subi vs elective

[Yoyomama88]

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For neuro, what are the expectations in terms of away rotations? Would it be kosher to never do a SUB-I but instead one elective in say "Clinical Epilepsy" or "Behavioral Neurology". Can doing well on an elective at an institution still improve your chances at said institution or if you are gunning for a specific place, is it best to shine on a Sub-I?

 

[tirral]

This may be the blind leading the blind, since I'm just an MS-4, but I do not think my application was harmed much by the fact that I had no neurology Sub-I or away rotation.

There is no neurology department at my school, and I chose neurology late in my third year, after away rotations had already been scheduled. I did a month of neurology early in my 4th year with a private attending. I got interviews nearly everywhere I applied; although I did not apply to "elite" top 10 programs, I got plenty of interviews and I do not anticipate having any trouble matching (now watch me jinx myself with this post!).

So, in my experience, it doesn't make a whole lot of difference whether you do a Sub-I or an away rotation, as long as you can explain your decisions on the interview trail. This is not a hyper-competitive field, on the whole.

 

[typhoonegator]

My school didn't have a formal "sub-I" for neurology, so I just did a stroke rotation, inpatient mixed with outpatient. Wrote a paper. Got into a top program with no ill effects.

But you'd better rock your medicine sub-I.