Chances for Med-Peds

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

Girfaroo

Full Member
10+ Year Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2009
Messages
210
Reaction score
5
Hi all,

I'm a 3rd year med student and not positive I want to do med-peds yet, but I have a kind of strange/adventerous career plan where I think it would help to have the combined residency rather than do family. I know med-peds is more competitive to get into than IM, family, or peds, so here are my stats:

Class rank: unknown, but probably bottom 50% :(
Step 1 score: 217
Clerkships: Passes in emergency and in family so far (missed high pass by a fraction of a percent). So far, IM has been going very well, but who knows how the shelf will go.

So as you can see, I'm not a stellar candidate. My strengths are more in how I interact with patients, I think, and that I'm more or less fluent in Spanish.

Do I have a shot? And what can I do to improve my chances at this point?

Members don't see this ad.
 
Are you a US MD student, DO student, or IMG? do you have a med-peds program at your home institution? They can help provide guidance, advice, and recommendations.

Your stats are not horrible ... I would probably apply broadly (and it might be difficult to get into Harvard, Yale, Duke, Penn, Chicago, UCLA) ... But there are plenty of university programs that will give you a look. There area handful of community (university affiliated) programs that are worth a look too.

Good luck. And start thinking of getting LORs from medicine faculty as well as pediatric faculty.
 
Are you a US MD student, DO student, or IMG? do you have a med-peds program at your home institution? They can help provide guidance, advice, and recommendations.

Your stats are not horrible ... I would probably apply broadly (and it might be difficult to get into Harvard, Yale, Duke, Penn, Chicago, UCLA) ... But there are plenty of university programs that will give you a look. There area handful of community (university affiliated) programs that are worth a look too.

Good luck. And start thinking of getting LORs from medicine faculty as well as pediatric faculty.
Thanks for responding! I'm a US med student and there's no med-peds program at my school. I do plan on talking to others for guidance though.

I'm not so ambitious that I would want to get into a top-tier program, and I don't have any plans to go into academia at this time, so I don't think I need such a spot either. I just don't want to end up not matching.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Med-Peds is one of those that fluctuates every year and sometimes it's hard to tell what the competition will be like. It appears, from what some program directors have told me, that this year is more competitive than last year whatever that means. Anyways, Dr. Friedland, the PD at Christiana and one of the most important persons in the Med-Peds world, has said that if you want to match Med-Peds and you don't care where you want to go, you will match Med-Peds if you're a US med student. Although your Step 1 score is on the lower end, I still think you have a fair shot at many of the programs out there. At this point, it's all dependent on the rest of your application. If you rock Step 2, then that's even better. Hope that helps.
 
Med-Peds is one of those that fluctuates every year and sometimes it's hard to tell what the competition will be like. It appears, from what some program directors have told me, that this year is more competitive than last year whatever that means. Anyways, Dr. Friedland, the PD at Christiana and one of the most important persons in the Med-Peds world, has said that if you want to match Med-Peds and you don't care where you want to go, you will match Med-Peds if you're a US med student. Although your Step 1 score is on the lower end, I still think you have a fair shot at many of the programs out there. At this point, it's all dependent on the rest of your application. If you rock Step 2, then that's even better. Hope that helps.

Thanks!

If I wanted a residency spot in a "favorable" location (I hate cold weather despite having dealt with it all my life), would that make things too hard?

I'm hoping to do much better on Step 2. I'm usually a great standardized test taker, I just had some timing (in terms of other things going on) issues with when I took Step 1.
 
If you're flexible and you'll go anywhere in the South and maybe the west, I think there's a fair chance. As you probably know, the vast majority of programs are located in the midwest and new england area.
 
I actually prefer the south--haven't taken step 1 yet, good grades, interesting ECs, 12 yr as a PA in family and emergency med. Interested in Med-Peds for the breadth and depth of training, more fellowship and academic options, and particularly interested in transitional care. Appreciate advice :)
 
You sound like you have good reasons.

Interest in international health, primary and preventive care, combined fellowships, serving the underserved, wanting more in depth training as opposed to what FM can offer seem to be the major reasons that most applicants gave when asked their reasons for pursuing medpeds and their future plans (during my interviews so far).

I think step 2 is less important than the overall application (how convincing are you about your reasons for going into medpeds?, and what kind of resident the interviewer thinks you will make-i.e are you an overall great person-this is subjective of course but I think can be extrapolated from LORs and personal statement).

I would say you want to be above average step 1 and 2 for the better programs (better as in "big name places" like Vanderbilt, Maryland, and Duke etc). So just keep doing what you're already doing (being an awesome medical student, work on your cv, do an away just to see what's out there esp if you don't have a home program).
 
