Specialty OOP electives for rural FM...

[Mayan]

(double post, sorry!)

 

Hi,

 

I've got a bit of a nit-picky question that I was hoping to get help with.

 

I'm aiming for a rural FM residency. Right now I have two, 2-week OOP electives booked. One of them is FM in Calgary, but the other is Psych in Queens Ont. I'm starting to think the OOP in Ontario isn't necessary, as it won't expose me to a FM program (let alone a rural program). The alternative would be a home elective, also in psych.

 

My concern is that if I drop the elective I will only have 2 weeks OOP, and I am wondering if this would give CaRMS the impression I am unwilling to travel thus making me less competitive for OOP FM programs.

 

Thoughts?

 

Pre-carms Electives

6 weeks rural FM-------UBC (Home)

2 weeks Urban FM-----Calgary (OOP)

2 weeks Psych---------Queens (OOP) vs UBC (Home)

 

Thank you

[carazadie]

If you are strongly considering Ontario rural FM programs, it would be good to have an elective in Ontario, even if it's in an unrelated discipline or an urban area. It shows you have at least some experience in that part of Canada. If you don't really care about matching in Ontario, then I guess it doesn't matter. Personally I think that unless you truly are gunning for BC, you should aim for 2 out of province electives to keep your options broad. These should be in the provinces you intend to rank highest. If your heart is truly set on BC, then obviously you should focus on home electives.

 

Of course there are no hard and fast rules for electives and it is impossible to predict exactly how much these little details will affect you in the match. Maybe in the end it doesn't matter, but electives can also be a great way to check out a new city and see if you would be willing to live there!

 

At my school, most students do the majority of our electives away, even though we mostly end up staying in-province for residency. It is just part of our culture to travel and get to know how medicine is done elsewhere. I think that's a valuable experience in its own right, though certainly more stressful than staying at your home school.