Current DO students: Are you all doing research on the side of school? Is it necessary to do research in order to gain residency?

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Aloe paleo

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Hey current DO students! I'm getting a bit nervous about starting med school because I have been hearing how stressful and crazy it can get--but I'm also so excited :) I was wondering if some of you could tell me about your experiences adjusting to medical school, what other co-curriculars you do aside from all school work, and do you think research is an absolute necessity for matching into orthopedics or general surgery? thanks and all the best, stay safe and positive!

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For ortho.. absolutely absolute. You have no shot without it.
 
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They care about @AnatomyGrey12 signature. Ugh he might have removed the links. Google nrmp pd survey
 
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Volunteering??? Stop thinking like a premed.

Look up the program director's survey for 2018. This will tell you in gory detail what PDs want.
I’m still transitioning from premed to med ....
 
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Publish what you can, score as well as you can, bust your balls/ovaries and hope for the best.
 
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Hey, are you in ortho or planning to match in ortho? How do you manage full time school with research?
No im not ortho but know plenty of people who went ortho, but also the consensus on here regarding an ortho app (which is immensely harder to do as a DO)
 
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Volunteering??? Stop thinking like a premed.

Look up the program director's survey for 2018. This will tell you in gory detail what PDs want.
Also The nrmp page specifically mentions “volunteering” that’s why I put it there. Goro, you have been really helpful for giving me info, insight, opinions, etc, with the application process, but some of your implied feelings/undertones to your comments can be hurtful. I know I’m not perfect, and I’m sure I hurt people before, even on this forum, but this is just how I feel. Not sure if that was what you intended or if I’m perceiving wrong. Once again, you have been truly helpful and I know you give a lot of your time and energy to this page.
 
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For those that did research: did you mainly do it during summer or during semesters?
 
Most people at my institution aim to do research the summer between OMS-1 and OMS-2. I know its hard to imagine trying to do extracurriculars when you're just starting medical school. Focus on your grades when you first start the semester. Towards the end of first semester start to think about research opportunities (If thats what you think is best for you). This could mean reaching out to some of your faculty / applying to national summer research programs over christmas break.
 
For those that did research: did you mainly do it during summer or during semesters?


I saved my basic science research for the summer because I had to relocate to be able to work on it but I was working on case reports/journal reviews during second semester of OMS-I. I used my first semester to focus more on my class performance and study skills but once you get those down, you'll start finding time that you can dedicate to research opportunities. It'll take some extra time management and discipline on your end but it's necessary when wanting to match into competitive specialties.
 
For those that did research: did you mainly do it during summer or during semesters?

You need to balance research and classes. You need more than just completing a summer project on your app for a field like ortho. Research takes time and there are a lot of skills that are learned over time that help you become better and more productive. Starting early also allows you to build relationships which inevitably leads to strong connections, more projects, etc
 
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For Ortho it is an absolute must. I was under the impression that former AOA General Surgery wasn't research heavy but will call on @AnatomyGrey12 to clarify on my ignorance. Volunteering should be ONLY ONLY things you enjoy, this is not pre med anymore, as others have said.
 
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Also The nrmp page specifically mentions “volunteering” that’s why I put it there. Goro, you have been really helpful for giving me info, insight, opinions, etc, with the application process, but some of your implied feelings/undertones to your comments can be hurtful. I know I’m not perfect, and I’m sure I hurt people before, even on this forum, but this is just how I feel. Not sure if that was what you intended or if I’m perceiving wrong. Once again, you have been truly helpful and I know you give a lot of your time and energy to this page.
*sigh*....better not go to med school or residency in NY.

Did you note the low importance that volunteering has for Ortho PDs??????
 
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I was under the impression that former AOA General Surgery wasn't research heavy but will call on @AnatomyGrey12 to clarify on my ignorance.

No you are mostly correct. Most of the former AOA general surgery programs don't focus very much on research with a handful of exceptions. However, as competition slowly increases a little bit every year for these spots its going to become something that. probably gets looked at more. Most applicants will have some sort of research, be it a poster presentation or two, a case report, etc and if an applicant doesn't have at least something to put in that part of ERAS it's going to stand out.

But yeah, you definitely don't need peer reviewed pubs to match former AOA GS.
 
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Which other times do med students do research? Can you also benefit from publications you did before starting med school?

It was very hard to do research in between MS1 and MS2 because of the pandemic too
 
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Which other times do med students do research? Can you also benefit from publications you did before starting med school?

It was very hard to do research in between MS1 and MS2 because of the pandemic too

For people that weren't able to get anything done during preclinicals, I usually hear of people scrounging together case reports during M3. They're quick and can usually be done in a week or less. Yes, you can benefit from pubs from before med school.
 
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Hey current DO students! I'm getting a bit nervous about starting med school because I have been hearing how stressful and crazy it can get--but I'm also so excited :) I was wondering if some of you could tell me about your experiences adjusting to medical school, what other co-curriculars you do aside from all school work, and do you think research is an absolute necessity for matching into orthopedics or general surgery? thanks and all the best, stay safe and positive!
Gen surg no. Ortho yes
 
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So your board scores, research, and volunteering basically?
Volunteering means nothing for residency. Low yield activity as in dont do it unless youre genuinely interested in it. Its not like premed where you have to force yourself to do a bunch of **** you dont wanna do just to be competitive. Residency apps are so different than med school apps where in most specialties Step is king then Connections and research and if you want top tier IM or Derm/plastics AOA carries big weight
 
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I have done research, co-authored and presented during my SMP and OMSI. I just finished OMSII and studying for Step1.
As everyone mentioned above research and high board scores.
 
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