Taking a year off after intern year

[condyloma]

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Has anyone heard of taking a year off after internship?
Is this frowned upon?
Do residency programs allow it at all?

 

[mlw03]

wouldn't you be worried that you'd lose a lot of what you'd learned? or that standards of care might change and you'd be out of the loop?

 

[Winged Scapula]

Has anyone heard of taking a year off after internship?

Yes, but rarely.

Is this frowned upon?

Yes, frequently.

Do residency programs allow it at all?

Perhaps. Most people who take a year off do so because of family obligations (ie, having a baby, sick parent, etc.). Its generally not a planned thing, especially after intern year. Taking time off while doing some research years is more common and usually easier for the program to handle. After all, if you take a year off, who is going to fill your spot as a PGY-2, who is going to take your call, or do the work expected for your position? Taking the year off leaves the program with an open spot they have to rush to fill; while some PGY2 spots are easy to fill, others are not and you may place them in a bind.

Its much easier to take a year off between med school and internship if you are interested in some mind-expanding adventure.