Need help to decide what to do Ortho ENT Optho

[Aknemu]

I'm a third year, and we have to declare within the next few months and I'm having a tough time figuring out what to do. I'm currently on my first rotation (surgery), and I like it, but I also want to have a life, and I want to have more clinic time then most general surgeons. So I've narrowed my list down to three things Ortho, Ophtho, and ENT and now I'm having a difficult time figuring out which one, and I've made a list of pros and cons:

Ortho:
pros: cool surgeries, surgeries occur on a big scale
cons: least life style friendly, trauma call, longest training, physically most difficult, can get redundant, culture in some places

ENT:
pros: huge variety of surgeries and stuff in clinic
cons: complicated anatomy, long surgeries

Optho:
pros: instant gratification, good scope for global medicine, short surgeries, sit during surgeries
cons: surgery can get redundant (cataracts)



I also know that I get bored if I do the same thing over and over again, and I know I want to have a career related to global health

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[Cawolf]

Your list seems good and you presented some pros and cons, but you didn't mention what was important to you that could help distinguish between these potential fields. I think your best bet would be to do some shadowing/rotations/research in these fields and find out more before making a decision.

 

[Fatalis]

What is your step 1 score?

 

[Aknemu]

step: 244, so I know that regardless of what I do I probably won't be competitive for a "top tier" or academic program, and I'm ok with that.

Most important things in no particular order
Variety
Global Medicine
innovations in the field
ability to scale back when older: this is less important to me, but still important. My parents worked long hours when I was a kid, and I know that kind of bothered me so I don't want to have to put my future hypothetical kids through that.

 

[FindersFee5]

step: 244, so I know that regardless of what I do I probably won't be competitive for a "top tier" or academic program, and I'm ok with that.

Most important things in no particular order
Variety
Global Medicine
innovations in the field
ability to scale back when older: this is less important to me, but still important. My parents worked long hours when I was a kid, and I know that kind of bothered me so I don't want to have to put my future hypothetical kids through that.

Do you have any research experience? How about connections with home ENT/ortho programs? Without pretty good demonstration of interest in ortho or ENT, and a below average step 1, it's going to be an uphill battle. I know less about ophtho, but it's probably the same.

 

[Cawolf]

step: 244, so I know that regardless of what I do I probably won't be competitive for a "top tier" or academic program, and I'm ok with that.

Most important things in no particular order
Variety
Global Medicine
innovations in the field
ability to scale back when older: this is less important to me, but still important. My parents worked long hours when I was a kid, and I know that kind of bothered me so I don't want to have to put my future hypothetical kids through that.

All of that (except maybe variety depending on your practice) fits well with ophthalmology.

 

[Aknemu]

my research experience includes two pubmed articles one as first author and one as a second author several abstracts and a few presentations.