Hi, I am just curious, but if a DO student has really good board scores (240+) but didn't do research at all, what specialties are open to him/her?
Specialty options
- Thread starter SandyH
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Anything but Derm, RadOnc, or surgical subspecialty
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I am assuming you are using the term "specialty" as the colloquial "non-primary care".
AOA match next year: Without ANY research at all? Depends on the specialty. I think you could match to most specialties (except the highly competitive ones) without too much trouble as long as you have a solid CV in other areas. You may be asked why you didn't do research in your interviews.
ACGME: Check out Charting the Outcomes. If you are applying with 0 research experiences, you should try to have other things on your CV that really stand out. A step 1 in the 240's is average for Derm, Diagnostic rads (240 was the average) Neurosurg, Ortho, ENT, Uro, Ophthalmology, Plastics, and Rad onc. It is unlikely you will fare well trying to match these fields as a DO with average boards and 0 research, unless you can have someone who is well known in the field call places on your behalf. I'm not saying it is impossible, as I am sure somebody somewhere did it in the past, but there is no doubt it is going to be extremely, extremely difficult. For reference, there wasn't a single person who matched ENT or Rad onc without research in 2016.
Other fields (EM, Psych, Pathology, etc.) match people every year who have never done research, but you are still in the minority. Your step 1 score will help in these fields. It is crucial that you have great letters from people in those fields and you need to audition and interview well. If you can do that, I think you have a very good shot at matching.
Hope this helps.
AOA match next year: Without ANY research at all? Depends on the specialty. I think you could match to most specialties (except the highly competitive ones) without too much trouble as long as you have a solid CV in other areas. You may be asked why you didn't do research in your interviews.
ACGME: Check out Charting the Outcomes. If you are applying with 0 research experiences, you should try to have other things on your CV that really stand out. A step 1 in the 240's is average for Derm, Diagnostic rads (240 was the average) Neurosurg, Ortho, ENT, Uro, Ophthalmology, Plastics, and Rad onc. It is unlikely you will fare well trying to match these fields as a DO with average boards and 0 research, unless you can have someone who is well known in the field call places on your behalf. I'm not saying it is impossible, as I am sure somebody somewhere did it in the past, but there is no doubt it is going to be extremely, extremely difficult. For reference, there wasn't a single person who matched ENT or Rad onc without research in 2016.
Other fields (EM, Psych, Pathology, etc.) match people every year who have never done research, but you are still in the minority. Your step 1 score will help in these fields. It is crucial that you have great letters from people in those fields and you need to audition and interview well. If you can do that, I think you have a very good shot at matching.
Hope this helps.
