Should what specialty you want to pursue affect your med school list?

[Careerchangepostbac]

I was wondering should what specialty you want to pursue affect the medical schools you apply to, and if it should, what information should I find out about each school to help make this decision. I know that what specialty you want to pursue has a high likelihood of changing while you are in school, but I am very interested in neurosurgery and with it being a specialty with such few positions I want to give myself the best chances to match when the time comes. Thanks in advanced for the help!

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[aspiringdoc111]

just a fellow applicant. But I would apply broadly based on your stats and then narrow down once you receive acceptances. Good things to look for are strong home residency programs within the field, research availability, and a good history of matching into that subspecialty.

 

[Goro]

I was wondering should what specialty you want to pursue affect the medical schools you apply to, and if it should, what information should I find out about each school to help make this decision. I know that what specialty you want to pursue has a high likelihood of changing while you are in school, but I am very interested in neurosurgery and with it being a specialty with such few positions I want to give myself the best chances to match when the time comes. Thanks in advanced for the help!

Nope. Matching is far more about the student than the school.

 

[Careerchangepostbac]

just a fellow applicant. But I would apply broadly based on your stats and then narrow down once you receive acceptances. Good things to look for are strong home residency programs within the field, research availability, and a good history of matching into that subspecialty.

Cool! Thanks for the reply. I was wondering how much home residency programs matter. Do residency programs tend to select from their own med students?

 

[aspiringdoc111]

Cool! Thanks for the reply. I was wondering how much home residency programs matter. Do residency programs tend to select from their own med students?

It helps to have a home residency program write you a letter of recommendation when applying elsewhere. Neurosurgery is a very small field so chances are program directors will know each other.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

You need to.choose the school that is the best fit for you. Learning resources, research opportunities, in house residencies, especially neurosurgery. You then need to research how you can produce a competitive app for the specialty you choose. Then YOU have to craft a competitive application, meaning graduating in the top 10%, AOA if your school has this, and several research papers, good letters of recommendation, MSPE, etc..

 

[lacrossegirl420]

Yes, also if you’re aiming for a certain kind of program (not only specialty) some schools will make that either much easier or virtually impossible

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Apply to the school that will best support you, even if you change your mind on pursuing a specialty. Remember: chances are you'd change, but you want to still be in a position to succeed and be mentored to get to the next step.

 

[gyngyn]

Your list should begin with a sufficient number of US MD schools that might interview you (based on your stats, mission and state of residence).
If you employ a strong enough strategy and have an appealing application, you are more likely to have a choice among schools that accept you.
Most applicants do not get a choice.

An application focused on a highly competitive specialty does not improve odds of acceptance.