240 step one, am I competitive

[Guest]

I dont think you need to do a research year. I got a 240, no home program, with 1 nsg paper on my app. Currently sitting on 8 interviews while several colleagues have none (and much better step scores/research than me). You can definitely get in one or two papers by application time and have a good shot. Don't buy into the game and let people scare ya bro.

[Guest]

(09-27-2017, 10:08 PM)Guest Wrote: I dont think you need to do a research year. I got a 240, no home program, with 1 nsg paper on my app. Currently sitting on 8 interviews while several colleagues have none (and much better step scores/research than me). You can definitely get in one or two papers by application time and have a good shot. Don't buy into the game and let people scare ya bro.

Agreed. Just apply to programs that aren't heavy on research.

[Guest]

(09-26-2017, 09:02 PM)Guest Wrote: Agree with above. It’s tough to ask these questions in forums like this cuz you never know what you’ll get. From reading different threads here, there is a lot of horrible people in hear. First of all, while step scores are important in Neurosurgery, it is not THE qualitfication for Neurosurgery. If you look at charting outcomes for past years, there are plenty of people that match even with scores less than 240. According to charting outcome looking at your score alone, you are already in a pool that is more likely to match than not (caveat here is that the application/interview/match process is multifactorial and does not only look at scores alone). I think a lot of people out here have mistaken ideas that just because they have a 250+ then they’re going to get interviews and match at top programs. It is true that it definitely gets programs attention to have a higher score but does not guarantee interviews and match. It’s about fit. Some programs like to see that they are training future leaders and academic professors in Neurosurgery. If that is what you want, make sure that you have an application that says that. I would only advise taking a year out if you either have a subpar application (which doesn’t look like the case) or if you really want to make a statement about your interest in academic Neurosurgery. Otherwise, the opportunity cost and investment return is not worth it, you practically giving up 1/2 a million to a million bucks to do so. As for me, I have made it explicit in many ways that an academic career in Neurosurgery is what I want, and I’ve been getting all the interviews I’ve wanted and been passed by programs I knew do not have that as a focus, and I do not have a 250+ step 1.

MVP

[Guest]

(09-27-2017, 10:08 PM)Guest Wrote: I dont think you need to do a research year. I got a 240, no home program, with 1 nsg paper on my app. Currently sitting on 8 interviews while several colleagues have none (and much better step scores/research than me). You can definitely get in one or two papers by application time and have a good shot. Don't buy into the game and let people scare ya bro.

Wow that is incredible.  You must be sitting on 20+ invites by now.  There must be something unique in your application.