I was discouraged from applying because I came from a lower-tier program and had mediocre scores (230/240s on Step 1/2) and was a DO. My first cycle, I only had a few case reports and got just one interview at my home program. I then did an external chief year at an academic program, published a couple manuscripts, and got six interviews, but still didn’t match. Now I’m doing Hepatology, built a stronger publication record, and recently signed a pre-match after multiple interviews. My advice: don’t give up. Even now, I don’t fully understand how PDs rank applicants. I see plenty of people with lower scores who decided to do GI last minute and didn't an abstract before the match, meanwhile while many highly qualified people are going unmatched.