***Thread for BS/MD/DO 2022-2023***

Not sure down to the details, but when my D went through it, it was attributed to how her group was able to relax together (they played games to kill time and to calm the nerves) and got acquainted really well while they waited in the waiting room. Her whole group wound up getting offered to that program.

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You can DM me

That defeats the purpose of the debate :grinning: we are grown adults with life experiences and should be open to debate than our sinking head in the sand and stubbornly say BSMD is better and say everything else is ā€œnoiseā€.

There are no good specializations or bad specializations. Itā€™s all depends on individual likes and dislikes and what type of life style they want. Surgical specialities take longer and harder to complete and working hours also vary but lucrative. Some of adult medicine specialists make food money.

I know as parents we look at money as the primary factor but please donā€™t advice kids based on that. They may end up working till 70 or 75 and they should like the speciality they are going in. Happiness is more important than money. My wife chose pediatrics and pediatrics speciality knowing she will make less money and then opted for 8-5 job (instead of private practice) so that she can spend time with our son. I also chose easier job. We are very happy about the choices we made and how our son turned out. We preach same to him. He is interested in surgery but not because of money but he is very Hands on.

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For case PPSP and Rochester REMS do the decisions for UG and BSMD program come out at the same time like penn state ?

The whole idea of this discussion is not to decide if BSMD is correct or not. I am trying to get some answers for my son, who is currently a high school senior.

This discussion is more about various opportunities students will have based on the decision they make today. Most of the students in this group are very smart and have had a perfect score their whole life. Even they donā€™t know what their limits are, so why should they sell themselves short? Itā€™s important that they keep all options open with limited risks. I feel we should plan broadly, but students can decide which path to take when they get closer.

Just to summarize, I am trying to educate myself with various strategies BSMD students can adopt to get a good residency.

BSMD or traditional - neither will be a factor in where you son ends up for residency or the specialty.

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Very similar to how one gets enough credentials to apply to medschool (both BSMD and traditional) but at a higher specificity for the field one wants to get into. GPA, STEP scores, LORs, research & publications, extra rotations, etc

I donā€™t want this to be an argument between folks :slight_smile:

As i saidā€¦ itā€™s individual choiceā€¦

My D choose BSMD as she wants a good ā€œreal life environment for UGā€ w/o additional stress for MDā€¦ ( She was prepared to go traditional tooā€¦ and was in line for few IVY league too)ā€¦ in the end I presented the data and she choose hers ( I do IT for living so working with data or situation is same)

In shortā€¦ if ONE is determined todo Medical then BSMD is good (if other factors align)ā€¦ again nothing wrong with any choice.

You shouldnā€™t choose a field for wrong choice (For exampleā€¦ i know folks who make $$$s in technology than many medical professionals)ā€¦ JMHO

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Residency and Specialty doesnā€™t matter which path one chooses (BSMD or traditional)
Itā€™s up to you (grades, scores and sometime colleges/universities with ties or reputation)

But there is a caveat ā€¦you got to watch in few colleges (I believe very few) that do specify they are looking for (say folks who are interested in representing/working in rural areas or primary care) so you will most likely be in that specialty

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Again, traditional path means not good college experience is a false narrative you are pushing. Lot of traditional path kids have much better experiences than lot of BSMD students. My son didnā€™t take summer classes (as some
BSMD require). He spent one summer in South America doing public health project thru scholarship and another summer in Europe doing research and probably visited 10 countries. On campus he participated in numerous activities including big dance shows. All this with near perfect stats and numerous awards. I know several kids like him but also know some needing gap years because of youthful mistakes or going from east high schools.

Again, you and you kid should your strengths and weaknesses and go based on that instead of claiming one is better than others. Thatā€™s always been my argument and I privately advised same and steered couple of kids to BSMD. No need for chest thumping here.

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Once you are in medical school it doesnā€™t matter which path you took to get there. Only differentiating factor could be amount of research done in UG. Research experiences have no expiration but no residency director cares about other stuff done in UG. Those who come thru traditional path and those who have gap years tend to have more research experience than BSMD candidates. Thatā€™s why more and more BSMD students are taking gap year after 3 year of medical school.

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yes

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That is great news, my D also got in Sienna waiting for next steps from AMC. Which other BSMD did you C get invited for ? We got Sienna, GW and Hofstra.

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We are lucky to be invited for 3 BSMD interviews Sienna/GW and Hofstraā€¦ Any recommendations on how these programs stand? I hear Sienna has no MCAT but AMC is not ranked Med Schoolā€¦ Hofstra is part of a big Northwell healthcare system in NY and we know someone in the program they all SOM students are kind of guaranteed residency match in the large Northwell Hospitals in NY which is a big plusā€¦ GW dont know much about this program atall. Thanks for any guidance.

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Treat all equally since you have zero admissions at this time.

You can only discuss merits of individual programs to determine where you/child wants to go when there is an actual admission.

It is not easy to get into any of them. Discussing merits of each at this time makes no difference since NONE of them are actual admissions.

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Congratulations on all 3 invites! All the best for the interviews and next steps. You can DM me and I can tell you pros and cons of the 3

When did you get invited to Hofstra?

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And also GW?

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At this time, your D should focus on the interviews and doing them well.
Your decision will be dependent on the actual admission offers at hand.

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Additional question along the lines of @musicccc

GW: Is this interview with the undergrad school, e.g., St. Bonaventure, or with the medical school? If the medical school, when did you receive the invite? It is too early for GW medical school to send invites based on past trends.

Hofstra: The deadline for supplemental application is Jan 15. So, very surprised you have received a medical school interview invite. With whom is your Hofstra interview?