Step 1 212, interested in Surgery (academic). Still possible?

[drranjit]

Dear SDNers,

I am a US MS3 in Chicago. I'm interested in Gen Surg, and if possible doing a fellowship afterwards (in CT or vascular maybe). I am a below average applicant (bottom 1/3 of the class, step 1 of 212, high pass in Peds, Surg and Med, no honors so far, 2 1/2 years of surg research, 1 podium presentation, 1 abstract). I understand I need to score well above average on Step 2 (~250), get great LORs etc.

-First of all, is Gen Surg in an academic program (categorical, anywhere in the US) still an option for me? Anyone with similar step 1 matched in academic gen surg categorical before? The reason I'm asking academic is because I'm interested in pursuing a fellowship afterwards

-Ideally, I'd like to join my husband who lives in NYC so I was wondering if any of you guys are familiar with programs in NYC? With my stats, is it still possible to match in an academic NYC program (categorical)? How about Boston? I know I am not competitive enough to be picky but NYC would still be ideal for family reasons...
And anything I can do to boost my chances (maybe aways in NYC?)

-Finally, I understand that academic programs are more competitive than community programs. Any good community programs in NYC/Boston where I could still hope to match (categorical)?

Thanks a bunch and good luck to you all.

PS: Btw, FWIW, I don't have any huge red flags (never failed/remediate a course, no time off during med school, good/excellent reviews on MSPE so far, decent amount of volunteering/EC/leadership)

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[IwannabeDrP]

That's a low step 1 score given the average for my test was 228 and with the new charting the outcomes released, the average matched applicant for gen surg was 232. You need to rock the remainder of your clerkships and dedicate 3-4 wks to ensure a solid score on step 2 prior to submitting your application (i.e. 250 would be awesome to make up for your step 1). I've seen that sort of score jump posted on the official USMLE step 2 CK thread so check that out.

I can't comment on the NYC or Boston programs as I'm also in Chicago, but those locations receive lots of applicants. Definitely explore the community programs.