research experience

Background: I’m currently an undergraduate student on a 3-year pre-med track at a public university in the Midwest. I’m planning to apply to MD/PhD programs in the 2026 cycle without taking a gap year. My academic and career interests focus on translational biomedical research and community...

I would like to get a review of my application and see what my chances of getting into schools aimed towards social justice. I'm aiming to take one gap year (more like application year) and I'm going into my junior year. cGPA - 3.70, sGPA - 3.50 (also withdrawed from ochem and retook it) MCAT...

Hi all! So I’m currently between education and getting working experience as I’ve been struggling to figure out what I want to do with continuing education. I wanted to pass on where I’m at to see what may be the best move forward and how I also may strengthen my CV/resume for applying to...

I'm trying to figure out research for the summer after M1. The first physician that got back to me had a project idea but had not really planned it out yet (and it sounds like we'll need an additional meeting with another physician to do this). I'm not sure if I'm expected to do a lot of...

Hello, I'm new to this forum, so I apologize if a similar question to this one has already been asked. I'm hoping to apply to PsyD programs, but I don't have enough clinical or research experience yet to be a competitive applicant. While I imagine most programs would like applicants to have at...

Polite hello to everyone. I did psychology and social behavior major for my undergrad and have master degree in social work (mental health certificate). I have been working as a MSW social worker for about 4 years (counseling and case management for low income elders). As I spend more time in...

Hi everyone, I'm interested in pursuing a Ph.D in clinical or counseling psychology and I have a good work ethic but I also have a chronic illness that takes a lot of energy away and walking can be difficult. I have to rest a lot throughout the day otherwise my bones just fall apart. I've seen...

Hi All! I'm finishing up my research experience essay for AMCAS, and I was wondering about the formality and structure of it. I've summarized my research experiences clearly and succinctly. Are we supposed to present this as a formal essay? Are we expected to begin with an introduction and end...

Although not officially required, you’re going to need a resume at some point in your medical school admissions process, either for completing the experience section of your application or to bring to interviews. While you can look up templates for a resume online, there are a few pointers you...

You’ve always been great at science and figured your research – whether in college, grad school, or professionally – would help you get into medical school. Now you find it a double-edged sword. On the one hand, you probably aced the MCAT science sections. On the other, you may be viewed...

Hi Everyone, I'm noticing many comments about GPA repair, post bacc courses, and course load. I graduated a few years ago with a aacomas cgpa of 3.3, and an sgpa of 3.2. My undergrad course load was always light to moderate (10-14 credit hours), never heavy. In undergrad, I was intent on...

Why Medical Schools Value Research Experience Research experience isn’t a requirement for med school admission. You won’t find a section about it on your application, but it is still valued and important. So important, in fact, that at some of the most competitive research-oriented med schools...

I'm a senior in college right now and I applied to a handful of Clinical Psychology PhD programs. Seeing as I have not heard back from any of them, I'm thinking that it's time for me to start looking for jobs that will help increase my chances of getting in to a PhD program in the next couple of...

I am a Biology major. At my school instead of taking a capstone course in your senior year, students can do an undergraduate research internship with one of the professors. Students have to complete 280 hours of faculty-based research. Since this would be considered a course where you get...

I'm an undergrad senior about to finish my bachelor's in psychology (with an emphasis in neuroscience) and I want to eventually end up in a clinical psychology program. I've applied to three programs so far, but I don't have much research experience (I only did literature reviews) so I doubt I'm...

Hello all. I am a senior biology major currently on track to graduate in the spring. right now I have a 3.0 sGPA and a 3.7 cGPA. I have only 1 summer of research experience due to working throughout my undergraduate career. I am considering applying to med school and I know how uncompetitive my...

So I completed a senior research capstone to graduate. It isn't particularly related to clinical psychology, but it's the extent of my research experience. I acted as a consultant and interviewed a business owner and some of his employees and prepared a report on how the business owner might...

So I have been hired as a Summer Research student at a hospital with a renowned cardiologist. I am helping this doctor with this clinical research (dry lab - data entry every day) alongside a team of summer students. The problem is I am not very interested in this specialization and the work is...

Hi everyone, I wanted to link up with people that have gotten into the Mizzou REU since I got my letter and accepted it (March 27th). This was for the REU Fellow position in the 2017 University of Missouri-Columbia Summer Projects in Neuroscience Research Experiences for Undergraduates program...

Would working in a computer science lab (as opposed to a traditional biomedical/biology/chemistry lab) hurt my chances of getting into medical school? I know that research experience is an important component of the pre-med résumé, but, since I'm majoring in computer science, I was wondering...

