Calling future Radiologists

[Kirsteen]

Hey there,

 

I'm very, very pleased to announce that I received a good word from the CaRMS folks this morning and even more pleased to note that I've matched to McMaster for Radiology.

 

It's been quite a contorted path through medical school including a very late switch from General Surgery to Radiology, but hey, you've got to give it a go if it's the career you feel fits you best.

 

Who else out there is joining the PGY-1 Radiology ranks this year? ...and where?!

 

Congratulations to my fellow matchees today.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Kuantum]

I'm still an undergrad...but I just wanted to say congrats. This must be a very exciting time for you and everyone else. Just so you know...you are now my go-to Radiologist.

[CutieYellow]

Congratulations Kirsteen! You must be soooo happy!

 

CY

[peachy]

Congrats, Kirsteen!

[RuralDoc]

Congratulations Kirsteen,

 

I won't be in radiology at Mac, but will be in the same city! I matched to Mac FM, my first choice! That makes at least two of us going to Hamilton from Calgary this year!

 

Ruraldoc

[Saberial]

Congratulations Kirsteen and Ruraldoc!

 

Was McMaster your first choice, Kirsteen, if you dont mind me asking?

 

Congrats once again!

[blinknoodle]

Congratulations Kirsteen!

There will be a UWO grad joining you at Mac in rads.

[Satsuma]

Congratulations Kirsteen (and all others successful in the match)!!

 

Sats

[Kirsteen]

Congratulations Kirsteen (and all others successful in the match)!!

 

Sats

Thanks Sats (and everyone else).

 

I'm very, very happy and feel especially fortunate given how mad the Rads application numbers were this year. It'll be great to meet the other 5 folks who were accepted to Mac Rads this year.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[miss_sunshine]

Radiology seems really interesting. I never gave it much consideration but as we progress more through med school and have some radiology lectures, I'm becoming more fascinated by it. I understand that it is competitive and was wondering what kind of radiology research is there to do for a preclerkship student. Kirsteen, how many rads electives did you do and at how many locations?

[Kirsteen]

I understand that it is competitive and was wondering what kind of radiology research is there to do for a preclerkship student. Kirsteen, how many rads electives did you do and at how many locations?

Hi there,

 

Rads electives: I didn't complete any formal electives in Rads. I had all of my elective weeks scheduled right at the beginning of clerkship and at that time I was keen on General Surgery so completed all 10 weeks of those electives in that specialty. It wasn't until later that I decided on Rads. I managed to complete 2 weeks of informal, i.e., unevaluated, electives here in Calgary prior to submitting the CaRMS applications and then 1 week of Interventional Rads in Toronto thereafter.

 

Rads research: There are a lot of opportunities available to do research in Rads, but the trouble can be sniffing out the people who are working on them, given that most Radiologists are super-busy. It might be an idea to become involved in some interdisciplinary research involving Rads. In that regard, you might find some folks within Vascular Surgery or Interventional GI or Cardiology with whom you might be able to do some good work.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[xylem29]

Hi there,

 

Rads electives: I didn't complete any formal electives in Rads. I had all of my elective weeks scheduled right at the beginning of clerkship and at that time I was keen on General Surgery so completed all 10 weeks of those electives in that specialty. It wasn't until later that I decided on Rads. I managed to complete 2 weeks of informal, i.e., unevaluated, electives here in Calgary prior to submitting the CaRMS applications and then 1 week of Interventional Rads in Toronto thereafter.

 

Rads research: There are a lot of opportunities available to do research in Rads, but the trouble can be sniffing out the people who are working on them, given that most Radiologists are super-busy. It might be an idea to become involved in some interdisciplinary research involving Rads. In that regard, you might find some folks within Vascular Surgery or Interventional GI or Cardiology with whom you might be able to do some good work.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

 

Wow - that's pretty amazing. You did all of your electives in gen surgery and still managed to land a Rads position? How did you tailor your application to Rads, given that it was geared towards gen surg? Did the interviewers ask you about the late switch? Congratulations btw.

[Kuantum]

That is pretty amazing...what made you switch? Was it something about Rads that just caught your eye, or was General Surgery once your number one and then just stopped doing it for you?

[Kirsteen]

Wow - that's pretty amazing. You did all of your electives in gen surgery and still managed to land a Rads position? How did you tailor your application to Rads, given that it was geared towards gen surg? Did the interviewers ask you about the late switch? Congratulations btw.

Hi there,

 

Fortunately, (although I'm a bit of a dolt for not having noticed this earlier in medical school), most of my research was based in Interventional Rads. One of the reasons for that was that I was interested in pursuing a Vascular Surgery fellowship after Gen Surg, and since Interventional Rads and Vascular Surg have a "close" relationship, it was a nice fit and not as much of a leap as some would imagine.

 

Yes, most of the interviewers asked about the switch and I was able to explain it logically and convincingly (from my point of view, anyway).

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Kirsteen]

That is pretty amazing...what made you switch? Was it something about Rads that just caught your eye, or was General Surgery once your number one and then just stopped doing it for you?

Hi there,

 

I felt that Rads was a much better fit for me. For one, I came to realize that I need diversity in practice. I'm drawn to working with all parts of the body and related pathologies. I didn't like the idea of mastering a handful of procedures and practicing them over and over again, which, unfortunately, seemed to be what lay ahead in the type of Gen Surg practice I was viewing, i.e., that which is based in an academic centre. Also, I need research. Rads is ripe for those who are keen on research. There were many other factors too, e.g., the relative efficiency of Interventional Rads; the possibility of combining Interventional and reasding room work in one practice; the ubiquitousness of jobs without having to complete more than one fellowship...

 

Ironically, it was during my final Gen Surg elective when I realized that Rads was a better fit. The surgeon with whom I was working was doing a fair bit of Interventional work and I liked that far more than the type of work traditionally found within Gen Surg.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[xraydoc]

the income is pretty good too and that invariably factors in to the decision-making process in addition to the all of the philosophical reasons mentioned.

[xylem29]

Wow - you must be one amazing individual Kirsteen! Incredible.

 

So, let's assume that someone had rads in mind before carms, what electives should one do to show interest in rads?

 

You mentioned that you did all of yourr electives in gen surg bc this is what you were intending on applying to. I read somewhere that for rads, it's not a good idea to do all of your electives in rads b/ there's not much to do in these electives anyway, is this true? If not all in rads, what other electives could one do to help their case for a rads residency?

[Kirsteen]

I read somewhere that for rads, it's not a good idea to do all of your electives in rads b/ there's not much to do in these electives anyway, is this true? If not all in rads, what other electives could one do to help their case for a rads residency?

Hi there,

 

In short, it depends. Some Rads residency programs like to see you at their site before they'll offer you an interview, so if you're keen on those programs, Rads electives are highly recommended. As for alternative electives that support Rads, think of any specialty that heavily depends on imaging in managing patients. Those specialties could include Ortho and Neuro. Also, if there's an area of Radiology that interests you, then an elective in a related area could help, e.g., if women's imaging is your thing then Surgical Oncology working with a breast surgeon might be a good idea and would certainly make for a logical story.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen