Hello all,
I'm a 2nd yr DO student that is very on the fence about taking Step 1 p/f or not to match psychiatry (thinking of child psych) or peds. I know psych is getting very competitive. My plan originally was to just take USMLE Step 2 for a numerical score, but I'm unsure if residencies would auto screen me out by not taking Step 1? I know that in the past taking Step 1 has opened doors provided you did well, but how important would a P really be to residency directors? I worry that if I took it and failed, that would shut all the doors vs if I didn't take it step 1 I could maybe still match at a lower tiered residency with just COMLEX and Step 2. I have no indicators that makes me believe I would fail step 1, but is it really worth the gamble? Thank you.
I'm a 2nd yr DO student that is very on the fence about taking Step 1 p/f or not to match psychiatry (thinking of child psych) or peds. I know psych is getting very competitive. My plan originally was to just take USMLE Step 2 for a numerical score, but I'm unsure if residencies would auto screen me out by not taking Step 1? I know that in the past taking Step 1 has opened doors provided you did well, but how important would a P really be to residency directors? I worry that if I took it and failed, that would shut all the doors vs if I didn't take it step 1 I could maybe still match at a lower tiered residency with just COMLEX and Step 2. I have no indicators that makes me believe I would fail step 1, but is it really worth the gamble? Thank you.