CHOOSING A MEDICAL SPECIALTY Starting a career in medicine can be very exciting, but it can also be overwhelming. This invaluable resource will guide you from medical school to life as a new physician. Preparing for your career while you are still in school is paramount for your success in your profession. Choosing a specialty is the first step. You must consider your history, your interests, your experience, the amount of training required, and the financial commitments involved. Students often change their minds several times before finding the right specialty for them.
NARROW YOUR OPTIONS
An early decision when choosing a specialty is deciding between surgical and non- surgical specialties. This decision will narrow down your options quickly. Clinical rotations will provide you an opportunity to really see what life in a specialty would be like. Keeping an open mind during this process is important for reaching a final decision. Researching each specialty can also be helpful. Finding descriptions, talking to physicians in different specialties, and talking to other residents can help you reach your specialty match. The final decision must be yours! Once you have a specialty in mind, although it may change, you can start applying for residency. For a full listing of medical specialties, visit www.aamc.org. When choosing a residency, consideration of prospective fellowships after residency and the time it might take to complete those fellowships is also important. For example, most radiology subspecialties involve a one year fellowship after the completion of residency, while a cardiology or gastroenterology fellowship that follows a three year internal medicine residency will typically last three years. Therefore, all three of these example career paths would involve six years of post-graduate training between residency and fellowship. MEDICAL SPECIALTY REFERENCE GUIDE
La State Med Soc NEW PHYSICIAN’S GUIDE 5
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