Black Monday

I too was in this situation last year. I was completely shocked, never would have expected it. But things worked out this year and I got a PGY 2 ortho spot about a month ago outside the match at a great place. PM me if you go unmatched and have any questions or concerns. Good luck

Pantel

Hey there,

I got the bad news that I didn't match, I was wondering if anyone that has been in this situation before can pm me some advice or their email so I can communicate with them with my questions.

Thanks!

I just found out that I matched into ortho today. I, too, was in the position of not matching a year ago. The usual two options if you find out you didn't match & you still want to do ortho are:

1) a prelim surgery position somewhere (there will probably be lots available in the Scramble), keep your eye out for a PGY-2 to open up somewhere & reapply (best to talk to someone who did this for more info)

2) a year of ortho research somewhere (paid or unpaid)-this is what I did

When staring down the barrel of considering a prelim surgery year last year, I just couldn't do it. It's a very personal & a very individual decision, and I decided to do a year of research. I sat down with a list of the top hospitals/med schools in the country in terms of research funding (from U.S. News & WR, I think) and started emailing my CV to the orthopaedic residency coordinators at each program asking if they had any such research opportunities. I came across a few opportunities, and I applied for & was offered the Orthopaedic Research Fellowship at UNC. Here's the link to more info, and the only thing to clarify is that this is open to those who have completed residency OR to those about to graduate from medical school. I graduated from med school in May '07, and I started at UNC in July.



The listed deadline is April 1st, but I think it's to your advantage to get your application in if you're interested. You can always just let them know if you accept a prelim surgery spot or scramble into an ortho spot in a few days.

I don't regret doing research instead of a prelim year at all, but there are many different opinions on this. I went on 16 interviews this year, and at each one, someone either said they thought it was the right thing to do or suggested that I should have done a prelim surgery year.

One of the things that I did give up by choosing research is that I was NOT eligible to apply for PGY-2 ortho openings when they came up throughout the year, and I knew this going in.

If you got bad news today, and you know that Ortho is what you want to do, don't lose hope. It is still possible to get into this amazing field. I know how hard this day is; it was truly one of the worst days of my life last year. I took a lot of time to carefully consider all of the other medical specialties to make sure there wasn't something else I would be happy doing, and I would urge other unmatched applicant to do the same. Hope this information helps, and good luck!

I know the Phoenix Banner Ortho prog. is planning to add 2 PGY-2 spots for 2009-2010. So if you did a prelim year in Phoenix and expressed interest THIS YEAR, met w/ PD, etc, that might be a good backup plan. I think the Maricopa county hospital had like 6 or 7 g-surg prelim spots unfilled last year. I can't remember if I have heard of any others adding a PGY2 spot for 09-10 but maybe people could post them here if they have- I know there is an advanced position forum but I think most people will be checking this one in the next few days. Best of luck to all- believe in yourself, you will accomplish your goals.

I matched, thankfully. But I noticed there was 1 unfilled spot on the NRMP site. I'd imagine that would be very difficult to get, but may be an option for 1 lucky person.

i thought the lists aren't out yet?

congrats to all that matched. can those who matched post your information like school, USLME, aways, research etc.

Do NOT despair. I was in your shoes last year. One of the worst days of my life. Many of us went through what you are going through.

I was blessed to match this year - after going through last year - it makes matching all the more sweeter. I chose the prelim route - and will admit there were many times between July-Sept that I thought about bagging surgery altogether. In the end, I held onto the dream, and it has finally paid off. I too could have done prelim vs research.

Why I didn't choose research? Simply, I hate research - especially bench research and I was ready to get into REAL clinical training/practice and I'm glad I did. Sure, there were nightmarish weeks/months on general surgery services. But in the end, I feel doing the prelim year allowed me become a better physician and more importantly a better surgeon. In my interviews I could speak with confidence about my abilities - because I had lived the life of an intern - and succeeded. Most interviewers seemed to like that answer.

These are just some of my thoughts about the prelim vs research decision. As others have stated here, it is a personal decision, and in the end - for me - it was the better decision.

I hope this helps with those who are battling with what to do.

Good Luck.

Don't give up hope.

Hang onto The Dream!

The programs have not been released, but you can click on a Match Statistics Report under the My Reports tab on the NRMP website. It lists all of the specialties and the number of filled and unfilled spots broken down by region. It's an interesting thing to look at.

Congrats to those that matched!

Just out of curiosity -- how many of those matched are now in prelim GS? And did you match at the same institution?

Thanks,
Grim

The actual match day is March 20th when students find out where they have matched. Today is "Black Monday" which is the day you find out if you matched or not, just not where. It provides a few days for those who have not matched to "scramble" to find a residency position somewhere.

Throw me in as more proof that it can be done.

I didn't match last year after getting more interviews than I could go on. After thinking about it I decided to go the prelim GS route. I like this because it gives you more than one route to get into ortho (the match, vs accepting a pgy2 position..there are more than you think out there!) In the meantime between graduation and internship I did a case report that was later accepted for publication and am currently working on a research project with the ortho department at the program I'm in currently (research as an intern = HARD!).

To be honest I got really lucky as far as prelims go. I'm in a beautiful location at a well-known program. My month of ortho was my first rotation and I was treated as a "med student with priviledges." As soon as I got my work done I was off to the OR, clinic, or helping out the resident on call. It was really no different tha an MS4 away rotation.

I got 9 interviews for 1st year spots, 2 for PGY 2 spots. Ranked them all (plus some in a backup specialty). Could not believe it when I opened that envelope to see that I matched ortho!

Advice-
1. Aways- the single greatest thing that affects where/if you'll match. Talk to as many people as possible about possible sites. When your there, work your ass off but at the same time just be yourself. It's not enough that you just show up. Remember that after you leave there will be a new group that comes in and you don't want to be forgotten.

Also try to be realistic/slightly optimistic when picking aways. For example, HJD had about a dozen rotators during an off month. And they are all studs.

2. Interviews- don't put too much stock into the 10+ rule. While it may be true generally, it doesn't help you much when you're in that 5% as I was. Go to each interview like it is your only one, and really try to sell yourself. Just don't be a dick.

3. Post interviews- do easy rotations. Drink heavily.

Finally, don't give up if you didn't match the first time. It's really easy when you're in the middle of internship to start giving up on anything surgical. As someone told me last year, gen surg residents often do 1-2 years of research, making them pgy 6-7's by graduation. If ortho is truly your passion, then what is an extra year or two compared to the rest of your life?

Sorry for the long post. pm me with any ?s.