<p>Step 2 still matters but MUCH less than Step 1.</p>
<p>Step 3 is definitely just about passing. The old joke about the prep needed for step 1, 2, and 3 respectively is “2 months, 2 weeks, #2 pencil”</p>
<p>Yeah. Let’s go with that. ;)</p>
<p>
According to D and friends, it all depends on how competitive your Step 1 score is for your desired residency match. A few were not happy with Step 1 results and wanted/needed to have a better Step 2 score and take it early enough so that residency programs would have that score before invitations were sent for interviews. The only thing I have heard them talk about regarding Step 3 is that they are not happy about spending another $800 and taking a two day (?) test.
And yes, curmudgeon, I am sure she did well enough. Sometimes I think they just need to hear us say, “I’m sure you did well.” And D also responds well to, “We should go out to lunch and go shopping.” :rolleyes:</p>
<p>It does not look now that D. will be taking Step 2 before she applies to residencies. It might change, she usually checks with many in situation similar to hers and this has helped. Meeting with chair person of the specialty at her Med. School might give more direction, but as of now no plans for Step 2 in 3rd year. I wonder when they usually take it? Maybe I am wrong, maybe they have to take in 3rd year? </p>
<p>Curm,
Did your D. commented if Step 2 was harder or easier than Step 1?</p>
<p>Interesting to read about post-test rituals. I usually say, “You did your best preparing, I am glad it is over” and I usually pay much more attention to the voice than to actual words. The tone of D’s voice tells me more than what she is actually saying. Her comments about not knowing all answers and that she had to use all time, while some were done earlier, her voice sounded much more cheerful than the actual words.<br>
But again, it might be more applicable to girls than boys, boys are harder “to read”</p>
<p>Miami. I believe Step 2 is always taken in 4th year. As to timing strategy, I’ll let someone in the trenches comment. It is apparently not as critical to my kid (as she is apparently not seeking a highly competitive residency, and -within that group- is apparently not applying to Boston or NY schools) and I know her “reasoning” was to take it while the material was fresh and to “get it outta the way”. Apparently. 
</p>
<p>Step 2 Averages for the NRMP 2011 Match</p>
<p>U.S Seniors
Independent Applicants</p>
<p>Specialty
US Senior Matched
US Senior Unmatched
Matched
Unmatched</p>
<p>Anesthesiology
235
209
231
216</p>
<p>Dermatology
253
234
235
228</p>
<p>Diag Radiology
245
214
234
222</p>
<p>Emergency Med
234
214
223
212</p>
<p>Family Med
225
205
208
202</p>
<p>Gen Surgery
238
216
232
222</p>
<p>Internal Med
237
220
228
214</p>
<p>Internal Med/Peds
242
224
221
217</p>
<p>Neurosurgery
241
221
229
222</p>
<p>Neurology
233
212
227
216</p>
<p>Obstetrics & Gynecology
233
210
223
212</p>
<p>Orthopaedic Surgery
233
210
223
212</p>
<p>Otolaryngology
250
235
240
225</p>
<p>Pathology
233
203
225
210</p>
<p>Pediatrics
234
215
221
209</p>
<p>Physical Med & Rehab
224
200
213
205</p>
<p>Plastic Surgery
249
242
223
225</p>
<p>Psychiatry
225
200
211
203</p>
<p>Radiation Oncology
244
222
246
216</p>
<p>Transitional Year
NA
NA
NA
NA</p>
<p>Thanks, Curm.