Thank you for above response.
Can anyone comment on whether it's a death knell in the Med-Peds app to lack an "academic" Peds rotation? I am scheduled for a community-based rotation but have 12+ yr experience as a PA caring for kids and adults (not sure how this will be perceived).
Also--anyone know anything about the programs in Greenville, SC and Charleston, WV?
Thanks :)
 
Thank you for above response.
Can anyone comment on whether it's a death knell in the Med-Peds app to lack an "academic" Peds rotation? I am scheduled for a community-based rotation but have 12+ yr experience as a PA caring for kids and adults (not sure how this will be perceived).
Also--anyone know anything about the programs in Greenville, SC and Charleston, WV?
Thanks :)
I think calling it a "death knell" would be quite the exaggeration.. I don't think programs care much where your peds rotation is. Most often students don't have control over these things since they are subject to a lottery system. That being said, I would try to do some peds rotations (eg, your sub-I) in your academic hospital that way you have letters from your academic institution, though your letters from attendings in your peds clerkship wherever that may be should suffice.

As far as Greenville, SC, nicest Main Street in America!
 
Thanks. I'm in a weird program (3 yr for PAs) and sub-I already scheduled in hospice/pall med--a fellowship interest of mine, and no electives...so not much wiggle room in clinical year schedule. I do live in SC and love Greenville.
 
Rather than start a new thread, I figured I'd use this existing "What are my chances" thread to ask.

So I'm an MSIII at a low tier USMD school. I'm interested in Med-Peds because I really like the broad spectrum of possibilities - academic work, primary care, specializing, and global health. My stats are:
Ranking: Second Quartile
Step 1: 219 (Sad, I know >_<)
Research: 0. I feel like this is a nail in the coffin. I may try to do some health disparities research with a professor this year... but so far I feel like I have 0 time to... Summer after first year I did in internship at a minority health non-profit. It was alright, but it was mostly for undergrads (all the other interns were undergrads with one MPH).
Volunteering: I've done a good amount of volunteering, and I'm very involved with a campus group that does homeless outreach and service.

I feel like I'm a completely non-stellar applicant. I'm trying to do well on rotations this year, and hoping that I can pull my score up for Step 2... but I'm wondering if anyone in Med-Peds can give me some insight. I'm studying OOS and would like to go back to my home state (Indiana) but that seems like it'll be next to impossible with that Step 1.

Thanks.
 
Rather than start a new thread, I figured I'd use this existing "What are my chances" thread to ask.

So I'm an MSIII at a low tier USMD school. I'm interested in Med-Peds because I really like the broad spectrum of possibilities - academic work, primary care, specializing, and global health. My stats are:
Ranking: Second Quartile
Step 1: 219 (Sad, I know >_<)
Research: 0. I feel like this is a nail in the coffin. I may try to do some health disparities research with a professor this year... but so far I feel like I have 0 time to... Summer after first year I did in internship at a minority health non-profit. It was alright, but it was mostly for undergrads (all the other interns were undergrads with one MPH).
Volunteering: I've done a good amount of volunteering, and I'm very involved with a campus group that does homeless outreach and service.

I feel like I'm a completely non-stellar applicant. I'm trying to do well on rotations this year, and hoping that I can pull my score up for Step 2... but I'm wondering if anyone in Med-Peds can give me some insight. I'm studying OOS and would like to go back to my home state (Indiana) but that seems like it'll be next to impossible with that Step 1.

Thanks.


Med peds programs in general don't seem to feel too strongly about research. I do have some research, but it's a weak point in my application, and I've gotten a few invites from "top" programs. Outside of those programs, I would think it matters even less
 
Med peds programs in general don't seem to feel too strongly about research. I do have some research, but it's a weak point in my application, and I've gotten a few invites from "top" programs. Outside of those programs, I would think it matters even less
It's nice to know that research doesn't seem to be too heavy a requirement for med/peds.

Do you think my step 1 score is prohibitively low for a decent university based program?

One other thing I have that I forgot to mention is that I completed a masters in bilingual and multicultural education in Spain. I don't know if that would matter at all, but considering I'm interested in Global Health, could it help me stand out?
 
Hello! Thank you for your questions! Your score is **not** definitely prohibitively low but I would make sure to make the most of the rest of your application and make it stand out for university based programs. Speaking foreign languages is definitely something that stands out but again, it's the application as a whole that will make you more or less desirable to a program. It's a common misconception that research is unimportant. While lacking research won't prevent you from getting an interview, I certainly think that it can improve your chances of matching. I would encourage everyone to get some form of scholarly activity during medical school to round out their application! Good Luck!
 
