Hey I'm a DO and going to reapply even though I know my chances are low. I don't want to go into too much details because it was terrible time in my life and don't want to rehash it...but I was wondering when reapplying to FM, should I include in the personal statement mention that during my previous residency I was going through severe depression and later diagnosed with ADHD? After letting my program director know of the diagnosis , he did consider allowing me to repeat some rotations but due to the program shutting down (hospital declared bankruptcy) , they could not accommodate me. Program terminated me to due to performance issues. Since then, I volunteered for two months as a counselor for Crisis Center and then taught Anatomy and Physiology for a 6 week course. Then covid happened and I didn't do much other home projects such as starting a medical illustration project . I know my chances are low, but going to try one more time and apply broadly . I was also thinking of applying to transitional year.
Reapplying to FM after termination. What to write in personal statement?
- Thread starter BlueFirez
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Does your prior PD support you in finding a new training program?
This.
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Wondering why you weren't offered the opportunity to resign... ?
He did say that he thinks I should repeat the year over and it's not that big a deal ( when I was trying to ask him to allow me to complete rotations). But he didn't give me a letter of recommendation when I asked for one...he just said he will write a "letter" that will be included in my file that will say what happened along with the rotations I completed. Overall it didn't sound positive at all so I didn't pursue getting a LOR.
I was offered. But I wanted to complete level 3 and wouldn't have been eligible if I resigned .
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Looking at your post hstory, it appears you had struggles in medical school (6 years to finish, problems with boards), then had a gap between graduating and getting a residency, were interested in psych but probably got few interviews and ended up in FM. Many of your old posts mention how much you didn't like the FM work, and then ultimately were unable to complete the PGY-1 year.
Given all that, I think your only chance at a new spot is convincing a new program that this cycle won't happen again. Although I'm not a big fan of making excuses for performance based upon psych issues, I think that's what you'll need to do. You need to convince programs that this time will be different.
Given all that, I think your only chance at a new spot is convincing a new program that this cycle won't happen again. Although I'm not a big fan of making excuses for performance based upon psych issues, I think that's what you'll need to do. You need to convince programs that this time will be different.
You have to be a resident in order to take complex level 3? For the uslme step 3, anyone who graduated from med school can take it.
Thanks for your feedback. I don't like talking about psych issues either as I feel it is very personal and would rather avoid. But to my diagnosis, the old PD said he most likely would've have accommodated me in allowing me to repeat the rotations so I could complete the year if the program wasn't shutting down. All the the attendings were okay having me come back, but the CEO said no. I'm a bit unsure how much to include about this in a personal statement. Would it be alright to briefly address the red flags in the personal statement? I rather keep most of it about how I can contribute to the residency program and save answering questions about past issues for interviews.
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If you don't give a program director some information beyond vague statements you won't get to the interview. Ambiguity is better for people with stronger applications than yours.
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It would be much better if the program's letter states your PD's opinion, rather than your PS. I agree that there's a difficult balance here -- sure you'd like to talk about it in an interview but you have to get the interview first.
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You need to address this and how things have changed/won't be the same (e.g. what you have done to address the deficiencies, etc.) within your application. They need to see it before most would even consider interviewing you. Whether in the PS or not, it needs to be in the application written in your own words somewhere. Obviously, a letter from the PD saying the same or corroborating the story would be great, but honestly it doesn't sound like that's likely. Everything positive you've mentioned the PD saying was in the context of "if only we weren't shutting down, I would so be able to give you every opportunity possible...". They could easily have been saying that to deflect blame or be less confrontational.
Say it in your own words, apply broadly, including to prelim spots. Good luck!
4 yrs back they made a change that you now need GME verification before taking Level 3. It's stupid, but there is a convoluted way around it by having your school vouch for you.
Say it in your own words, apply broadly, including to prelim spots. Good luck!
4 yrs back they made a change that you now need GME verification before taking Level 3. It's stupid, but there is a convoluted way around it by having your school vouch for you.
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What's the purpose of that ridiculous rule?
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Excellent question. Not sure, but I suspect its related to how schools must now publish and track Level 3 scores. I agree its ridiculous. When it first rolled out, there were a number of flaws in how they identified accredited residency programs. That's honestly the only reason I know about it. More hoops seemingly set up to harm students/residents.
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The osteopathic community has always been and will always be its own worst enemy.
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I'm not sure that I agree with your list of viable alternatives. For reference:
FM:
PSYCH:
I'm not saying that psych is an uber competitive specialty, but over the past few years it's definitely become more competitive than FM.
Agree with what others have said. Get your PD letter. Apply to every FM program out there.
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^^^What he/she said, unfortunately. Psych might not be ortho, but it's probably closing the gap more than people might realize.
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