Medical Student Career Advising: Helping Students Find Their Fit University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio July 11, 2013 Jeanette Calli, M.S. Program Manager
Introduction & Objectives • • •
Become familiar with the national Careers in Medicine program and structure Describe the resources available to assist you in your advising role Obtain basic skills in advising and working with students in their specialty decisions
Influences on Specialty Choice Fit with personality, interests, and skills
Content of specialty Role model influence Work/Life balance My future family plans Options for fellowship training Income expectations Competitiveness of specialty
Moderate Influence
Length of residency training
Strong Influence
Family expectations Level of educational debt 0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Percentage of students responding * Source: 2012 AAMC Graduation Questionnaire
80
90
100
Students need… • to know if their interests, values and personality fit with the specialty. • good specialty information and early opportunities to explore their options. • trained mentors and advisors who can guide students through the process.
Making a specialty decision BMJ Specialty decision algorithm Or the ever-popular GTI (Goo Tolerance Index) Premise: 1. The practice of medicine involves a lot of goo. 2. Goo is yucky. 3. Tolerance to goo is as good a predictor as any of what specialty one is suited for. CMAJ December 4, 2007 vol. 177 no. 12 doi: 10.1503/cmaj.071435
BMJ 2005;331:1529
What is Careers in Medicine? A career-planning program to help students • Identify career goals • Explore specialty and practice options • Choose a specialty • Select and apply to residency programs • Make good career decisions
The Career Planning Process Helps students effectively gather and use information about themselves and their options to make decisions that meet their career and educational goals.
Careers in Medicine model
Careers in Medicine timeline Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Year 4
Understand Yourself Explore Options Choose a Specialty
Land a Residency
Careers in Medicine model
Understand Yourself First step in the career planning process • The “foundation for fit” • Focus is on self-assessment Helps students gather a baseline of information about themselves • What do I like to do? • What is important to me? • What are my greatest strengths?
Find your fit: Interests and Values Medical Specialty Preference Inventory, Revised Edition (MSPI-R) • Measures interest in various activities, tasks, and experiences found in medicine • Ratings on 150 items provides the probability of entering 16 medical specialties and preference for 18 areas of medical practice
Physician Values in Practice Scale (PVIPS) • Identifies priorities regarding six values (Autonomy, Management, Prestige, Service, Lifestyle, and Scholarly Pursuits)
• Used to compare to various environments and activities in medical practice.
Careers in Medicine model
Explore Options Second step in the career planning process Focus is on learning about: • Specialties • Practice setting • Academic medicine • Alternatives careers
Careers in Medicine model
Choose a Specialty Third step in the career planning process Focus is on decision-making Helps students integrate what they have learned about themselves with what they have learned about specialties • What is the best fit for me? • What other things do I need to consider? • How realistic am I being in my decision?
Careers in Medicine model
Land a Residency Final step in the career planning process Focus is on the transition to residency Helps students get the information they need to apply to residency and go through the Match • How do I apply to programs? • How do I decide the best programs for me? • How do I have a successful Match?
Program features Website that includes • • • •
self assessments and assessment tracker descriptions and data for more than 120 specialties/medical fields specialty comparison tool descriptions of practice options, including academia and non-clinical jobs • clinical and research opportunities for medical students • tons of advice
School-based advising and programs Choices, CiM’s quarterly newsletter
www.aamc.org/cim
That’s all good but… Advising is the cornerstone of a successful Careers in Medicine program. That’s where you come in!
Common Student Pitfalls Premature decisions (foreclosure) Lack of personal awareness Limited knowledge of training requirements
and competitiveness Failure or inability to integrate information
Helping Students with Career Planning
Career Advising A developmental process which assists students in: • the clarification of their life/career goals and • the development of educational plans for the realization of these goals. Advising is ongoing, multi-faceted, and the responsibility of both the student and advisor David S. Crockett, Ed. (1987). Advising Skills, Techniques and Resources: A Compilation of Materials Related to the Organization and Delivery of Advising Services. Iowa City, Iowa . ACT Corporation.
Developmental Advisors help students to: • Learn about their interests, values, abilities, and learning patterns, and integrate this knowledge into their specialty choice
• Learn about current specialty choice trends and realities • Set academic and career goals • Develop plans to meet academic and career goals and support students in achieving those goals • Understand the relationship between academic and specialty information and make informed decisions
Your advising role…
Discussion: Defining advising Clarify roles • How does your institution define advising? • What do students see as your role?
