Research required?

[YankeesfanZF5]

So I am in a pickle. I was offered a really awesome job working for my state's wildlife department as an intern (do habitat stuff, band ducks, tag fish etc.) I also applied for a NSF REU at my university. I have yet to hear back from the REU people but my organic chem professory said it was pretty much a sure thing for me but you never know! So do med schools really care if you have research experience? The research I would be doing is green chemistry, so not really medical related. Should I hold out and wait and see if I get the REU or just take the job and apply for the REU again next summer. I am a sophmore right now. Thanks in advance!

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[KungFuPanda123]

So I am in a pickle. I was offered a really awesome job working for my state's wildlife department as an intern (do habitat stuff, band ducks, tag fish etc.) I also applied for a NSF REU at my university. I have yet to hear back from the REU people but my organic chem professory said it was pretty much a sure thing for me but you never know! So do med schools really care if you have research experience? The research I would be doing is green chemistry, so not really medical related. Should I hold out and wait and see if I get the REU or just take the job and apply for the REU again next summer. I am a sophmore right now. Thanks in advance!

You could just accept the job and then if you do get the REU, jump ship and go do research. Although some would say that this is unethical, it's a pretty normal thing in the professional world (unless you will be signing a contract, in which case you are bound). Fortunately, I personally haven't had to do anything like this yet.

Do you care about if you go to a research powerhouse institution? These types of schools such as Hopkins, UCLA, and Cornell really care a lot about research. That isn't to say that you need to be published, but they tend to want to see that you have at least committed to it for at least 1-2 years and gotten something out of it (as shown via either publications, posters, strong letters of rec from lab PI, or being able to talk extensively about it during an interview).

This internship though sounds like a super fun/interesting thing to do, and if I were in your shoes, I would be kind of sad to pass it up, but at the end of the day, how you want to tailor your application depends completely on what type of school you want to go to.

 

[URHere]

Two questions:

1) Which activity sounds like more fun to you?
2) Are you pre-med or pre-vet?

If you're pre-vet, the internship would probably be more helpful to you than the research gig. Regardless, you still have time to rack up some research later on - you can find a spot during the academic year or the summer before senior year. If you end up really liking research or if you need some extra time to get your application together, you could also take a gap year working as a tech.

Honestly, just take whichever position you're more excited about. You'll be fine.

 

[YankeesfanZF5]

You could just accept the job and then if you do get the REU, jump ship and go do research. Although some would say that this is unethical, it's a pretty normal thing in the professional world (unless you will be signing a contract, in which case you are bound). Fortunately, I personally haven't had to do anything like this yet.

Do you care about if you go to a research powerhouse institution? These types of schools such as Hopkins, UCLA, and Cornell really care a lot about research. That isn't to say that you need to be published, but they tend to want to see that you have at least committed to it for at least 1-2 years and gotten something out of it (as shown via either publications, posters, strong letters of rec from lab PI, or being able to talk extensively about it during an interview).

This internship though sounds like a super fun/interesting thing to do, and if I were in your shoes, I would be kind of sad to pass it up, but at the end of the day, how you want to tailor your application depends completely on what type of school you want to go to.

Nope just trying to go any med school I can get into! Hopeful a school in my home state! Not interested or probably able to get into a famous or prestigious med school. Just interested in being a rural family med doc.

 

[YankeesfanZF5]

Two questions:

1) Which activity sounds like more fun to you?
2) Are you pre-med or pre-vet?

If you're pre-vet, the internship would probably be more helpful to you than the research gig. Regardless, you still have time to rack up some research later on - you can find a spot during the academic year or the summer before senior year. If you end up really liking research or if you need some extra time to get your application together, you could also take a gap year working as a tech.

Honestly, just take whichever position you're more excited about. You'll be fine.

I am on the ropes about whether or not I am premed or prevet. I have a love for animals and wildlife and have shadowed vets and family med docs. I work for two vets. I think I would love both jobs. Not a great reason but the money is soooo much better on the human side of things. Interested because family med docs and vets seem to be the jack of all trades in their particular professions and I really like doing a multitude of different things. I am definately more interested in the wildlife thing! I can and will probably apply for the position I turn down and or not get next summer. Would it be bad doing research your summer before senior year? Or would it not get included when applying to med? Thanks again

 

[URHere]

Would it be bad doing research your summer before senior year? Or would it not get included when applying to med? Thanks again

Depends on when you submit your application. If you apply during your senior year, you can mention planned senior year activities on your app, but they won't hold nearly as much weight as the things you've already done. You won't be able to talk about the activities in your PS and you can't use any of it as a justification for why you are planning a certain type of career. This is also the reason you should finish the majority of your clinical volunteering before your application goes out.