<p>I don't understand how you are placed in your residency position after medical school. How does that work?</p>
<p>Also, I have seen rankings for medical schools based on things like surgery and other specialties. How is this determined if medical school students all have the same curriculum? </p>
<p>There are rankings by primary care and research on US News. If someone were to get into the top school for each (just go along with it for now), how would he or she decide which school to go to if he or she wants to become a surgeon?</p>
<p>
Do you mean from a practical standpoint? If so: <a href=“http://www.nrmp.org/match-process/match-algorithm/”>http://www.nrmp.org/match-process/match-algorithm/</a>
Do you mean how do residencies decide who they want? If so: <a href=“http://www.siumed.edu/oec/Year4/References/NRMP%20PDSurvey%202012.pdf”>http://www.siumed.edu/oec/Year4/References/NRMP%20PDSurvey%202012.pdf</a> figure 2</p>
<p>
Those are hospital rankings, not medical school rankings.</p>
<p>
First off, USNWR is BS, everyone knows it, but unfortunately even though everyone knows it, everyone still makes judgements/assumption on it so schools care about boosting them. Here is how it is determined: <a href=“http://www.usnews.com/education/best-graduate-schools/top-medical-schools/articles/2013/03/11/methodology-best-medical-schools-rankings”>http://www.usnews.com/education/best-graduate-schools/top-medical-schools/articles/2013/03/11/methodology-best-medical-schools-rankings</a> If your goal is to be a full time surgeon, the best school for you is the one that is located in the area of the country you desire, with the curriculum style/grading you like, and is the cheapest.</p>
<p>yeah i know it’s BS but it’s the only thing i can find right now</p>
<p>My medical school provided me with a fantastic education even though it was ranked somewhere between 50-60 USNWR. It didn’t stop me from getting into Johns Hopkins for my residency in an ultra competitive specialty. So, the rankings had nothing to do with where I ended up. In my class 3 of us ended up at Johns Hopkins, a few at Duke, 2 at Mayo. Whatever you do, ABSOLUTELY ignore USNWR when it comes to medical school.</p>
<p>thanks for the advice</p>
<p>if u dont mind my asking, which school are you talking about?</p>
<p>I was in a rush before, so I will add a couple things about how school plays a role one of which is implicitly associated with prestige but not directly so.</p>
<p>The first and unassociated with prestige is location. For example if you want to go to residency on the west coast, it’s easier to do that if you are from the west coast, went to college on the west coast, or went to med school on the west coast. You can do away rotations while in the clinical years but it’s a hard sell to a residency that you’re willing to uproot your life and come to them if nothing about your past says you have any desire to live there.</p>
<p>The 2nd one is a little associated with prestige which is that LORs and connections between your school and your desired residency are probably stronger if you come from a higher ranked school. What I mean is, if the surgeons at your school personally know the residency directors of the programs you’re desiring, they can call them to advocate for you. That’s more likely to be the case at a more prestigious school but of course, there are plenty of surgeons at less prestigious places who have connections and ultimately, you have to impress people enough to want to stick their neck out for you. The surgeons at Harvard and Hopkins aren’t calling about every student they know, they’re only calling for the ones they want to spend that capital on.</p>
<p>Ultimately (as frugal is saying) your performance is going to far outweigh these things - but in a game of inches, these things can come into play eventually.</p>
<p>were your GPA and MCAT really high?</p>
<p>Frugaldoc went to med school in the 90s if I recall - and once you get into med school, undergrad GPA and MCAT are thrown out - no one cares about them.</p>
<p>Absolutely, once you are in medical school, everything starts all over again. Your classmates will be incredibly smart and hardworking. I thought I would be among the top students when I started and big surprise, I was at the bottom and had to really work on my studying techniques to get among the top.</p>
<p>What helped me get an interview at JHU was my USMLE score, GPA and my research. But what got me the match was my personal statement according to my program’s director. He kept my essay immediately available in his desk for years because it was so unique. The LORs were very generic and didn’t help in my case.</p>
<p>I attended medical school in the 90s. The changes I have noticed since are the fact that college majors matter even less now then they did when I was in school. Also, students are using their time in medical school to perform research, obtain other degrees (MBA, etc.) and travel. In my era, students wanted to get out as fast as possible. Research was also rare at my school. I did research only because my friend suggested it to help me get my residency. The research I did hit home with my residency’s program director. I had attendings asking for my assistance because of my experience. Seriously, it was dumb luck that I did that project and complete luck that I found my results. Doing research might still be a big boost to your residency aspirations. </p>
<p>You’ve received very good advice from several posters that were accurate. They fall in line with what my colleagues and I advised our own children. For my daughter, I am advising her to attend a state school on merit scholarship, attend the cheapest medical school, obtain research experience, and hopefully match at a program well connected to the final location where she wants to settle down.</p>
<p>"There are rankings by primary care and research on US News. If someone were to get into the top school for each (just go along with it for now), how would he or she decide which school to go to if he or she wants to become a surgeon?</p>
<p>-Choosing based strictly on ranking is NOT a good idea. In fact, my D. has chosen the Med. School that was slightly lower ranked (and more expansive) than another one out of 2 of her “final decision” schools. There are other factors and they are DIFFERENT from person to person. So, asking this very personal question is also very misleading.
