Honors thesis...yea or nay?

[dobbysamosa]

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I'm a graduating senior applying for MD/PhD this June, and I was wondering how much it would really benefit me to complete an honors thesis. I'm also taking the MCAT in April, so the researching/writing for the thesis will reduce my MCAT studying time per day.

My intuition tells me that an extra couple points on the MCAT will probably benefit me more than an honors thesis, given that I already have 3 publications, but what do you guys think?

Here's some stats about me:

* Senior graduating from UC Berkeley, gpa 3.76 (graduating with "honors" regardless of whether or not i complete the thesis)
* MCB major, emphasis biochemistry, and BioE minor
* 3 publications (2 of which are in the #1 journals of their respective fields)
* UCSF volunteering & clinical research (just started recently tho)

Any advice/insight you guys have would be appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Shatterstar17]

I think your instincts are sound. Your GPA is solid and your research experience sounds top-notch. The only thing you really have left to influence is your MCAT. Try to get it as high as possible so you get many interviews.

I really think an honors thesis will add little to your application, and when you look back in 20 years, what you'll remember is where you did your PhD, not if you hurriedly put something together in the last gasp of your undergrad.