2 questions:
1 - What's the best (more chance of getting one) time to request for clerkships? i.e. which months should I put down on the application form to maximize my chances
2 - Should I target a clerkship that relates to the residency I'm interested in or do they just look for any sort of USCE regardless of which branch of medicine it's in?
Thanks in advance!
Ans. 1) It's a tricky situation. It will be the hospital's prerogative to offer you the spot (not yours) and if you are in time for requesting a spot for specific months, more often than not, you will be given that. I know of 4 people who are currently doing electives in the US, all of whom got their desired months (maybe not their desired fields). The catch is to narrow down programs which a) do not neccessarily require step 1 scores and b) offer electives in the field of your interest. The more the time lag between applying and your choice of time, the better it would be. So I'd say send in your applications as soon as you begin internship. Remember, a clerkship can be done only DURING your internship and more often than not getting office clearance from your medical school/dean's approval etc can take alot of time.
FYI, those i know, got in for time the time period between October-December.
Ans. 2) Many places do not offer clerkships for more than say a month in certain specialities. Remember, something like IM (which is the most popular field among FMGs) gets its spots filled rather quickly, more often than not, by students of better known schools. Also due to the limited number of spots they have, a hospital may offer you 1 month in Peds and 1 in IM. So it's a take it or leave it situation.
In general, residency programs look for candidates who are genuinely interested in that field. So if you have a chance, apply for specialities which are within that field for example, neonatology, hemat/oncology, medicine - within pediatrics. That way you would maximise your chance of getting an LOR from the staff. At a stretch, i've not heard of people get spots for more than 2 months. So you anyway shouldn't be choosing drastically different fields. It's better to be master of 1 rather than jack of all.
