[samven]

I am an old IMG who has been working for the last 8 years as an RN (mainly in the ICU/CCU) here in the United States. Would that count as USCE or do I need to find an externship or observership as well?

 

[Sabio]

Of course it's USCE

Your RN experience is definitely considered USCE no doubt about that. Evan a PA experience is highly regarded.

You don't need to do any observerships or externships, just pass the exam and take great LoRs from your supervisor and you should be on your way to residency.

 

[samven]

Great news - thanks!

 

[DRIBO]

What about EMT experience? I worked 3 years in Arizona and 6 months in Boston as an EMT doing both emergency calls and also some hospital transports. Could that be consider clinical experience or it has to be at a hospital setting?
Thanks!

 

[ACA]

@samven

@dribo

Although your various backgrounds provided you with some wonderful U.S. clinical experiences, they are not considered residency-relevant. It has been observed that those with experiences in other areas of healthcare (ie. Physicians Assistant, Paramedics) continue to have difficulties in securing more residency interviews. It is definitely a great thing that you have continued your education and maintained your experiences in healthcare, but those who have been trained and are working in different areas of medicine tend to be deemed as likely to be un-teachable by program directors.
Is there anyone out there that has applied to the Match and used the experiences mentioned above to support their residency application? Please share your experiences. –Reviewed by: ED

 

[khanar]

Is there anyone out there that has applied to the Match and used the experiences mentioned above to support their residency application? Please share your experiences. -Reviewed by: ED

Yes, I worked as medical assistant for two years then I applied for residency and got into Internal Medicine this year.
In the interviews, they all valued my Medical Assistant experience and they considered it as a direct interaction with American patients.
In fact, I as an IMG, truly gained great experience working as a medical assistant, as I now know how to deal with the patients in the "American" way.
Also, I know two friends who worked as pharmacy assistants (did not do USCE) and then they got matched.