start MD and reapply to MSTP?

[randallB]

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Hi all,

Just wanted to ask for some advice...

Would you recommend going to a program as an MD-only and reapplying to the institution's MSTP or going MSTP at a lower-ranked school directly? Has anyone had success reapplying after the first year of medical school? Definitely feeling the effects of applying later in the cycle!

Thanks

 

[clockitnow]

Quite a few people choose to go to Harvard's HST medical school when they did't get in to the Harvard/MIT MSTP, but got into another solid MSTP. Many of these apply, with reasonable success rate, for second cycle funding at the end of a PhD, which pays for the funding of the last two years of medical school.

 

[tr]

Quite a few people choose to go to Harvard's HST medical school when they did't get in to the Harvard/MIT MSTP, but got into another solid MSTP.

Really? That doesn't make any sense at all. I remember thinking the HST program seemed like it would be attractive if I didn't get into any MSTPs, but it's certainly a poor second to any fully funded program. Even two years of tuition is a lot to pay compared to doughnut. *And* there's no guarantee.


For the OP: I think that is a risky proposition. It's certainly reasonable to apply for entry after your first year; several people at our program came in after their first year. But I think they were all first-time applicants, at least to our program.

If you've already applied to the program at the same school and didn't get in, it seems like you'd have to do something to improve your application during your first year in med school. Otherwise I don't see why the school would be more likely to take you.

So I think the answer to your question depends on how important the dual degree is to you. If you are absolutely set on the dual degree, I'd say take the bird in the hand. On the other hand, if you might be OK with the MD only and you really prefer the other school, give it a shot with the understanding that you might have to stick with MD only after all.

I think you should talk to the program director at your top-choice school before you make your decision, though. Lay it out: tell him your situation and ask what it would take for you to get in as a second-year. That way you'll have a clearer understanding of your odds.

 

[Maebea]

If you are truly interested in doing the combined degree, you should take the MD-PhD offer at the "lesser" institution. There is no guarantee that you will be able to enter the MD-PhD at your top choice, so you have to ask yourself if you would be satisfied with just the MD degree. Certainly you can do research as a MD student and/or have an extended reseach fellowship after residency, but IMO this is less than ideal. There are several faculty members at my institution that were denied entry to the MD-PhD and did the MD-only here. (They sometimes remind me that while they were not good enough to be MD-PhD students here, they are good enough to be on faculty. 😛 )

Every year there are applicants to our MD-PhD program who face this choice. If they are sure they want to do MD-PhD, I recommend that they take the offer from the MD-PhD and decline the MD-only offer at our institution. While the historical acceptance rate of MD students who apply to our program is 72% (versus 13% for the entire pool), there are definitely no guarantees that a reapplicant would get in. In fact, the majority of the med students who successfully applied to our MD-PhD program had not previously applied. Of course, some individuals are hard-headed and reject my advice. Two of them turned down offers from top MD-PhD programs to roll the dice on entering second-cycle here, and are doing quite nicely in our program. (Unlike the faculty we rejected, these students are too decent to point out that my advice was worthless.)

 

[Newquagmire]

as somebody who has done what you are considering (i actually ended up going to a "lower-ranked" md school over an offer at a "better" md-phd), i agree with the advice already given. you need to really over-consider your motives and try to imagine how you might end up with either path.

as tr mentioned, are you going to be happy at the other school if you dont get into the md-phd? what would you do?

and as maebea noted, understand that you will probably not be the only person in your class applying internally.

is there a reason you are hesitant to accept the offer you already have? consider how much of an impact such a hypothetical deterent would actually have on your training. is there a reason (hopefully plural) that the other place would be significantly better for your training?

in the end, you're going to be the one living your life and looking back on it. do what seems best to you, but do it carefully.