How do I get a research position at another school?

[LACMA]

Greetings and salutations to you good people of SDN 🙂

I was wondering how I could get into a research lab at the med school next to my university. How would I go about this? Just emailing faculty and asking if they have room for me? I kinda want to go into genetics research but I've only taken the Genetics course my school offers. I aced it, but my knowledge is limited. What's it like doing research at a big med school? Do you typically have grad students teaching you the basics and telling you how to do what?

Your insight is much appreciated.

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[lumpyduster]

I worked in a lab at my university and am now at Feinberg - I liked my lab at my Uni more because it was bigger and somewhat nicer in some aspects, even though it's considered less prestigious (large state school).

What I'm trying to say is, it varies. Just because it's a lab at a med school doesn't mean it's better than a lab at your college. Your experience will largely depend on your PI.

Labs work the same way - they are composed of postdocs, grad students, and undergrads. Don't worry about not knowing anything. Even if you had a course based masters in biology with a concentration in genetics you wouldn't be expected to know about the particulars of the research in any genetics lab, or how to do basic genotyping. They'll teach you everything you need to know and then the real fun begins!

We have undergrads from Evanston in the lab and they commute to downtown after their classes. So, I definitely think you could find someone to take you on. Email professors and explain why you'd like to join their lab - many won't reply or will say they won't have room but you should get a few positive replies if you email enough people!

Good luck!

 

[LACMA]

I worked in a lab at my university and am now at Feinberg - I liked my lab at my Uni more because it was bigger and somewhat nicer in some aspects, even though it's considered less prestigious (large state school).

What I'm trying to say is, it varies. Just because it's a lab at a med school doesn't mean it's better than a lab at your college. Your experience will largely depend on your PI.

Labs work the same way - they are composed of postdocs, grad students, and undergrads. Don't worry about not knowing anything. Even if you had a course based masters in biology with a concentration in genetics you wouldn't be expected to know about the particulars of the research in any genetics lab, or how to do basic genotyping. They'll teach you everything you need to know and then the real fun begins!

We have undergrads from Evanston in the lab and they commute to downtown after their classes. So, I definitely think you could find someone to take you on. Email professors and explain why you'd like to join their lab - many won't reply or will say they won't have room but you should get a few positive replies if you email enough people!

Good luck!

Thank you so much! I guess the reason I don't really know what it's like at a big school is because I go to a very tiny liberal arts college. Our PI is the only one who's the "big cheese" and he's really attentive and makes sure you understand everything. [I can't believe I said big cheese x) ]