evans Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 So Mac is 3 years, no summers, plus a bit shorter on the clinical side. I was wondering if it this was a huge disadvantage in terms of getting competitive specialities? For one, we have a lot less time to do some research. Also, no summers might be a disadvantage for travelling to bigger cities (i.e.: Toronto) and meeting with program directors there. Can people chime in on whether or not it's harder to get competitive specialties from McMaster? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Organomegaly Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Obviously I have no idea if its harder or not, but a glance at CaRms stats shows that McMaster students do match to competitive specialties all the time in proportions that seem similar to other schools. This year Mac has a rougher go in the 1st iteration because something like 20 of them wanted anesthiology (one of the ROAD specialties). Maybe others who have more nuanced knowledge about this might be able to share if there is a smaller proportion of Macs in competitive specialties, etc. I do know like Mac has a bit higher proportion of people who rank family first (typically 40% vs national average of around 32%). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Organomegaly Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Oh and for the record, since we do lack summers to do research, its worth pointing out that many have told me that the preclerkship as a whole is quite flexible and you can more easily do research during the year (which other med students might have a harder time with) if you elect Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleeping_sickness Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 I think the main disadvantage is that you're forced to choose what specialty you want to do earlier which leaves less time for exploration. If you want to go for something competitive you need to know relatively early on to be able to line up all your electives and get that research experience. If you know what you want to do then I don't think that you're at a disadvantage for competitive specialties with the 3 year program. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatonekid Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 I wouldn't say it's harder, nor are you at a disadvantage. Especially if you already know what you want to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmorelan Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 I wouldn't say it's harder, nor are you at a disadvantage. Especially if you already know what you want to do. that's the key - if you know. Any route that is faster is going to have issues if you have to course correct. Still it is a known problem - undoubtedly people at the 4 year schools take longer to figure that out because they in part can take longer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Organomegaly Posted June 15, 2015 Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 I agree, it's a challenge with being at Mac....I THINK I have a good idea of what I want right now, but honestly who knows what'll happen... Evans, my plan is to do as many horizontals as possible early on. Our preclerkship is looser, so I think we have to take advantage of it and do the horizontals/research early on as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lolelol Posted June 15, 2015 Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 I agree, it's a challenge with being at Mac....I THINK I have a good idea of what I want right now, but honestly who knows what'll happen... Evans, my plan is to do as many horizontals as possible early on. Our preclerkship is looser, so I think we have to take advantage of it and do the horizontals/research early on as well. How early can we really start horizontals? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Organomegaly Posted June 15, 2015 Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 September from what I hear. At the latest early October Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katakari Posted June 15, 2015 Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 For one, we have a lot less time to do some research. Also, no summers might be a disadvantage for travelling to bigger cities (i.e.: Toronto) and meeting with program directors there. 1) You can choose to do your 7 weeks of preclerkship electives in first year summer all in research 2) Huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearded frog Posted June 15, 2015 Report Share Posted June 15, 2015 How early can we really start horizontals? There's an information session at the beginning of October after which you can start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleeping_sickness Posted June 16, 2015 Report Share Posted June 16, 2015 I wouldn't say you have less time to do research. You don't need designated research blocks or dedicated research time. You just need to be prepared to work really hard and get a project in while you're doing your pre-clinical/clinical work. I didn't go to mac but I wanted my vacation time and never spent that time on research. I started a project at the beginning of clerkship and finished it several months later. Never underestimate the powers of a chart review, especially if you have an interesting question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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