How to measure research experience?

[Carbon Tetrafluoride]

I'm still a long ways from my AMCAS applications, but I am just wondering, how is research experience measured?

For instance, my sophomore year was spent interning at a hospital doing stroke research, with sizable data and results, but nothing published (yet).

Currently, as a junior, I have been working in a research lab on campus doing chemistry research, but the work is very robust and very little progress was made, with very little chance of publishing.

If I have something "close to being published", is it also worth mentioning how I spent a year doing benchlab research with no verifiable data?

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[s5260205]

You would just mention that you've been working/volunteering in a lab doing ______ for ______ (time). Publications are quite rare for undergraduate students so it doesn't hurt you to not have any publication. "Close to being published" usually means you are in the process of writing a manuscript and not just have some data that could be published.

 

[Doug Underhill]

Posters, presentations, and publications. Hours are irrelevant: sitting at a bench studying for the MCAT is not impressive. If you can't get any of the three Ps I listed there, talk about the data you generated, why it is important, and what you did to acquire it.

 

[SpartanWolverine]

Agree with the above posters that you can really only describe what it is you did and for how long. On AMCAS, there is a work/activities section where you can chose to enter a research experience. You can describe what you did there.

If you said "close to published" to me, I would assume you actually have a manuscript submitted and pending minor revisions. Don't say something is "close to published" if you don't have it submitted or at least written up. If something does end up being a presentation, poster, or publication, it can be entered as a separate work/activities entry.