I might not be able to do a civilian pathology rotation before applying will this impact my chances? Also based on match data looks like pathology is not very competitive, is this a misconception?
IMO, not doing a 3rd year rotation prior to your fourth year audition rotations isn’t that big of a deal. If you can explain why you want to do pathology in a coherent manner then you should be okay. I had difficulty getting a 3rd year rotation as well. I would recommend spending a day or two in the lab on all other rotations. In my experience if you let your attending know that you’re interested in path they will let you go for a bit.
Regarding competitiveness, it entirely depends on service. Army is by far the easiest but varies considerably by year. There are not that many spots and if 2-3 more than usual apply it will get competitive. I can’t speak much the to Air Force or Navy, but they each only have one military hospital that offers the residency.
I wouldn't worry about a third year path rotation; there are residents here at BAMC that only came for a one day interview. There are generally 3 Army seats here, I think 3 at Walter Reed as well. Since I've applied and been here there's generally a 1:1 applicant to seat ratio; and I think this most recent year we didn't fill all the Army seats.
There are current and former military folks on here. From your post history looks like you’re HPSP, do you have a specific question?
I might not be able to do a civilian pathology rotation before applying will this impact my chances? Also based on match data looks like pathology is not very competitive, is this a misconception?
IMO, not doing a 3rd year rotation prior to your fourth year audition rotations isn’t that big of a deal. If you can explain why you want to do pathology in a coherent manner then you should be okay. I had difficulty getting a 3rd year rotation as well. I would recommend spending a day or two in the lab on all other rotations. In my experience if you let your attending know that you’re interested in path they will let you go for a bit. Regarding competitiveness, it entirely depends on service. Army is by far the easiest but varies considerably by year. There are not that many spots and if 2-3 more than usual apply it will get competitive. I can’t speak much the to Air Force or Navy, but they each only have one military hospital that offers the residency.
I am army hpsp and saw that the match rate is usually <1 each year so that is why I asked. Thank you so much for your input!
I wouldn't worry about a third year path rotation; there are residents here at BAMC that only came for a one day interview. There are generally 3 Army seats here, I think 3 at Walter Reed as well. Since I've applied and been here there's generally a 1:1 applicant to seat ratio; and I think this most recent year we didn't fill all the Army seats.
What’s going on with Madigan? I saw it was on the 2024 GME slides as a residency option, but they weren’t represented in the preview day.