Tips for entering medical students

[Falco2525]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hey everyone I am highly interested in neurosurgery...I was wondering if you have any suggestions on how to obtain residency in neurosurgery...clearly board scores and grades are important but does they school you go to matter at all?

 

[kenneth.c.liu]

this is a controversial topic, but i think it can be said that certain schools have more of a predilection for placing candidates into residency programs than others, e.g., columbia and johns hopkins.

HOWEVER, 98% of successful applicants come from other schools, so in the end, it doesn't really matter what school you come from, as long as you have a strong application: research, grades, test scores, good letters of recommendation, etc.

 

[iwantneurosurg]

if your school has a neurosurgery residency, get to know the attendings/residents. can't hurt; and nothing wrong with going to the home program.

 

[Noeljan]

if your school has a neurosurgery residency, get to know the attendings/residents. can't hurt; and nothing wrong with going to the home program.

How soon do you suggest getting in contact with such people? What if I wanted to start some research this summer before MS1? Would they think I was weird? lol.

 

[cdql]

I would wait a bit first. You probably want to see how year 1 is going before committing to a research project and then backing out.

Once you know you can handle the workload at school, then start adding on things.

Most students typically pursue a project during the summer between years 1 and 2. (Although if you are feeling particularly good about your study habits, some start in the 2nd half of their 1st year)

 

[mpp]

There are summer scholarship programs like this one available. This would be a great way to get involved and show your motivation to the field.