How do I Choose an Anesthesiologist's School?

There are five items to consider when choosing an anesthesiologists school: accreditation, reputation, specialty, hospital rotation, and research opportunities. An anesthesiologists school provides a specialty program for people who have successful completion of medical school. This training is only available from a university with a medical school program. An anesthesiologist is someone who is responsible for providing anesthesia to a patient and monitoring his or her health before, during, and after surgery.

The American Society of Anesthesiologists or the American Board of Anesthesiology must certify all anesthesiologists schools. These two associations are responsible for ensuring that all anesthesiologists have the education and skills necessary for this job. It takes four years of school after graduating from medical school to become an anesthesiologist.

The reputation of a medical school is a critical factor in the selection process. There are approximately 160 anesthesiology medical residency programs in the United States. Take the time to research the reputation of the school based on three things: student experience, support services and financial support.

Student experience addresses factors like quality of residences, food, safety, networking opportunities and career services. Support services provide assistance with housing, transportation, counseling, and family support. The student aid department manages bursaries, scholarships, and government student aid programs.

Anesthesiology is a specialty program, but there are also fellowships in certain subspecialties within this field. A fellowship is an additional year of education that is completed after the four-year specialist program. These options include critical care and pain medicine. Many anesthesiologists become more involved in research or teaching as a subspecialty.

The availability of the subspecialty programs is an important decision when selecting an anesthesiologists school. These programs are not available at all medical schools and the depth of opportunities available varies. The schools that are able to offer these programs tend to be larger, well-established medical schools, as additional resources are required to support these programs.

Hospital placement or rotation is a critical component of becoming an anesthesiologist. All programs provide a list of hospital and training locations where students will complete their hospital training. Investigate the physical location of the schools, proximity to the university and the programs they offer.

Research opportunities are critical to the growth of a specialty, and this is a critical area to consider when selecting a medical school. Look at the articles published in anesthesiologist journals. Read the biographies of the professors to determine their areas of research when reviewing anesthesiologists school options.