withdraw from match?

[confusedresident]

I am a surgical prelim resident who did not match to a competitive surgical specialty. For this year's ERAS I applied to a different specialty and now I am regretting not applying to my previous specialty that I had spent the last 4+ years working on. I am now questioning whether it would make sense to withdraw from the match and re-apply next year?

I am a URM and first gen college graduate and wonder if that will make a difference in outcome from the norm for reapplicants. I have also spend considerable time pre medical school working in the field.

Any advice or ideas will be appreciated!

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[rokshana]

I am a surgical prelim resident who did not match to a competitive surgical specialty. For this year's ERAS I applied to a different specialty (have about 15 interviews) and now I am regretting not applying to my previous specialty that I had spent the last 4 years working on. My step 1 is 256 and step 2 is 251. I am now questioning whether it would make sense to withdraw from the match and re-apply next year? this makes me worried about what the consequences of withdrawing and also whether that would now diminish my chances to my back up specialty and leave me with no residency after.

Another consideration was continuing on with the match and if I match my new specialty- go through with it but reapply to my original specialty (as a PGY1) if I am still having these feelings of going back to my original specialty. In this scenario would I have to get a letter from my new residency or would a letter from my prelim PD suffice?

Any advice or ideas will be appreciated!

You didn’t match the first time…why would you think you would match a second time? Has your application significantly improved? Did you not rank appropriately the first time around? How many IVs did you get the last time?

 

[operaman]

Stick with the new plan unless you have some way to drastically improve your application. Your numbers are adequate, though not stellar, for all the surgical subs provided the other elements are there and you interview well. Not sure where the issue occurred, but not likely the prelim year fixed it.

The only exception might be if research was very weak - you could keep your interviews and move forward while also looking for a good funded research year. Once you have a signed contract for that, you could drop your remaining interviews and just don’t ever enter the match itself.

I’m guessing your research was solid if you spent 4 years working toward a competitive field. If so, the research year probably won’t help.

Whether it’s gen surg or anesthesia or whatever, stick with the new plan and match and get board certified in something. Truth is your most competitive match run is when you’re a senior medical student, and your chances only drop from there. Being two years out from graduation and two years away from specialty specific letter writers just weakens what was already a weak application.

Stay focused on the new field and find things to like. Depending on what you’re doing, there are potentially fellowships that could get you close to what you were gunning for before. But dropping out now for one more run at a competitive field is a recipe for being 2+ years out with no residency at all and no board cert. Not a place you ever want to be.

 

[GoSpursGo]

Agree with above. You could have reasonably tried to reapply to your competitive specialty this year, but I think that ship sailed when you applied to your backup this year. You’re not going to match 2 years out from med school.

Not everyone gets into their specialty of choice, it’s a math problem. You can still have a very good career.

 

[mistafab]

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

You may never be the MD you had hoped you would be. Grieve that loss, and move on.

 

[confusedresident]

You didn’t match the first time…why would you think you would match a second time? Has your application significantly improved? Did you not rank appropriately the first time around? How many IVs did you get the last time?

I had about 5 interviews the first time around and regret not thinking of a contingency plan at that point. I had strong research and pre medical school experience in the field so I thought that would help and figured my scores were strong enough

 

[confusedresident]

Stick with the new plan unless you have some way to drastically improve your application. Your numbers are adequate, though not stellar, for all the surgical subs provided the other elements are there and you interview well. Not sure where the issue occurred, but not likely the prelim year fixed it.

The only exception might be if research was very weak - you could keep your interviews and move forward while also looking for a good funded research year. Once you have a signed contract for that, you could drop your remaining interviews and just don’t ever enter the match itself.

I’m guessing your research was solid if you spent 4 years working toward a competitive field. If so, the research year probably won’t help.

Whether it’s gen surg or anesthesia or whatever, stick with the new plan and match and get board certified in something. Truth is your most competitive match run is when you’re a senior medical student, and your chances only drop from there. Being two years out from graduation and two years away from specialty specific letter writers just weakens what was already a weak application.

Stay focused on the new field and find things to like. Depending on what you’re doing, there are potentially fellowships that could get you close to what you were gunning for before. But dropping out now for one more run at a competitive field is a recipe for being 2+ years out with no residency at all and no board cert. Not a place you ever want to be.

Gen Surg is the back up specialty I applied to and as I am going through my current intern year, I am just struggling to wrap my head around doing this all over again next year and then going through another 4-6 years of training without getting on a path close to what originally wanted to do.

 

[operaman]

Gen Surg is the back up specialty I applied to and as I am going through my current intern year, I am just struggling to wrap my head around doing this all over again next year and then going through another 4-6 years of training without getting on a path close to what originally wanted to do.

So don’t do that. Match gen Surg and become a surgeon and move on with your career. There are many fellowship options within gen Surg that may be able to give you elements of the sub speciality you’re missing. You have 15 gen Surg interviews even as a prelim - that’s pretty awesome actually. It bodes well for your success in matching. It also means your letters from your prelim are strong.

If you only got 5 interviews in your sub of choice, you had something missing on your app and that problem is probably not fixed now either. Your step 2 score is below average for most subs though your S1 was more in the average range. If your research was good, then there must have been something with your grades or letters. And sadly your grades are fixed and your field-specific letters won’t be getting any better after a year away from those attendings.

If you only got 5 interviews last year, you’d be lucky to get that again this year, and even less likely if you apply again next year. Your odds of matching that sub ever are about as close to zero as you can get. Don’t give up your best chance to become a board certified surgeon by dropping it to take one more run at something that’s not going to happen. You took your best shot, it didn’t work out, but you’ve got an incredible opportunity still in front of you.

Do your 15 interviews, crush it, and then find a fellowship within gen Surg that fits your interests and lifestyle needs.

 

[Giovanotto]

How's your med debt situation? I read these threads with my eyes wide open and in sheer horror.

 

[rokshana]

I had about 5 interviews the first time around and regret not thinking of a contingency plan at that point. I had strong research and pre medical school experience in the field so I thought that would help and figured my scores were strong enough

Pre med school experience, unless a published paper Or the equivalent isn’t going to matter.
You need to decide if you are willing to gamble your medical career on an off chance of getting into this surgical subspecialty… you sound competitive enough for GS… not so much for this surgical sub.

 

[dpmd]

Gen Surg is the back up specialty I applied to and as I am going through my current intern year, I am just struggling to wrap my head around doing this all over again next year and then going through another 4-6 years of training without getting on a path close to what originally wanted to do.

Why do it all again next year? I originally wanted to do ortho but couldn't match so I decided to move on with general surgery and am very happy with my life now. I don't dwell on whether I might have been happier in ortho because it was very clear that the specialty didn't want me even if I wanted it so might as well adjust to that reality.

 

[voxveritatisetlucis]

Every year you take off, you’re forgoing probably 400k plus the interest it accrues over 30 years

 

[Lost in Translation]

Don’t withdraw. Pretty much all subspecialties can take their pick of the cream of the crop; they’re not going to take someone who didn’t match the first time as, to them, it is 1) highly unlikely that applicant “fell through the cracks” and 2) they have a fresh batch of MS4s to pick from. Can it happen? Sure. But very rare. I did a prelim myself and worked with some excellent colleagues who did not match their first picks (Neurosurg, ENT, Ortho) out of medical school and again failed to match to those fields after prelim year. They’re all in other fields and doing fine.