Become an anesthesia rank day all-star with these valuable tips.
Matching into an anesthesiology program has become increasingly more competitive over the most recent year. This year, the situation might be even more competitive because of the COVID-19 pandemic. With many away rotations cancelled, program directors will be even more reliant on your anesthesiology residency personal statement, MSPE and letters of recommendation. Find out what you can do to increase your competitiveness and match well!
Table of Contents
Since anesthesiology is a specialty many students don’t have direct exposure to until the fourth year of medical school, it is important to learn about this specialty early in your medical education if you think it might interest you. This means trying to plan some shadowing with an anesthesiologist or within the anesthesiology department at your medical school during your first and/or second years. Some students will have a two week anesthesiology block of the surgical core rotation during the third year, however. The American Society of Anesthesiologists is a great resource for students who want to learn more about the field. However, nothing can replace actual exposure to the field and meeting a variety of anesthesiologists who work in different settings to know if the specialty is a good fit for your interests and strengths.
The total length for anesthesiology residency is four years. This includes one year of training in a transitional or preliminary year and then three years of anesthesiology training.
Understanding what is most important to anesthesiology program directors and admissions committees will allow you to position yourself as well as possible to match in the specialty. It is also important to know how competitive you are for anesthesiology. By reviewing data published by the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP) including the 2018 Program Director’s Surveys and Charting Outcomes in the Match, together with our own knowledge of what makes a successful applicant, we will outline what is most important to match!
Anesthesiology is a residency that has two entry points. Some programs start in the PGY1 year while some start in the PGY2 year.
In 2020, there were a total 1,370 PGY 1 positions and 398 PGY2 positions offered. US MD seniors filled 68.3% of PGY 1 positions and 66.6% of PGY2 positions. A total of 1,201 US MD seniors matched into anesthesiology making it the fifth most popular specialty among US MD seniors.
For US seniors who chose anesthesiology as their only specialty choice, 4.8% of US MD seniors did not match and 13.6% of DO US seniors did not match.
US DO seniors filled 19.1% of PGY-1 positions and 16.3% of PGY-2 positions.
A total of 91 US IMGs and 95 non-US IMGs matched in to anesthesiology.
There were also 116 positions reserved for physicians with previous training in the 2019 match.
Cumulatively, 2,004 applicants applied for 1,840 anesthesiology (PGY1 and PGY2) residency positions in 2018. Of those 2,004 applicants, 1,129 were US senior medical students. Only 45 US seniors did not match in to anesthesiology last year (four percent). Therefore, 96% of allopathic US senior anesthesiology applicants matched in anesthesiology.
This is the data for those US senior medical students who matched successfully:
Cumulatively, 2,004 applicants applied for 1,840 anesthesiology (PGY1 and PGY2) residency positions in 2018. There were 296 osteopathic applicants. Of those, 267 matched. Therefore, 90.2% of osteopathic medical student anesthesiology applicants matched in anesthesiology
The data for those osteopathic students who matched successfully:
Cumulatively, 2,004 applicants applied for 1,840 anesthesiology (PGY1 and PGY2) residency positions in 2018. There were 192 US IMGs who applied for anesthesiology. A total of 122 matched. Therefore, 63.5 percent of US IMGs anesthesiology applicants matched in anesthesiology.
Below is the data for those US IMG applicants who matched successfully:
Cumulatively, 2,004 applicants applied for 1,840 anesthesiology (PGY1 and PGY2) residency positions in 2018. A total of 199 non-US IMGs applied and 120 matched. Therefore, a total of 60% of non-US IMGs anesthesiology applicants matched in anesthesiology.
Below is the data for those non-US IMG applicants who matched successfully:
Based on the 2018 Program Director’s Survey published by the NRMP, the following factors were most important in deciding who to invite for an anesthesiology residency interview:
There is no question that a USMLE/COMLEX failure is a deal breaker for many programs. However, in our experience, this is “easier” to overcome if you are a US allopathic student. The 2018 Program Director’s Survey indicated that 66% of programs rarely consider an applicant with a Step failure and 35% never consider an applicant with a Step failure.
It is a fact of life that your performance on Step 1 or COMLEX 1 will impact the likelihood that your application is “screened in” and that you are invited for an interview. Many programs automatically screen out applications if the Step/COMLEX 1 score falls below a certain threshold. The 2018 Program Director’s Survey indicated that 88% of programs have a “target score” they like to see applicants earn. That cut off from most programs is between 210-220. By the same token, some programs automatically grant interviews for students with scores above a certain threshold. That threshold varies but is usually between 225 – 240 depending on the program. If you don’t do as well on Step 1 as you would have liked, take Step 2 CK early and do as well as you can! The mean Step 2 CK score for US seniors who matched was 246.
You might ask how your professionalism and ethics might be assessed based on your written application. Program directors glean information about your personal characteristics and traits from your anesthesiology personal statement, ERAS written application, and letters of reference. This is why it is important to compose your personal statement and ERAS work, research, and volunteer experience entries thoughtfully. It is empowering to know that the outcome of your application season is, in part, within your control at this stage of the process.
Anesthesiology program directors want to understand your commitment to the specialty and that you have adequately demonstrated that interest by doing as much as possible to learn about the practice of anesthesiology and gain exposure. You can express this commitment though your anesthesiology personal statement and ERAS experience entries. Of course, if you are known and well liked by a program to which you are applying, this is a real plus which is why away electives and audition rotations can be beneficial in the residency admissions process. This is especially important if you are less competitive applicant or you hope to train in a geographically competitive area. Letters of recommendation from anesthesiologists who know you well is also of the utmost importance. Ideally, applicants should have two letters of reference written by academic anesthesiologists. Additional letters from intensivists, internists and surgeons are also valuable.
To demonstrate you possess the qualities, characteristics, background, and interest in anesthesiology that program directors are seeking, it is essential to write the strongest anesthesiology personal statement possible. You want to express why you are interested in the specialty, what you have done to purse that interest, and who you are as a person. Ensure that your personal statement has broad appeal for the wide variety of people who will use it to decide whether or not to interview you.
Read more about the residency personal statement and sign up for a FREE 15 minute consultation to find out how we can help you.
