drvic
Forum Elite
Topics: 10
Posts: 181
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hi
i've some idea of this...so i'll try and answer your questions...
1) requirements vary for each subspecialty, but mostly you need proof of atleast having completed residency training in related specialty in your country of residence, which should be considered acceptable by the program...that again varies...
2) you do get paid but there are lots of ifs and buts - most programs say that their funding sources specify that the fellows have to be american citizens in order to receive pay for their work, otherwise they will be asked to arrange for their own funding....that is the response that i got from most places. i'm not too sure if the same applies for Green Card holders too...
3) as you guessed it, it is never easy to get...firstly it depends on the subspecialty in which you are seeking Fellowship training...if its highly sought after and competitive, you can completely forget about it. but if its in places/subspecialties where not many people would apply, then you might stand a chance...BUT....even then u will need excellent credentials in that subspecialty..like original research papers, paper presentations at national/preferably international conferences, evidence of interest and work experience in the subspecilty, and last of all, very good LORs from very reputed faculty in that subspecialty...
but even after all this if you do get it, then after the fellowship, there are a few implications that you should understand:
firstly, you will never be Board Certified in that subspecialty coz you can't take the American Boards....so you will only remain - "Board Eligible" (BE) in say, Gastroenterology after finishing your training. you will never be called "Board Certified (BC)" Cardiologist etc. but in practical terms both BC and BE are considered equivalent in the US job market...
secondly, you have no opton but to return immediatley to your country. coz to be eligible for working further in that subspecialty in US you will need Board Certification in the primary branch, let's say internal medicine for example, if you did fellowship in Gastro...Oh yes, in fact some of the programs even mention a US residency training as one of the essential pre-requisites for applying, so that again rules out so many institutes straightaway where you cannot apply...
hey i'm not writing all this to dissuade you, you can still try and beat all the odds. i did, applied and gave a few interviews as well...this inspite of the fact that i'm an IMG - neither an american citizen or a green card holder...and neither have i done my residency in the US. but i did fulfil all the other criteria i mentioned above...but then i realised in the long run, it will really not help me coz then to continue working i'll have to go thru residency all over again after fellowship...which is like going retrograde...which is not such a nice idea. that's why i gave up the idea. BUT...i know people who have done that!!! yes, did their fellowship in a subspecialty - then liked working in the US so much that they went and did their residency,all over again which they easily got in the same hospital. but then its not easy doing night calls as a resident when you've been used to supervising residents as a fellow...that too in the very same hospital!
my reason for not taking up Fship first is that you get much more options in terms of the number of institutions you can apply to - after having done a residency in US - than by applying directly for a fellowship, where you will be ruled out at most places because of the criteria mentioned above...
so think of all your options, and then make the decision...if you really do love that subspecialty, you will do something about it...
Best of luck
hope this info helps
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| aqua
Forum Senior
Topics: 19
Posts: 63
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hi
thanx drvic for your reply...you gave me a lot of information...
can i get your email please...becoz i have to ask many questions
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| drvic
Forum Elite
Topics: 10
Posts: 181
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"pm" me. its not advisable to give out email IDs on public forums
i'll be glad if i can be of any help.
see ya
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| aqua
Forum Senior
Topics: 19
Posts: 63
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thats fine no worries...
you said you applied for fellowship without residency....in which state and did u get it?
actually i cant do residency till next match so i dont want to waste my time...thats why i thought i should join fellowship....dont wana do externship sort of thing because i wana get paid for my work...i have all the credentials you told me....should i apply then? where can i get the list of hospitals where i can apply?
thanx again
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| drvic
Forum Elite
Topics: 10
Posts: 181
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are you a fresh grad or have you done some kind of residency training in your home country? if you are a fresh grad, chances of getting into a fellowship straightaway before residency are ZERO.
Please correct me if i got the wrong impression from your last post but Fellowship is not a stop-gap arrangement which can be done just to make up the time in between before you start your residency OR to get some work experience on your CV. plus once u join fellowship u will have to honour the committment of completing the entire 3 years of training. you just can't tell the PD after 1 year of Fellowship that you are leaving to go for your residency now... that surely will stick out like a sore thumb on your CV and everybody will question you for that only during your residency interviews...coz then nobody would wanna take a candidate who has a history of leaving mid-way...
there's no pre-prepared list for fellowships. in general you can come to know the about programs/hospitals from the respective professional associations'/societies' websites. but you'll have to do a lot of searching on the net and write e-mails to a lot of people. when they reply and send you the application forms, then you apply as it suits you. if your current faculty knows somebody there, it is a great help as they can guide you better.
AND most importantly - all Fellowship positions are interviewed for atleast one and a half years in advance...that is - if you give the interview tomorrow morning - that would be for the fellowship starting 1st July 2007, and i think its a bit late in the interview season for that now....so you will not get anything anywhere immediately or in the coming 1 year atleast! unless some fellow has had a tragedy of sorts and leaves the fellowship in between/before starting and they are looking for anybody to fill in the vacant spot...then u might just get very very lucky! i know a friend who got it that way....literally sitting at home, just by applying at a time when one of their fellow didn't join! and he was lapped up immediately!!!
anyway...getting back to the topic at hand ... this gap of one and half years is there because all people start applying for fellowships when they are in their second year of residency and get their interviews done before their third year ends. so you know where you are going for your fellowship before you have finished your residency....
hope this helps
do write in if there's anything else you wanna ask
regards
drvic
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| aqua
Forum Senior
Topics: 19
Posts: 63
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thanx drvic
you made many things clear....
be good
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| bbb
IM Program Coordinator
Topics: 32
Posts: 4,655
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Sorry, but if you complete fellowship in the US and not residency you aren't board eligible. Because you aren't eligible to sit for the boards.
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bbb - trying to combine common sense and humour into realistic answers, but not going to guess on anyone's chances of getting into a position....
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| drvic
Forum Elite
Topics: 10
Posts: 181
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oh...i thought that if one completes fellowship tenure then he is eligible to sit for the boards BUT having done a fellowship WITHOUT a residency he cannot take the boards...that is why he remains board "eligible" and NOT "certified". on the other hand, the one who completes residency and then fellowship and then clears the subspecialty boards is a board certified subspecialist...i have a few friends who have done the former...they just got a certificate from the hospital saying that they worked for 3 years in the fellowship program....that's it. so this just gives you work expreience and is practically equivalent to a fellowship...
however, i may be wrong...so tell me if things are otherwise
thanks bbb
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| bbb
IM Program Coordinator
Topics: 32
Posts: 4,655
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Say that you do a fellowship in Nephrology without doing the IM residency in the USA. You aren't eligible for the Nephrology boards because you aren't eligible for the IM boards, because the IM residency wasn't taken. You have to take and pass the ABIM (American Board of Internal Medicine) boards before you can take the Nephrology boards. Therefore, you aren't board eligible, even though you completed the Nephro fellowship.
Good luck
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bbb - trying to combine common sense and humour into realistic answers, but not going to guess on anyone's chances of getting into a position....
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| drvic
Forum Elite
Topics: 10
Posts: 181
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got that nailed, right!!! thanks bbb...i guess i meant the same thing, but didn't use the correct technical terms for it.
thanks for the enlightenment
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