Career Development - Surgery

Qualities recognized as important to surgery include:

• Determination/Perseverance
• Ability to work well with others
• Being a team leader

Please contact Caroline Rhodes for more information about shadowing opportunities. We encourage students to only shadow one time every three months.

The Surgery Department focuses research on Minimally Invasive Surgery, Robotic Surgery, Surgical Education, Endocrinology, Oncology, Transplant, and Trauma. Please contact Dr. Danielle Tatum, who is the Director of Research in the Department of Surgery.

Additionally, students may want to pursue research opportunities through the DeBakey Scholars Program. This program offers medical students the opportunity to pursue and complete a longitudinal, structured, closely supervised research experience culminating in a capstone presentation prior to graduation. For more information, contact Dr. Derek Pociask.

Tulane Surgical Interest Group

The Tulane Surgical Interest Group (TSIG) is a student-run organization dedicated to advancing knowledge of the art and science of surgery through education, experiential opportunities, and research.

TSIG affords students a variety of rich opportunities to become immersed in the world of surgery. The group boasts a mentorship program, organizes a simulation center skills series, and holds a T4 Match Panel talk.

The Surgical Interest Group hosts speaking events where medical professionals offer a wide array of perspectives on the field of surgery, its newest advancements, and what it means to be a surgical resident or attending surgeon in medicine today. Through its programs and events, TSIG seeks to provide Tulane medical students with opportunities to explore the exciting field of surgery.

Tulane Women in Surgery Group

The purpose of the Tulane Women in Surgery Group (WIS) is to inspire, encourage and enable aspiring female surgeons to achieve their personal and professional goals. WIS facilitates substantial and repeated exposure of Tulane’s medical students to female surgeons by 1) highlighting role models at Tulane and in the local community, 2) providing networking and mentorship opportunities with female surgeons and surgical residents, and 3) providing a forum for open and guided discussion about challenges that pertain to the woman surgeon. Ultimately, WIS’ unique focus is to provide opportunities in which interests, concerns and common experiences, both professional and personal, can be effectively addressed. Many issues that are considered “women’s issues” truly pertain to all modern day surgeons; therefore, WIS is open to all members of the medical community at Tulane. The Tulane Women in Surgery Interest Group was founded in 2012 by Claire Janssen, Chelsea Grimes, Abby Nix and Laura Harper.

Dr. Mary Killackey -- Chair of Surgery

Dr. Anil Paramesh – Associate Clerkship Director

Dr. David Yu -- Residency Program Director

Dr. Kevin Harrell

Clerkship in Surgery can be taken at any time in the third year, however it is recommended that this rotation occur in the first half of the third year to allow students the opportunity to be involved in meaningful research, to position them well for sub-internships and Honor’s Surgery, and to ensure faculty know them well enough to write strong letters of recommendation.

Sample-T4-SURG-Schedule.pdf

One of the most common questions we get asked is “How do I know if I’m competitive for this specialty?” There are a lot of metrics that are provided by sources like the NRMP’s Charting Outcomes report that can help you gauge whether you are a competitive applicant, and help guide your choices of activities. 

The table below shows the 25^th percentile, the median and the 75^th percentile for a number of the more regularly used metrics to gauge competitiveness. It’s important for you to understand what these numbers represent, and why they may be different from the averages you might see elsewhere.

• The 25^th percentile represents the lower range of “normal” for a successful applicant in this specialty.
• The median represents an average for successful applicants in this specialty.
• The 75^th percentile represents the higher range of “normal” for a successful applicant in this specialty.

Medical students are usually over-achievers, who have exceeded expectations throughout their educational years. However, it’s important to realize that overachievement is not always a good thing when it comes to match. Instead, you should aim for “fit.” This means that you should fall somewhere between the 25^th and 75^th percentile on these metrics. Below the 25^th percentile, and you have a relatively low chance of match (25% chance, to be specific). Above the 75^th percentile, and you also have a lower chance of matching (again, 25% chance), as program directors are typically looking for candidates who “fit” their profiles more so than those who exceed those profiles.

Between the 25^th and 75^th percentiles is the sweet spot. This range spans 50% of successful applicants, with only 25% of successful applicants falling above the 75^th percentile and 25% of successful applicants falling below the 25th percentile. The closer you fall to the median (i.e., the 50^th percentile), the better! This doesn’t mean you’re average, but rather that you are fitting the demands of this specialty!

A note about medians vs. means as a measure of “average”: We use medians to determine competitiveness rather than means for a simple reason. Medians are not as warped as means by outliers, or those successful candidates who fall very much outside the average on a particular measure. You may have heard that the “average” Step 2 score or number of publications for a specialty are incredibly high (or low), and you may wonder how it’s even possible to hit this “average.” These unrealistic “averages” are typically means that have been influenced by just a very small number of people who have incredibly high (or low) scores or numbers of publications, and often those high numbers of publications in particular, are the result of having earned a research Ph.D. or having spent years in a research career! This is NOT the expectation, but rather an exception!

There are no special considerations when applying for residency in Surgery.

Focus on your Step 1 & 2.

Surgery is competitive and if your Step 1 or Step 2 is below the national average, make an appointment with Dr. Killackey as early as possible. The department and Dean’s office will work together to create a recommendation.

Surgery is hard work and at times, long hours, so you must love the field. After training, there are many possibilities on how to structure your practice, some less demanding than others – feel free to come talk to the Department leaders, we’re here to educate and help!

AAMC Careers in Medicine

NRMP's Charting Outcomes in the Match 2026

NRMP's Program Director Survey 2024

Tulane’s Department of Surgery

American Academy of Opthalmology

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons

American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery

American Association of Neurological Surgeons

Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES)

The American Society of General Surgeons

Dr. Katrina D’Aquin can put you in touch with potential mentors.