About Me
- by Dr. Jamie Ang, MBBS
Who
I am a medical graduate from a local medical school in Malaysia. After completing the USMLEs, I applied for a residency position in the U.S., and received multiple interview invites by hospitals in the U.S. I went to the U.S. for interviews November 2012 to January 2013, and got into a residency program.
Why
I started USMLE Malaysia with the help of my sister because I realized that one of the biggest problems facing Malaysia now is the overflow of houseman. Yet many do not realize the opportunities that one can get in the U.S. One of the biggest obstacles between a local malaysian medical graduate and working as a doctor in the U.S. is not knowing about the USMLE and how to prepare well for it. I know of enough medical students who took the USMLE and did badly in it just because they did not use the proper study strategy. One can only take the USMLE once in a life, therefore one's score sticks with him/her forever. The low scores my friends received then became their obstacle of getting into the U.S. for residency. I just wish to have future test takers ace this exam. One of my hopes is to see more Malaysians get into the U.S. for postgraduate training, and hopefully return one day to serve our home country.
The Journey
Throughout my preparation for the USMLE and to get a position in U.S., I faced many ups and downs. It is not an easy pathway to take, but it is doable. I started this journey alone, went through times when I had to study while my colleagues were enjoying their holidays, going for movies and vacations. Countless amount of times I had the strong urge to quit studying. Those were tough times indeed, but I am glad I persisted. What I learned is that if you are willing to work hard, you will definitely reap what you sow.
I started to reap my harvest when I received interview invitations from really great places to train after I applied for the "Match".
In almost all of my interviews, the interviewers always say: "Wow, you have really great scores. I am certain that you will do well in residency" The interviews usually ends with "Thank you for coming for the interview. We hope to see you here in July." Many of them also sent out Thank You letters and emails to me.
And finally, I matched into the residency I have always wanted.
I am only an average student in my medical school. I know that many of you are definitely way smarter than me. The only thing I know I am good at is at planning, and it is through my meticulous planning of my USMLE study strategy, and all other aspects of this whole USMLE journey which helped me get to where I am at today.
I am here to share these plans and strategies with you, and hopefully help you fulfill your dream of a U.S. Residency.
Hello dr Jamie, i"am very excited about your forum in this blog. Actually i"ve graduated from my medical school in indonesia since two month ago, and about to join the housemonship. For your information , it is my ambition since i was in medical school to persue my residency in usa, but i have no one who can lead or give me a briefing about this untill finally today i read about this opportunity in your blog. I really hope that you can guide me through this, so in that case, can i be your friend in facebook , email or other contact. Cause i really need your help. Thanks a lot, and this is my email nur89liyana@gmail.com.
ReplyDeleteHi Liyana,
DeleteThank you for your kind message. I will try to include more helpful articles in this blog, and hopefully be able to guide you and others who aspire a US residency better.
Jamie
Dear Jamie
ReplyDeleteHello. I am so happy that i stumble across your blog. I have been struggling to study for the USMLE as I am much older..40's.
Wll be happy if you can guide me till success.
Cherio and well done .Am so proud of you.
I am Jo.my email: tiarajothy00@gmail.com
Hello Jamie ,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations for matching , I am taking USMLE too and there is very limited information on it especially for Malaysians, i got most of my information from indian forums.Finally i am able to get information from a fellow Malaysian.
I finished my step 1 already and planning to take step 2 soon.
A few questions for you if you dont mind, 1)did you work as a HO in Malaysia ? 2) Did you do any electives in US as a med student ?
Hi Anonymous,
DeleteThank you.
I did not work as a HO in Malaysia. Wanted to, but with the poor state of the training system, I doubt I could gain much out of it.
And yes, I did do electives in the US, which was the reason why I wanted to head to the US. It gave me the opportunity to compare the training system in the US and in Malaysia.
Jamie
Thanks, I am in my final year now, do you think not having any US electives is a major setback in pursuing US residency?
ReplyDeleteI dont plan to enter competitive programs.
My step 1 score was just slightly above US average, taking step 2 soon, probably before i start housemanship.
