Hi, applying this summer but maybe from a strange background

[meowkat444]

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Hey--I know I'm going to be hanging out around here a lot, so I wanted to introduce myself. You all seem very informed and supportive!!

I have a couple of questions. I have been in love with cognitive science research for years, and my first primary publication was accepted when I was a junior in college. I got incredibly frustrated with lack of medical applicability in my lab, however, and took some time after college to soul search. After two years out of college in public service (Teach for America), i have come to the conclusion that MSTP is the perfect fit/solution. I'm doing pre-med classes now, after work at UCLA. I guess I'm trying to figure out if I have a decent shot at good programs if I do go ahead and apply this summer. If you could help me figure out if I need to wait a year or not, then I would love to talk! Anyone else approaching after time away from school, or from a non-BS major?

pros about my application:
3.7 from an ivy, with postbacc classes going well
2 years of undergrad research in 2 labs yielding one first-auther pub, with experience in another lab during a summer
a research job starting in june at a schizophrenia lab
good service-oriented extracurrics

cons:
taking the mcat in july, so scores go in late
won't be done with some of my prereqs when I apply... specifically, a quarter of physics and a semester of biochem
is a cognitive science degree a disadvantage?
Not to mention i have spent the last year and a half in a non-research field, teaching chemistry. It's not that i was wavering on a scientific career choice, it's just that i knew that straight PhD was not going to make me happy and it took me some time to figure out what would.
my research experience was not in biology, and my phd would be somewhere in behavioral neuroscience (dream career: neurology lab with some practice, researching patients with cognitive processing disorders in order to fix them and understand the working systems. vague? but i'm sure all will become clearer as my education progresses!)

MUCH APPRECIATED! Hope acceptances keep rolling in for y'all 🙂

 

[LaDandouna]

Given your background, I am assuming you don't want to pursue a PhD in biology per say. For that, there are many MSTP or MD/PhD programs like Harvard's, Yale's, Dartmouth's, Chicago and many others who offer PhD's in non-traditional science fields. During one of my MSTP interviews, I met an MSTP student who was doing her PhD in History (History of medicine).
To make you feel better, having a non-traditional science background and wanting to pursue an MD/PhD might be a plus for many of the big programs. The trick is that you need to know where to apply and how to sell yourself.

 

[ThatOne]

I think your GPA is fine, your research experience is fine and Teach for America should actually help your application. Tell interviewers that it was a great time for you to deeply think about what you wanted to pursue, and how the time to reflect has really given you the confidence that the MD-PhD program is prefect for you, if you're really worried about it.

The biggest issue -- taking the MCATs late. There are a LOT of places I'm pretty sure that I didn't get interviewed at simply because slots were filled up by the time they looked at my application. You should aim to have submitted secondaries at least a month (if not two months!) before the official secondary deadlines (most are Nov 15 - Dec 15, although at least one I applied to was Oct 15th). I'm guessing a lot of schools might not look at your application in order to even send you secondaries until they've received your scores.

That coupled with the fact you won't have completed some of the prereqs... well, I might advise taking another year off if you don't mind the delay. It might turn out the best -- the application is nerve-wracking, expensive and time consuming, and I know am very glad I won't have to go through it again!

Hey--I know I'm going to be hanging out around here a lot, so I wanted to introduce myself. You all seem very informed and supportive!!

I have a couple of questions. I have been in love with cognitive science research for years, and my first primary publication was accepted when I was a junior in college. I got incredibly frustrated with lack of medical applicability in my lab, however, and took some time after college to soul search. After two years out of college in public service (Teach for America), i have come to the conclusion that MSTP is the perfect fit/solution. I'm doing pre-med classes now, after work at UCLA. I guess I'm trying to figure out if I have a decent shot at good programs if I do go ahead and apply this summer. If you could help me figure out if I need to wait a year or not, then I would love to talk! Anyone else approaching after time away from school, or from a non-BS major?

pros about my application:
3.7 from an ivy, with postbacc classes going well
2 years of undergrad research in 2 labs yielding one first-auther pub, with experience in another lab during a summer
a research job starting in june at a schizophrenia lab
good service-oriented extracurrics

cons:
taking the mcat in july, so scores go in late
won't be done with some of my prereqs when I apply... specifically, a quarter of physics and a semester of biochem
is a cognitive science degree a disadvantage?
Not to mention i have spent the last year and a half in a non-research field, teaching chemistry. It's not that i was wavering on a scientific career choice, it's just that i knew that straight PhD was not going to make me happy and it took me some time to figure out what would.
my research experience was not in biology, and my phd would be somewhere in behavioral neuroscience (dream career: neurology lab with some practice, researching patients with cognitive processing disorders in order to fix them and understand the working systems. vague? but i'm sure all will become clearer as my education progresses!)

