School Update

Well, I finally did it. I submitted my application to residency on Sunday. Technically, the system opened on September 2nd, but I was waiting for two more letters of recommendation to come in. I wanted to send a perfectly complete file. (Well, that's what I've been saying. In reality, taking the next step was enough to send me into palpatations.) But after my last letter came in on Friday, I had no more excuses. I diligently checked through all the forms, and clicked "Submit" Sunday afternoon at 1 pm.

I applied to 17 programs, and 8 transitional programs. A transitional program is like a glorified extra year of medical school; extra because I will rotate through a variety of specialties like pediatrics, OB/GYN, surgery, just like in third year. Glorified, because I will get financial compensation for my time (Money!). A transitional year is a one year program that very specialized fields (anesthesiology, radiology, rehabilitation) require before entering your selected specialty. It helps keep even specialists well-rounded. After that, there will be three years of anesthesia training.

Hopefully, in the next month, I will hear back from the programs, and schedule interviews. I will keep you all updated about where I'm headed to next.

A little exciting news (and the opportunity to brag about myself for change), I was accepted into AOA (Alpha Omega Alpha), which is the national medical student honor society, for the top 15% of medical students. It really felt like recognition for the extremely long study hours for classes, rotations, and boards.