Steps to landing a competitive residency?

[CalH22a]

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Hi everyone. I'm going to be starting my first year of medical school next year, which I'm very excited about. I was just wondering what kind of things are important to landing a competitive residency (e.g. research, volunteering). What steps should I take or activities should I do to be a competitive candidate for a competitive residency? Any input and advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much!

 

[doc05]

step 1, aoa, grades, research. volunteering isn't important.

 

[la gringa]

from what i have seen, experienced, heard....

a lot of what is "important" will depend on what specialty you end up applying to... aoa is not a big deal in a lot of things but it in ortho, plastics, etc.

i would say that volunteering gives you a more well-rounded application and may be important in some fields. try to make it fit what you are interested in - it could help show your interest in and dedication to a field.

study your ass off for step 1, no matter how silly you think tests are, try getting an interview at a top program w/o a good score. you just can't escape it. spend the $$ on prep materials, set aside a realistic amount of time...

 

[bof]

third year grades>step 1>research>first/second year grades>>volunteering.

basically try to do well in your courses. 3rd year is more important then years 1/2 but you should try to do as well as you can. you want your step 1 score to be respectable such that it does not exclude you from any residency programs. a high step 1 score will get them to consider your application but you aren't going to get in anywhere with just a high step 1 score. research is very important for the most competitive programs. everyone that applies to these programs has grades/step 1 scores so research will help you stand out.

Hi everyone. I'm going to be starting my first year of medical school next year, which I'm very excited about. I was just wondering what kind of things are important to landing a competitive residency (e.g. research, volunteering). What steps should I take or activities should I do to be a competitive candidate for a competitive residency? Any input and advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much!

 

[dry dre]

third year grades>step 1>research>first/second year grades>>volunteering.

I would offer:

third year grades>strong rotation at the program>step 1>AOA>connections>research>pulse>volunteering>first/second year grades

Note that some specialties (plastics/derm) highly value research (or use status to filter). At the same time, some specific programs (UCLA general surgery) may want to see research, even though that specialty may not generally care.

Study hard during years 1&2 to rock Step 1; worry less about how the individual grades come out. If you have a 255 Step 1, no one cares what you got in histology.

 

[ears]

Three quick points.

First, good for you for starting to think about this stuff early. You can definitely do yourself a bunch of good that way.

Second, the variables that people are mentioning are important, and typically in about the order that was mentioned. Clinical grades and Step 1 seem to be the most consistently important. Other factors (especially research) depend on the specialty and even specific programs.

Third, you want to read Iserson's Getting Into A Residency. It's a good book, full of useful information and advice about how the whole residency selection process works and what you can do to improve how you match. Organization and early preparation are definitely critical, so you can help yourself a lot by thinking ahead.

Good luck.

 

[Gavanshir]

What's AOA?

 

[DOCTORSAIB]

third year grades>step 1>research>first/second year grades>>volunteering.

This statement is not entirely true. It depends on the specialty. In ophthalmology, the single most important aspect to your application to land the interview is your Step 1 score then LORs/research. It's a small field and the big whigs all know each other.

At that point, the interview is of paramount importance. Medical students tend to over-estimate their interviewing skills. Don't fall into that trap. Take the interview very seriously. Get together with a bunch of your gunner friends and actually do mock interviews. Seems silly but you will be amazed at how often you fidget, say "um/like" or sit with poor posture. You don't want to bust your ass for 4 years only to bomb the interview on game day.

Best of luck!

 

[gutonc]

What's AOA?

Solid 6 year bump.

AOA is the medical honor society. Phi Beta Kappa for med students.

 

[Gavanshir]

Solid 6 year bump.

AOA is the medical honor society. Phi Beta Kappa for med students.

haha thanks bro.

 

[Law2Doc]

This statement is not entirely true. It depends on the specialty. In ophthalmology, the single most important aspect to your application to land the interview is your Step 1 score then LORs/research. ...

Agreed, and not just for optho. In many of the competitive fields, the order is something like (1) Step 1, (2) connections/LORs, (3-5) Research, (6) third year evals/deans letter. Things like AOA are nice but it's more of a cherry on top, it isn't a necessary part of an acceptable sundae. First/Second year grades barely enter into the equation. Volunteering really doesn't matter.

