step scores, whatever they may be, are not going to impress anyone. If you want to go surgery, cast a wide net. If you want to do IM, you can likely end up in the Northwest if that is your preference, albeit not necessarily at a top center; your chances at cardiology will depend on your residency performance, not your med school performance.

 

[IMUNEEK]

@mrbreakfast @SooConfused @GoSpursGo Is it too late for me now to go to IM? Because I have done multiple surgery elective rotations? I am not decided between IM and surgery, would it be better for me to prelim year and decide. Could you provide me a list of prelim programs which are good in the Northeast considering my scores are 233 and 240

 

[GoSpursGo]

@mrbreakfast @SooConfused @GoSpursGo Is it too late for me now to go to IM? Because I have done multiple surgery elective rotations? I am not decided between IM and surgery, would it be better for me to prelim year and decide. Could you provide me a list of prelim programs which are good in the Northeast considering my scores are 233 and 240

As I said, you can match IM, it’ll just be a sprint to getting letters. People change their minds all the time.

Do not do a prelim year to decide. For a multitude of reasons that is a terrible idea. Ultimately make your best educated guess, Taking into account your relative competitiveness for surgery

 

[SooConfused]

@mrbreakfast @SooConfused @GoSpursGo Is it too late for me now to go to IM? Because I have done multiple surgery elective rotations? I am not decided between IM and surgery, would it be better for me to prelim year and decide. Could you provide me a list of prelim programs which are good in the Northeast considering my scores are 233 and 240

I think before anyone goes to the trouble of compiling a list of programs for you to consider, they would want to know why you, as a M3, made a post asking people to provide you with a list of med schools to consider applying to. It just feels like it might an exercise in wheel spinning. Or possibly that you are asking people to do this research for you as part of your targeting of med schools as a premed.

I would also love to know, if you are really a M4, why your school is not providing this type of information. They are in a much better position to tailor advice to your specific situation, having access to your records and knowing how people from your school perform in the match, than whatever generic advice you can get on SDN.

 

[mrbreakfast]

Could you provide me a list of prelim programs which are good in the Northeast considering my scores are 233 and 240

Of course not. You're far too deep into medical education to be asking people to prepare application lists for you. Besides, with your scores, you're not matching into a "good" prelim program in the Northeast.

As mentioned by other posters, you should really be getting advice from your school. If you truly are an M4, there is no way you would've made it this far without at least a single advising meeting.

It is impossible to give you any concrete advise because, in this thread, you have stated that you a) want to do surgery, b) want to do IM, and c) can't decide between the two. You need to make that decision yourself. No one here's going to tell you what specialty to apply to.

 

[NotAProgDirector]

As others have pointed out, your two threads are confusing.

Regardless, trying to answer the question posted here. Yes, you can still apply for Internal medicine. Many US MD schools generate an IM Department letter, and you should ask for one of those. You could still ask someone from your IM clerkship to write you a letter, although if it was over a year ago they may have trouble remembering you.

The most important thing you can do is this: have whomever your surgery mentor is write a LOR that specifically says that you've changed your mind and no longer applying to surgery. They will only do this if you're not apply to GS, not if you're applying to GS with IM as a backup. And that's why a letter from them stating you're changing your mind is so helpful.

 

[Browns99]

Why is anyone feeding the OP, who within three months went from asking about whether they should re-take the MCAT, take a gap year and recs for medical schools to now being in their final year of med school🤣. Whoever the admin is, should shut the post down.

 

[candbgirl]

Why is anyone feeding the OP, who within three months went from asking about whether they should re-take the MCAT, take a gap year and recs for medical schools to now being in their final year of med school🤣. Whoever the admin is, should shut the post down.

I’m surprised they haven’t. Premed shut down the thread over there.

 

[Moko]

Moderator note:
Closing pending further investigation. The medical student forums are not meant for pre-medical students, and none of our forums are meant for trolling.

Edit: the user was reportedly writing this post on behalf of someone else. I have asked that they create their own account to avoid further confusion.

For everyone else, please enjoy a random picture of the day: