Oral boards - ugh

[Slide]

I was hoping to get good news on the results of my orals, but unfortunately while on a much needed vacation a few days ago I found out I didn't pass. That's one way to get a buzzkill after you think you're done with everything.

I'm still processing what went wrong and what I could've done differently. I took the Osler review course and used the popular review books; Pemberton, Osler, and the Friedman/kaiser case vignettes.

I guess what I'm asking is for any sort of help or advice of what to do next, or at least someone to commiserate with. I know it's not the end of the world but I haven't been in a situation like this in a while and honestly I feel a bit ashamed to be in this position. Anyone willing to throw me a lifeline?

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[ablumoon]

If you took the Olser course, paid attention, and used those review books, and practiced out loud with other colleagues/friends-- and used all the advice given in the course, then it probably came down to one question where the examiner felt you could have blinded or killed someone. I would see if you could review the questions you got with someone else to see if that may have happened. If you haven't done all of the above, then you should consider practicing with other colleagues, taking more private mock orals the next time, and taking the 5 day course instead of the 3 day course because there could be some basic knowledge missing. Remember, the odds are in your favor. Pick your head up and have confidence!

I was hoping to get good news on the results of my orals, but unfortunately while on a much needed vacation a few days ago I found out I didn't pass. That's one way to get a buzzkill after you think you're done with everything.

I'm still processing what went wrong and what I could've done differently. I took the Osler review course and used the popular review books; Pemberton, Osler, and the Friedman/kaiser case vignettes.

I guess what I'm asking is for any sort of help or advice of what to do next, or at least someone to commiserate with. I know it's not the end of the world but I haven't been in a situation like this in a while and honestly I feel a bit ashamed to be in this position. Anyone willing to throw me a lifeline?

 

[Slide]

Thank you for your help. Thinking back on it, I missed a case that I didn't think was critical but looking back at it now, I now realize it could be justified as a "you better not miss this" diagnosis due to the oncologic implications. I felt I went through at a decent pace in each room though I know I didn't get some cases, and I was able to finish in one section. No way to know if I had gone through enough questions, but if I had, missing that probably was what failed me.

I think my biggest stumbling blocks were a) not studying broadly enough- as in studying more than just Pemberton/Osler Oral Review/Case Review scenarios and b) spending too much time on cases trying to show how much I knew about each case, where in fact I should have focused more on going through as many cases as possible.

Hopefully next year at this time I'll have better news.