 

[wild0ne]

Agreed, and not just for optho. In many of the competitive fields, the order is something like (1) Step 1, (2) connections/LORs, (3-5) Research, (6) third year evals/deans letter. Things like AOA are nice but it's more of a cherry on top, it isn't a necessary part of an acceptable sundae. First/Second year grades barely enter into the equation. Volunteering really doesn't matter.

Um, your order seems off..

Check out data released by NRMP from a survey of program directors asking them about factors they use to select an applicant to interview and rank applicants for the Match.

That'll give you facts, and not hearsay.

 

[smq123]

Moving to allopathic.

 

[MCsoundt]

So everyone is saying that grades are really important. How do they make comparisons between students, though? Aren't all school P/F? and don't all students pass?

And what about if you go to a school that's P/F for 3rd year as well?

 

[Electronegative]

So everyone is saying that grades are really important. How do they make comparisons between students, though? Aren't all school P/F? and don't all students pass?

And what about if you go to a school that's P/F for 3rd year as well?

Fail<Pass<Honors<High honors
EN

 

[marble30]

...why is this in pre-allo? 😕

 

[muhali3]

.

 

[orthomyxo]

Man, how do people even come across these insanely old threads?

 

[Electronegative]

Man, how do people even come across these insanely old threads?

It's a serious problem called OCD, and it should not be made fun of.

EN

 

[jm192]

Man, how do people even come across these insanely old threads?

Everyone yells "use the search function." Someone probably just used it for once.

 

[marble30]

Everyone yells "use the search function." Someone probably just used it for once.

👍

Basically, you get yelled at for not using the search function and then when you do use it to ask more questions, you get yelled at for resurrecting the old thread.

Conclusion: CAN'T WIN!

[and no, I wasn't the one that bumped this thread]

 

[jm192]

👍

Basically, you get yelled at for not using the search function and then when you do use it to ask more questions, you get yelled at for resurrecting the old thread.

Conclusion: CAN'T WIN!

[and no, I wasn't the one that bumped this thread]

lol basically.

 

[mtbtx]

Everyone yells "use the search function." Someone probably just used it for once.

Not really. It would've been much easier to google aoa rather than bump a 6 year old thread to find out lol

 

[da8s0859q]

Agreed, and not just for optho. In many of the competitive fields, the order is something like (1) Step 1, (2) connections/LORs, (3-5) Research, (6) third year evals/deans letter. Things like AOA are nice but it's more of a cherry on top, it isn't a necessary part of an acceptable sundae. First/Second year grades barely enter into the equation. Volunteering really doesn't matter.

L2D, besides rads, what do you have in mind as far as fields which place such a premium on research?

I ask because I'm just not much of a research guy and have been told that research isn't necessarily REQUIRED required for many things, but I still worry about it.

 

[jm192]

Not really. It would've been much easier to google aoa rather than bump a 6 year old thread to find out lol

Question was how the thread was found, not why he bumped it.

 

[abmd]

L2D, besides rads, what do you have in mind as far as fields which place such a premium on research?

I ask because I'm just not much of a research guy and have been told that research isn't necessarily REQUIRED required for many things, but I still worry about it.

Derm, plastics, rads, ortho, ENT

 

[moto_za]

How do students do well in 3rd year?

 

[Dreaming big]

How do students do well in 3rd year?

Cheat, steal, murder, lie, ect., ect.

You know, the usual.

 

[pennstate4life]

How do students do well in 3rd year?

Just don't kill anyone. Every patient that dies on your watch subtracts 5% from your overall grade.

 

[Law2Doc]

Derm, plastics, rads, ortho, ENT

I would add rad onc to this list too. There are others but this is the majority.

 

[Law2Doc]

How do students do well in 3rd year?

This tends to be hard for a lot of folks, who aren't used to being subjectively evaluated, rather than having most of your grade coming from objective, test scores. A lot of it is personality. Some of it is attitude. Always show up excited to be there and ready to roll up your sleeves and get to work, at whatever task, for however long it takes. Help out the residents, don't wait to be asked to do things. You are learning through osmosis in rotations, don't wait to be spoon fed stuff. Do lots of reading in your "spare" time so that when you are "pimped", you seem to know lots of stuff. Work on your presentation skills and do a good job of presenting patients to attendings. And be a good, all around, hard working team player. There will be some component of each rotation that comes from test scores (usually a shelf exam), but the bulk of your grade, and your evaluation (which is more important because it will be excerpted in your dean's letter), is going to be subjectively determined, ie did the attending like you, find you smart, too quiet, did the residents complain about you, did the residents indicate you were helpful, etc.