Externships?

[G'ville Nole]

This is my first post to this forum, but I've been following it with great interest for the past several months.

It's getting to be the time of year for MS3 students to start looking at externships/"audition" rotations at other schools. I was wondering if anyone on the board could share some insights or experiences rotating at other schools. I just spoke to a PGY-2 at our program who rotated at two schools in addition to his own. Is this the norm? It stands to reason that schools feel more comfortable evaluating students who are familiar to them, but would my time be better spent expanding my breadth of medical knowledge, rather than doing multiple rad onc rotations?

Thanks in advance!

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[Spyder]

I don't know if two is the norm, but at least one is definitely
a good idea. Of course, I see you are from UF, so it may not
be as important for you, but for those that are from schools
without rad/onc residencies, an away rotation is essential.
A good externship, even if you don't end up at that particular
residency, will open doors. Rad/onc is a close knit community
and I believe that the program directors talk to each other
about candidates. A good externship might give you some
word of mouth with programs and give you an edge that might
not exist otherwise. Choose where you do a rotation carefully.
My personal feeling is that you should do one where you would
really like to match, but it is important that that program has
an individual that might pull weight in the community. Being
at a traditionally strong program like UF will help reduce the
importance of finding someone to open doors for you, but for
those that are not in such a situation, I think that this is
critical. For you, do a rotation at UF, do a rotation at a program
that you would like to go to, then enjoy your fourth year.

 

[AnnK73]

Hi -

I agree with Spyder that it is really most important to do away rotations when your schools program isn't the strongest. I also think that it is important to do the rotations early. That way you can get the added benefit of a letter from the other program which is nice. Rotations after october only will help you get into the program that you rotate at. I did two away and Im glad that I did altho I had to get special permission to do 3 rotations in the same field. I get asked about the number and locations of my radonc rorations alot at interviews.

Good luck!
Ann

 

[digimon]

I agree with the above. I don't have a radonc residency at my school despite having academic radiation oncologists. I did one at my home institution, one at a large private practice group, and one at a strong program with a well known chairman. I have heard of many people doing 3 or more at places with residencies, and with a few exceptions (e.g. mdacc), you'll probably get interviews at the ones you rotate through. The field is not small, but tiny--especially among the academicians--so a key letter from a well known person will take you a long way. i have heard of students doing away rotations at high powered places and being denied recommendations from their chairman, so choose your externships wisely. best of luck. it's a tough match, with no guarantees, even if you have all the above. but don't be discouraged...it's definitely worth it!

 

[G'ville Nole]

Thank you for your responses. As my plans for fourth year are slowly coming coming together, it appears likely that I will do one externship. My next task will be to filter through all the information that is available, and select one program where I would like to rotate.

If any of you have any positive experiences at externships that you would like to relate, I'd be happy to hear about them. I am currently looking at choosing between 10-15 programs, and any firsthand experiences that you guys are willing to share would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks again!