UNMATCH DAY

[Guest cracked30]

Unmatch day, when is it?

 

Anybody scared?

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi there,

 

Here is the information you were looking for re: Unmatch Day:

 

All applicants will be asked to check the secure server from this page, to find out if they were matched or unmatched, at 12 noon Eastern Time, Monday, March 22, 2004. Applicants will require their 5-digit CaRMS Applicant Code and their AWS password to access the results.

 

Unmatched applicants:

At 12:30pm Eastern Time, on March 22, the status of unmatched students will be known at the Office of the Undergraduate Dean, who will have staff available to assist with the Second Iteration process.

 

Matched applicants:

Matched applicants will obtain their detailed results here, by logging on at 12 noon Eastern Time, Wednesday, March 24, 2004. Applicants will require their 5-digit CaRMS Applicant Code and their AWS password to access the results.

 

www.carms.ca/matching/results.htm

 

As to who may be scared, I couldn't tell you. Hopefully not too many folks around here. I assume from some of your other posts that you may have already undergone this process? What was your impression? Did it work out well for you, i.e., did you manage to match into your first choice of specialty and location?

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest cracked30]

I was lucky. I matched both first choice specialty and location.

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi there,

 

Nice! Do you mind if I ask what specialty you matched into? You seem to have a fair bit of knowledge re: surgical management issues, so is it a specialty under the surgical umbrella?

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest juan]

Kirsteen... you should worry about getting in to medical school first before worrying about unmatched days.

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi there juan,

 

I thought my main worry was getting into medical school in September. :rolleyes

 

In any case, there are a number of reasons why next week is significant to me. For one, I have at least one good friend for whom next week marks a pivotal point, i.e., she's a CaRMS registrant. Additionally, I tend to like to have a wee bit of a view on the context in which I hope to be functioning come September, and CaRMS is part of that.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest CaesarCornelius]

Juan,

take it easy buddy. There is no harm in educating yourself about the future.

 

CC

[Guest 007]

I haven't even applied to meds yet and I'm still interested in Kirsteen's question.

[Guest marbledust]

Kirsteen is one of the most knowledgable and helpful people here. Many people benefit from the questions she asks and the information she provides.

 

If you don't have anything nice to say....

[Guest McMastergirl]

I can add for interest/info that of the 4 people who went unmatched at Mac, from what I've heard they all wanted competitive specialties (ENT, optho, radiology and urology) and didn't have any "back-ups"

[Guest byjude]

I still don't understand why people would try the all-or-nothing strategy with a competitive specialty. Maybe I've been misled by what seems like a logical argument on the CaRMS website as to how the algorithm actually works - but what is the strategy to not having a safety choice?

 

Or is it just an assumption that an applicant would rather take an extra year to restrengthen and reapply the year after than be placed in a residency less than their ideal? Or that a spot or two in that specialty will go unfilled in the first round because of its own picky CaRMS strategy?

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hey there,

 

Does anyone have any information as to how the CaRMS algorithm works? :rolleyes

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest physiology]

Hello Kirsteen,

 

In answer to your question, check out this link:

 

www.carms.ca/matching/algorith.htm

[Guest gucio93]

byjude - you answered your question ... the reason some people (like me) choose not to back up their specialty choice, is because they do not see themselves doing anything else. Having now invested 10 years in postsecondary education (including medical school), I want to do what I think will make me the happiest, others feel similarly. I know that for me obs/gyn is the specialty of choice, yes I could do family with obs gyn, but it's not the same thing ... obs/gyn in that respect would be a small percentage, and the wider percentage would be a generalist practice. Specializing in obs/gyn gives me the ability to be a surgeon as well as a physician. Anyways, others who do not back up their choice almost certainly have similar thoughts ... I was lucky and ended up matching; some others were not ... Many will likely choose to do electives, or research to increase their chances in next year's match ... others may re-think their whole life situation/future and match for something in the second round. There really is no magic formula, in the end you have to go with your gut and do what you feel is right for you.

[Guest Ian Wong]

I still don't understand why people would try the all-or-nothing strategy with a competitive specialty. Maybe I've been misled by what seems like a logical argument on the CaRMS website as to how the algorithm actually works - but what is the strategy to not having a safety choice?

I'll echo gucio's opinions on this. For many people, there is one specialty with which they identify the most. If you are in this position, and can't see yourself being as happy in a different specialty, then going all out can make sense. After all the work you've done to get into and through med school, it makes sense to go after the specialty you really want to practice, instead of your backup specialty.

 

For those people who were willing to take the risk on going unmatched, and hopefully getting their specialty of choice in next year's match, spending 25 years of your future career in your backup specialty is much less appealing than spending 24 years of your future career in your specialty of choice.

 

With that said, everyone is different, and everyone has different goals. There are many people in each class who go all-out, and many others who may back up with not just one, but perhaps two or more other specialties, particularly if they have ties to a certain city. Backing up also is easier if the two fields have some or a lot of overlap (ie. you could back up Peds with Family, or Internal Medicine with Family, or Orthopedic Surgery with General Surgery, or any number of other possible combinations).

 

The other "advantage" to going all out is that it allows you to dedicate your time fully towards one specialty. Instead of splitting your time doing research in two different fields, you can concentrate your efforts on one specialty, and increase your likelihood of getting one or more publications or conference presentations. You also free up more elective time to be used in exploring that field further, particularly at away institutions to increase your chances of matching outside your medical school. It also implies a serious committment to that specialty, which may not be as evident if you're applying to ENT, but yet have Plastic Surgery and Orthopedic Surgery listed as electives on your CaRMS CV.

 

Anyway, there's lots of personal factors involved in choosing which specialties to apply for. For some people, this will lead them towards applying to, and ranking only one specialty.

 

Ian

[Guest physiology]

Hey Ian,

 

If you go unmatched as a Canadian med student, then you match in the SECOND round of CARMs next year right?

[Guest Ian Wong]

No, you match into the first round. As long as you haven't started a residency, you are still considered eligible for the first round. This is also another incentive for people to go "all-out". By going unmatched, you can still reapply in the first round the following year. In contrast, if you matched into your backup specialty, you can no longer reapply until the second round, by which time most competitive positions have already filled.

 

Ian

[Guest physiology]

Hey Ian,

 

But if you go unmatched, what do you do during that year?

 

Is it possible to set up a 5th year of medical school where you do more rotations, observerships, selectives, electives or whatever to strengthen your experience and references?

[Guest Ian Wong]

There are a few options available, including doing a year of research for that department, doing a one year graduate degree, or trying to defer your graduation in order to do more electives.

 

Ian

[Guest physiology]

Deferred graduation eh?

 

That sounds interesting. Does UBC allow that option, Ian?

 

Thanks for all this info! Extremely informative.

[Guest Ian Wong]

Who knows? It probably depends on the exact personal situation, which will vary with each individual.

 

Ian

[Guest Jerika81]

I'm pretty sure at U of C you can decide to to an extra year of clerkship.

[Guest physiology]

Ian and Jerika,

 

Do you think that an extra year of clerkship will be standard one day for extremely competitive specialties like plastics and ophtho?

[Guest jeff]

you have to be careful with backups because certain backups are pretty competitive now. with the number of med students up and the number of residency positions the same, things like general surgery, orthopaedics at certain centres are just as competitive as ophthalmo and plastics. for instance: uwo will not give you an interview if you have not done an elective there. so if you apply to plastics with the thought of backing up with gen surg, you'll likely go unmatched in both specialties...even in places like saskatchewan.

 

so my advice is to put most of your eggs in one basket if you want that specialty plus the location. And start early, because someone already has.