Gap year advice

[Glum Gus]

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I'd like to ask for some advice. I just graduated from college, and am applying to MD/PhD programs this summer. I currently have two job options to fill my gap year:

1. An environmental consulting position
2. A financial services analyst position

I have been involved in environmental issues through extracurricular activities throughout my college career and have a deep interest in these issues. (However, at the entry level, job responsibilities can be tedious.) However, the financial services position has a much higher salary. (Both should have similar work/life balance.) I was thinking that a gap year not spent doing biomedical research would automatically raise red flags, but it might be much easier to justify spending a gap year in the environmental consulting position given my history of involvement. Any thoughts?

 

[achamess]

I'd go where the better salary is and where you'd likely make more valuable contacts for the future. If anyone asks you about it, or questions your commitment to biomedical research, you can explain that these were the options you had, and the financial services analyst position was the better of them. And if you're creative, you can convince interviewers and others that the skills you're getting at this job are translatable into any setting, including the lab.

Do the environmental one only if you think you'd really enjoy yourself more there.

 

[Neuronix]

My response was that I think you really need to be doing full-time biomedical research to prove your dedication to the MD/PhD biomedical research pathway. I think this will be an important point for adcoms. But as always I'd be interested in hearing if others agree or disagree with my position.

 

[achamess]

Agreed. Some kind of biomedical medical research would be ideal. Of the two options that the OP has, however, which do you think would be better? Or would adcoms be indifferent? In which case, I'd say, do the one that is better for the OP. What do you think Neuronix?

My response was that I think you really need to be doing full-time biomedical research to prove your dedication to the MD/PhD biomedical research pathway. I think this will be an important point for adcoms. But as always I'd be interested in hearing if others agree or disagree with my position.

 

[Neuronix]

Agreed. Some kind of biomedical medical research would be ideal. Of the two options that the OP has, however, which do you think would be better? Or would adcoms be indifferent? In which case, I'd say, do the one that is better for the OP. What do you think Neuronix?

It depends on spin. If you doing environmental consulting and it's very heavy on the chemistry and you're applying for a Biochemistry MD/PhD programs (or something related) you might be able to make it fit. In that case it's similar to doing research in industry instead of academia. But it might be too much of a stretch, and the details depend on the details of the position and of the applicant.