Ok guys, I have a weird situation that I'll explain (briefly) below, and then I have a question about when I can take Step 3:
I started at a US allopathic school in 2005 and I successfully completed my first two years and passed Step 1. I got two core rotations done (Surgery and FM) when I had a serious personal/family issue come up that required me to take an extended leave of absence, and eventually withdraw. (In addition, I was having what I now call my "early-life crisis" where I wasn't sure that practicing medicine was what I wanted to do with my life after all.) I spent a few years in the wilderness working odd jobs and contemplating law school, and eventually I decided that returning to med school was what I wanted to do. I looked for (and found) the most cost-effective Caribbean school that could facilitate me completing my degree in the city where I lived. I started back up with rotations in March of this year, and I will barely make the 2013 Match. I'll have 6 weeks to take off for Step 2 studying (which I'm taking at the end of July) and then doing rotations back to back will see me graduate on June 14th, 2013. Just in time to start a residency two weeks later. ;-)
Now, my question is this: I took Step 1 a long time ago, on June 15th, 2007. I know that most states require you to take and pass all three steps within 7 years, meaning that I must take/pass Step 3 by June 15, 2014. However, I also see that most states, including the ones where I would really like to do residency, require you to have completed at least one year in an ACGMC-approved residency before you can take Step 3. For me, that math won't work out... I'll be completing my first year of residency around the end of June 2014, but I need to take Step 3 by June 15th, 2014. So, my three-pronged question is:
1) Am I limited to doing residency only in a state that lets me take Step 3 before I've completed 12 months in residency?
2) Would there be any way to get permission to take Step 3 earlier? Would that be something that a state medical board would have to approve, and if so, would they be likely to do it?
3) I have read in a few forum posts that you can take Step 3 (or at least register for it) in whatever state you want, even if you don't live there and are doing your residency elsewhere. So, if I were doing my residency in a state with strict Step 3 eligibility rules, could I take it in a state with no rules at all, thus allowing me to pass it within my 7 year window? Would there be any problems with doing it that way?
I know that's a lot to put in one post, but thanks for reading it and I'd appreciate any insight you may have!
http://www.fsmb.org/usmle_requirementschart.html
I started at a US allopathic school in 2005 and I successfully completed my first two years and passed Step 1. I got two core rotations done (Surgery and FM) when I had a serious personal/family issue come up that required me to take an extended leave of absence, and eventually withdraw. (In addition, I was having what I now call my "early-life crisis" where I wasn't sure that practicing medicine was what I wanted to do with my life after all.) I spent a few years in the wilderness working odd jobs and contemplating law school, and eventually I decided that returning to med school was what I wanted to do. I looked for (and found) the most cost-effective Caribbean school that could facilitate me completing my degree in the city where I lived. I started back up with rotations in March of this year, and I will barely make the 2013 Match. I'll have 6 weeks to take off for Step 2 studying (which I'm taking at the end of July) and then doing rotations back to back will see me graduate on June 14th, 2013. Just in time to start a residency two weeks later. ;-)
Now, my question is this: I took Step 1 a long time ago, on June 15th, 2007. I know that most states require you to take and pass all three steps within 7 years, meaning that I must take/pass Step 3 by June 15, 2014. However, I also see that most states, including the ones where I would really like to do residency, require you to have completed at least one year in an ACGMC-approved residency before you can take Step 3. For me, that math won't work out... I'll be completing my first year of residency around the end of June 2014, but I need to take Step 3 by June 15th, 2014. So, my three-pronged question is:
1) Am I limited to doing residency only in a state that lets me take Step 3 before I've completed 12 months in residency?
2) Would there be any way to get permission to take Step 3 earlier? Would that be something that a state medical board would have to approve, and if so, would they be likely to do it?
3) I have read in a few forum posts that you can take Step 3 (or at least register for it) in whatever state you want, even if you don't live there and are doing your residency elsewhere. So, if I were doing my residency in a state with strict Step 3 eligibility rules, could I take it in a state with no rules at all, thus allowing me to pass it within my 7 year window? Would there be any problems with doing it that way?
I know that's a lot to put in one post, but thanks for reading it and I'd appreciate any insight you may have!
http://www.fsmb.org/usmle_requirementschart.html