Last edited:
You said that my score is "definitely prohibitively low" but, the rest of the message sounds like you meant to throw a "not" in there. But I just want to be sure. Haha
 
sorry about that! I meant to insert a **not** in there. I have corrected.
 
While med-peds may not be out of reach for both of you it is important to ask yourself what your long term goals are for your career and how will med-peds help you achieve them?
It is important to remember that med-peds is two residencies, neither of which is easy and two boards, both of which will make STEP 1 feel easy at times. Anyone can have a bad day on step and if that is the case, it may not be a big deal. However, if you honestly ask yourself how you have done on big standardized exams and you have concerns you may consider a specialty that doesn't require you to double board. Med-Peds is particularly advantageous for treating inpatients, complex patients, multiple medication management, and complex inpatients. Are these populations that interest you? If your primary goal in residency is outpatient medicine, FP may be a suitable alternative although the peds training (particularly inpatient) is much less intensive than med-peds. Is your primary goal a subspecialty? If so, do you want to spend an extra year before a fellowship if it is more likely to be aimed towards adults than children or vice versa?
Unfortunately, if you had the patience to read this entire post you will find I haven't really provided you with any answers but I am trying to give you the right questions for you to find the answers yourself. If your answer to all these is med-peds is right for me, you both should be able to find a residency. Apply broad, interview broad, if a specific location is really important to you, consider applying for medicine and med-peds, family and med-peds, etc. Agree with trying to get a little research experience going (you don't have to complete all of a project prior to the interviews, saying you are working on such and such shows interest as well :) )
Good luck~
 
I'm applying Med/Peds, and am wondering about my competitiveness and how couples matching will affect my chance at matching where I want/top of my rank list. My husband is applying for a less competitive specialty. With less spots and locations of Med/Peds, will this be a significant issue? Can anyone (residents/ @NMPRA Director /program directors) weigh in on experiences with couples matching in Med/Peds? Any advice for increasing our chances, rank lists, applications, interviews, etc. to land our top choices would be really appreciated! Thank you!
--- we're Ohio residents (family here/college/med school), does this provide an advantage to the Ohio programs, or do programs not really give preference to local applicants?
-Step 1: 235
-Gold Humanism Honor Society, good chance of AOA, top 25-50% of class, mostly honors and high pass during M1/M2 and M3 clerkships.
-Many global health experiences, conversational in Spanish.
-Many volunteer activities, free clinics, and many leadership positions in student organizations.
-3 research experiences/1 paper in undergrad & 1 research experience/no paper though in med school - but all bench work in Depts. of Surgery, no research in internal med or peds (**Does this matter so much that research isn't in med or peds?**)
Note: my husband has a similar CV in regards to experiences, but with much less research and in lower 25-50% of class.
 
Last edited:
I'm applying Med/Peds, and am wondering about my competitiveness and how couples matching will affect my chance at matching where I want/top of my rank list. My husband is applying for Psychiatry. With less spots and locations of Med/Peds, will this be a significant issue? Can anyone (residents/ @NMPRA Director /program directors) weigh in on experiences with couples matching in Med/Peds? Any advice for increasing our chances, rank lists, applications, interviews, etc. to land our top choices would be really appreciated! Thank you!
--- we're Ohio residents (family here/here for high school/college/med school), does this provide an advantage to the Ohio programs, or do programs not really give preference to local applicants?
-Step 1: 235
-Gold Humanism Honor Society, good chance of AOA, in top 25-50% of class, mostly honors and high pass during M1/M2 and M3 clerkships.
-Many global health experiences, conversational in Spanish.
-Many volunteer activities, free clinics, and many leadership positions in student organizations.
-3 research experiences/1 paper in undergrad & 1 research experience/no paper though in med school - but all bench work in Depts. of Surgery, no research in internal med or peds (**Does this matter so much that research isn't in med or peds?**)
Note: my husband has a similar CV in regards to experiences, but with much less research and in lower 25-50% of class.

I couples matched into Med-peds, and based on what I'm seeing from your application stats, I don't think you and your husband should have a tremendous problem couples matching. That being said, I would suggest you try to be flexible with regard to location as there are so few Med-peds programs and it may be difficult, even with ties to Ohio (which some programs care about and some do not), to match in Ohio to a program you're happy with.

If you have more questions about the couples match specifically or about how my partner and I approached the match, I would take a look at the 2015-2016 official match thread on this forum. I tried to lay it all out, and I'm happy to answer more questions if you have them, but that's a good start, I think.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Top