Shot at general surgery?

[ns5797]

I was planning on doing IM or FM but ended up really disliking my IM clerkship and wanting to do gen surg instead. Unfortunately my clerkship grades have been pretty terrible and I don't know what my chances of matching are.

T20 medical school
Step 1: 237
Surgery: pass
IM: pass
Neuro: pass
Psych: HP
Peds: honors
Obgyn: in process

I have one paper in the works however that was under IM not surgery. Anyone else with grades like this able to match? Maybe to a community program?

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[Spectreman]

T20 school .. 237
Stop ✋- yes, you will match. Quick read of NRMP data is all you need.

 

[ns5797]

T20 school .. 237
Stop ✋- yes, you will match. Quick read of NRMP data is all you need.

4/8 students applying to general surgery from my school last year failed to match, I think people overestimate how much weight the prestige of your medical school actually carries

 

[DOVinciRobot]

4/8 students applying to general surgery from my school last year failed to match, I think people overestimate how much weight the prestige of your medical school actually carries

Very real chance they overestimated how competitive they were for highly ranked programs. If you apply broadly you will likely have excellent chances.

 

[Spectreman]

4/8 students applying to general surgery from my school last year failed to match, I think people overestimate how much weight the prestige of your medical school actually carries

Def an issue with T20 schools is the applicants only apply to Uber competitive programs.

 

[Banco]

@ns5797 You definitely have a shot. A pass isn't ideal but it also isn't a dealbreaker, and your Step 1 is bang on the average for matched applicants. Things you can now do to improve your chances before application:

1) Good step 2 score
2) Good LORs
3) Some research


And maybe most importantly, apply broadly and smartly, to both academic and community programs in varied locations - you will get interviews. After that it's up to you.

 

[deleted50541]

I agree with all of the above advice as far as applying broadly and having good LORs.

However, there is one big question to ask yourself and the one you need to be prepared to answer in interviews: Why general surgery? I get that you didn't like your IM rotation. As an interviewer, I want to know if this is someone who has a passion for surgery and I want to work with for the next 5+ years.

Know why you want to do general surgery, what interests you about the field (the more specific the better), and what your future goals are as both a resident and future surgeon. A strong application will help you get your foot in the door. But being personable and having a plan backed by genuine enthusiasm will help you rank high. It doesn't hurt either if the surgeons you worked with know folks where you're interviewing.