Question About Categorical And Advanced Radiology Positions:
Dear Dr. Julius,
I wasn’t sure of the difference between categorical and advanced radiology positions. What should I tell the applicants this year? Could you let me know the differences?
A Confused Program Coordinator
Answer:
For some reason, I have been receiving this question about categorical and advanced radiology positions a lot this year. Perhaps, it has something to do with how ERAS lists our residency program on its website. In any case, I had to look it up to make sure to give you the correct answer!
Definitions
First of all, some of you know that an Advanced residency, according to ERAS, is any residency that begins after the postgraduate one year. On the other hand, a categorical residency is any residency that begins at PGY-1 year. This categorical spot must continue for subsequent years until the end of the training.
In this situation, how is it possible for some radiology programs to have a categorical spot when radiology training begins during the PGY-2 year? Well, some radiology programs have an affiliated prelim year at the same institution. And, usually, there is some form of agreement between the two programs. This combined prelim year could be any of the approved PGY-1 slots for radiology, including Prelim surgery, Prelim medicine, transitional year, etc. Therefore, if you are not applying to the prelim spot at the same institution, you should not apply for a categorical slot in radiology.
If Interested In A Prelim Spot At The Same Place As Radiology Residency, Ask!
Also, if you are interested in completing the PGY-1 year at the same institution as the radiology residency, make sure to ask the radiology program director if they have a categorical connection with the same institution’s prelim year. Some do, and others don’t. If they do, sometimes the radiology residency can make a phone call to the prelim program. In this case, this connection can give you a better shot of getting the prelim year slot at the same institution. Why? Because programs want to make sure that you will have an ACGME accredited prelim year before starting residency. Likewise, it’s harder to ensure that outside the institution.
However, if you apply to prelim and radiology spots at the same institution, you may or not be applying to a categorical position! It all depends on the residencies and agreement among the programs. Bottom line, make sure to check with the program director or the graduate medical education office.
Hopefully, you now know what you need to know about categorical and advanced positions!