"I know her “reasoning” was to take it while the material was fresh and to “get it outta the way”.- This is ALWAYS my D’s “reasoning”. 4th year is good news.</p>
<p>May I ask why NYC and Boston will be avoided by your D.? I do not want mine to be in NYC either, I am not familiar with Boston at all. But my D. mentioned that she most likely will have a list by location also, she will have to add some spots outside of the middle of the country (her preference). She will apply to all programs in our state and all neigbor states, but then she will have to pick many more.</p>
<p>Just can’t see herself in either place. I dunno. Doesn’t make sense to me. Right now, other than her home program, Cleveland , UCSF, Colorado, and Stanford, all other locations on the very preliminary under consideration list are in the South or Southwest.</p>
<p>If I remember it correctly, norcalguy once posted that many students took STEP-2 slighty latebut not extremely late, so that they have the option of submitting their STEP-2 score or not.</p>
<p>But once you have a research year that goes between the 3rd year and the 4th year, it appears that there is no choice you have to take STEP-2. This may be a slight downside of taking a fifth year as you lose this option. But for those who shoot for the competitive residency, they need that year to improve their chances. (A dozen or even twenty publications before the application for those superstars?)</p>
<p>This part I really do not understand. I knew many PhDs, who usually only published one or at most 2 papers in a well-known journal when they graduated. How can these MDs could publish so many papers/posters/abstracts with much less research time at such a young age?</p>
<p>Mcat2,</p>
<p>Publications from a residency standpoint include more than “published in peer reviewed journal” any poster, abstract, case report, etc is a pub. Additionally a chart review can be done much faster than a mouse experiment.</p>
<p>curm,
Another “the same” thinking. I do not see my D. in NYC either. As I said I have no idea about Boston. But NYC is not matching in my mind to my D. at all, we visit NYC every year. Anyway to come up with the list of 60, I went in circular movement around our state on a map and started including state by state. I had to include NYC. However, it is my list, based strictly on location relative to our state and nothing else. D. said that she produce her list in a year or so. </p>
<p>From what I undertand about D’s situation, Research / Publications will be of more importance than Step 2, but again, jut semi-guessing.</p>
<p>Mine , being of the slightly OCD persuasion, has made a spreadsheet of potential locations. She is entering $, stipends, COL, paid insurance…uhhh…all sorts of practical things but I am here to tell ya. None of that will mean diddly if someplace knocks her socks off.</p>
<p>"None of that will mean diddly if someplace knocks her socks off. "</p>
<p>Daddy, I am going to New York. They are paying me 50k but it costs 100k to live there. Hope that’s ok with you.</p>
<p>lol. She has mentioned that the COL for the Bay Area is calculated at “3x”.</p>
<p>
In NY with 100k? That’s not much of a living unless you are happy with a closet sized room and ramen noodle diet :)</p>
<p>I know a young couple with a young kid who were in the Bay Area. Because of the concern about the perceived quality of the school district, their rent for a small two bedroom apartment is $2800 per month.</p>
<p>I’ll just leave this here: <a href=“What Is Middle Class in Manhattan? - The New York Times”>What Is Middle Class in Manhattan? - The New York Times;
<p>yes, it costs more than 100k to live in NYC if you are talking about family of 4 who nonetheless have very cheap place to live (happened to buy a co-op in pretty nice neighborhood before prices X 5 approximately). The price of your living place will determine everything, but again, everything else is still much more expansive in NYC and it is NOT nice place to live at all, even if you count in all cultural events. I can easily satisfy all my needs in my hometown, absolutely everything, museum that I love much better than MOMA in Manhattan, Brodway shows coming on a regular basis, Russian ballet is stopping every year or I can hop in a car and visit other places easily. The life is very very complicated in the NYC. Nope, cannot hop in a car and go anyplace. You got to think what is the best time (trafficwise) to get there, is there parking, what there are no spots…it goes on and on and few times we actually got into some trouble which we do not need to deal at home at all. Living in NYC is a job in itself. The same is probably somewhat true in most big cities, hate to think this way.</p>
<p>^(in NYC) But if kid is smart, he/she can get into a very selective and FREE public HS which will be much better than most privates in a country. I got to brag, my GrandDaughter just got accepted to one. And again, just like in my D’s Med. School class, majority students are Asian. In this HS, wooping 75% of students are Asian.</p>
<p>I have a friend who did one + year of whatever comes after fellowship in interventional cardiology in 2006 at Columbia.</p>
<p>He said he was paying 2600 or more for a studio apartment near the hospital. So the estimate for room alone was close to 30k.</p>