I have been known to lament the loss of the prestige of the basic medical degree (MBBS) in India. While you may or may not agree with it, the truth remains that nobody who is doing (or has recently done) an MBBS course wants to stay out at that level. Everyone wants to go and be a specialist or super-specialist. In the melee of confusion … Continue reading The Family Physician: A Dying Romantic Idea
My attention was drawn to an article in the JAMA today (1) by one of my friends who is actively pursuing the USMLE route. And after reading this, I guess I have to admit that one now has to make haste in order to prevent waste. Now I have long been wanting to write about this but somehow never came around to do it. Finally, having read this article today, I decided to give it a go. Now this is entirely my perspective on last year’s match and it may be entirely off-base. So do not put too much of thought into this. This year several of my friends are appearing for the match and I wish them the very best of luck. Also, this post is intended to be a wake up call for those who have been sitting on their dates, trying to do that extra bit to eke out an exceptional score. it is time to take the plunge!
Let us start with some number crunching first – get the boring stuff out of the way before the real horror movie starts. No, just kidding… The number of students applying for residency in the US programs has increased in leaps and bounds, as the NRMP report shows in this trend-chart dating back to 1952 (2):
Continue reading “The USA Dream for IMGs: Coming to an end? Analysing the 2012 Match”
First up, a sincere apology to my email subscribers for messing up your email with multiple temporary post mails from Windows Live. Sorry for spamming you, the program went bonkers trying to get a hold of my new blog theme (Nuntius). I hope you do not unsubscribe! What were the emotions that you felt while taking the AIIMS May exam? Worry? Tension? The pit falling … Continue reading AIIMS May 2012: Part–I: Nostalgia
The 5300-odd rankers in the AIPG were breathing a sigh of relief when the notification for counseling for Post Graduation seats was declared, along with dates and ranks and the rank cards were uploaded on the site. It seemed that the concept of online counseling which seemed innocuous on the surface but was fraught with worrisome issues at the core was held at bay for … Continue reading And the AIPG Fiasco Continues
A number of my friends applied for the USMLE this year and it seems that with every passing year more and more people from my neck of the woods are trying to jump shores. The whys and wherefores of such a radical decision are matters for another post, but the thing is, all over the world, medical aspirants are waiting with bated breath for the … Continue reading Game, Set… MATCH!
I took the Manipal MD/MS PG Entrance examination today (aka MAHE) and as it was the first ever online test I was going to sit for, I was naturally a little excited and tensed about it. I managed to work it up to a bit of a useless frenzy last night. But I must say the exam was not worth all that much of a … Continue reading MAHE: A Fantastic Test Experience of an Unfair Evaluation System
One of the biggest bones that the Indian post graduate entrance examinees had to pick with the system was the (?apparent) lack of transparency in the examination system, One of the things that could have easily ensured a transparent and clean exam would be if the students were handed the question papers and answer keys along with it after their exams. Hence, when the results … Continue reading Landmark Order: JIPMER Asked to Reveal Test Paper and Keys
