What are my options?

[HalJ]

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So I got my Step 2 score back (which I was hoping would boost my crappy application). In short it hasn't.

I had 2 academic deficiencies my 2nd year in medical school. I retook those classes and resolved those.

For Step 1 I got a 214 and for Step 2 I got a 211 (yea not looking good at all). I went through the clinical rotations during third year...passing all of them ..but just getting all B's (B+ in peds, B- in med and surg...rest were B's)

The med school I attend is one of the top 30 med schools.

What's open in terms of residency/career options for me now? am I just toally screwed and should consider something else? Or am I just being a harbringer of doom.?

 

[Mr hawkings]

what specialty?

 

[HalJ]

surgery or any of the surgical subspecialties...

 

[Pinkertinkle]

General surgery is not out of the question but you'll have quite an uphill battle with surgical subspecialties. Got any research?

 

[HalJ]

I did some anesthesia research..that didn't produce squat.... That's about it.....

I'm still super ashamed of it.. spending all that time in Lab and not producing any results.

 

[synapse lapse]

Sorry to hear about your step 2. Gen Surg is definitely not out of the question...like pinkertinkle said you will have an uphill battle for subspecialties, but should that stop you? If you really want to do some field, is anything anybody says going to change your mind? Maybe you can still produce a publication from your work? You can work on research for the next few months, ace any remaining 3rd years, get good LOR, write a strong PS and take your chances. Since your grades are set now you have to focus on things in your control. Get your application in on Sept 1st, get to know surgery department at your school and find someone to vouch for you, do an away rotation where you might be competitive.

 

[Conqueror]

Apply for whatever surgical field you want, but have a Plan B (Gen Surg) in place.

 

[jdinovit]

I don't see the problem. You scored over a 200 on the USMLE and have a B average. You are an average applicant. There is nothing wrong with being average. If you apply to a lot of programs in Surgery and rank a lot of programs, you will get in somewhere. Just know your limits and don't only apply to the most competitive Hospitals.

 

[HalJ]

Thanks guys... it's pretty encouraging to hear from all of you..

For a while I was in a well of despair... but I went to my dean and talked to him too.

He said the same thing... I'm an average student (he actually looked annoyed that I had come to confirm stuffs)... there are some specialties that are closed off from me... but I could still fight for most.

The hard part is trying to decide if I want a surgical subspecialty or just general surgery.

Thanks again.... I was rreally in a bad place for a while... but I feel better now.