I'm new to research and I've been assigned a mini project. What happens after I get results- positive or negative? Should I continue doing multiple mini projects were results could be found sooner than a single larger project were I would probably continue working on for a couple of years and...

Hello, I know this is long but I created this thread years before the application process so to continuously gain feedback on my pre-med profile. I am an undergraduate (semester 2) attending The Pennsylvania State University. During High School I did not care much for extracurricular...

Hello, I am planning on applying to medical school this summer and I could really use some advice about my path in research. I am currently doing research with a professor in the medical physiology department at my university, which is right where I wanted to be in my preparation for medical...

Hey, so I am in a predicament. Right now, I've been in a small lab since second semester freshman year (I'm a sophomore right now), with one grad student, one senior undergrad, and two undergrad (including me). So, there's a lot of maintenance to do in lab which makes this lab time intensive...

MCAT: N/A cGPA: 3.75 sGPA: 3.8 Medical volunteer hours: ~150 Other volunteer hours: ~100 Shadowing: 12 Research: 0 I work both as a tutor and as a desk assistant for ~20 hours per week. I've played the violin for 11 years. I'm a psychology major with minors in chemistry and biology, if that's...

Hi! I am planning to apply to a few OTD programs this fall (Belmont, Washington University (STL), and Huntington). I have so many questions. 1. RESEARCH VS. VOLUNTEER/ EXTRA CURRICULAR: I am currently in an psychology undergrad with a minor in wellness. I have done a fair amount of volunteer...

I just graduated in May 2016 as an English major. I have done my physics, intro chem, orgo, stats, calc requirements and one semester of bio. I need to retake physics and bio and was hoping to do so at a post bacc but missed most of the deadlines, save for one which I'm not too sure about (Elms...

I am going into my sophomore year of college and am hoping to eventually go on to vet school. This year I really getting more experience. Last year I spent a lot of time (200 hours or so) working with a golden retriever breeder, which I will still be doing sometimes, but I would really like to...

Hi, I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on shaping my path to med school. I am currently finishing up my 3rd year in college. I was a music major for 2 out of the 3 years at one of the best music schools in the country and realized that I REALLY did not want to have to make music...

Hi everyone, I am currently in my second semester of my sophomore year as a pre-med student and am interested to hear anyone's suggestions about extracurricular activities. My GPA is slightly lower than I would like, but it has been gradually improving. During my freshman year, I was not...

Hello! I am considering the DO career path. I was pre-dental for the longest time but after much shadowing decided that I couldn't focus on the mouth for my whole life/career and I wanted to be able to connect with patients much more. I'm still shadowing DO's, so nothing's set in stone. Anyway...

Hello, my profile and questions are generalizable and I hope may help other premed students at a similar point in their undergraduate careers. I am a effectively a junior (in 5th of 6 total years of undergrad) at UC Davis. I was a community college transfer from the Peralta Community College...

I joined a lab about five months ago in an effort to get some research experience and a letter of recommendation for my med school application this summer. This is my first experience in a lab, so I wasn't really sure what to expect or what kind of responsibilities I could ask for, and told them...

So it's "strongly recommended" that you do research or something medical related during your last summer in medical school after your M1 year. I really want to travel abroad, and was hoping to scratch my wanderlust (sorry for using this really cliche word btw) itch and beef up my CV at the same...

Hello, I heard that depending on the medical schools for which an undergrad applies, adcoms focus more or less on the applicant's research experience. Do you know or have you heard about any middle/upper tier medical schools that select MD candidates with a more research-focused repertoire...

Hello, I am currently a college junior, and I recently received offers from two professors asking me to become a research assistant in their labs. I was wondering if this would look bad on my CV if I do not produce anything from these two experiences by the time I submit my med school...

I finished my undergrad this semester will be applying to medical schools during summer 2016. For my gap year I am considering doing a 1-year postbac research program or finding a full time job in a clinical setting. My dilemma is such: I feel as if my application is unbalanced with way more...

Hello everyone, long time SDN lurker here - thought I'd finally ask some questions and potentially contribute to the general medical school conversation where applicable. :hello: Basically, I've decided that the Premedical Program at Harvard Extension School is the best (if not, only) route for...

When applying for a residency post, does it matter what field your research experience was in? I'm still not 100% sure of which speciality I'll end up applying for and it would be a shame if I missed out just because I did research a different field.

I have worked over a year as a certified nurse assistant while initially in nursing school. I am interested in doing clinical research. There are online programs that allow people to become certified as medical assistants (MAs), licensed professional nurses (LPNs), and registered nurses (RNs)...