The Office of Student Affairs serves as a hub for career advising. The Dean for Students, the Society Advisory Deans and Society Advisors work closely together to assure students have the necessary information and resources to successfully explore career and specialty options throughout their tenure at HMS. Academic Society Advisory Deans and Advisors are the primary advisors for students in their Societies. Academic Society faculty provide guidance regarding curricular planning; help direct students to additional faculty and other resources for career planning and enrichment opportunities (research experiences, specialty mentors, study abroad, etc.); and are always available to discuss personal issues.
Resources provided to students include: the AAMC Careers in Medicine survey, alumni advisor lists, HMS faculty advisor lists, class meetings and timely reminders and “myth-busters” from the Dean for Students to keep students on the right track. OSA sponsors and oversees class meetings, workshops, and specialty-specific information sessions and receptions to help students choose and apply to the specialty of their choice. OSA also serves as the School’s liaison to all residency application systems, including ERAS (Electronic Residency Application Service) and the San Francisco match application system, as well as other matching programs, including the NRMP (National Residency Matching Program), the Military Match (website depends upon branch of the military), and the Urology Match.
HMS also has many faculty available to assist students with career and specialty choice decisions. Students should contact their Academic Society and/or the Office of Student Affairs for further information regarding specialties and other career issues, such as research careers, public health careers, careers for women, careers for minority students, etc. Students can find lists of HMS and alumni advisors as well as tapes of relevant class meetings in the resources section of the OSA site on MyCourses. As a further career advising tool, all HMS students are provided access to the AAMC Careers in Medicine website, a career planning and informational site overseen by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).
The Residency Match
Some residency programs now require that students have passed USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK by the time a program submits its rank list. Students must consider this when planning the dates for taking Steps 2 CK, taking into consideration the rank list deadline of each program you are applying to (some are as early as December). HMS requires students take Step 2 CK by December 31st of their graduating year to ensure the results will be posted prior to rank. Students should check directly with the residency programs for specific requirements.
For the USMLE Reporting Schedule, please refer to USMLE Bulletin of Information For additional information, please refer to the USMLE Bulletin of Information at https://www.usmle.org.
If you have questions, contact your Society Advisor, Student Affairs (617-432-1570) and/or the HMS Registrar’s Office (617-432-1515).
More information about career advising can be found on the Career Advising website.
Last updated 3/1/22