Hi everyone. Now that Match Week is here, I thought I would make a post about my experience for anyone thinking about doing what I did.
Shortly after my last post, I ended up telling my PD about my intentions to switch. It was one of the hardest conversations that I have ever had but he was very supportive and agreed to write me a letter. Shortly after, I told the chair of the department and again, he was very supportive and agreed to write me a letter. I got a lot of good feedback along the interview trail pertaining to those letters so I have to believe that my good standing with my program was a huge factor in obtaining interviews. The last LOR I obtained was from a neurologist that I rotated with from my third year of medical school. Telling my co-residents was also a hard process but it was important that I told them early because I ended up asking a lot of them.
In the midst of all this, I had been slowly working on my application because I knew I was under a time crunch. Luckily, I had saved a copy of my OBGYN application so the hardest part was making a personal statement in a short amount of time. However, I was able to make a solid personal statement that conveyed my story well. I made sure to address the two glaring parts of my application: my year one remediation in medical school and my decision to switch residencies. With a lot of work, I was able to complete my application in time to submit on the opening day in September. From input received in this forum along with my mentors, I decided to apply to all the PM&R programs participating in The Match. I had signed up for the AAMC "FindAResident" website, which is where residencies can post open positions. I was able to find one 2nd year position through this as well as an open radiology position. I applied to the radiology position on a whim because it was in my home town. I didn't get the spot. I did not apply to any other specialties as a back up. I couldn't think of anything else I wanted to do at the time so I decided that I would take my chances in the SOAP if it came down to it. In total, I applied to approximately 80 PM&R programs and 33 Prelim positions. It was expensive.
The next few weeks of waiting were nerve wracking. I didn't start getting interviews until about four weeks after I submitted my application. However in October they slowly started to trickle in. It was kind of dismaying to see just how many interviews some people were getting compared to what I had, but the trickle continued and I slowly became more comfortable with the number I received. In total, I received interviews from 8 PM&R programs and 5 Prelim IM programs . Four of those programs offered me second year positions starting next year. I'm glad I applied broadly because most of the interviews I received were from programs I would have never applied to otherwise. The entire interview process was much less enjoyable the second time around. I used most of my vacation time and had to ask/beg for a lot of favors from other residents. However, I ended up going to every interview I received. Most of the interviews went well. Everyone wanted to know my motivations for switching. Some were more skeptical than others. Often times, they heard "OBGYN" and didn't need an in depth explanation of why I was switching. I was always asked if I had done a PM&R rotation. I always answered that I had not. Luckily, while I never did a formal rotation, I participated heavily in the SIG at my school and had shadowing experience including this year. A big problem I ran into along the interview trail was that most of the programs that I interviewed at seemed to have differing opinions on whether or not my 2 years of OBGYN would count towards a 1st year. A lot seemed to think that it would not be adequate. However, according to the ACGME, 6 months of the first year must include time in either ER, family, IM, OBGYN, peds or surgery. So eventually I cleared this up and all the programs said that my time would count as a 1st year. However, I didn't find this out till after my interviews so I still ended up going on the Prelim interviews. In total, my rank list had 12 positions on it as I applied for multiple positions in some programs. Waiting for yesterday was miserable, as I felt that there was a strong possibility that I would not match. However, I matched!
It's been such a relief knowing that I didn't do all of this in vain. Now I'm just curious to see whether or not I matched into a 2nd year position for next year. If I could have done anything in this process differently (besides picking the correct specialty the first time around) I would have pursued the issue of what counts towards first year credit. Not going on Prelim interviews would have saved me time and money. Although it did make me nervous not adding a supplement application to advanced positions. This process is not something I would wish for anyone to have to do however I can't say I regret a lot. I've gained a lot of experience and made a lot of friends. I guess my biggest advice for anyone thinking about doing this would be to 1) Decide as early as possible. You'll need time to gather letters and plan. 2) Tell your program as early as possible. You'll need letters from them and you'll be asking for lots of favors. 3) Get as much exposure to the field as possible to get a good letter 4) Submit your application on time 5) Apply broadly 6) Make every effort possible to go on all your interviews. If anyone thinking about making the switch has any questions, just let me know! Thanks for everyone's help!
