April Medical Newsletter

By Brandie Erickson • April 26, 2024 • BS/MD Admissions Consulting Newsletter

As current medical school applicants eagerly await acceptances as schools’ waitlist movement begins in April, fourth-year medical students are celebrating the culmination of their educational journey after Match Day. On March 15, medical students set to graduate received notification of their residency program placements for the upcoming July, commonly referred to as their match. Those who didn’t secure a match were given the chance to engage in the Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP) to fill any remaining residency positions.

While concerns of a primary care physician shortage continue, 719 additional primary care positions were offered in 2024 than seen in 2023, and 93% of the positions were filled. However, the fill rate for pediatrics dropped to 92% from last year’s 97%, leaving 252 pediatric positions unfilled. 

Individuals pursuing a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree (DO) saw significant success, with a record-high match rate of 92.3% of DO students securing residency positions. This is in line with the match rate for US allopathic medical schools at 93.5% and far higher than rates reported for offshore medical schools.

Securing a residency position following the completion of medical school marks a significant achievement and the beginning of many successful medical careers. Start on the path to making your educational dream a reality today by scheduling a call with Moon Prep to find out how we can get you from pre-med hopeful to matched resident. 

 

Rising Researchers 

Research is the element that can turn a solid application into an exceptional application. High schoolers applying to BS/MD programs will want to get an edge by being one of the few students with a scientific article publication and poster presentation under their belt. This summer, sign up for a Rising Researchers Camp to guarantee a quality research experience is on your resume. 

Work in a small class cohort under the guidance of an experienced research mentor. Each live session is held virtually via Zoom. All camp options have clear deliverables: research publication, poster presentation, and certificate of completion.

Session 1 – Microbial Bioinformatics – Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) Research

5/21 – 6/20 at 7:30pm EST (4:30pm PST) 

  • Join Dr. Jedy as she leads students through studying microbiology (bacteria and viruses!) using artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms. Students will gain exposure to bioinformatics databases used by scientists.  

Session 2 – Medical Bioinformatics – Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) Research

6/18 – 7/25 at 4:30pm EST (1:30pm PST)

  • Join Dr. Jedy as she leads students through studying medical diseases in humans using artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms. Students will gain exposure to bioinformatics databases used by scientists.  

Session 3  – Social Determinants Of Health In Cardiovascular Disease

6/26 – 7/27 at 5:00pm EST (2:00pm PST)

  • Join Loren as she explains the role of social determinants in public health and how they can impact heart health. Students will be led through key background readings and walked through writing each part of a scientific article. 

Early Bird discounts + Moon Prep student discounts are available. Learn more and register here.

With many summer programs closing applications in February or early March, high school students who haven’t applied to summer programs yet or didn’t get into the ones they did apply to might be scrambling to find an alternative. Read Moon Prep’s Forbes article to explore eleven summer programs for high schoolers that are still accepting applications. For a guaranteed research publication and poster presentation to boost your application, check out Rising Researchers Summer Camp sessions or schedule a call with Moon Prep to see how we can help shape your resume. 

The cost of attendance at a university can be a major decision-making factor when accepting an offer of admission. Inflation has caused the rising cost of living, and college tuition is far from exempt. Students, now more than ever, need to capitalize on financial aid. Master the 5 Steps To Negotiate More Financial Aid to reduce your college tuition cost. Did you know? Moon Prep also incorporates scholarship advice into its counseling model. Our counselors are always in your corner, even when it comes to tuition.  

With a dedication to guiding students and professionals toward success and personal development, Nikola offers tailored services that promote excellence. As an essay editor specializing in university-level writing, she provides comprehensive guidance to students to help them refine essays, ensuring clarity, coherence, and academic integrity. She uses her varied experiences to produce interesting and compelling content. Beyond editing, she offers constructive feedback and support to empower clients with the skills and confidence needed to excel in their academic pursuits and beyond.

Outside of Moon Prep, Nikola has extensive experience as an education consultant, providing personalized advice and strategic planning tools to support students throughout the university application process. Drawing upon this experience, she offers invaluable insights to navigate the admissions landscape successfully. Nikola has experience in multiple education systems and admissions into top-ranked universities worldwide. She also provides personalized services for professionals in finance guiding them with interviews, business English and presentation skills.

Before her current education consultancy and essay editing roles, Nikola gained valuable experience in various professional settings. She has over nine years of professional finance experience in London, including roles at BlackRock Asset Management and State Street Asset Management. In addition, she has worked as an English Language Coordinator at an NGO in Rio de Janeiro, coordinating language classes for young adults and children in favelas. In addition, her blog on Medium reached peak reads of over 64,000 with some of her articles. These experiences have honed her analytical skills, client management abilities, understanding and use of pedagogical tools in education, writing skills, and global insights, which she leverages to provide holistic support to students.

Work with Nikola by scheduling a call with Moon Prep today!

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be used to write email templates, generate art, or summarize long articles. But now, talks are underway about how AI will change the future of medical school education. According to Bernard Chang, MD, Harvard’s Dean for Medical Education, AI Will—and Should—Change Medical School. Comparing the advent of new technology to the innovation of the internet, AI is expected to support medical school curricula and make accessing and summarizing medical knowledge more efficient for students. The future of integrating AI into medical school curricula remains to be seen, but Dr. Chang is hopeful that it will mark a revolution in preparing students to enter clinical medicine.

Institutions like Duke University School of Medicine and the University of Texas at San Antonio are Training the Next Generation of Clinicians to Better Understand AI. By integrating AI education into their curricula, these schools recognize the value of emerging technology in healthcare delivery. Dr. Aditee Narayan of Duke University emphasizes the importance of training future physicians to harness AI capabilities, aligning AI education with the core values of medicine. At the University of Texas at San Antonio, students have the option to immerse themselves in AI through specialized programs, emphasizing the importance of understanding AI models and their implications in clinical practice. While hopeful about the positive changes AI can bring to medicine, educators highlight the need to address biases and ensure inclusivity in AI development to minimize any negative impacts on patient care.

As AI becomes increasingly prevalent in healthcare, The University of Pennsylvania Names the First Vice Dean of AI. Penn seeks to establish a cohesive approach to AI utilization, emphasizing the importance of vetting new AI tools and promoting best practices for their implementation. Marylyn Ritchie, appointed as the first Vice Dean of Artificial Intelligence and Computing at the Perelman School of Medicine, will spearhead efforts to incorporate AI into medical training programs. Ritchie’s focus includes educating doctors-in-training on the capabilities and limitations of AI tools, ensuring they can effectively leverage these technologies in clinical practice. Additionally, Mitchell Schnall, former chief of radiology at Penn, assumes the role of the first senior Vice President for Data and Technology Solutions at the University of Pennsylvania Health System, aiming to expand AI’s utilization across Penn Medicine’s hospitals and physician groups. Together, Ritchie and Schnall will oversee the integration of AI into medical research and practice to improve clinical decision-making, and ultimately reshape the future of medicine.

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