With the transition to residency, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about next steps in my career. I even did a self-reflection exercise for a class in which I listed out professional decisions that will come up in the next few years (including choices like fellowship selection, type of practice setting, whether to pursue management roles, and more). I then rated the different options on a set of six criteria that matter to me.
The project threw into sharp relief the strengths and limitations of career counseling in medical school. It prioritizes how to do well in school and get to residency. For example, I received great guidance on specialty selection. I spoke to mentors in several specialties, attended panel discussions, and tried out different fields through clinical electives. After deciding on a specialty, I also received excellent advising on how to position myself for residency. There were resources at hand to support me throughout the application process.
However, medical school advising has a limited scope regarding decisions beyond residency. When I paused to think about my long-term goals, I realized that I know little about the tradeoffs associated with different clinical practice settings (e.g., academics, private practice, hospital-based, etc.), working in different geographies, or taking on management responsibilities.
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