Neurosurgery Residency

[niikank]

Hi every one, Just joined the website.
Am interested in applying for Neurosurgery residency this year, Had 242 on step one , first attempt, scheduled to write step 2cs and 2ck in june and july 2013 respectively.
No clinical experience in the USA yet,and no Research or publication.
Need some advice, What are my chances of a successful match?
Thank You.

[Julia IMG Residency]

Neurosurgery is very competitive and NOT IMG friendly. If you look at the NRMP statistics from the Match 2013 you'll see that last year there were just 204 Neurosurgery positions available. Only 8 spots were given to IMGs. This is very few, of course. So Neurosurgery chances are VERY SLIM.

I definitely encourage you to apply to more IMG friendly specialty. Are you considering General Surgery? Surgery is also very challenging because of the tough competition. But GS is doable. You have very good Step 1 score. Good job! Make sure you pass Step 2 CK, CS from the first attempt and get impressive CK result.
Year of graduation, clinical experience, visa status, LORs - all these factors matter for your residency application.

While your USMLE preparation (after you take the steps) consider getting U.S. experience - clinical, research, or even teaching. No U.S. C.E. is a negative factor for your application. Most Surgery programs require U.S. hospital experience in the field.

Bottom Line: you stand a good chance for matching. Make sure you are well-informed and set your priorities properly:
1. do your best on USMLE
2. get U.S. clinical experience
3. choose right specialties to have a backup plan
4. apply to the programs in time

[niikank]

Thanks alot Julia

[niikank]

Neurology is my second option, General surgery is my third option with internal medicine being my last.
Is it advisable to apply to four specialities in one hospital?

[Julia IMG Residency]

Yes, sure. Feel free to apply to different specialties within one residency program.

There is only one exception that concerns categorical & preliminary tracks. There is a choice you have to make whether to apply for preliminary or categorical surgery/IM. Either option has its pros and cons. If you are looking for a career in surgery, categorical program will provide you all the training you need and most importantly, you won’t have to worry about a visa during this time. Preliminary Surgery is easier to get. But it is only 1 or two-year position, after which if you are lucky, you may get a categorical spot at the same program (if any of categorical residents transferred or just left), or at another program. On the negative side, you will have to worry about visa issues, which depending on what type of visa you started with (J1 or H1) may become a real hassle.
Considering all of the above, you may choose a third option, which is applying for categorical programs and asking them to keep you in mind for preliminary position in case if you cannot make it in categorical. You will also be in a much stronger position if you had your Step 3 passed. You cannot get H1 visa without step 3, and this is a much better visa type.

When preparing residency application for different specialties make sure you use separate versions of PS for each specialty, preferable different LORs, each targeting the specialty (if possible). This will make your application more targeted towards particular specialty and therefore more attractive/competitive.

[niikank]

hello Julia
I have a question, can you apply to a preliminary surgery and categorical surgery at the same hospital

[Julia IMG Residency]

Technically you can apply to Prelim and categorical track at the same program. However I don't recommend you to do so. When PD reviews your ERAS application with both tracks checked (Prelim. & Categ.) he/she understands that you don't know what you really want. Your complete application must convince the reviewer that Categorical/Prelim General Surgery is your passion, your goal, justify WHY. I suggest you to have separate versions of the PSes for Prelim. and Categor. Surgery. Preliminary application must explain why you are applying for prelim track. One of the most popular reasons is to apply to the advanced specialty, like Neurology, Anesthesiology etc.
Bottom Line: Consider applying to SOME programs for prelim track and to OTHER programs to categorical Surgery.

[niikank]

Thanks for the advice. Currently working on my application on ERAS. For the prelim i don't see any spot asking to explain why you want to do prelim surgery.
There is one optional space asking the applicant to indicate PGY 2 interest(s). Is that what you are talking about when you say i should explain the reason?

[Julia IMG Residency]

I was talking about your Personal Statement. One of the very important parts of the Statement is your appeal to the specialty. In the PS you need to explain WHY you are applying to this particular specialty, WHY you are the best fit for it. You want to convince the readers that your specialty is where you belong. This is very important to make your PS specialty-oriented!

[niikank]

Just got my step 2ck result today with a score of 252 but unfortunately i failed the spoken english proficiency aspect of the step 2 cs.
Hard to understand since i finished clerking most of my patient before the allotted time and there was no indication from any of the patients that they did not understand or were struggling to hear what i was saying. Very surprised .
Since most of the programs require ECFMG certicate as part of the application requirement does that mean i won't be able to apply for residency this year?
Very distraught, am from an english speaking country and from my communication with the natives here i have had no problem, they hear me when i speak even on the phone.

[niikank]

Julia what is ur take on Prelim Surgery.
Does it enhance your chance of getting into a categorical General Surgery Program

[Julia IMG Residency]

Sure it does. Getting a Prelim Surgery position will increase your chances to get into Surgery Categorical. Most program are interested in experienced candidates that were/ are in SU Preliminary residency in the US.