Deciding between three specialties!

[MedZZZ]

I am an M3, in the process of choosing my electives for 4th year. I am having a difficult time deciding between IM, FM, and Derm. I had very little exposure to derm in my first two years but I really enjoyed my derm rotation. I understand that Derm is very competitive and considering that I am late into the game, my chances are perhaps low but I have also heard people have been matched to derm by doing only 2 or 4 weeks of elective and I would like to try my chances. I am planning on doing Derm research in my summer break between 3rd and 4th year to make myself more competitive. At the end of the day, I believe I would be fulfilled in any of the above three specialties.

So far, I have been thinking of doing 4-6 wks of FM, 4 wks of derm, and 10-12 wks of IM but I am not sure if that's a good strategy. I am wondering if anyone has any suggestions/advice. I really appreciate it.

[Quark]

11 minutes ago, MedZZZ said:

 but I have also heard people have been matched to derm by doing only 2 or 4 weeks of elective and I would like to try my chances.

Yes, there are always the 1-2 people everyone talks about who did a single elective and somehow managed to match derm/other competitive specialties, but that isn't at all the norm. Certainly, those people have something about them or their application that stands out, whether it is exceptional research in another field, exceptional extracurriculars/other facets of their application, exceptional people skills, or exceptional connections. 

If you're really interested in derm, why would you not set yourself up for the best possible chance of success by doing a reasonable number of electives in the specialty? There's an eight-week cap anyways, so you couldn't do more than 4 even if you wanted to. Particularly since it seems like your school gives you many more elective weeks compared to other schools (I assume UBC). The regional bias is real, and perfectly good candidates struggle to get interviews every year. 

[Lactic Folly]

I would consider how important location is to the OP. Since they have said they would be happy in any of the 3 fields, the downside of looking like a derm gunner is potentially reducing your appeal to programs in those other fields.

[MedZZZ]

Thanks for your advice! I am just concerned that if I do let's say 6 weeks in derm, 4 weeks in FM, and 10 wks in IM, I would not be competitive enough for IM and FM as my back ups and I really don't want to go unmatched!

I have also heard that FM and IM are getting more competitive each year and don't rank the applicants using them as a back up high enough. I guess I am just getting really anxious about the whole CaRMS and elective stuff.

[ZBL]

Honestly if you’d be equally happy doing FM, just do FM and save yourself a summer of research, and 3-4 extra years of residency 

[Raptors905]

1 hour ago, MedZZZ said:

Thanks for your advice! I am just concerned that if I do let's say 6 weeks in derm, 4 weeks in FM, and 10 wks in IM, I would not be competitive enough for IM and FM as my back ups and I really don't want to go unmatched!

I have also heard that FM and IM are getting more competitive each year and don't rank the applicants using them as a back up high enough. I guess I am just getting really anxious about the whole CaRMS and elective stuff.

Neither FM or IM is that competitive. 10 weeks in IM is enough 

[Edict]

On 1/5/2020 at 3:17 PM, MedZZZ said:

Thanks for your advice! I am just concerned that if I do let's say 6 weeks in derm, 4 weeks in FM, and 10 wks in IM, I would not be competitive enough for IM and FM as my back ups and I really don't want to go unmatched!

I have also heard that FM and IM are getting more competitive each year and don't rank the applicants using them as a back up high enough. I guess I am just getting really anxious about the whole CaRMS and elective stuff.

I actually think its perfectly reasonable to split your electives especially because you have a lot of weeks of electives. The key to getting an interview is being a strong candidate, not necessarily to be a one specialty gunner. There used to be a dogma about electives being king, but the truth is a perfect elective setup will not work for everyone if you aren't a strong candidate in person. IM is still more likely to take the well rounded all star likeable potential gen sx gunner than an IM gunner who apparently didn't have the strongest performance on their elective. 

A one specialty gunner does have an advantage, but it is not an infallible one and especially at a school with a lot of electives, one can easily spin these electives into first choice gunning for at least 2 if not 3 specialties. Especially derm, fm and im because they are all very related medical specialties. 

Do not worry that FM and IM are getting more competitive each year. The number of med students has been stable for many years and the number of residency spots has been stable as well. Don't worry about that, it is a fallacy that remains alive because certain groups benefit from the message, don't forget that IM and FM gunners can elevate their potential success and scare off potential competition by spreading this message. 

Agree with Lactic Folly on location. How location specific and in particular, how much your preferred location is a competitive location matters a lot. The specialty choice is highly personal and there are thousands of factors that are involved. I don't think anyone can truly give you ideal advice without knowing your situation.