I can only tell from my D’s experience/decision making. She was looking for certain student body that is slightly different from Med. School to another. curriculum (program) that varies considerebly from Med. School to another, location. She like to feel comfortable but academic challenges do not bother her, she has always relied on her ability to work extremely hard and adjust her effort upwards if needed. She has chosen her Med. School based on these 3 primary criteria. Again, your personal criteria will be different, what is important to one is not of great importance to another. Again, many consider cost. We told her NOT to use the cost as criteria, based on her specific situation. She had UG tuition free, we both employed and have no other dependents. We have been supporting her fifnancially so far (she is a third year) thru Med. School, alll expenses included. Is it applicable to you? You have to ask yourself. These are just few points, there are many.
In regard to specialty. You have to stay flexible, at least until you get your Step 1 score. This score will have a huge effect on your decision about specialty. However, there are many other factors. Residency application process is slightly or greatly different based on you specialty.</p>
<p>…forgot to add that as usual, D. is NOT looking for ultra top competitive place for her residency, she wants to stay in Midwest, and that is exactly what she was advised so far. However, the process is still very very competitive, she has her preference, again, based on the strength of the program and location. JHU. Yale, Penn, Harvard are NOT her top choices, she will apply to them or not depending if they are in a radius of her preferred location (certain distance from Ohio on a map). She has an idea about her top 1 and top 4 choices, but would be happy to match anywhere. She has considered Residency rankings but only in combination with her own preferences.<br>
Again, frankly, it never occurred to me to ask my MD about the place of his/her residency. let alone Medical School name. </p>
<p>It helps to know what type of residency to which you wish to apply. Surgery? Best shine in anatomy and show you are bullet proof on the rotations. Peds? get in rotations in neonatal as well as pediatric clinics. GYN? better be proficient in dropping the babies into the world and get in lots of elective surgery. ect.ect… Beyond the obvious, you need to consider externships in those residencies that interest you. Nothing speaks louder about your qualifications to attend and succeed in a particular residency than spending 4 to 6 weeks in that institution doing well with the work given to you. That being said, not all externships are equal and not all externships are equal in an institution. Most schools have several sites they cover–main academic hospital, VAH, community hospital, indigent hospital ect. Each setting may provide a different experience and assistance into your admission to that residency. When in doubt, ask to work in the academic medical center unless you know the admissions director is on staff at another hospital. Choose your recommendations carefully. You do not want axes to be ground at your expense. Always apply to your own institution. It is common courtesy. If you really want a specific residency and one of your faculty members has an association with that department, try to do a rotation under that person and do well so they may be inclined to write you a recommendation. Expect that a phone call exchange will occur between two faculty members who know each other. So leave a good impression in all your rotations…Try thanking the senior resident and faculty on your last day of rotation… As faculty, I never asked where someone trained. It did not matter. I was only interested in what they brought to the table for that rotation. </p>
<p>I chose JHU for one reason only, location. My UG was in Maryland and my wife wanted to return to Maryland after medical school. We looked at 5 programs within the area. The 2 in DC were financially incompatible due to the cost of living. The other 2 were incompatible because they weren’t matches for my personality (just didn’t get a good vibe). Didn’t get a good vibe at JHU either until two things occurred. One, saw my idol Dr. Carson and realized I would be working with him. Two, my residency director told me I was going to work @$$ off. Those were the first honest words I heard about the work load during all of my interviews.</p>
<p>The point I am trying to make is that the residency, as well as the medical school, should meet your needs, match your goals, and be a place you can comfortably learn for the years you will be there . You just can’t plan out your life years ahead, especially when it comes to medicine. Otherwise you will be miserable and could fail at that prestigious institution. Believe me, it happens.</p>
<p>^Agree 100%, location is at the top of D’s criteria and basically she was told that many programs (at least around us) are sort of “regional”, including some “hotter” ones. She was adviced to meniton her home town for this reason to have a bit higher chances of acceptance. However, she might not have choices, the hope is to have one place. Of course choices are always appreciated. You apparently di very well and got what you wanted!</p>
<p>…Dr. Carson is one of my heroes, brave man!!!</p>