How do some students have so many publications?

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Law2Doc said:
First, some people are able to devote a few hours toward research all 4 years. Second, some people take a year off to do research if they need it for a particular residency. Third, many people come into med school with a lot of research under their belts, some of which gets concluded and written up during early med school, finally, most people dont finish med school with more than a couple of new publications that originated during those years. 8 would be a lot.
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some people mommy and daddy have good friends and hookups to get their kids names on publications for minimal work.

ah medicine, the children from privileged backgrounds
 
PharmaTope said:
some people mommy and daddy have good friends and hookups to get their kids names on publications for minimal work.

ah medicine, the children from privileged backgrounds
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Truth. Plenty of people at my school get easy research connections + pubs because, "Oh, you're _____ son/daughter? Awesome."

The whole field is very reliant on nepotism / connections. It doesn't do the work for you, but it gives you tons of opportunity and chances that other individuals won't have.
 
Jack is Back said:
The whole field is very reliant on nepotism / connections. It doesn't do the work for you, but it gives you tons of opportunity and chances that other individuals won't have.
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and that's just the way life is, not just medicine. 🙁

at least we can be thankful that there are a lot of opportunities to work hard, do good work and get proper recognition.
 
On a side note, if your PI is really slow at publishing papers (especially ones that you are an author), are there any 'professional' ways to get him to hurry up and submit it?
 
drizzt3117 said:
Not necessarily; but I would get started ASAP.
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I liked the advice given in the previous post where I can see if I would have enough time depending how well I did on the first midterm. The problem is: We don't have any midterms and all our exams are clumped to the end of the year.
 
Hemichordate said:
On a side note, if your PI is really slow at publishing papers (especially ones that you are an author), are there any 'professional' ways to get him to hurry up and submit it?
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The only thing that would speed up is one's dismissal from the lab.
 
Hemichordate said:
On a side note, if your PI is really slow at publishing papers (especially ones that you are an author), are there any 'professional' ways to get him to hurry up and submit it?
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Yes, do the writing and submission process yourself.
 
Jack is Back said:
Truth. Plenty of people at my school get easy research connections + pubs because, "Oh, you're _____ son/daughter? Awesome."

The whole field is very reliant on nepotism / connections. It doesn't do the work for you, but it gives you tons of opportunity and chances that other individuals won't have.
Click to expand...

exactly, saw some girl in a lab i was in, came in and got publication. they were going to give her 2nd author on the pub when she did no work. the girl who worked her ass off and did the entire project was gonna be 3rd. she flipped the hell out and they switched it. i felt bad for her because she did all this work and some girl just strolled in for 2 hours a week for 4 weeks and got her name on it.

Megatron2016 said:
and that's just the way life is, not just medicine. 🙁

at least we can be thankful that there are a lot of opportunities to work hard, do good work and get proper recognition.
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ya but people in medicine constantly talk about how hard their life is and nobody could do what they do. constantly tell everyone to not do medicine then push their own kids to go into medicine. all smoke screen. many people in medicine love to sit around and circle jerk about their careers
 
I'd vote for the getting started from day 1 approach. You can always adjust the number of hours you spend per week but the truth is of you want significant research you need to get started early.

In retrospect I would have made contact with a PI before starting and gotten a project idea started. Then, after the first couple weeks of class I would have finalized the plan knowing how much time of have available.

Just my $0.02
 
PharmaTope said:
exactly, saw some girl in a lab i was in, came in and got publication. they were going to give her 2nd author on the pub when she did no work. the girl who worked her ass off and did the entire project was gonna be 3rd. she flipped the hell out and they switched it. i felt bad for her because she did all this work and some girl just strolled in for 2 hours a week for 4 weeks and got her name on it.



ya but people in medicine constantly talk about how hard their life is and nobody could do what they do. constantly tell everyone to not do medicine then push their own kids to go into medicine. all smoke screen. many people in medicine love to sit around and circle jerk about their careers
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Lol, truth on the last one. I know we work hard, but I've never seen such a big group of complainers.

Sheldor said:
I'd vote for the getting started from day 1 approach. You can always adjust the number of hours you spend per week but the truth is of you want significant research you need to get started early.

In retrospect I would have made contact with a PI before starting and gotten a project idea started. Then, after the first couple weeks of class I would have finalized the plan knowing how much time of have available.

Just my $0.02
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From day 1 approach would have been hard for me. I think having a semester under your belt is better, for the sake of doing well in courses.
 
