Advice for Incoming OMS-1 Interested in Psych

[Maxwell879]

Hey everyone,

I'm excited to join this community as an incoming OMS-1 student and thought it would be the perfect place to seek advice and insights from those who have navigated or are currently navigating the medical school journey.

A little about myself: I hold a BA in psychology and completed a post-baccalaureate program to fulfill prerequisites for medical school. Thankfully, I've been accepted to a school that is cheap(er) and allows me to stay close to my family.

As indicated in the title, I'm particularly interested in psychiatry. I'm interested to learn what steps I can take early on to set myself up for success, especially when it comes to residency and beyond. While I understand that my primary focus initially should be on academics and preparing for board exams, I'm keen to know if there are specific activities or experiences I should prioritize alongside my studies.

​

It's worth mentioning that my medical school is graded with mandatory attendance. I've heard from previous students that class time often serves as a "study hall" and headphones are allowed during class. If anyone has tips or insights on navigating this type of learning environment, I would greatly appreciate it.​

On a personal note, I also have volunteered as a crisis counselor for my county's/national suicide hotline for over two years. I intend to continue volunteering once I've settled into the curriculum. Could these experiences and my psych degree potentially strengthen my residency application?

Lastly, while I'm aware that the residency application process is highly competitive, I do know that my school consistently matches students into psychiatry programs. However, I'm curious about whether this means I'm likely to match into similar programs as previous alumni or if there's a possibility of matching elsewhere. Do residency programs tend to favor students from specific schools or regions? I'm eager to gain a better understanding of how this process works.

Thank you all in advance for your guidance and support.

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[slowthai]

On a personal note, I also have volunteered as a crisis counselor for my county's/national suicide hotline for over two years. I intend to continue volunteering once I've settled into the curriculum. Could these experiences and my psych degree potentially strengthen my residency application?

Fantastic, you already have a head start on demonstrating longitudinal interest.

Psych values these things heavily: commitment to the field (psych relevant volunteering, work experience, electives/away rotations), the narrative (personal statement/ERAS app + the interview), and prestige, to a lesser extent (don't have this coming from a DO school obviously).

I think you're well on your way to matching successfully. Only thing I will say is that they don't care about your undergrad degree.

 

[Maxwell879]

Fantastic, you already have a head start on demonstrating longitudinal interest.

Psych values these things heavily: commitment to the field (psych relevant volunteering, work experience, electives/away rotations), the narrative (personal statement/ERAS app + the interview), and prestige, to a lesser extent (don't have this coming from a DO school obviously).

I think you're well on your way to matching successfully. Only thing I will say is that they don't care about your undergrad degree.

I appreciate the insight. I know I have a long road ahead of me, but it's nice to have some direction moving forward.

 

[yougotquestions]

Hey everyone,

I'm excited to join this community as an incoming OMS-1 student and thought it would be the perfect place to seek advice and insights from those who have navigated or are currently navigating the medical school journey.

A little about myself: I hold a BA in psychology and completed a post-baccalaureate program to fulfill prerequisites for medical school. Thankfully, I've been accepted to a school that is cheap(er) and allows me to stay close to my family.

As indicated in the title, I'm particularly interested in psychiatry. I'm interested to learn what steps I can take early on to set myself up for success, especially when it comes to residency and beyond. While I understand that my primary focus initially should be on academics and preparing for board exams, I'm keen to know if there are specific activities or experiences I should prioritize alongside my studies.

​

It's worth mentioning that my medical school is graded with mandatory attendance. I've heard from previous students that class time often serves as a "study hall" and headphones are allowed during class. If anyone has tips or insights on navigating this type of learning environment, I would greatly appreciate it.​

On a personal note, I also have volunteered as a crisis counselor for my county's/national suicide hotline for over two years. I intend to continue volunteering once I've settled into the curriculum. Could these experiences and my psych degree potentially strengthen my residency application?

Lastly, while I'm aware that the residency application process is highly competitive, I do know that my school consistently matches students into psychiatry programs. However, I'm curious about whether this means I'm likely to match into similar programs as previous alumni or if there's a possibility of matching elsewhere. Do residency programs tend to favor students from specific schools or regions? I'm eager to gain a better understanding of how this process works.

Thank you all in advance for your guidance and support.

Study how you want. However, my advice is - watch the lecture and engage with the professor. If you pay attention to the lecture, that literally counts as a first-pass through the material. After you can do second and third passes at home. Of course if you start falling behind then sacrifices must be made, but initially I would try to stay on top of the material.

Keep volunteering and of course mention your psych degree. It shows that you have already had your mind set since undergrad. It might not be a large aspect of your application, but it opens the floor for small talk. My program was graded as well. There is a correlation between preclinial GPA and boards scores. Surprise surprise if you are good at studying for pre-clinical classes you can study for board exams.

Programs that have taken your classmates in the past means that you are essentially a known entity. If they continue taking students from your school that means something. If you are looking at attending a specific residency program, you will do away rotations early 4th year at locations you wish to go to. Residency programs favor people who want to go to their program and have good board scores and no red flags. If you get 99th percentile on your boards and want psych, literally anywhere will take you as long as you're not a psychopath during your interview.

Your focus should be:
1. Passing and do well pre-clinical years
2. Try to get some psych research/bench research/poster presentations between first and second year
3. Pass both USMLE step 1 and COMLEX 1
4. High pass and honor most rotations during third year (preferably honor psych rotation). Combined with this would be doing well on your shelf exams
5. Get a high score on USMLE step 2 and COMLEX 2
6. Do away rotations at residency programs you wish to go to
7. Apply and profit from all the hard work you put in

 

[Maxwell879]

Study how you want. However, my advice is - watch the lecture and engage with the professor. If you pay attention to the lecture, that literally counts as a first-pass through the material. After you can do second and third passes at home. Of course if you start falling behind then sacrifices must be made, but initially I would try to stay on top of the material.

Keep volunteering and of course mention your psych degree. It shows that you have already had your mind set since undergrad. It might not be a large aspect of your application, but it opens the floor for small talk. My program was graded as well. There is a correlation between preclinial GPA and boards scores. Surprise surprise if you are good at studying for pre-clinical classes you can study for board exams.

Programs that have taken your classmates in the past means that you are essentially a known entity. If they continue taking students from your school that means something. If you are looking at attending a specific residency program, you will do away rotations early 4th year at locations you wish to go to. Residency programs favor people who want to go to their program and have good board scores and no red flags. If you get 99th percentile on your boards and want psych, literally anywhere will take you as long as you're not a psychopath during your interview.

Your focus should be:
1. Passing and do well pre-clinical years
2. Try to get some psych research/bench research/poster presentations between first and second year
3. Pass both USMLE step 1 and COMLEX 1
4. High pass and honor most rotations during third year (preferably honor psych rotation). Combined with this would be doing well on your shelf exams
5. Get a high score on USMLE step 2 and COMLEX 2
6. Do away rotations at residency programs you wish to go to
7. Apply and profit from all the hard work you put in

I appreciate the thorough response. It sounds like the focus is: Study hard and not be a psychopath.

Thanks again for the response and the points you brought up, specifically about mandatory lectures. I think your advice will serve me well too also because my school has frequent testing so it will help to force myself to stay caught up on all.