Some tips for IMG's trying to get into residency in Canada

[firetown]

Just keep on trying for all the provinces. Don't limit yourself to one province. Especially look at the Ontario IMG which now have positions for up to 200 people. Though it is a tough competition as applicants keep on increasing every year. Other provinces like Nova Scotia, Manitoba and Newfoundland have other programs apart from Carms which you can also try. The key is networking. Write to other IMG's practicing in Canada for contacts during the Carms match. Make use of everybody you know or do not know.

For CARMS match (2nd iteration for IMG's), get a very good score on the MCCQE1. Have a very good resume and personal letter on hand. If possible seek professional help on this. Do everything that you can to get some observerships with practising doctors. Talk to practising physicians. Some them will allow the observership. If you have a family doctor, start from there or talk to any practising doctor that you might know. At the end of each observership ask for reference letters that you can submit to Carms. Send each of the program directors for the programs that you have applied for in Carms, an email selling yourself. I know some people who have used this process and it has worked for them and there are in residencies now in Canada. Mind you these people had their medical degrees from Africa and Asia which normally would have been impossible for them to get through as graduates from UK, Ireland, Australia and unmatched Canadian graduates are given preference by the programs.

However, network I would say works best and look at the Ontario IMG program which at the moment looks like the best chance for IMG's in Canada.

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[Knight_MD]

Thanks.

 

[asurani100]

Hello
i would appreciate if anyone(seniors) can guide me with regards to my query.
what is the scope if one apply for residency in a specialty after completing Master in that field e.g if one is interested in doing residency training in pediatric, what's the scope of getting a residency in peds after completing master in pediatric!! Will it be a boost on Residency application or will it have a negative impact b/c one is out of clinical practice for long time. I will appreciate if you can help out
Thanks for ur time an guidance in advance
regards
ARif

 

[thinker]

what's the status nowadays for matching to competitive residencies like ENT for example? is it possible for Canadian IMGs with extensive Canadian education and research? would doing rotations in Canada really up the chances?

 

[Giemsa]

what's the status nowadays for matching to competitive residencies like ENT for example?

In 2011 match, there were 0 spots for IMGs in ENT.
https://w1c.e-carms.ca/pdws2011R1-1/jsp/pd.do?p=p1&m=1

So, long story short, in 2011 ENT was impossible for IMGs.

Obviously, the degree of difficulty is going to depend on whether there are any spots offered in the specialty. If there are some spots offered, the most important things (most would say pre-requisites) to getting a spot through CaRMS are:

1) doing Canadian electives
2) wowing them at your Canadian electives
3) getting great LOR from your Canadian electives

Also very helpful:
4) being from a good school ("good" school will often depend on the PD's opinion)
5) being a recent grad (e.g. current year grad)

If you're going for a competitive specialty, add on:

1) better-than-average scores (MCCEE, Steps, etc.)
2) impressive, high-end research
3) publications in high-impact journals

 

[thinker]

Thanks Giemsa. So 234 spots. ENT isn't allocated any spot to begin with while ortho and some other good ones are.

 

[med2UCC]

Thanks Giemsa. So 234 spots. ENT isn't allocated any spot to begin with while ortho and some other good ones are.

The allocation of spots has nothing to do with what are considered "Good" spots but entirely to do with what the provincial governments, who sponsor the spots, think they need doc-wise, or will need in 4-5 years when the trainees finish. This would be why one year there's a derm spot in Ontario, the next there isn't one anywhere in Canada. This is why there is no guarantee that the year you apply the spot you want will be there, or that you will get the exact residency you want. Be prepared to be flexible.
That being said, sometimes if you contact individual schools while doing electives, sometimes you can arrange for a spot to exist. A friend was offered a general surgery spot this way (eventually decided to go elsewhere for personal reasons) and I was offered a family med spot this way if things hadn't worked out for me in the match. You can also try to contact individual health boards and see who bites. They all say they don't work deals like this but some do, it's just a matter of being dogged and cold calling/writing until you get somewhere. Cheers,
M

 

[thinker]

Okay thanks that clarifies things.. hopefully the trannies finish quickly then 😀

 

[Blitz2006]

Hey Giemsa,

Thx for a very informative post.

Here's my story in a nutshell.

Dual citzien, British-Canadian, did my BScH in Ontario (Queen's), now doing medical school in the UK. Wrapping it up this year, applying to U.S/Canada for match.

I've done 4 months of electives in the U.S (2 months surgery, 2 months medicine), as well as 2 months of observership 2 summers ago in the States. I also spent 1 summer at Univ. of Toronto doing research in clinical oncology.

Long story short, I have tons of U.S clinical experience, but 0 experience in Canada (apart from my summer of research, where I published an abstract). All my LORs are American.

Is it necessary to have Canadian electives + Canadian LORS? Should I even bother to apply?

I'm gunning for GSurg...

Thx!

In 2011 match, there were 0 spots for IMGs in ENT.
https://w1c.e-carms.ca/pdws2011R1-1/jsp/pd.do?p=p1&m=1

So, long story short, in 2011 ENT was impossible for IMGs.

Obviously, the degree of difficulty is going to depend on whether there are any spots offered in the specialty. If there are some spots offered, the most important things (most would say pre-requisites) to getting a spot through CaRMS are:

1) doing Canadian electives
2) wowing them at your Canadian electives
3) getting great LOR from your Canadian electives

Also very helpful:
4) being from a good school ("good" school will often depend on the PD's opinion)
5) being a recent grad (e.g. current year grad)

If you're going for a competitive specialty, add on:

1) better-than-average scores (MCCEE, Steps, etc.)
2) impressive, high-end research
3) publications in high-impact journals

 

[Giemsa]

Long story short, I have tons of U.S clinical experience, but 0 experience in Canada (apart from my summer of research, where I published an abstract). All my LORs are American.

Is it necessary to have Canadian electives + Canadian LORS? Should I even bother to apply?

Canadian experience / LOR are very helpful, but I say apply anyways. The application is relatively cheap (hundreds, not thousands, of dollars); it doesn't get expensive until you get interviews and have to start traveling. If you'd like to train in Canada, give it a shot - no one really knows what will happen in CaRMS!

 

[thinker]

I was trying to find some sort of a list for wanted specialities or projections to specialities in need for the coming years.. is it available anywhere? I looked on carms and other websites without luck.