2 Quick Questions...

[Katatonic]

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I'm sorry if this has been asked before, but I was wondering a few things about the MD/PhD track:

1) How is it looked upon if you apply to both MD and MD/PhD programs? What if they are at the same institution?

2) What happens to the MD/PhD students who, after they're first two years, decide against going for the PhD and drop out of the program to go straight to clinical years? Do they have to pay back the funding they've received for the first two years?

 

[Schlockinz]

I generally applied to both programs (more specifically, if I wasn't accepted as an MD/PhD I was still willing to be put in the applicant pool as an MD).

I did this because
1) I thought it was crazy to pay all those fees and not also apply to the MD program (and it was free at this point)
2) The MD is more important to me than the PhD (I can still do research and clinical work with the MD)
3) Getting in as an MD doesn't mean that I cannot matriculate into the MD/PhD program later on, and may help me by proving to them that I am more valuable than my numbers say I am.

 

[Katatonic]

I generally applied to both programs (more specifically, if I wasn't accepted as an MD/PhD I was still willing to be put in the applicant pool as an MD).

I did this because
1) I thought it was crazy to pay all those fees and not also apply to the MD program (and it was free at this point)
2) The MD is more important to me than the PhD (I can still do research and clinical work with the MD)
3) Getting in as an MD doesn't mean that I cannot matriculate into the MD/PhD program later on, and may help me by proving to them that I am more valuable than my numbers say I am.

Okay, that makes sense. Are the two applications and adcoms separate if you apply to both programs at the same institution? If they aren't, is there some bias involved about what your actual ambitions are if you're applying to both?

 

[Schlockinz]

Okay, that makes sense. Are the two applications and adcoms separate if you apply to both programs at the same institution? If they aren't, is there some bias involved about what your actual ambitions are if you're applying to both?

Madison and Rochester forwarded both of my applications to the MD committee, it was my understanding that I don't have secondaries for the MD portion to fill out, but then again, this is my first rodeo so I cannot help much there.

I would imagine that there wouldn't be actual bias since it seems that a problematic question for some is "Why MD". If you are willing to be "just" an MD in their program, it might also ease that question if you are interviewed for MD/PhD.

But like I said, first rodeo, I'm just a young pup in the world of seriously attempting to get into med-school

 

[Katatonic]

Madison and Rochester forwarded both of my applications to the MD committee, it was my understanding that I don't have secondaries for the MD portion to fill out, but then again, this is my first rodeo so I cannot help much there.

I would imagine that there wouldn't be actual bias since it seems that a problematic question for some is "Why MD". If you are willing to be "just" an MD in their program, it might also ease that question if you are interviewed for MD/PhD.

But like I said, first rodeo, I'm just a young pup in the world of seriously attempting to get into med-school

Thanks for the information, and good luck with your apps this cycle! I thought of another question though, so maybe you can help with this one too.

If you're accepted to the MD/Ph.D program, do you take the first 2 years exactly the same as your straight MD counterparts, or do you have extra classes?

Also, once you start your Ph.D do you have to take all of the classes (around 1.5 to 2 years worth) that the straight Ph.D students take or do you just jump into the lab since your rotations are taken care of the summer after 1st year?

 

[Jorje286]

If you're accepted to the MD/Ph.D program, do you take the first 2 years exactly the same as your straight MD counterparts, or do you have extra classes?

Also, once you start your Ph.D do you have to take all of the classes (around 1.5 to 2 years worth) that the straight Ph.D students take or do you just jump into the lab since your rotations are taken care of the summer after 1st year?

Depends on the program, but I think in most of them you get a couple of extra-classes. For your second question, you have to fulfill the requirements for the PhD program you chose, but many medical school courses will substitute for the grad school requirements (and vice-versa). This depends a lot on the program and on the specific department. But I'm guessing usually you'd still have to take a couple of extra classes in your third year, but you'll have enough time to start your research.

 

[Katatonic]

Okay, thanks. I'm also confused about how the stipend works. If your program is funded, then you have tuition and fees paid for, but you also get a stipend. Is the stipend just like a salary, you can do whatever you want with it, or is a lot of it used for school related expenses? I was looking at UW's MD/PhD page and the stipend is around $24k a year. Aside from withholding the money you'll have to pay for taxes out of it, is the rest yours to do what you see fit, like housing, food, parking etc.?

 

[mudphudwannabe]

Yep, the stipend is yours to do with as you will. Keep in mind you that depending on your particular situation, taxes may not be withheld from your paycheck so you will have to budget them in yourself. UW=Wisconsin or Washington? Because the stipend at Wisconsin is about $21,000 (which I think is the NIH "standard"), before taxes.

 

[Katatonic]

Yep, the stipend is yours to do with as you will. Keep in mind you that depending on your particular situation, taxes may not be withheld from your paycheck so you will have to budget them in yourself. UW=Wisconsin or Washington? Because the stipend at Wisconsin is about $21,000 (which I think is the NIH "standard"), before taxes.

University of Washington, and the $24,000 is actually only for graduate years and the clinical years, I think pre-clinical years is more like $22,000, not sure though.

 

[Leif_Erikson]

2) What happens to the MD/PhD students who, after they're first two years, decide against going for the PhD and drop out of the program to go straight to clinical years? Do they have to pay back the funding they've received for the first two years?

Could anyone answer this? What happens if you at some point either decide not to finish your PhD, or your MD? Are there repercussions?

 

[mudphudwannabe]

There is no payback if you withdraw from an MSTP. Of course not finishing the PhD is not ideal and there will be administrative issues with making the switch, I'm sure, but as far as I know there isn't any punishment for withdrawing. Non-MSTP MD/PhD programs can make their own rules, though, so it's worth asking about if you are applying to any non-MSTP schools.

 

[Katatonic]

There is no payback if you withdraw from an MSTP. Of course not finishing the PhD is not ideal and there will be administrative issues with making the switch, I'm sure, but as far as I know there isn't any punishment for withdrawing. Non-MSTP MD/PhD programs can make their own rules, though, so it's worth asking about if you are applying to any non-MSTP schools.

Do you think it's similar if you decide to not finish the MD? I'm sure this option is much more rare, but I'm just curious. If the thought of 2 years of clinical rotations makes you sick and you just want to get on with research...