Define individual expectations • What is the student expecting from you? • What support are you capable of providing?
Develop goals • Share goals and gain agreement
Resources and data are key • • • • • • • •
CiM Specialty info Charting Outcomes in the Match FREIDA NRMP Program Director’s Survey CiM Residency Preference Exercise ERAS & NRMP Guidance Fellow Veritas & MiM advisors Specialty specific advisors
Making a good decision – Match 2013 Applicants
34, 355 active applicants • 17,487 U.S. M.D. Seniors (960 more than in 2012) • 2677 Osteopaths • 5095 U.S. IMGs • 7568 IMGs Positions 29,171 total positions • 26,392 PGY1 • 2799 PGY2 Match Rates 25,463 (74.1%) applicants matched • 16,390 (93.7%) of U.S. M.D. Seniors (95% in 2012) • 2019 (75.4%) of Osteopaths (74.7% in 2012) • 2706 (53.1%) of U.S. IMGs (49.1% in 2012) • 3601 (47.6%) of IMGs (40.6% in 2012) NRMP, Advanced Data Tables: 2013 Main Residency Match
The Match is becoming more competitive 2013 Main Residency Match 10000 9000 Non-U.S. Citizen IMGs
8000 7000
U.S. Citizen IMGs
3967
6000
U.S. M.D. Seniors
5000 4000
Previous U.S. M.D. Graduates
2389
3000 2000
1097
1000
758 658
0
Unmatched PGY1 Applicants
Osteopathic Applicants Other (23)
929 Unfilled PGY1 Positions
NRMP, Advanced Data Tables: 2013 Main Residency Match
U.S. M.D. Seniors in SOAP 2013 13,000 total applicants eligible for SOAP 2,076 U.S. M.D. seniors either completely or partially unmatched 980 completely unmatched 452 obtained positions 528 with no position at the end of SOAP 97 percent overall match rate (98.5% in 2012)
61 positions unfilled, most in child neurology (17) & prelim surgery (10) NRMP, 2013 Post-Match Press Release
Highly competitive specialties: Ratio
Step 1 Mean # of ranks
Plastic surgery
1.6
249
10.7
Orthopedic surgery
1.2
240
11.5
Otolaryngology
1.1
243
11.7
Radiation oncology
1.1
240
10.8
Dermatology
1.0
244
9.0
Neurological surgery
1.0
239
15.2
Ratio of U.S. seniors ranking the specialty first to available positions; mean Step 1 scores; and mean number of ranks for matched seniors AAMC & NRMP, Charting Outcomes in the Match, August 2011
32
Moderately competitive specialties: Med/Peds General surgery Emergency medicine Radiology Anesthesiology Ob/Gyn
Ratio
Step 1
0.9 0.9 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.8
230 227 223 240 226 220
Mean # of ranks
8.6 11.2 10.8 13.3 13.2 11.0
Ratio of U.S. seniors ranking the specialty first to available positions; mean Step 1 scores; and mean number of ranks for matched seniors AAMC & NRMP, Charting Outcomes in the Match, August 2011
33
Less competitive specialties: Ratio
Step 1
Mean # of ranks
Pediatrics
0.7
221
9.6
Internal Medicine
0.6
226
9.6
Neurology
0.6
225
10.2
Psychiatry
0.6
214
8.5
Pathology
0.5
226
8.9
PM & R
0.5
214
10.9
Family Medicine
0.5
213
8.0
Ratio of U.S. seniors ranking the specialty first to available positions; mean Step 1 scores; and mean number of ranks for matched seniors AAMC & NRMP, Charting Outcomes in the Match, August 2011
34
Common Advising Challenges Advising the: • undecided student • under-qualified student • unrealistic student
The Undecided Student They come in several different varieties: • Not ready to commit • Want the “perfect choice” or someone to tell them the “right choice.” • Too many areas of interest or too few • Don’t know where to find the information they need • Chronically indecisive
Advising the Undecided Student* Step 1: Help the student determine why he or she is undecided Step 2: Help the student organize a plan for exploring Step 3: Help the student integrate all the information Step 4: Help the student initiate an action plan Step 5: Support the student in their decision-making *Adapted from: Gordon, V.N. (1995). The undecided college student: An academic and career advising challenge (2nd ed.). Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas
Advising the Under-qualified Student Providing a reality check vs. crushing dreams • Use good, up-to-date data Charting Outcomes in the Match School-specific Match information • Brainstorm options • Encourage a parallel plan
Advising the Unrealistic Student Unrealistic students are determined to stay the course, despite advising to the contrary • Refer to another advisor so they get multiple perspectives • Give examples of students from previous years who faced similar situations and their outcomes • Discuss candidly the options if they don’t match
Case Study #1 Charlie, a first year medical student, has an interest in family medicine but is still in the process of exploring other choices. He would like some guidance about choosing a specialty – which experiences can help him learn more about his options, how he should go about making a decision, and what to do to make his application strong. He also notes that he has a high level of undergraduate debt ($80,000), and that his total debt burden when he finishes medical school will exceed $250,000. He is concerned about whether he will make enough money to have a family and a comfortable lifestyle after residency.
