Hello all, pseudo-MS3 (gap research year) here, finally deciding to seriously pursue urology, and I have some questions and worries for the road ahead. Is there any possible way to be "geographically limited" during the uro match process? I love the field and actually have a significant personal health history with urologic surgeries, and I can't imagine doing anything else. However, I also have a VERY strong geographic limitation due to personal/family reasons and I am wondering if it would be sensible to put all of my eggs into one basket in terms of applying to a small number of tightly grouped programs? I understand how competitive the match is and how matching anywhere at all should be the goal, but the limitation is very real for me. How do I balance this geographic limitation with a desire for uro? Any thoughts? Thanks.
There is no balance. Apply to all the programs within your "geographic limitation" and run a higher risk of not matching. How high that risk is will depend on the strength of your application and interview. Good luck.
It's all about priorities. If you absolutely must stay in one geographical region, dual or triple applying into other specialties might be the way to go. The urology match is tough and is unpredictable. Applying urology, gen surg and EM increases your odds of staying in your chosen location. Those of us applying now have seen how much of a crap-shoot this process can be. Even some applicants with geographical ties have gotten no love from local programs. But do your best, lots of sub-I's, do some research projects at your home program, letters from all the local big-shots, etc and keep your fingers crossed. Good luck!
M3 here. Sorry about this being unrelated to the above posts, but the "gap research year" in the original message had me thinking. Does anyone know how uro programs would view a gap research year conducted in an unrelated field? I chose to due my year in a basic science surgical oncology lab due to a history I had with the PI from a project I had worked on over the summer between M1 and M2. The year was productive publication wise and I feel like it should generate a pretty decent LOR if that matters. Thanks for any advice.