only rank one residency program?

[Martha]

Hello,
Thanks for any help you guys can provide. As you know, the d-day for this application cycle is right around the corner (5/15), and I have a ques. that I think can be best answered by this group.

I am thinking about attending school in one area of the country, but confident that I would like to do my residency in another area, near where I am from. My question is--is it even possible to enter only one program in the match, if you are confident that this is the only program you want? My parents and I have discussed this idea, I mentioned that you only want to rank programs that you would like to go to-what if there is really truly only one choice in your mind??
If you don't end up matching, could you maybe figure out a research position at that institution for the year, and reapply for the match? It seems at that point you could work there for the year and get to know people-but this might not work with loans??

Thanks for letting me know if this is possible-though I know it is risky, I just would like to know how inane this idea is.
M.

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[OldManDave]

The best answer here depends on many many factors...many of which are hugely up-in-the-air, esp since it appears that you have not even begun/gotten into medical school. Am I correct in this inference?

First of all, yes, only ranking one program can drastically lengthen you odds of matching. However, there are many elements that play into just how profound the effects are.

1 - How competitive an applicant you are
2 - How competitive the specialty you are apply to is
3 - How competitive the individual program is
4 - How competitive the other applicants are to the specialty & to the individual program

So, there are waaaay too many factors that are completely unpredictable at your stage...even at the time of your match cycle...that can truly make this aspiration a long shot. If you are utterly determined to train in a specific program, in a specific specialty & in a specific locale -- I would plan to worl my ass off to give myself the best odds.

However, what I personally think to be a much better approach, do not over-commit yourself too early. You will be shocked & amazed at all of the wonderful opportunities and different ways to practice medicine. Work hard during years 1&2, but enjoy them as well. Then, when you hit your 3rd year - truly invest yourself into each clerkship as if that discipline had always been your life's dream. Only then can you be confident that you have truly found your niche. Such a wise approach leading to an informed decision can only enhance your prospects of succeeding both personally & professionally.

Best of luck & success to you.

 

[UI2003]

Oh sure - you can rank as many (or as few) programs as you like...with a few caveats:

- Ranking only one program is the NRMP's most popular scenario for not matching at all (www.nrmp.org).
- You might find out somewhere between your preclinical and clinical years that you are interested in practicing as a double-boarded MD (i.e.- med-peds) OR you could be torn about your choice of specialty right up to the deadline and decide to interview/rank two completely different specialties (G Surg, Internal Med) - obviously causing you to rank a minimum of two programs.

To answer your second question, yes, people who fail to Match often do a few months of research then re-apply. It is reported that they have an even more difficult time Matching than the first time. I'm not sure about the loan situation but from my own experience, lenders are fairly picky over the whole residency-deferrement issue...I'm not sure they'll let a graduated senior stay deferred unless they were a registered resident but I don't know...

The bottom line is: yes, your plan is risky however as the previous poster pointed out - you're way early in the process. You've still got a big wide world of possibilites out there so there's no point in worrying over the Match before you've even taken Gross Anatomy Concentrate on having a blast in med school and good luck!

 

[Andrew_Doan]

only rank one residency program?

Risky... too risky. Your career is more important than geographic location. It's not worth risking this UNLESS you know for sure that you're ranked to matched. This means that you're good and the program has communicated this to you.

Still, being ranked to match is no guarantee either. For instance, programs may have historically matched the applicants in their list of top 20, but if it's a competitive year, then the program may match from their list of top 10. If you're 11 on the list (which would have historically been ranked to match), then you're out of luck.

One more thing. If you start work, the loan repayment countdown starts.