For many medical students, Match Day heralds the end of a rigorous academic journey before another begins. Often, medical school graduation and some much-needed downtime are in the near future.
While some medical students have already completed their coursework by Match Day, many others have a month or more remaining in medical school. For medical students in that home stretch after a stressful Match Cycle, the allure of senioritis—removing one’s foot entirely from the figurative gas pedal—is strong. When used effectively, however, the final weeks of undergraduate medical training offer soon-to-be interns a valuable opportunity to gain perspective.
How can medical students use their post-Match time to effectively prepare for the transition to residency? Veteran medical school and residency faculty members shed light on that question.
Consider the skills you need immediately
Many medical schools are offering transition-to-residency programs and boot camps.
If your medical school does offer a boot camp or specialty-specific preparation courses, it is wise for medical students to take advantage of those opportunities.
An academic faculty member, Holly Caretta-Weyer, MD, has worked on both sides of the transition to residency. She said students need to think about the things they will be expected to do without supervision early on in residency and hone those skills.
What medical students transitioning to residency should “be thinking about is how to recognize sick patients and do basic life-support tasks,” said Dr. Caretta-Weyer, an AMA member who is currently a medical school admissions and assessment dean in California. “What I often will tell students is if you haven’t done any sort of training in scenarios where there are more potentially unstable patients, you should. Whether that’s in a clinical or simulation setting, it will prepare you for the things you are going to do in residency.”
A broad approach is beneficial
In some instances, medical students can benefit from pursuing clinical encounters that are in specialties other than the one for which they are preparing to begin internship, according to Kimberly Lomis, MD.
“Often students hyper-focus on what they're going into, which feels like it would prepare you for your specialty but then you're not as well informed about tangential things that interns often have to manage, said Dr. Lomis, the AMA’s vice president for medical education innovations.
In response to that, Dr. Lomis advised medical students to “try to get a variety of experiences” in the run up to residency.
Get a view of where you stand
To get an accurate assessment of your skills, Dr. Caretta-Weyer recommended an outside perspective, ideally from a faculty member with whom you have worked closely.
“If you have someone who advised you through the undergraduate medical education process or if you have someone in your specialty who knows your ability and is willing to give you an honest picture of your performance, take advantage of that,” said Dr. Caretta-Weyer.
“The key questions in getting feedback are: Can you give me an honest 30,000-foot view of my performance? And would you be willing to meet regularly to talk about this? Any reasonable faculty who is interested in the development of students would be really into that.”
Talk with current interns
As you prepare to start residency, few are more qualified to on the skills necessary for early success than residents who are completing their first year of GME.
“The mentorship of people who are walking the same path that you are, perhaps a year or so ahead of you can be quite helpful,” said John Andrews, MD, the AMA’s vice president for medical education and professional development.
He advised medical students to draw on “the experience of those residents and saying, ‘Gosh, I'm going to enter this residency program in July. What sorts of things might you have considered doing during that time? Or now that you are a resident, what's missing? What might I take advantage of?’”
Pursue other medical interests
One beneficial area to brush up on, Dr. Caretta-Weyer said, is your teaching skills; residents add the task of teaching medical students to their new responsibilities. That could mean working as a teaching assistant or even taking an elective on teaching.
“A lot of people are interested in other things, education, administration, quality improvement, social medicine,” Dr. Caretta-Weyer said. “There are so many things out there that students don’t have time to explore, so take some of that idle time to expand some of your skill set.”
Relax
Anyone entering residency needs to make sure to come in with a fresh body and mind.
“I tell all of our incoming residents to take a vacation and spend time with their family and friends,” Dr. Caretta-Weyer said. “Medical school is hard. Residency is harder. We like it when residents come in rested. As an intern, you are spending a lot of time off service and doing things outside of your specialty you don’t choose. So that recharge is important.”
More on transitions in med ed
The AMA’s Facilitating Effective Transitions Along the Medical Education Continuum handbook looks at the needs of learners across the continuum of medical education—from the beginning of medical school through the final stage of residency.
The learner sections help medical students and resident physicians acclimate to the various settings and expectations in the medical training environment. The faculty sections then provide blueprints for transition programming, as well as resources to help students and residents navigate challenges in transitions. Download the handbook now (PDF).
