Radiology PC - Ask me questions

[RedJess]

Good morning,

I am the PC of record for my department's DR residency program as well as the Education Division manager for my department; we currently have IR Integrated and will also start IR Independent in July 2020. We are also working on getting ESIR approval as well.

With all the changes going on in the field of Radiology I thought I'd open myself to questions you might have.

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[gilaze]

Hi! Do you accept IMGs? What does an IMG need to get your attention?

 

[RedJess]

Hello,

I can only speak for my own programs, but yes we do accept IMGs. We look for ECFMG certification, which is a must in order to get an interview, as well as at least USMLE Step 1. We also look at the medical school attended, particularly grades in basic science courses and in clerkships.

For purely financial reasons, we can only accept J-1 visa holders, permanent residents, or refugee status, the reason being that our primary teaching hospital does not fund H1B visa holders.

 

[DrWhozits]

Do away rotations with your program *generally* help students get a leg up for interviews?

Obviously some people won’t do well, but assuming a good rotation.

 

[RedJess]

In general, yes, as the ability to function as a member of a team is something that my program in particular looks at for applicants. So if someone has done a rotation with us and we know that person is a team player and has strong communication skills then we usually remember those folks.

 

[DrWhozits]

In general, yes, as the ability to function as a member of a team is something that my program in particular looks at for applicants. So if someone has done a rotation with us and we know that person is a team player and has strong communication skills then we usually remember those folks.

Awesome, thank you!

Is there anything else you would recommend for DO or IMG candidates that have to overcome where they went to school?

 

[RedJess]

Not really...what really "makes or breaks" an application - whether it be a US, IMG, or DO candidate, is the strength of their application. If a US med grad has poor grades/clerkship scores and mediocre letters of recommendation, my program won't rate that person higher than a better qualified applicant who went to an international medical school.

The only caveat to this is that we like make sure that foreign medical schools are on the Texas Medical Board's list of substantial equivalence to ensure that they can eventually be eligible for a full medical license in Texas if they do match with us.

My institution has both the DR and IR Integrated Residency programs and we interviewed over 600 applicants last season for 12 total residency positions, so we do tend to be more competitive overall.

 

[blah2468]

I'm currently looking into radiology as a third year. My step score and level 1 score are the low end. What can I do to make myself more competitive for your program? Also do you look at the COMLEX scores at all if D.O students take the USMLE?

 

[RedJess]

Yes, my program does look at Comlex scores although we do like to also see USMLE Step 1 as well for DO applicants. I strongly recommend doing clerkships in Radiology during your 4th year to make yourself more competitive, as we like to see applicants who have "A"s/Honors in their senior clerkships. If you're interested in Interventional Radiology then definitely do a clerkship in Surgery as well.

 

[blah2468]

Have people in the past matched with similar board scores to your program? I will definitely do clerkships in Radiology 4th year but I'm wondering if my current stats will hold me back from matching radiology.

 

[RedJess]

Hello, I believe last year's entering class for 2018 had an average USMLE Step 1 of 235, so I think you're fine.

 

[choa06]

How do you look at applicants who have no direct ties to your region? I know that many desirable places give preference to applicants that have ties to a particular region so I was wondering if you guys do the same.

 

[bernanke2016]

I am currently a transitional resident and am re-applying to radiology. Do I need one of my letters to be from my program director?

 

[RedJess]

We do look at ties to our part of the states and also consider Couple matches as well. I can tell you for my program we send out the first round of interview invites to our highest qualified candidates that are already in state as well as the surrounding states.

 

[RedJess]

Yes, we would like to see a letter from your most recent Program Director.

 

[pandh83]

Hello,

I can only speak for my own programs, but yes we do accept IMGs. We look for ECFMG certification, which is a must in order to get an interview, as well as at least USMLE Step 1. We also look at the medical school attended, particularly grades in basic science courses and in clerkships.

For purely financial reasons, we can only accept J-1 visa holders, permanent residents, or refugee status, the reason being that our primary teaching hospital does not fund H1B visa holders.

I was wondering if you guy still considering US-IMGs who still have no graduated so they do not have ECFMG certification(will get in march).

 

[Masterchiefcell]

Good morning,

I am the PC of record for my department's DR residency program as well as the Education Division manager for my department; we currently have IR Integrated and will also start IR Independent in July 2020. We are also working on getting ESIR approval as well.

With all the changes going on in the field of Radiology I thought I'd open myself to questions you might have.

What do you look for in an applicant looking to switch from another specialty?

 

[buckets]

Any advice for re-applicants to radiology? There wasn’t a whole lot of time between March and September to drastically improve our applications, so how can we increase our chances of matching this time around, particularly in an increasingly competitive specialty in an extremely busy intern year? Do you have any positions outside of the match that open and do you publicize those?

 

[Lifeman]

How much emphasis is placed on third year rotation grades (P/F/H)?