What if you had dreamt of being a surgeon, but somewhere along your medical journey your passions and interests changed? Dr. Morakinyo represents a very important part of many of our lives - the reality that things may not always go according to plan and the fact that we always have the power to make the best of every situation. Keep listening to find out how this IMG navigated SOAP and landed his current residency match!
Nigerian-born, Canadian citizen Emmanuel Morakinyo is the picture of a non-traditional IMG. His medical journey began at the St. Georges University after which he landed a residency in internal medicine at the Orange Park Medical Center, just outside of Jacksonville, Florida. 
While he had every intention of pursuing a career in surgery, after four months of surgery-based rotations, he decided that such a specialty did not align with the life that he had come to envision for himself. Upon this realization, he re-evaluated his interests and their compatibility with his life-plan and proceeded to begin the match process. He eventually ended up enlisting in the Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP) and took the gamble of not submitting a rank list! 
When asked how he was able to navigate SOAP, especially with such a risky start, and how he would advise others to approach the process, he outlined the following:

 If you have even the slightest inkling that you will need to go through SOAP, get all of your documents in order as soon as possible.
Upgrade, tailor and personalize your personal statements to their intended recipients. Use any advantage or leverage that you may have to increase your chances of landing a match. 
Ensure that you have a good internet connection and that you prioritize so that you can dedicate enough time to monitoring the various online portals. 
Have a solid support system - this process is indeed anxiety-inducing, but having people around to help you makes all the difference.
Stay away from irrelevant online forums that may bring unnecessary negativity and stress. 
Exhaust the number of applications that SOAP allows you.

Even after such a seemingly daunting process, Dr. Morakinyo is currently transitioning into his second year of residency and maintains a positive attitude. Here are some inspirational tidbits that he hopes will inspire us to do the same:

Speak your goals into existence
Do not be discouraged if you do not match and have to go through SOAP - it's not the end of the world.
Put in your best and leave the rest to God. 

You can reach out to Dr. Morakinyo on his instagram @iyanulive.md and through his email iyanulivecontact@gmail.com

Listen to the full episode here:
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-img-roadmap/id1490731292
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/45NNJ7ewtqynqyssbwm1xz
Google Podcasts:https://podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy9mOGMzY2EwL3BvZGNhc3QvcnNz
Overcast: https://overcast.fm/itunes1490731292/the-img-roadmap-podcast
RadioPublic: https://radiopublic.com/the-img-roadmap-GE0MMg

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