Hi there,
DeleteIf your step 1 score is only slightly above average, you will need to score well for your Step 2 CK. You will also need to be ready to accept programs in smaller and less renowned community hospitals. If your step 2 CK is also low, then you may need to try to get observerships to get US letter of recommendations.
Jamie
hie jamie...
ReplyDeletecongrats for matching...
it will be helpfull if you could provide more information regarding matching..
im preparing for step 2 CK..hope you can give us some information regarding the matching.
Hi Anonymous,
DeleteWhat specific information would you like to ask about the matching?
Jamie
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHi Xin Ying,
Delete1) You will have to prepare it alongside your medical curriculum. Treat it like a part-time job. The knowledge you gain will complement your basic sciences education as well.
2) I do not have any publications. However, publications can help improve your chances, especially in getting into a University training hospital, which usually emphasizes on reasearch. Community hospitals usually have less of such emphasis.
3) Yes, all you need is to spend some time to search for these elective opportunities online. It is even easier if you already have the Step 1.
Jamie
Welcome to the US
DeleteI did my residency at UCLA in the 70's in anesthesia life was much easier still I find it challenging to adapt to the American way of life and culture in the beginning.I went on to private practice in the Los Angeles area I am from Malaysia so I will be glad to share information with you all
Hi Anonymous,
DeleteThank you for visiting. You are more than welcomed to share information about your experiences here.
Jamie
Hi Dr. Jamie,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations.
I am a final year medical student. I am interested in doing USMLE. But, the thing is i don't have any experiences i.e doing electives at the US. Is it okay?
Thank you.
Hi,
DeletePlease check out my latest post.
Hi Dr. Jamie,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations.
I'm a third year medical student ( going to be in this coming August). I am interested in doing USMLE. But I have several questions which I hope to get some idea from you.
1. I have yet complete USMLE 1. Is it too late to take during my clinical years and continue with USMLE Step 2?
2. I know that it is compulsory to finish the 2 years housmanship and 2 years compulsory service after we finish our medical course. By the way, I am from UNIMAS and not taking any scholarship. Is it possible for us not to complete the housemanship and directly continue the postgraduate training if we are accepted by the USA hospital?
3. Are we get paid if we are accepted by the hospital to do the postgraduate training in USA?
Dear jamie, i am currently doing housemanship in malaysia, a local graduates, and i'm interested in doing residency abroad and work abroad. But i'm confused as whisch steps to take and which entrance exam suited best. I am intrested in working across europe and i wanna ask u if USMLE can qualify for applying as medical residency in europe? And what about NZ ? Is USMLE internationally accepted as entrace exam for medical residency worldwide? and which do u think better , USMLE vs PLAB vs AMC ?
ReplyDeleteHi,
DeleteI am not too sure regarding USMLE qualifying for residency in Europe. I did hear a couple who went to NZ after USMLE, but you will have to research further on that topic.
1) The USMLE is a medical student level exam. PLAB and AMC are meant for graduates. The level of difficulty is entirely different.
2) Unlike the U.S., entering Europe or Australia to work as a doctor does not mean you are entering a training position. In the U.S., you enter directly into a residency (aka specialization position). 3 years after working in U.S., you will be awarded a specialist title. Eg: American Board of Pediatrics. With this title, you can either practice in the U.S. as a pediatrician (for example), or work in Malaysia as a pediatrician (yes it is recognized), or if you can also work in Singapore as a pediatrician (yes it is also recognized).
Hi Jamie,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations and good luck in your future undertakings and work. Thank you so much for your effort to help out and encourage Malaysians to sit for USMLE.
I am a medical doctor working in a local hospital. After working and been in the service for almost 5 years, as u mentioned, I found a lot of lacking in local training and a lack in out-of-box mindset. I did not get the lavish of going to the states for rotation. But somehow I wanna try out and felt like there could be somthing that I could gain of outside there. I have a lot of fellow Russian gradds (who are non-malaysians) doing residency in the states now, but I am not keeping in touch with them.
How many years will it take to complete the whole thing till you get into residency? Is it too late now? Can you advice me of how to initiate?
Thank you so much, Jamie.
Hope you do well in your residency journey.
Anna
It is never too late. Being in residency training, I have classmates who come from all walks of life, including 38 year-olds with kids. So it is definitely never too late. It will take about 1 year + to complete the exam. Start by studying and aiming to score well for the exam.