Lunasly said:
I liked the advice given in the previous post where I can see if I would have enough time depending how well I did on the first midterm. The problem is: We don't have any midterms and all our exams are clumped to the end of the year.
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maybe midterm wasn't the correct phrase...i meant end of first semester. i think if you're comfortably high passing or honoring your classes at the end of the first semester then you should go ahead and pursue some research.
 
skinMD said:
maybe midterm wasn't the correct phrase...i meant end of first semester. i think if you're comfortably high passing or honoring your classes at the end of the first semester then you should go ahead and pursue some research.
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I'm inclined to agree with skin. I struggled the first few months to hit my rhythm and just recently honored a block in which they lowered the passing grade. Some people hit their stride faster then others, and some don't ever really hit a stride. You gotta know yourself and take it from there. But the important thing is that you make school your priority.
 
Don't mean to troll, but what is the big deal about te quantity of publications?

If anything, the role one plays in the study should have more weight than the number of papers.

In my opinion, a first author with 4 additional middle author papers is no more qualified than someone with "just" one first authorship.
 
CatFactorial said:
Don't mean to troll, but what is the big deal about te quantity of publications?

If anything, the role one plays in the study should have more weight than the number of papers.

In my opinion, a first author with 4 additional middle author papers is no more qualified than someone with "just" one first authorship.
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That's true, although a lot of the time interviewers are just flipping through that section of your eras and quantity > quality for that. That being said, I was first author on all but 1 of my pubs and 2 of my abstracts and was asked about my exact contribution and quality of journal by exactly one interviewer and nearly every one of the 100+ people I interviewed with talked about my research.
 
drizzt3117 said:
That's true, although a lot of the time interviewers are just flipping through that section of your eras and quantity > quality for that. That being said, I was first author on all but 1 of my pubs and 2 of my abstracts and was asked about my exact contribution and quality of journal by exactly one interviewer and nearly every one of the 100+ people I interviewed with talked about my research.
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Wait, so you were first author on like 30 pubs?😱

Please take me as your disciple and teach me the ways of pub-gunning.
 
DoubleFacepalm.png
 
Sheldor said:
I'd vote for the getting started from day 1 approach. You can always adjust the number of hours you spend per week but the truth is of you want significant research you need to get started early.

In retrospect I would have made contact with a PI before starting and gotten a project idea started. Then, after the first couple weeks of class I would have finalized the plan knowing how much time of have available.

Just my $0.02
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For fields where research is basically a requirement to match this is definitely a sound strategy.
 
2012mdc said:
For fields where research is basically a requirement to match this is definitely a sound strategy.
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I was thinking of this since my school is P/F and does not have any sort of AOA. I think we do have class rank, though. We don't have to write Step I in Canada (however I plan to).
 
drizzt3117 said:
meh, lots of people knew what they wanted to do before they went into med school, don't drink the sdn kool-aid about that. It makes sense, if you think about it; why wouldn't you have a good idea of what you want to do? Most peoples have some role models in medicine.

The research won't hurt you but it won't help as much as if you were going into that field.
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Finally...! This post is exactly what I'm talking about. This whole waiting until third year before making a move is nonsense. A lot of people know early, especially if you had a person that inspired you into medicine. At the least you should explore early if you have an interest. Like drizz, I had about 30 pubs and the match was way, way easier for it. Don't drink the general koolaid. Look, drizz and I definitely got lucky with our mentors but there is a lot of smart planning and execution that goes into play too. Your role models make a huge difference. Couldn't agree more with this post...right on.
 
dragon529 said:
@dermathalon... 30 pubs. Ok wait.. let me just slowly take that in. Too amazing to say the least.
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Warning: Long message.

First off, some of the posters in here are way too jaded...nepotism is everywhere but ordinary people can work their butt off and do well. I know several people that came from backgrounds where they were first generation and had no connections and just raw work ethic. Sure you'll find people that "stroll in a get publications" but, are you kidding me, the vast majority of the ones that get a lot worked their tail off. I too had a bunch of first author pubs and it was sheer and pure hard work with a lot of perseverence. My stuff was a mix of basic science, review, and short clinical papers (case reports, pilot studies, etc.). You are always juggling several papers at the same time. It does not take long for faculty to figure out if you are efficient as hell and they will feed you as much as you will eat. In fact, you will stand out and then they will let you call the shots for the project idea after they are satisfied with your work. No faster way to get publications than to become truly passionate about the work that you are doing...it's a snowball. I'm staying in academic medicine and it's not to so call "circle jerk", it's because it's a beautiful avenue of discovery...if you're too jaded to believe this, then I'm sorry that you feel that way. To boot, some of the richest people I know personally were academicians...I'm sure that's going to piss of the private practitioners that thought they had the financial part figured out. Academics gives you the front seat for entrepreneurial work and there are obviously ethical and unethical ways to do that. You have to have the social networking know-how though.

Secondly, it's clear that there needs to be more clarity on what a pub is. Pubs include everything like: oral presentations, abstracts, reviews, case reports, clinical pilot studies, book chapters, basic science manuscripts, survey based studies, epidemiological studies (retrospective and cross-sectional chart reviews as two examples), clinical trial manuscripts (BTW this is a true black hole for medical students because clinical trials, unless a pilot study, take a long time to publish...keep this in mind).