MUCH APPRECIATED! Hope acceptances keep rolling in for y'all 🙂

 

[Circumflex]

Most everything looks good. The only disadvantages I could see are the late MCAT and not having finished Physics. I know that the application process sucks, but what do you have to lose? I think the fact that you have taken time to think about your future (and mature) and done something productive with your time are both to your advantage.

Despite your previous major and research experience, I think you would fit nicely into a neuroscience program. And, you don't have to do molecular biology research for your PhD. I'm sure that you could find a neurologist doing similar cognitive neuroscience to work with. Worst case is that you don't get it this year. So, either work and do some research on the side, or maybe get a job working in the area of research you want to eventually do. Good luck.

 

[meowkat444]

thanks for your responses, please anyone else feel free to give advice.

thatone, if you don't mind me asking, when did you take mcat and get secondary apps in? i could potentially push my mcat up to early july, but anytime before that will probably hurt my performance on it. if i take it in early july, it says the scores come back august 13, so if i have a quick-as-humany-possible turnaround for secondaries, think there's a chance i could get them in fast enough so as not to kill my chances?

has anyone here gone through the application process twice? advise? should i go for it this year and then try again if i don't like the schools i get into or don't get in anywhere?

do any of you think that not applying until my 3rd year out of college (to start hte programs four years out) is too late and might hurt my acceptances? given that these programs are so long, they might prefer youngins?

 

[TheGalvaniFrog]

Given your background, I am assuming you don't want to pursue a PhD in biology per say. For that, there are many MSTP or MD/PhD programs like Harvard's, Yale's, Dartmouth's, Chicago and many others who offer PhD's in non-traditional science fields. During one of my MSTP interviews, I met an MSTP student who was doing her PhD in History (History of medicine).
To make you feel better, having a non-traditional science background and wanting to pursue an MD/PhD might be a plus for many of the big programs. The trick is that you need to know where to apply and how to sell yourself.

I am curious, which school allow humanities PhD in combination with MD? Isn't it true that most humanities PhD programs are not supported so the student have to pay for that portion too? And humanities PhD on the average take longer than hard science PhD. I mean, I love history but I can't imagine toiling 5+ years on it all the while accruing debt from both MD and PhD program.😱

 

[LaDandouna]

I am pretty sure there was an MD/PhD at Yale in philosophy at some point...There is currently one in psychology and I heard about one on theology at some point in the past....I know the psychology one is funded by MSTP but I am not sure if the other ones were funded or not....The history one was at Dartmouth...it is was an MD/PhD not MSTP...

 

[LaDandouna]

Actually. I take the history one back...she is doing her stuff still through some deprtment in the medical school although it is not quite something purely scientific...

 

[ThatOne]

thatone, if you don't mind me asking, when did you take mcat and get secondary apps in? i could potentially push my mcat up to early july, but anytime before that will probably hurt my performance on it. if i take it in early july, it says the scores come back august 13, so if i have a quick-as-humany-possible turnaround for secondaries, think there's a chance i could get them in fast enough so as not to kill my chances?

It wasn't my MCAT scores that made me late, but rather traveling. I got my primaries in late August, thinking that that was 1.5 months early, considering the AMCAS deadline is Oct. 16th. However, AMCAS took forever to process to my application and verify it. Once they verified it, schools took a while to send me secondaries. I got most of my secondaries October to early November. So, I don't know how it works with a late MCAT, whether AMCAS will still verify your transcript etc. and whether schools will still start to send you secondaries etc. Call AMCAS and ask, would be my advice. Oh, and let us know what you find out. 🙂

Also, from another thread, Dr. Watson's input on when to submit primaries:

Go ahead and submit in June. The longer you wait, the longer it takes for AMCAS to approve your app. (Last year early June turn around was 3-5 days, end of June post-April score release was 3 weeks, July takes like 4-6 weeks). Secondaries start to come in July, mostly towards the end of the month. If there were early deadlines, it was within a month. Mostly the deadlines were much later in the fall. As long as you have internet access occassionally toward the end of July and during early August, you'll be fine.
I was complete (LORs & secondaries) by mid September. I ended up with the first MD/PhD interview days at most of the places I applied.