advice please

[Rdhdstpkd]

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Hi all,

I could really use some input for all of you who are familiar with the mstp programs around.

Research has always been my main interest, but within the past couple of years I've decided that I'd also like to have an MD (variety of reasons- won't get into the whole thing.) My undergraduate record is pretty shabby due to a bunch of personal problems with a good deal of immaturity mixed in. I went to graduate school right after undergrad and got my MPH with a concentration in epi and biostat. For the past few years I've been working in women's health research at harvard and I've been published many times over.

I applied to medical school once and was rejected from a dozen institutions. I'm in the middle of my second attempt right now and I haven't heard much of anything. Over the holidays I met a man who is a professor at my state med school. We discussed my credentials and he told me that I should talk to the dean of the school of public health about the possibility of entering mtsp with the phd in epi. 1) The program is so new that I was unaware it existed (I thought I would just pursue my PhD after med school like most of my mentors have) and 2) my undergrad grades and scores are so low I didn't ever consider it. Nonetheless I contacted the dean, mentioned this guys name, and we had a long discussion about my aspirations. I was honest about grades and scores, and yet he was still really encouraging- repeatedly stating that they were very intersted in people who all ready had epi backgrounds. A few days later I got an email from someone involved in mstp explaining how to convert my application if that's what I was interested in doing.

My question is really this: do any of you know people who were accepted to mstp on the basis of credentials- not grades and scores? I feel ridiculous throwing myself into a more competitive applicant pool when I haven't even received an interviews for an MD program. Am I wasting my time writing another essay.

Thanks for the input

 

[jot]

hey there - this actually sounds really encorouging. if you hadn't been talking to people etc... i wouldn't give the notion much credence, but if they are encorouging you personally, there is strong reason to belive that its legit. mstp peeps can take in applicants based on research or whatever criteria they want - its usually scores etc..., but other circumstances that show promise for a career in resaerch (that you have definately demonstrated) are takin into consideration. i would defiantely go this route, convert the app. definately sounds like a better option - goodluck, let us knw what happens.
best,
-jot

 

[Naphtali]

I think you should go for it. In fact, I think you have a better chance of getting into MSTP than MD only.

If you can get an interview, then grades and scores become less important. Perhaps at the school you're considering, they're gung-ho to get MD/PhD's in epi. (There aren't many applicants who want to do epi... I haven't met any. This should work in your favor.) If you've been working at Harvard (sweet!) and have a bunch of pubs (sweet!), you may well get in.

So you should definetly go for it. Good luck!

-Naphtali

 

[Adcadet]

hey Rdhdstpkd -
I was going to PM you, but I figure there might be other people around that would benefit from hearing our conversation. And it's not like my story is a big secret.

I'm finishing up my MPH in Epi, and am a medical school applicant this year. I've been doing research since my senior year in high school, and really enjoy it. I've wanted to be a doctor since way back when, and I've known many MDs who do research. So I figured I'd just apply to MD programs, and if I wanted to do research I could continue to do so, even without the PhD.

Well, come October I started talking very seriously with my PI about things, and he started convincing me that a PhD would be a good thing to have. I also realized that I absolutely love the lab I'm in, and would very much enjoy doing the experiments we just got a 4-year RO1 for. At that time I had an interview scheduled with my state school, who informed me that to convert my app to MD/PhD I would have to give up my interview. I really didn't like the sound of that, as my grades/MCAT are good but not stellar. A few weeks later I was accepted to my state school (my #1 choice), and I was still very interested in the PhD, either with the formal MSTP program or apart. I talked with somebody in the medical school and found out that taking some time off fo the PhD would not be a problem. I talked with the director of graduate studies in pharmacology (the dept. I would want to do my PhD in), who was very enthusiastic about me doing the PhD. Seems I would only need to do 7 credits beyond what I would get during my first two years of med school, and I could use my current research to help kick-start my thesis work. So all together it looks like I can do the MD/PhD in 6 years, if my research progresses well.

After talking with the pharm DGS I went up to the MD/PhD office to see if they have any handouts for their students on how to schedule rotations and all, and I was informed that I could in fact apply, now that I had my MD acceptance. They told me this on a Monday, and the app was due that Friday. So I scrambled and got it in, along with a new letter from my PI. I didn't think I had much of a chance, since my GPA and MCAT weren't stellar, but the application was free. Well, two weeks ago I got the big thick envelope with a letter infroming me that I was invited for an interview. Woohoo! My guess is that I got the interview because (a)I have significant research experience, and (b)I have very clear goals about what I want to do and have already made most of the arrangements. 'Cause it sure wasn't my undergrad GPA or MCAT scores that got me the interview (not that they were horrible....just not what I would consider to be typical MD/PhD material of >3.5 and >32). So we'll see how it goes. Maybe it's just a pitty interview.

So that's my story. And I'm sticking to it.

Questions and comments welcome.

 

[Adcadet]

oh, it may have helped that in my MD application I was also very clear about specifying that I wanted to go into academic medicine. So it wasn't like my MD application and MD/PhD app had two different personalities.