Thirdly, you get control of how quickly you publish when you take control of the submission cycle (agree with drizz). To do this, you need to find the right mentor who is not lazy. You also need to convince them with prior work that you are a hard worker. Find their publication list...if they publish a lot, it's pretty unlikely that they are lazy.

Fourth, most people count pubs because, guess what, bigger is better in their minds. You as an applicant should know that in research you should have a mix of high risk and low risk projects. It's not rocket science. The low risk projects should be stuff that is going to get published more easily while the high risk (basic science work for me) takes time but when it succeeds, you get an amazing paper out of it. No, I was not a PhD. For that matter, I find PhDs to be much more burnt out than MDs who work their tail off. I know several people that were co-interviewers for derm who published like mad and received 20+ interviews and matched with a cake walk. I applied derm and had a truly laid back experience with the match. A lot of people complain that it shouldn't be about quantity...well it is an important factor...there is no better way to show dedication than to repeatedly publish especially when you are truly interested in your publications. Everyone does clinical rotations and can do well in them. There is no better way to shine for the competitive residencies than to have the publication record that puts you over the top.

Fifth, you have to stay humble. The quickest ticket to not having success in research is to let you ego get in the way. The more collaborative you are, the more you will get out of research and the more people will want to work with you. I find it interesting to see the posts from people that are clearly jaded who talk about favoritism as if it is rampant everywhere...it's present but it's not the rule. There is no way in hell favoritism allows you to be a repeated first author...you will have to do the work to get that.

Sixth, starting early is key. I agree that taking the first semester/quarter to feel things out academically is important. This is why it is so important to go to a P/F school if you can help it. Grades do nothing but create more competition in an overly competitive environment. Most residencies emphasize step 1, AOA, and third year grades...Of course AOA may take 1st and 2nd year grades into account so you have to be ready. That said, if you know you would like to work with a certain PI, start early. Meet with them and let them know of you interest and more important why you are interested. The why is important and the how of approaching the PI/mentor is perhaps the most important.

Seven, don't just chase the bright lights in front of you. Just because you went to Harvard, UCSF, Stanford, etc, does not make you a better and more efficient student. Actually, I know a bunch of kick ass people from these institutions but I know a bunch of kick ass people from other institutions as well. The kool-aid version is that the average student at a top 5 med school is brighter than the average student elsewhere. What a great and useless line. Last time I checked, I wasn't planning on being average and last time I checked with patients, they don't want an average doctor. I know a bunch of people from top 5 medical schools that were also lazy as hell and wouldn't send any family members to them at all. Competitive residencies take from the cream of the crop and school doesn't make a difference. If you're cream of the crop, you'll make your path and find the right mentors to help you do that.

Like Drizz implies, everyone went into medicine because of someone or something that inspired you so you are biased coming in. Waiting until 3rd year to explore is a bad idea on so many levels. I think it's just bad advice and I never advise med students to wait until 3rd year to figure it out. If you have interests, explore early. If you wait until 3rd year, you will make decisions based on how you got along with your team rather than what the field may truly offer to you...you need to know that. Also, if you don't explore early, you may miss out on fields that aren't offered in the 3rd year, especially if you do have an interest.

Finally to answer the hypothetical question of isn't one good first author pub as good as having a first author AND a bunch of middle author pubs...yes, the one good first author pub should be counted the same and that a bunch of middle author pubs may not be that valuable. In fact, I love it when people talk about how they published in Cell when they were a fourth or a fifth author...BUT, rest assured that 10 first author publications will trump your one good first author paper (unless it is Nature, Cell, Science, JAMA, NEJM, etc), especially if there are a few good first author papers in those 10. Productivity and hard work are very desirable qualities and productivity in research is a very tangible evidence of this.

Guys, it's not rocket science. That said, no one said it was easy. That's why there are only a few that can put in the work to get there. But, it's not as hard as you think. Just so that you know I did not go to a top 25 medical school...I know that I had way more interviews than people that went to top 5 medical schools and I interviewed at their schools too. Yes, I have a social life and passionate hobbies/interests that are way outside of medicine.

If you prefer to be jaded about the process, then suit yourself. I realize that people have had a variety of experiences and some people really did have bad experiences and bad mentors...so I do respect the other point of view and my heart goes out and I'm truly sorry to hear about anyone that has been taken advantage of or screwed.
 
thanks a lot for the insight dermathlon -- your posts have been immensely helpful
 
dermathalon said:
Warning: Long message.

