What does a 270/280 really get you ?

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TheAberrantGene

TheAberrantGene

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Before you start out judging me and posting nasty comments.. take some time to read this through.. i have good reasons to be posting this

I am an IMG from a developing country. I worked my ass off in college. I was always amongst the top 5-10 in my university out of around 1000 med students. Ever since i was a kid i ALWAYS wanted to be a Neurosurgeon.. its not about the money or the fame or whatever else such a job gets.. its just something i wanna do.. i really want to be a neurosurgeon. I worked as a junior resident for 3 years in my home country and have 13 first authored papers in PM indexed journals and a book chapter. Co-authors american surgeons. Now i wanted to ask a simple question:
How much pull would a 270/280 have ? is it possible for someone with a double 270 to not match ?

P.S. : I am already scoring high 260s since 4-5 months and think pushing through 270 is doable.

Genuine responses would be appreciated.
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With double 270s and your research experience, you'd probably match. It may not be the best program in the country but someone will take you as long as your interview skills and rest of the application is adequate.
 
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IMO in these kind of specialties it's all about who vouches for you as far as IMG's are concerned.. People with step 1 of 210 are accepted into ENT/PRS/NEUROSURG etc etc.. Work more on the people who can ''push'' you forward and spend less energy struggling between 260 vs 280 or w/e..
 
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Anything above 250 just gives you bragging rights since there are thing on your application which also matters a lot.
Step score is just one of the criteria.
 
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From the program analyses that I've read, step 1 is the most important of the listed criteria, followed by letters of recommendation, personal statement, and clerkship performance, with research experience being pretty low on the list. Though I'm sure this varies from program to program and from specialty to specialty (and perhaps preferences have changed over the past 2-3 years since this data was analyzed). Of course, as @tasar1898 mentioned, connections will do wonders, as well.

http://b83c73bcf0e7ca356c80-e8560f4...ads/2013/08/programresultsbyspecialty2012.pdf

Page 3 (PDF page 6)
 
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plasmodium said:
From the program analyses that I've read, step 1 is the most important of the listed criteria, followed by letters of recommendation, personal statement, and clerkship performance, with research experience being pretty low on the list. Though I'm sure this varies from program to program and from specialty to specialty (and perhaps preferences have changed over the past 2-3 years since this data was analyzed). Of course, as @tasar1898 mentioned, connections will do wonders, as well.

http://b83c73bcf0e7ca356c80-e8560f4...ads/2013/08/programresultsbyspecialty2012.pdf

Page 3 (PDF page 6)
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Being a US graduate is by far the most important selection criteria, however. Those criteria are generally how they compare US graduates to other US graduates. Step scores can help clear some of that gap, but neurosurgery is going to be a tough field to crack regardless of scores- you can count the number of IMGs that get in every year on one hand most years, and these are often exceptional cases from world-renowned medical schools outside the US.

With your scores and some US clinical experience, you definitely stand a shot at matching something surgical, but neurosurg is a different animal than most. And you can definitely match something in the US, so long as you get letters an all that, even without strong connections. But again, neurosurgery isn't something that is easy for even the best of the best US candidates to match into- it's a very small field, and programs often recruit their own (MGH likes to take a few Harvard grads, for instance http://residents.neurosurgery.mgh.harvard.edu/CurrentResidents.html). Give it a shot, but have a strong backup plan- last time I checked (2013) only 8 IMGs matched into neurosurgery. Last year 17 independent applicants matched NS, but half of those were probably DOs (we get a few ACGME NS spots each year, but not many). 63 independent applicants failed to match, to give you an idea of how many people fell short.

Good luck in any case. You might be able to pull it off, but again, have a backup plan.
 
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I'm going to be as honest as it gets, apologies for the psychological trauma....
TheAberrantGene said:
Ever since i was a kid i ALWAYS wanted to be a Neurosurgeon.. its not about the money or the fame or whatever else such a job gets.. its just something i wanna do.. i really want to be a neurosurgeon
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If this is your reason for becoming a neurosurgeon, then the future of neurosurgery is in deep ****. Everyone that I've met that said they wanted to do NS said so because of reasons that have nothing to do with medicine; like money (which is changing because of malpractice insurance) and prestige, and you are no different.
There are a few holes in your application as well, how are you going to explain the massive gap between graduating and applying? Most PDs don't look at too many applicants that graduated more than 5 years ago unless you can account for the gap (i.e. doing a PhD, residency in home country etc..)
Again sorry for sounding like a d*ck, but you have to think realistically and work with what you have.
All the best.
 
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tasar1898 said:
MO in these kind of specialties it's all about who vouches for you as far as IMG's are concerned.
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Exactly. Go do a research year before you apply at a "midtier" program that would take an IMG, so they know who you are and what type of resident you would be before applying. It will completely offset if you don't have the exact scores to qualify, have a gap in your resume, etc.
 
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Getting friend/known by the dean is also an option to consider ;) the better the university the better chances you have... do something fancy ;) Just saying - then you might not need a 280 :) Research definitely opens some doors
 
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Omar Al Louzi
Step 1 : 278
Step 2 : 282

Though step 1 wasn't 280+

Many more high 270s on SDN..

but yeah no 280 i know of on step 1
 
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there was a physician tutor for step 1 who PROVED that he failed the step 1 twice, and ended up getting a 280 on his third try. it was a class of about 30-40. needless to say, all our mouths dropped in shock.
 
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therealgoldenratiois786 said:
there was a physician tutor for step 1 who PROVED that he failed the step 1 twice, and ended up getting a 280 on his third try. it was a class of about 30-40. needless to say, all our mouths dropped in shock.
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He should have bought few lottery tickets while waiting for the results because the odds of winning a lottery are much better than getting a 280 after two failures.
 
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:troll: for the nonsense 280 after 2 attempts bit.. Prove it to me..and then we can talk.. else.. no point..

Much of what i got right on NBMEs was based not just on my dedicated prep but also med school knowledge...
 
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Transposony said:
He should have bought few lottery tickets while waiting for the results because the odds of winning a lottery are much better than getting a 280 after two failures.
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i truly agree. believe me, we made sure he was the real deal, he proved it to a class of 30 individuals. yeah.....so ......it CAN be done.
 
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Phloston said:
Why are you posting your real name and scores. Do you want a spot in Hollywood? Oceans 14 maybe.
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It's not me dude... I have not taken the test yet... that guy took it 3 years ago and is already a resident in Harvard..
But on a side note... i will take a role in Oceans 14.. lolz
 
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a guy from my school matched in Neurosurgery with also research.
He graduated in 2010.
matched with a 255 step 1
step 2 261
and graduated from a medical school from the caribbean not a big one. so you have an actual shot depending on how you do on your interviews and probably good letters of recommendation. Good luck!
 
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tasar1898 said:
IMO in these kind of specialties it's all about who vouches for you as far as IMG's are concerned.. People with step 1 of 210 are accepted into ENT/PRS/NEUROSURG etc etc.. Work more on the people who can ''push'' you forward and spend less energy struggling between 260 vs 280 or w/e... A guy I know matched ortho with 205 step 1 ...
Click to expand...

Good to know.
 
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