Hi all,
Good luck to all of the 4th year students anxiously awaiting the upcoming match results!
To the rising 4th year students now thinking about sub-internships/acting internships I thought I would share some thoughts about this past year's events to perhaps help you in your decision-making process. Columbia had 16 students applying in orthopaedics this year so there were many opportunities to learn from their collective experience. Here are some of those thoughts:
1. Do not take for granted that you will receive an interview from away rotations. While tempting, do not get seduced by âweâd love to have you hereâ, "youâre perfect for our residencyâ comments from residents, fellows, or even some attendings. If the program director or department chair makes that comment then it MAY mean something
2. Try to pay attention to programs that are very ânumbers-oriented" because unfortunately MOST programs do not screen rotators so it may not matter how well you perform as a sub-intern if your numbers arenât competitive you may still not be granted an interview.
3. While Columbia has historically been one of the few programs that does not give "courtesy" interviews to every rotator (you still have a dramatically increased chance of getting an interview if you rotate compared to if you do not!), this year demonstrated a dramatic increase in the number of other programs following suit. We have had many threads about this topic on this site in the past and while I understand that students would like a guaranteed interview because you chose to rotate at the program it simply is not fair to you to be asked to come back (at your own expense) if it is apparent that you will not end up being competitively ranked. So this is just a reminder that even if you are a "water-walker" on paper no one who interacts with you during your month (other than the program director and coordinator) will know what your paper application looks like. They will evaluate you based on your performance.
Bottom line - do your due diligence. Speak to the current students from your school, seek advice and mentoring from your Dean's office and from mentors who are actively involved in orthopaedic education (not people who tell you their experience from 30 years ago)
Good luck
wnl
