I hope the MS3s out there are thinking about away rotations. I didn’t see a recent thread here so I thought I’d start one.
Away rotations do many good things for you, and have long been the standard in this field. I will confess I’m not in student/resident leadership so don’t know if they’re still considered mandatory, but beyond that they’re a great way to get letters of recommendation from big names in the field, and they also let you try out an individual program, and figure out what’s important to you in any program, before interviews start. The RadOnc community is a small one, and good work at another institution will pay off in terms of your reputation for years to come.
Most aways are arranged through VSAS here: You are being redirected...
One quick plug for my own institution, the University of Florida, because we love students here and have a long history of helping them get into their top-choice residencies. I came here as a student myself and compared to my other rad onc rotations it was wonderful. I truly got to take care of people, scope the head and neck patients, learn a good cancer gyn exam, contour a pancreas case, and so on. And the faculty and residents were happy to have students around, they did not make us feel like a burden. Also if you come during August you’ll get to come on the department scallop where we all load up on boats and drive around the Gulf of Mexico with the music and beverages flowing to gather scallops for a laid-back pool party later that night. I can think of worse ways to spend your late summer.
Further away advice:
Away rotations do many good things for you, and have long been the standard in this field. I will confess I’m not in student/resident leadership so don’t know if they’re still considered mandatory, but beyond that they’re a great way to get letters of recommendation from big names in the field, and they also let you try out an individual program, and figure out what’s important to you in any program, before interviews start. The RadOnc community is a small one, and good work at another institution will pay off in terms of your reputation for years to come.
Most aways are arranged through VSAS here: You are being redirected...
One quick plug for my own institution, the University of Florida, because we love students here and have a long history of helping them get into their top-choice residencies. I came here as a student myself and compared to my other rad onc rotations it was wonderful. I truly got to take care of people, scope the head and neck patients, learn a good cancer gyn exam, contour a pancreas case, and so on. And the faculty and residents were happy to have students around, they did not make us feel like a burden. Also if you come during August you’ll get to come on the department scallop where we all load up on boats and drive around the Gulf of Mexico with the music and beverages flowing to gather scallops for a laid-back pool party later that night. I can think of worse ways to spend your late summer.
Further away advice:
- I agree with the statement elsewhere in this forum that it’s totally reasonable to cancel an away rotation if needed. You should be polite and do it as soon as you know so a waitlisted person can have your spot. Nobody will hold it against you later, or at least we never have done so here at UF, it's an expected part of the system.
- Use RotatingRoom to find an inexpensive, safe place to stay. They accept medical personnel only, and arrangements are better vetted than general commercial sites. They’ll also be near the hospital if you don’t have a car.
- Lots of us have books we can lend to students or can offer a ride to another facility to help bring down costs – don’t be shy about asking for resources wherever you go, we know this is an expensive year for students, and every one of us has been in your shoes.
