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VIRMP 2027
Started by zenarcade
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Just dropping in to say I completed a SA rotating internship (academic) and matched to an oncology residency last cycle, so I’m happy to help anyone who has questions about VIRMP, internship, or residency life. Feel free to send a DM!
supershorty
Don't look so vexed, toots.
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Also happy to help out, particularly those interested in pursuing small animal surgery residency.
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Planning on applying for a SA rotating internship! I am thinking private, as I'm not planning on specializing but want to go into ER. I have asked one specialist for a letter of rec so far, but is it recommended to have all my letters from specialists? I worked well with a vet during my month-long preceptorship, but they are not boarded. I am getting a bit nervous about how much time I have left to ask others in my upcoming rotations. Thanks all in advance!
Not at this stage, imo. You want at least one specialist (ideally in the specialty you want to pursue, if applicable), but it's more important to just have really good LORs right now. When it comes to specialty internships/residencies, that's when you want all of your letters to be from specialists ideally
I applied to maybe six the first time and closer to ten the second time. But I was also applying to a smaller specialty and even choosing 10 was like half of my available options. But I knew I didn’t want a combined program with a mandatory PhD and I didn’t want to live in a major city, so that limited my choices. I applied to many internships because I had a ‘I’d rather go here than not do an internship because I need it for residency’ mindset then.
I will say that residency is a MUCH bigger commitment than internship, and I think people should be choosy about where they go for residency. Make sure it’s a program with people you like and can work with, because you’re going to have such a close relationship those three years and beyond. I know that it’s easy for someone who wants a residency to be willing to accept anywhere and I understand why, but being in a program with interpersonal drama makes an already hard thing exponentially harder. So while I want to say go ahead and apply broadly, can’t hurt…make sure you’re doing your research and talking to people about the places you apply and doing whatever you can to make sure it’s a good fit for you.
I will say that residency is a MUCH bigger commitment than internship, and I think people should be choosy about where they go for residency. Make sure it’s a program with people you like and can work with, because you’re going to have such a close relationship those three years and beyond. I know that it’s easy for someone who wants a residency to be willing to accept anywhere and I understand why, but being in a program with interpersonal drama makes an already hard thing exponentially harder. So while I want to say go ahead and apply broadly, can’t hurt…make sure you’re doing your research and talking to people about the places you apply and doing whatever you can to make sure it’s a good fit for you.
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I applied to every available residency both times (radiology). My second time I think I ended up not ranking 2 of them.
supershorty
Don't look so vexed, toots.
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I only applied to 6 last year and was very choosy about where. It comes down to what you're willing to compromise on when it comes to matching vs taking the risk of scrambling (or doing something else). Residency is a big commitment and I was willing to take the risk of not matching over the risk of matching to a program that wasn't a good fit for me.
