Medical Education US

Dear Dr. Admin,
I'm on crossroads as far as getting into residency is concerned. I am a med grad but after all these years at med school am not able to figure out what I want.Tried a few med counsellers but they didn't work out.I have to apply for a match for 2005 and Im really anxious.I know in my heart that I'm in the right profession but am not able to figure out where to go next.
Any suggestions......as to how to find out?
Thanks

[ Edited by Admin on 2004/4/12 16:55 ]

You say you are a "med grad" - do you mean you've finished me school and are taking time off, or are you in your 3rd year of med school getting ready to apply for residencies this fall (you say you are applying to start in 2005, so I assume you are finishing 3rd year?).

I think a lot of people are undecided at your stage, but most people have been able to rule out a few different fields - which at least helps make the decision look a little less ominous.

I don't have any "professional" advice as I am not an expert in this area. However, I did have to go through that decision making process and I can explain some of my thought processes - most still apply today, but the markets have changed some. The main difference is that I started residency in 1996, which was the peak of interest in primary care fields. My general sense is that this has died down quite a bit, and people are again looking more keenly at specialties and subspecialties.

I was first able to rule out a few different fields based on different factors - I didn't like the topic, I didn't like the patient population, I didn't like the work hours, etc. I reflected on what I like the most during my 3rd year and tried to figure out why I liked different fields. I also talked to a lot of different people about what they expected the job markets to be like in different fields (pretty much all fields actually looked pretty good, so this wound up not being that big of a real factor).

I also looked at a few books on choosing medical specialties, and I'll list some current books that received high reviews at the end of this message.

In many ways, I couldn't decide, which is probably why I chose a combined field. I actually applied and interviewed for both med-psych and peds-psych-child psych programs. I wound up ranking both types of programs on my rank list because I still didn't have a strong preference between the different fields, but just ranked them in order of the programs that I liked the best.

I'd talk to some of the 4th year med students to see how they went about their decisions. When you say you met with "med counselors, what do you mean? Were these people from your med school, or outside consultants? Either way, they are probably much more qualified than I am to be giving you suggestions and advice. The only other suggestion I can offer is for you to mention what your current though process is on this forum and see if people have suggestions to help you narrow your focus. Just remember, advice is just that - you need to make a decision for yourself in the end

Here's a list of some books I found with good reviews:

The Ultimate Guide To Choosing a Medical Specialty

How to Choose a Medical Specialty

[ Edited by Admin on 2005/1/30 8:52 ]

Did you have any trouble applying to and ranking more than one specialty? Specifically, were you questioned or challenged at interviews about this (as if you weren't completely committed)?
I am interested in Med/Psych and Med/Peds, and am worried about applying to both types of programs since they are so different. I'm hesitant to apply just to Med/Psych since there are so few programs. Also, I am not completely sure this is the right field for me since my med school (Ohio State) does not have any such program. Ideally, I will get to do an away rotation during M4 in med/psych and decide once and for all, but looking ahead I doubt this will happen before I have to send applications out. I'd appreciate any feedback you have about going through the process with more than one type of combined progam...Thanks!

When I interviewed for the med-psych programs, I didn't even tell the places I was also looking at peds-psych-child psych, but at the peds-psych-child psych programs, I did tell them I was also applying to med-psych. Unless you are interviewing for both programs at the same place, they have no way to find out about you (unless they know people at other programs and they talk to each other about applicants - which could happen).

For the most part, most places didn't come out and ask where else I was applying, but it did come up at times. I'm not sure why I told some places but not others, but I'm guessing it was because I thought med-psych programs would be less understanding of why I'd be looking at peds-psych-child-psych programs; whereas, the peds-psych-child-psych programs were very few in number so it is understandable that you'd have an alternative option in case you didn't match.

I didn't do any away rotations, so I can't comment on how much that may help you decide.

As for the combined programs, I think most people went to med schools that did not offer the combined program - myself included. I think that if you have enjoyed medicine and psychiatry, and you have some reason to want to get training in both fields, then it is a reasonable option to be considering.

I know that over the past 10 years, med-peds has gained a pretty strong following. There should be quite a few people out and about who have completed the programs, so I would strongly recommend you find a few people to talk to about what their experiences have been like.

Unless the application process has changed, then the schools will have no idea where else you've applied to. In that case, assuming it doesn't cost a lot more and isn't too time consuming, you may as well apply to all programs you are considering, and then you can always cancel your interviews when you get to that stage.

Hi
Thanks for your input. I have ordered the book ,and i really hope it helps me figure out things. I will be in touch.
Angelica