ABPN vs ABIM Research Track

[EgyptianStudent]

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The ABIM Research Track Residency is a very well established set of guidelines adopted by many programs to produce a research-oriented IM residency with the option of culminating in a PhD at by the end. On the other hand, the ABPN Neurology Research Track is not that well structured and the information available for these sort of programs is scant. Additionally, I can’t find a single source that says there is an option for pursuing a PhD through this program like there is for ABIM.

I’ve tried to contact many PDs and associated MDs but to no avail. Can anyone help me find out more about this? I love both but I generally would lean towards Neuro if there was at least some guarantee of an option to pursue a PhD.

 

[CnsCrit]

You want to get a PhD during residency? I've never heard of anyone doing this and would strongly caution you against it at this point in your career. Even most MD PhDs who at least have the benefit of getting their med school paid for, will ultimately not pursue a career in research. Committing to a lengthy pathway and more formal degrees will ultimately lead to more years of financial sacrifice with no guarantee of grant funding at the end. You are better off completing residency while getting as much practical traning as you can in your field of interest. If you're still interested, then do a post-doc. I've known several people who have gone the MD and post-doc route and been very successful, but understand that even then you'll be working very hard for a number of years for little pay. You could think about a masters in clinical research during that time which gives you some formal training without spending a ton of your time and money. A lot can change during residency, so don't commit to something that sounds enticing just because its established as a formal pathway, we physicians fall for this kind of thing all the time.

 

[Aldertonghen]

Agree with the above. When I applied a couple of years ago there were basically 2 programs that offered the option of PhD during residency (which would extend residency ofcourse)- Stanford and Yale. But it’s a big commitment, and one can always do post docs in their field of interest- this tends to be greater bang for buck as it’ll be during fellowship so much more nearer to an actual job right after than residency. I know of people who did a 4 year movement fellowship after residency that culminated in a PhD. And non ACGME fellowship allows that.