DeleteHey Jamie,
ReplyDeleteI am applying for ERAS this season. I just graduated this year from one of the public universities in Malaysia. The Match for this season is extremely competitive. I applied to 2 specialties: IM and Ped and I just received 4 IM and 5 Ped IVs. My credentials are 223/244/cs 1st attempt. I'm gonna take my Step 3 end of this month.
I know I don't have outstanding score. What do you reckon of my chances of getting Matched? I have met some candidates during my IVs and they told me I just need 1 good interview to get matched. How do you define a good interview? How did you make your rank list?
I do send thank you email to the program directors and faculty members who interviewed me. Most of their replies are rather positive ( we will take you into serious consideration). I guess it's their general way of responding to the thank you note.
I am now at Philly ad will be staying here until Jan next year hoping some AMG will cancel their IV and I get late invitation. I have a US number or we can communicate via e-mail if you're comfortable with it.
Thank you.
CS
If you don't mind, may I know your credentials?
DeleteCS
I notice you received positive emails from the PDs saying they'll rank you high and the courtesy letters. When did you receive those? Was it right after your interviews or before the rank list submission?
ReplyDeleteI have done 8 IVs and not received anything like that so far. Should I be worried? And also did you send email to the PDs informing them you ranked them high right before the ROL submission?
I know I have many inquiries. I appreciate your time and effort in shedding some light on these issues.
Thanks heaps and have a wonderful holiday season.
CS
hi Jamie, congratz on ur matching.
ReplyDeleteLets say if i did pass step 1 & 2 but i cant get into their residency program. is it only US that accept the residency or i can go to other country ? What should i do if they didnt accept me into their residency program?After completing residency program and i plan to go back and work in malaysia. so am i a MO, registrar or HO ?
Thanks.
Greeting,
ReplyDeleteDR Jamie. I am Wong. I have just completed my year 1 MBBS programme. I wish to register for USMLE STEP 1 at the end of my year 2. My email is christophercullen95@gmail.com. I wish to get some details information regarding the USMLE Preparation Programme and the study materials.
Thanks in advance and hope to hear from you soon.
Hi dr jamie is there any age limitation to this exam n acceptance of residency in us. Suppose i completedmy family medicine. I have been a g.p 4 past 8 years n am already 45 this year.
ReplyDeleteThere is no AGE limitation per se. I had a senior resident who is an oncologist from Germany and was in his 50s. However, it will be harder for you to match being 45 years old.
DeleteHi Dr Jamie
ReplyDeleteWhen did you graduate from medical school?
Dear Afiq,
DeleteI graduated in 2012.
Jamie
Im currently a medical student who has completed my first year MBBS course in Melaka Manipal Medical College.However I failed to complete my second year.Unfortually,I failed Microbiology. And hence I have 6 months to study ine subject and so do you think its the right to take USMLE now? I had passed the other 3 subjects namely forensic,pathology and farmacology.awaiting ur response. Cheers
ReplyDeleteDear Naren,
DeleteYes, you would be able to study for the USMLE step 1 during this 6 months that you have.
Jamie
Im currently a medical student who has completed my first year MBBS course in Melaka Manipal Medical College.However I failed to complete my second year.Unfortually,I failed Microbiology. And hence I have 6 months to study ine subject and so do you think its the right to take USMLE now? I had passed the other 3 subjects namely forensic,pathology and farmacology.awaiting ur response. Cheers
ReplyDeleteHello Jamie! So glad that i have found yr blog! Im in a dilemma of deciding to take USMLE or not!!! Im a third yr med student from a local private U...and recently, i have spend weeks doin research on this, i know that tis is the fastest and world wide recognized pathway but from some articles and forum , i found out that my field of interests are not easy to get in, which are dermatology and ophthalmology...apparently ( from those online info i got) , getting high score alone is not enough, one has to publish papers to get into them...:( I still have frail hope that these info arent true, i dun mind spending time doin int medicine and then dermatology or surgery then ophthalmology....could u pls shed some light ? thank you in advance! :) I need yr help very very very much :) thank a lot ya~~~ :)
ReplyDelete