Case Study #2 Shalini is a second year student and has come to you for guidance about her performance in medical school. She doesn’t seem to be doing very well and is unsure what effect this will have on her career prospects. She is not sure that she even wants to practice medicine since she has an interest in policy. She is also getting pressure from her family (her father is a successful neurosurgeon) about her performance and her non-clinical interests.
Case Study #3 Marie is not sure what specialty to choose. She is leaning toward internal medicine and would like to do a fellowship although she’s concerned her academic performance will limit her options. Her USMLE Step I score was 212. Her performance during the first two years as well as her clinical performance in the core clerkships was “Satisfactory”. She did a clinical research project in gastroenterology and is working on the final paper for publication. She is about to begin her 4th year and would like your advice on applying. She has considered a few other specialty options (psychiatry and family medicine) but she is having difficulty with her decision.
Case Study #4 James is a third year who has wanted to be a surgeon since before medical school. He initially failed Step I but then passed it on a retake with a score of 191. He received a satisfactory on all his third year core clerkships, but had to retake the shelf exam in ob-gyn. He received a satisfactory on his surgery rotation. Several comments from different clerkships (including surgery) mentioned a defensive and sometimes confrontational attitude. He has received remedial counseling from student affairs for academic performance and professionalism. James has plenty of excuses (some perhaps legitimate – his parents are divorcing) for the clerkship comments and his overall performance. He asks you for advice on matching in surgery.
Case Study #5 Charlotte is a fourth year medical student who has done well thus far in medical school. She intends to apply in anesthesiology. She has a Step I score of 250, received favorable comments from faculty and several Honors in the third year core clerkships. She is married and her husband has accepted a junior faculty member position at Arizona State University. She will have a significant geographic restriction in applying to residency. There are two anesthesiology programs in Arizona. She asks for advice on a strategic plan to ensure a successful match. What if Charlotte was an average student? Does this change your advice?
Case Study #6 Adam is a rising fourth year who is tired of being away from home. He has a wife and kids and wants to get back to the west coast. He doesn’t seem committed to one particular specialty. There are several he likes--FM, IM, and Ob/gyn--and he can see himself enjoying any of them after doing the majority of his 3rd year clerkships. His top priority is really location so if he ends up back in San Francisco, he’ll be happy in any of those fields. His Step 1 score was a 215. He comes to you for advice on applying to multiple specialties in the San Francisco area.
Case Study #7 Peter and Julia are both early fourth year medical students couples matching into emergency medicine (EM). Peter performed at a satisfactory level throughout medical school (USMLE Step I 210), including receiving only a Pass in EM. Julia (USMLE Step I 256) has obtained many Honors and favorable written evaluation comments in her third year and received a Honors in EM. Julia is very competitive and would like a strong residency. They are planning to get married after graduation. What advice would you give in this situation? What advice would you give in general to students interested in couples matching?
Career Advising Resources CiM Web Site – www.aamc.org/cim AMA’s FREIDA – www.ama-assn.org AAMC & NRMP report – Charting Outcomes in the Match NRMP – Program Director Survey CiM List serve –
[email protected]
Training and Development opportunities • CiM Workshop October 3-4, 2013 in Washington, DC
Follow us on our Facebook and Twitter accounts CareersinMedicine
@careersinmed
Getting Started Medical students go to www.aamc.org/cim and sign in with your AAMC account (used for MCAT, AMCAS, ERAS, etc.) Faculty and Staff need an access email to register and use the site. Access emails will be available through Dave Henzi and Norma Fox (CiM Liaisons).
Thanks! Please complete the evaluation and feel free to contact me with any questions. Jeanette Calli CiM Program Manager 202-862-6270
[email protected]
