In this issue:
- Career Advising Tip of the Month
Career Advising Student Advisory Board Tip of the Month
This advice is for all MS3 students and includes first generation and BIPOC student lenses.
Congratulations! You’re almost done with Patient Care Phase! Now that you are sorting through your E&F schedule, double check that you have enough time off for Step 2 (about 4-8 weeks – check with your designated learning specialist) and residency interviews (6-8 weeks is preferred).
Ideally, you are starting to narrow down your career choices to one to two specialties (with a secondary specialty as a parallel plan if one of your specialties is not family medicine, pediatrics, or internal medicine).
For the specialties where Away rotations are more common (check the Specialty Guides for recommendations), you can talk with the Specialty Career Advisor for help with Away rotation planning, including strategies and programs that might be a good fit for you. If you are applying for an away rotation work on your VSLO application now!
Career Advising recently recorded a short video with Dr. Maya Sardesai, Assistant Dean of Student Development, to address some of your questions about selecting electives during E&F, and how to plan for away rotations (which are considered clinical electives). Watch this short video now and review the Elective Selection website for even more info.
And in closing, a quick reminder as you are adjusting your E&F Phase schedules. Spring C rotation is the last clerkship on the MSPE. Summer A (maybe Summer B) is often the last grade on your transcript for your residency application. It’s common for MS4s to have their specialty rotation/s in the summer quarter, when the grade will not be on the MSPE or transcript. You may request a Letter of Recommendation (LoR) from summer rotations, and LORs are often more comprehensive than an MSPE entry. If needed, you can provide programs with an updated transcript after you submit your residency application!
Edited & reviewed by MS4 Cara Chapman. Originally written by alum Shanelle Briggs, MD.
Career Advising welcomes tips and ideas from all students. Please reach out to Career Advising at medadv@uw.edu.
This link takes you to past information for MS3s.