Do These 3 Things As You Work On Your Residency Application

by | Health and Medical Admissions, International Medical Graduate, Personal Development, Personal Statement, Residency Match

Whether you’re just thinking about your ERAS application, recently started working on it, or are halfway through, if you don’t have a good idea of what the entire process will require of you, Ambitious IMG, and how to get from point A to Z, you’ll most likely come face-to-face with some unnecessary struggles. 

These struggles may come in the form of negative emotions like feeling nervous, overwhelmed, or you may just feel downright lost. That’s okay. 

Here are some things you can focus on to move forward. 

  1. Get Clear: Get clear about who you are, where you’re taking your medical career, and why you’re taking it in that direction. As simple as this sounds, it is critical that you take time to understand why you’re doing what you’re doing. Why do you want to get into internal medicine and not pediatrics? Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

Clarity of purpose will help you know “Your Why”, and knowing “Your Why” put you a step ahead of most.

  1. Strategize: After you get a clear vision of what you want and why you want it, you must now make some moves. You have a vision of where you’re going and you need to impose that vision on the world.

A strategic plan is a play-by-play and day-to-day guide of what you must do to get from where you are to where you want to be. Having a strategy will give you confidence, help you work on your application in a paced manner, and give you direction.  

  1. Get Support: Most amazing feats cannot be achieved alone. Figure out the parts of your process that you’re struggling with, like organizing it all, coming up with a strategy, mastering your Step exams, creating your personal statement and CV, interviewing, then seek help from people who have a track record of doing these things well. 

Everyone won’t match on their first try. Not every Ambitious IMG will match. However, you can increase your odds of matching on your first attempt, and doing so without feeling nervous, overwhelmed, and lost as you put together your application by:

  • being clear about your why you must pursue your match goal to the end 
  • having a strategic plan to get your application done 
  • getting help will increase your chances of getting the outcome you want.

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