Historical Research?

[fzwarrior]

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I am looking at getting some research in and was thinking about joining a prof. who is studying medicine in ancient texts. Would this type of research look good on a med school application? Anyone else's research include history?

 

[DendWrite]

I think that this would fall under scholarship in general. It certainly won't hurt you and could help to set you apart. It sort of depends on your goals. If I had enough time to do research and had to choose between something like you mentioned and something science related, I'd go with the science related research. I don't -think- (though I may be wrong here) that "research" schools will consider this "research" by their standards. As in, it's not biomedical research (like you'd see in the MSAR). This doesn't mean it's less valuable, but if I had to guess, I'd say it would give you slightly less of an edge than something medical / science related.

 

[Marengo]

My research for my thesis is on a history of medicine topic, and I think it's been positively viewed by schools. I've interviewed at many top 25 research schools, and they never intimated that my research was viewed as less valuable than lab work- it actually gave me great material for interviews (I've also been accepted to a few of these schools already).
Go with the research that interests you most. I'm convinced that you thrive when you do what you're interested in, and med schools want to see your passion.

 

[redsquareblack]

I am looking at getting some research in and was thinking about joining a prof. who is studying medicine in ancient texts. Would this type of research look good on a med school application? Anyone else's research include history?

That sounds really interesting! I've never met anyone who has done medical history research, and I'd venture a guess that adcoms haven't met very many. I agree that it would help make you unique, it sounds really interesting, and it will probably make great fodder for discussion during an interview.

Whatever the case, in my opinion, you should always choose activities and research that you actually enjoy & are interested in. Yes, you need to have some boxes checked, but I wouldn't go too crazy worrying about what "looks good" on AMCAS.

Not having adcom experience, however, take my words with a grain of salt. Good luck, though! Damn, that sounds interesting.

 

[vanasme]

I was a history major and during my senior year, I was selected to participate in a small seminar at a major humanities research library. I wrote my honors undergrad thesis on emergency medicine during the Revolutionary War and worked closely with several faculty members to do my research. My paper won a handful of small awards and I'm definitely planning on mentioning it as "research" on my med school application. It might not be science research, but I think it'll be valuable, none the less. I hope adcoms find it interesting/worthwhile!

Edit: I was actually accepted into a PhD program for my research, but turned it down because I changed my mind and decided I wanted to go to med school instead... I'm not mentioning this to med schools, however, because I don't want them to think I'm overly indecisive! I know that I want to be a doctor of medicine and not have a doctorate in the history of medicine (In the distant future, I'd like to teach the history of medicine at medical schools)