Tag: USMLE

Posted on by

How Does A DO Degree, COMLEX Score, And USMLE Step I Outcome Affect The Radiology Match?

I have a follow up question to your prior question on the USLME examination.

 

I am currently a 3rd year DO student interested in radiology but I got a USMLE step 1 score that was below where I wanted (227) but a decent COMLEX Level 1 score (591). Do you find that being a DO towards the lower end of board scores for radiology it will be hard to match to a program? I am above most of the cut-offs that I’ve seen (based on FREIDA Online) and am not expecting to go to a big time university. Frankly, I just want to train at a place that will give me a good enough education so I can practice radiology and feel comfortable!

 

I am just nervous about not getting interviews and going unmatched! But, I love radiology and will apply regardless and see what happens and go from there.

 

Thanks,
Alex

__________________________________________

Let me step back a few steps before answering your question specifically about your particular COMLEX Level I and USMLE Step I board scores.

 

First thing you need to know: It is true that there are a few residency programs out there that may not look at DO candidates in general. Those are the minority of programs. If you have a good ERAS application, most schools will want to interview you even though you are a DO.

 

Second item: It is good that you took both the COMLEX and USMLE examinations because some admissions committees don’t really understand what the COMLEX scores really mean, which puts you at a disadvantage from start. (You won’t have to worry about that obviously since you took them both!)

 

Third: DO degrees are being more highly regarded since the AOA and ACGME has begun to merge. The new merged organization has decided to get rid of residency programs for different specialties including radiology that in the past would not accept DO degree graduates. Previously for that reason, a graduate from a DO school was considered a second class applicant since there was a limited number of DO programs. That will no longer be the case due to the merging of the DO and MD residency programs. In fact, you will probably have a slight advantage over Caribbean MD graduates in the future since you are a United States medical school graduate and you do not have to worry about applying to DO specific programs anymore.

 

And finally in your particular situation: there are probably some large high end academic programs that have very high board cut off scores above yours. But, for most programs, both of your scores would be fine and should get you an interview at many places assuming you have a reasonable application and that the radiology specialty does not become significantly more competitive next year (You proved you have the ability to pass the core examination.) Not only that, plenty of high quality programs, programs that create great radiologists, should be willing to take you at “your board score level”.

 

My advice: Don’t be nervous about not matching. Be confident with the knowledge that your board scores are reasonable. That is one less thing to worry about!

Director1

Posted on by — 1 Comment

A Common Radiology Applicant USMLE Step I Misconception

Ask The Residency Director Step I USMLE Question:

Good evening. My name is Susana, a 3rd-year medical student, very interested in your radiology residency program. I would like to know, if possible, what is the average Step I USMLE score of your PGY1, to know if mine qualifies for your program? Thank you.

Susana

_______________________________________________________________________

Answer To The USMLE Step I Question:

Thanks for the great question! It’s a common misconception about how USMLE Step I board scores are used to rank applicants in the match. The board scores are generally not about the average score, but rather the minimum cutoff. The point of using the board scores to help with the match ranking process is to make sure that the candidate can pass the written core exam taken at the end of the third year. And, that is really the only role of the board scores. Most programs such as ours take into much stronger consideration the Dean’s Letter, interviews, and extracurriculars once the applicant has met that specific cutoff.

At our institution we use a cutoff of 220 for the USMLE Step I. However, we have made multiple exceptions over time. First of all, if you perform poorly on the Step I Boards but do well on the Step II Boards, we will often ignore the Step I board scores or average out the two boards scores. Again, the point of the boards for us is the correlation with passing the core examination. A good step II score proves you can pass the boards. Also, if there are exceptional candidates that have other special activities, have had extenuating circumstances for not doing well on the boards, or have proven themselves already by completing a rotation with us, we will on occasion forgo using the cutoff. As an answer to your specific question, if I was to take the average USMLE Step I score over the past few years, it would probably be somewhere in the 230-240 range. But, again I think the average number is irrelevant.

Hope that answer helps!!! Again, thanks for the great question!

Yours truly,

Director1

__________________________________

 

Posted on by

Step II USMLE- When Is The Best Time to Take It?

Dr. Julius,

I’ve planned to take step 2 between late August and early October this year. I’m doing this as I feel my step 1 score in the high 230’s and I’d rather spend time focusing on an away rotation at one of my target institutions and on getting more quality clinical experiences, and therefore LOR’s for my application. Does this seem like a bad idea to you?

Thanks for your input!

First of all, congratulations! High 230’s is a very respectable score. But more importantly, I would say that if you have done well on Step I USMLE, it shows that you can take a test well. It also turns out that with the new radiology core exam, I think there is a much higher correlation between doing well on the USMLE exams and passing the radiology core examination than there was with the old oral board examination. In our program, when we look back at those people that have had trouble with the radiology core exam, they have not done as well on the step I and II USMLE examinations. It makes sense because the style of testing is very similar (multiple choice, matching, etc.) to the current style of the core radiology examination. I think that may be the subject of whole other article!

Getting back to your question, most programs just want to see that you can take a test. So, if you do well on your Step I examination, it is usually acceptable to wait a bit longer to take your Step II USMLE examination and focus on away rotations, clinical experiences, etc. That being said, there may be some programs out there that use both the Step I and II USMLE examination as a screening criteria for getting initial interviews. You may experience a delay in getting interviews at those programs. Many programs, however, will use whatever is submitted at the time and I believe that 230s is usually acceptable for passing that initial screening barrier at most programs assuming the remainder of your application is reasonable.

In particular, you mentioned that you are doing an away rotation at a target institution. Sounds like you might be interested in going there. So, I think it would’t be unreasonable to ask the program coordinator if they require the Step II USMLE examination as an initial screening criterion. If so, then I would take the Step II boards earlier rather than later. Otherwise, it makes sense to get try to get to know the radiologists at the institution of interest rather than hurrying to take the Step II examination. Just remember that when taking an away rotation at a place where you desire to do residency, it is ultra-important to make a decent impression. In some cases, rotating through a desired residency program can be backfire if you make the wrong impression. I’m sure you’ll do great… But, be careful!