crittergetter - 07 January 2009 06:16 PM

1) Does anyone know if most programs have a hard cut off like this (whether it be 200 or some higher number)
2)Also, is it common for such little weight being placed on step 2 scores?
Thanks in advance

I doubt that most people here know the inner workings of the interview/ranking process of multiple programs, so I doubt you’ll get much in the way of a definitive answer to these questions.  My own impression from interviewing/talking with people from all over during interviews is that most places have some sort of minimum, but that this minimum is significantly lower than the average candidate who matches.  I’d bet OHSU is a perfect example of this - it’s probably been a while since someone with a 200 or 210 matched there unless they also had a PhD or some similar attribute.  In other words, unless your step 1 score is well, well below par, it’s not likely to get you automatically removed from consideration.  That being said, though, you better have something in your application to take the reader’s mind off a sub-par board score.  (I’m not trying to be mean, but well below the national average when applying to one of the most competitive specialties will be seen as sub-par.) I’ve heard of other places that use 220 as a cut-off.  I’d bet that some of the more prestigious places that I didn’t even apply to have higher cut-offs still.  Even with all of these comments, though, remember that the average matching Step 1 score has consistently been in the mid-230s recently.

Regarding your second question, I interviewed at nearly 20 programs (translates to probably ~120 individual interviews) and was asked on only one occasion about not having taken step 2.  Even that one time didn’t seem to be a big issue, though.  There is definitely a perception that step 1 is the one that counts.  This could change now that the match has shifted to NRMP.  If more programs shift their interviews to later in the season, they might expect you to have taken step 2 before the interview date and, therefore, place more weight on it.