Hey IronTalus. I rarely comment on any thread here, but I feel for you, I was you. I was always a good student though high school and college. I had a 3.7 GPA when I applied to Podiatry school. Then....pod school happened. It beat me up. Honestly, I barely scraped by. I assure you it was not due to a lack of effort. I just could not do well on my exams, I did everything I could to change it, but it just never happened. I finished my second year sitting at like a 2.6 or something. It was not pretty. I was worried, I knew how much of an emphasis there is on GPA, and frankly, mine sucked. I even failed boards.
Just like
@Packers4lifeDPM, I too studied 12 hours a day on weekends, and every day. That doesn't guarantee A's, it got me C's. Not every pod school is created equal. Unfortunately, not everybody knows that.
I got some great advice from one of my advisors going into 3rd year. He said, "Listen, your GPA isn't good, but I'll tell you that you have an excellent opportunity your 3rd and 4th years to gain some ground on your peers. Many of your peers will rest on their laurels and take it easy, letting their GPA get them a residency. You can't. Work just as hard 3rd and 4th year as you did the first 2 years, crush your externships and you'll get a good residency."
So I did that. I was up early every day studying. I would get to the hospital early during my third year rotations so I could study for cases. I stayed late reviewing what I did not know. I made sure I pulled every ounce of learning from my student rotations as I could. The fire under my butt was lit.
Halfway through my 3rd year, I was with an attending who trusted me enough to see patients nearly independently in his clinic. He let me do simple cases in the OR skin-to-skin (HWR, Keller, IPJ arthrplasty etc.) On his bigger cases like triples or ankle fractures he let me place the hardware and do the closure (after he reduced the fx or held the joint in the position he wanted. He knew I came to every case prepared. He didn't care I had a 2.6. I helped him on the weekend with cases and rounding, in return he rewarded me with a phenomenal letter of recommendation (a key component to getting the residency you want). Honestly, his confidence in me and kindness toward me meant so much. I strive to be like him.
Contrary to what
@dtrack22 says, students like us have an opportunity to get not only great, but amazing residency training, I'm at a program which has had graduates from nearly every year join an orthopedic group. You ask for the truth going into externships, and residency. The truth is program directors and most residents will see your GPA and you need to overcome that.
@airbud1 is right, personality goes a long way. Be likable. Your job is to make them realize that your GPA is not who you are. You need to sell your strengths so that they want you at their program regardless of your GPA. Residencies want a competent, confident, helpful intern, who gets along with attendings and residents. Nail your externships. Nail your interviews, and thats not even half of it.
Like I said, I was you. I had that doomed feeling that I wasn't measuring up. I got my top choice for residency. I had all my surgical numbers shortly into second year, mostly skin-to-skin cases. My residency training has been top tier. I have multiple employment options to choose from after residency. I am proficient in the office, confident in the OR, competent with billing and coding, and very well rounded. I also almost failed out of podiatry school.
Shoot me a private message. I remember being where you are and it was a low point in my education. I'll let you know what I did to make myself stand out and get the residency I wanted, It wasn't easy, and it definitely took going the extra mile. Its always good to hear the advice of those who have been where you are. You can do it. Keep working hard, stay humble, and be kind. Maybe you were a 2.4 student the first 2 years, but be a 4.0 student the last two, even if it doesn't show up on your transcript. 3rd year rotations, externships, and residency will vary wildly, but the largest factor is you. What will you make of it?
