Pre-Clerkship: How important are the grades?

[Guest Lakers4life]

Hey guys,

 

I am currentely waiting after just finishing up my 2nd year at UofT Meds and I am getting a little bit worried after our first OSCE exam. Due in part to SARA, a lot of our class felt very uncomfortable without having clinical exposure for the past 2 months, but still I guess this is still no excuse for my concerns.

 

I have tired very hard to avoid getting any blemish on my academic record in meds but I have a feeling with this past OSCE that my luck may have just run out and that I am not going to get a great mark. I was getting very worried and haven't told anyone yet but I just wanted to know how much these pre-clerkship grades matter when you are trying to land a residency?

 

I don't think that I will have any other such grades, so my other question was how forgiving are these people that pick residencies about having one or two preclerkship grades that aren't that hot? Do they let you explain during the interviews [ie - personal reasons, SARS, etc.] or am I pretty much done for?

 

Thanks guys...I would have posted this sooner but after talking to some friends recentely I am now convinced that I did not do as well as I thought on the OSCE.

[Guest Ian Wong]

Third year marks are much more important than pre-clerkship marks, and your performance on your electives even more important than those. Forget about what you can't change and focus on the clerkships. You're heading into the best part of medical school, so enjoy the ride!

 

Ian

[Guest Lakers4life]

Thanks Ian...I really needed to hear that....

[Guest UWOMED2005]

The Emerg program at UWO (quite competitive) counts mark for 10%. You get 8/10 for passing, and might get a 9/10 if you've done something whacky for a PhD.

 

Internal meds here marks are worth 4% for first year, 6% for second year. Clerkship is way more key.

 

Quick Question Ian. . . do you have any idea what they do if clerkship is P/F?? We just switched. . . I think Ottawa did as well, and at least at U of O some people were apparently told that might increase the value of preclerkship marks.

[Guest Lakers4life]

Wow...you guys have really helped me calm down...lol I was getting so worked up!

 

I am interested in either gen surg or IM [i know not really narrowing down anything!] so hopefully I won't take a big hit.

 

P/F Clerkship...wow that would be so nice...I don't think our more 'traditional' school will be moving that way in the near future

[Guest UofCMeds2005]

UofC is completely P/F-and so are many other schools. We are told that our marks won't count at all - b/c we don't have them! So, I wouldn't worry to much about marks - if for instance you were up against someone from uofc for a position- they really could not compare your marks... I think reference letters and dean's letters hold a lot more weight.

[Guest batman]

quoting Lakers4life:

 

"having one or two preclerkship grades that aren't that hot?"

 

is a 'P' vs. an 'H' really so rough in pre-clerkship? or is some competativeness still lingering from undergrad? I sure hope not...

[Guest UWOMED2005]

The last few years there have been quite a few gen surg positions available after 1st round. You're lucky, you're interested in a specialty that makes mincemeat out of residents in a time when med students are a lot more concerned about lifestyle issues!

 

But seriously, I talked to a med student about CaRMS who graduated from UWO a few years back and matched to U of T for general surgery. He had NO, NADDA, ZILCH "H"s in 2nd year, maybe a few 'H's in 1st year. What did he have? All "H"s in Clerkship, quite a bit of research from undergrad, and he was a solid genuinely nice guy. What did he suggest to me was the most important thing in med school? "Be nice to EVERYBODY in clerkship: docs, residents, other students, nurses, PTs, OTs, ward clerks, you name it."

[Guest Lakers4life]

Batman: Uhmm...well since I just finished up my second year, I doubt that I am still harbouring that 'undergrad' mentaility...compound that on the fact that I didn't do a science undergrad and thus never faced the same crazy competiveness that you allude to and I can safely say that I have never had that mentality before either.

 

I was just getting a little nervous about my grades thats all...this is the first time in my life that I was totally unsure about how an exam went and after atalking to some friends, I really think it didn't go so hot...I dunno about undergrad competiveness, but I was still quite nervous.

 

UWOMED:

 

Wow...clerkship really does seem to be the key here...I really don't want UofT's gen surg [have heard some bad things about it] so hopefully my not-so-great research portfolio won't hurt. I know that lots of people are concerned about gen surg, but quote honestly I really don't care about lifestyle right now. I figure I only have one shot at a career and I want to do what interests me...if it means I have less free time so be it, I'd probably waste it anyways!

[Guest UWOMED2005]

I just want to add that every residency program is different in terms of how they value preclerkship marks. . . but I think it's unlikely preclerkship marks will be that important, considering the fact many schools don't have marks.

[Guest Lakers4life]

Oh my god...we just got our marks emailed to us and I somehow squeaked it out!!! I am still in shock...wow....can't really describe it...time to get trashed tonight!

[Guest lcloh]

Go for it - it'll be glorious!

 

Congratulations!

[Guest OU812]

Lakers what was your undergrad in?

 

Uniqueness, can also help you differentiate yourself.

 

A side question, if clerkship is P/F and it is those clerkship marks that count for so much, how are students compared and diffentiated when it comes time to selecting who gets what residency. I'm sure everyone gets glowing reference letters as no school, or rotation wants to sabbatosh its own students.

 

I would interested in a response, thanks

[Guest Ian Wong]

OU812,

 

As a second year med student, you should already have covered that, no?

 

Ian

[Guest OU812]

Don't know who the original OU812 is. I'm on a public school computer here at Erindale College at UofT. The computer always has this site logged in as OU812 automatically. Should we log out and then get our own log in? Is it free?

 

Anyways, I'm interested in the answer. I'm only in second year undergrad. Not sure about others that have posted off this computer using the automatic log in.

 

Cheers

[Guest Ian Wong]

Yep. You should make yourself a new account. Thanks,

 

Ian

[Guest Lactic Folly]

ezboard does not automatically log you out when you close your browser, so that is something to be aware of when using a public computer!

[Guest peachy]

The nice thing, though, is that ezboard will only let you log in to one computer at a time. So if you forget to log out at another computer don't worry - if you log in at home, you'll be automatically logged out everywhere else.

[Guest lcloh]

Is that the case though? Because I know right now I'm logged in at both my home and office. I think it has to do with cookies on the PC. If you have an ezboard cookie in your TempFiles, you're loggedin. This means you could copy and paste your cookie file and be logged in at every terminal in your computer lab. Now that might solve the issue of trying to figure out which computer you were last logged in at. But it also means that everything posted on the ezboard will come from YOU!

[Guest peachy]

After you use the account in your office, when you get home you don't have to log in again? I guess it depends on how your computer is set up, then.

 

The way my account is set up, it remembers that I'm logged in at home as long as I don't log in anywhere else. Then if I come back to the computer at home after using it at school, I need to log in again. I think it's tracking my IP instead of using cookies, which I prefer

[Guest lcloh]

Yeah. I have no idea. Oh well. As long as I can post!

[Guest cracked30]

The thing about pass/fail is no one ever fails.

 

That means if your in a rotation in an area that you're not interested in, you don't have to work at all. This, of course, will piss off the residents.

 

Currently, residents will mention to consultants these problems and although you may pass that rotation, a letter might be added to your clerkship file stating that although you met to minimum to pass, there was some concern about your skill and dedication. This file follows you to wherever you apply for residency.

 

My advice would be to be as enthusiastic as possible in all of your rotations regardless of how boring you might find them.