To do a PSF or not to do a PSF...?

[Mr. Plow]

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Hey all,

I am a third year currently plodding through my clinical clerkships who finally realized, after the first two years and studying for Step 1, that pathology is what really makes me tick. I have had very little exposure to pathology outside of the classroom and have been trying to get as much as I can in the wards, although I am finding that the opportunities to spend time with pathologists are few and far between with the limited "free" time I am granted outside my ward duties. Although I will have several months as a MS4 to take 1 month electives in pathology, or whatever else, I am concerned whether that short time will be enough to help me make a decision on whether or not I want to apply to pathology residency. In light of this I have been considering doing the PSF after my third year. It seems to me that a year of experience working in pathology would be sufficient to not only help me decide on whether or not I want to be a pathologist, but to solidify my understanding of pathophysiology, anatomy, histology, etc. Yet on the other hand, if I did the PSF, I would have to graduate a year later. The age thing doesn't bother me me as much, I'm still young, but I'm not sure I really want to be in med school for 5 years. So my dilemma is as follows and hopefully some of you can provide your opinion on the subject: is it worthwhile to take the extra year and do a PSF, or should I just follow my current course, take path electives, graduate, and start my path residency (assuming that I chose path)? There are no real issues when it comes to grades and scores, I've done well and consider those a positive towards my residency application. What are your thoughts on this? Thanks. 🙂

 

[yaah]

I did a psf between years 2 and 3. When I did it, I wasn't sure it was what I wanted, but as the year went on I liked it more and more. The year was definitely worth it to learn about the field - if I had only had the first month of my psf (or 2 months) to learn about path, I am not sure I would have pursued it. The first couple months, I was trying to figure out how to dictate, how to gross, what inflammation looked like, etc, so much to learn that I couldn't really learn about things I really wanted to, such as how many different morphologies tumors can adopt. Path is a specialty that gets more impressive the more time you spend in it.

When I was applying, what I heard from everyone outside path (like my advisor, other students) was "why would you take another year?" Now, as an MSIV, I look around and see the folks I started med school with as interns on the floors which is somewhat disheartening, but the experience I got has given me so much more that I would definitely do it again. I think when I was about 3/4 of the way through 3rd year and what would have been my match day came around I had some second thoughts but they were pretty transient. So if you are married with kids and have large loans, the extra year may prove a burden. But in any other situation, is another year really a big deal? So many people end up taking another year off anyway whether it is between college and med school, in college, in med school, etc.

The fact that the PSF year no longer counts towards residency is somewhat disappointing, but for me I am not sure I would feel fully trained if I only did 3 years of another program.

The advantages are numerous. You will be much more qualified to evaluate potential programs during interview season. Your knowledge base will increase exponentially. Not to mention the fact that this will improve your application and your understanding of the field. And if you decide you don't like path, you can go into another residency without having to change specialties after a year.

I will stop before I exceed a Wagnerian length with my explanation. But I hope you make the right decision for you, and not what others tell you. I would definitely do it again though, even if I had decided I wanted to be a GP.

 

[Molly Maquire]

Do you get paid a stipend for the PSF?

 

[yaah]

I got paid a stipend, yes. It was more than 1/2 but less than 3/4 of a 1st year resident salary. I did not have to pay my med school tuition. I did, however, have to pay for other student fees (I am Taxachusetts, so the "student fees" actually turn out to nearly exceed tuition, as our tuition is low). Massachusetts is a politician's dream (or nightmare).

 

[Mr. Plow]

Hey Yaah - thanks for the informative reply regarding your experience with the PSF. Do you know if one has to start paying back their school loans 6 months into the fellowship or does the fellowship count as enrollment and the loans remain deferred until graduation? Just curious how financial aid works into the plan since you get paid a stipend... still have to do a Fafsa?

 

[Ludy]

I just want to add that you should really look into the specific PSF before you commit to anything. I got really excited about doing a PSF in October/November of my second year, but the chairman of the path department, no less, strongly recommended that I not do it. He said students who had done it here in the past weren't given as much responsibility as a true first-year resident and had ended up feeling like it had been kind of a wasted year. I know there are a lot of good programs out there -- several people have posted on this site about the great experiences they had. However, not all of them accept students from other schools; I called 2 places I was interested in and was told that unless for some reason there were no applicants from that school (which had never happened), they wouldn't consider outside applicants. If you have a good program at your school and are really unsure about path, then go for it. I'm pretty sure the financial aid works like any other approved research program (Howard Hughes, etc.) -- you do not have to start paying off loans.

 

[yaah]

I think fellowship counts as enrollment. I know I was still considered a medical student, they just changed my class year. If I was not, I would have gotten a tad upset about having to pay the myriad of fees to be considered a student. I do not have loans outside of the UMass "learning contract" which is a deferral of tuition until graduation, when interest begins. I am not sure how federal and other loans factor in, but I am pretty sure you are still considered a student.

BTW, UMass will accept outside med students for their PSF. UMass tends not to have graduates going into path - I will be the first in 2 years.

 

[Global Disrobal]

Hi Mr. Plow,

I would definitely recommend doing the PSF regardless of your decision to go into Pathology or not. It gives you greater knowledge going into 3rd and 4th year and helps you stand out better. Also, you get a certain sense of comfort with the attendings that will carry into clinicals and help your relationships with the staff...alot of students I saw in their first rotations were very uptight.

As for your other questions, it is considered "training enrollment" and your loans get deferred. Other points of interest for you: you won't get the 1 year credit toward a pathology residency anymore as I believe this is the last year you could've done that. There is usually a stipend. Mine was 17000 at UCLA a year ago in addition to a book fund (which paid fo all my 3rd/4th year books😀 ) Hope this helps ya!

Good luck with the decision

 

[Mindy]

Hello!

I also did a psf (SUNY Upstate) between my 2nd and 3rd years feeling fairly confident I would go into clinical medicine. I figured the psf was an interesting opportunity, a nice break from school, and a way to tie everything together from the first 2 years (which seemed like a whirlwind to me.) The psf accomplished all of this. It also opened my eyes wide to the possibility of pathology as a career. Which I fought tooth and nail... But in the end as y'all know, I could not resist the allure of the field.

Would I do a psf again? The answer depends exclusively on whether or not I was certain I was going to pursue pathology. If I knew I wanted to be a pathologist, then I would not bother. If I was on the fence or thinking of a different career, then I would (for the reasons I did mentioned above.)

I am sure some of ya want to know why I wouldn't if I intended to pursue pathology. I don't think there is any need to "pretend" to be a pathology resident with the half the pay and subsequently delay your real residency. Some exceptions of course are: if you feel the need to have something stand-out-ish on your CV, you are going to use the time to research also, you want to have a fairly easy 3rd and 4th year, you need a break, etc.

Mindy