clinical vs lab research

[chef]

hi all,

for those who've been thru optho match, do u feel if PDs liked lab research more than clinical, or vice versa?

it's obvious that clinical research is much more of a "failsafe" method b/c one can usually get a paper out of a project in a reasonable period of time. Clinical research can be done during school yr w/o much trouble; and if u r diligent in 3-4 yrs of clinical research u can pump out 5-8 papers.

However, lab research has merits too. It's a lot tougher to publish but once u do it looks sweet. u gotta put in a lot more hrs IMHO - part time work during school yrs won't cut it - u will be lucky to be primary author on more than 2 papers. IMHO (again) novel findings from lab research sound more exciting.

Also, as a side question, i've heard that optho PDs tend to acknowledge research work outside optho more than others. (vs derm, ent, and orthopedics) Is this true?

[Andrew_Doan]

Originally posted by chef
hi all,

for those who've been thru optho match, do u feel if PDs liked lab research more than clinical, or vice versa?

it's obvious that clinical research is much more of a "failsafe" method b/c one can usually get a paper out of a project in a reasonable period of time. Clinical research can be done during school yr w/o much trouble; and if u r diligent in 3-4 yrs of clinical research u can pump out 5-8 papers.

However, lab research has merits too. It's a lot tougher to publish but once u do it looks sweet. u gotta put in a lot more hrs IMHO - part time work during school yrs won't cut it - u will be lucky to be primary author on more than 2 papers. IMHO (again) novel findings from lab research sound more exciting.

Also, as a side question, i've heard that optho PDs tend to acknowledge research work outside optho more than others. (vs derm, ent, and orthopedics) Is this true?

Both have their merits. I don't think it's either or. It's rather based on what you did, how much effort you demonstrated, your responsibility, and your understanding of the project.