top schools seeking future academic physicians, so your application must align...?

[lessthanzero]

I've recently heard from a current medical student on the adcom that if you demonstrate a desire (through activities, personal statement, and interviews) to become an academic physician (as opposed to working in rural medicine or opening your own clinic or being a pure clinician), that the top / research intensive schools such as UCSF, Stanford, Duke, etc. view your application more favorably. Instead of looking for who would make the best doctor, they are looking for the best physician scientists (without MD PhD I suppose) and thus, the "best" interests to show are research, teaching, and clinical care, and that it is important to express a desire to combine all 3 in your future career. She also mentioned that there aren't enough people who want to stick around and train the next generation of doctors, so teaching and mentorship experience are as valued as research. I guess on some level it does make sense, but from what I've heard it almost seemed like a disinterest in academic medicine would put you at a disadvantage for the top schools. Thoughts on how true this holds? Would love to hear from other adcoms as well.

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[22031 Alum]

Not an adcom member, but interested to know how much an interest in academics would (or even could!) be weighted at the pre-med level. I'm in academics but didn't "see the light" of teaching until I was a PGY3. As a pre-med that wasn't even on my radar.

 

[lessthanzero]

Not an adcom member, but interested to know how much an interest in academics would (or even could!) be weighted at the pre-med level. I'm in academics but didn't "see the light" of teaching until I was a PGY3. As a pre-med that wasn't even on my radar.

did you happen to attend a research intensive school? and yes, it would be interesting to see if interest in academia is actually a criteria used to evaluate candidates. and I wonder if that's why activities such as Teach for America often help bolster non trad applications

 

[NorthOfBroad]

On Stanford's secondary they ask you to mark what type of physician you want to be and the first option is academics. You then have to explain why academics, or private practice, or PC, etc. Always remember though schools are trying to build diverse classes, so even at research intensive schools they will admit people who want to be PCPs or work in public health

 

[WingedOx]

honestly, I wouldn't give a sh-t about it as an ADCOM

The number of students, particularly out of top undergrads who believe they want to be ladder climbers when they start out in medical training is WAY higher than the number who actually go on to do so.

 

[NeuResurgens]

I've heard this is particularly true for Stanford, but I don't have first hand knowledge. It would make sense, since a lot of the schools who admit extremely smart people would like to see those great minds put their efforts toward the long-term betterment of medicine.