First off, some of the posters in here are way too jaded...nepotism is everywhere but ordinary people can work their butt off and do well. I know several people that came from backgrounds where they were first generation and had no connections and just raw work ethic. Sure you'll find people that "stroll in a get publications" but, are you kidding me, the vast majority of the ones that get a lot worked their tail off. I too had a bunch of first author pubs and it was sheer and pure hard work with a lot of perseverence. My stuff was a mix of basic science, review, and short clinical papers (case reports, pilot studies, etc.). You are always juggling several papers at the same time. It does not take long for faculty to figure out if you are efficient as hell and they will feed you as much as you will eat. In fact, you will stand out and then they will let you call the shots for the project idea after they are satisfied with your work. No faster way to get publications than to become truly passionate about the work that you are doing...it's a snowball. I'm staying in academic medicine and it's not to so call "circle jerk", it's because it's a beautiful avenue of discovery...if you're too jaded to believe this, then I'm sorry that you feel that way. To boot, some of the richest people I know personally were academicians...I'm sure that's going to piss of the private practitioners that thought they had the financial part figured out. Academics gives you the front seat for entrepreneurial work and there are obviously ethical and unethical ways to do that. You have to have the social networking know-how though.

Secondly, it's clear that there needs to be more clarity on what a pub is. Pubs include everything like: oral presentations, abstracts, reviews, case reports, clinical pilot studies, book chapters, basic science manuscripts, survey based studies, epidemiological studies (retrospective and cross-sectional chart reviews as two examples), clinical trial manuscripts (BTW this is a true black hole for medical students because clinical trials, unless a pilot study, take a long time to publish...keep this in mind).

Thirdly, you get control of how quickly you publish when you take control of the submission cycle (agree with drizz). To do this, you need to find the right mentor who is not lazy. You also need to convince them with prior work that you are a hard worker. Find their publication list...if they publish a lot, it's pretty unlikely that they are lazy.

Fourth, most people count pubs because, guess what, bigger is better in their minds. You as an applicant should know that in research you should have a mix of high risk and low risk projects. It's not rocket science. The low risk projects should be stuff that is going to get published more easily while the high risk (basic science work for me) takes time but when it succeeds, you get an amazing paper out of it. No, I was not a PhD. For that matter, I find PhDs to be much more burnt out than MDs who work their tail off. I know several people that were co-interviewers for derm who published like mad and received 20+ interviews and matched with a cake walk. I applied derm and had a truly laid back experience with the match. A lot of people complain that it shouldn't be about quantity...well it is an important factor...there is no better way to show dedication than to repeatedly publish especially when you are truly interested in your publications. Everyone does clinical rotations and can do well in them. There is no better way to shine for the competitive residencies than to have the publication record that puts you over the top.

Fifth, you have to stay humble. The quickest ticket to not having success in research is to let you ego get in the way. The more collaborative you are, the more you will get out of research and the more people will want to work with you. I find it interesting to see the posts from people that are clearly jaded who talk about favoritism as if it is rampant everywhere...it's present but it's not the rule. There is no way in hell favoritism allows you to be a repeated first author...you will have to do the work to get that.

Sixth, starting early is key. I agree that taking the first semester/quarter to feel things out academically is important. This is why it is so important to go to a P/F school if you can help it. Grades do nothing but create more competition in an overly competitive environment. Most residencies emphasize step 1, AOA, and third year grades...Of course AOA may take 1st and 2nd year grades into account so you have to be ready. That said, if you know you would like to work with a certain PI, start early. Meet with them and let them know of you interest and more important why you are interested. The why is important and the how of approaching the PI/mentor is perhaps the most important.

Seven, don't just chase the bright lights in front of you. Just because you went to Harvard, UCSF, Stanford, etc, does not make you a better and more efficient student. Actually, I know a bunch of kick ass people from these institutions but I know a bunch of kick ass people from other institutions as well. The kool-aid version is that the average student at a top 5 med school is brighter than the average student elsewhere. What a great and useless line. Last time I checked, I wasn't planning on being average and last time I checked with patients, they don't want an average doctor. I know a bunch of people from top 5 medical schools that were also lazy as hell and wouldn't send any family members to them at all. Competitive residencies take from the cream of the crop and school doesn't make a difference. If you're cream of the crop, you'll make your path and find the right mentors to help you do that.

Like Drizz implies, everyone went into medicine because of someone or something that inspired you so you are biased coming in. Waiting until 3rd year to explore is a bad idea on so many levels. I think it's just bad advice and I never advise med students to wait until 3rd year to figure it out. If you have interests, explore early. If you wait until 3rd year, you will make decisions based on how you got along with your team rather than what the field may truly offer to you...you need to know that. Also, if you don't explore early, you may miss out on fields that aren't offered in the 3rd year, especially if you do have an interest.

Finally to answer the hypothetical question of isn't one good first author pub as good as having a first author AND a bunch of middle author pubs...yes, the one good first author pub should be counted the same and that a bunch of middle author pubs may not be that valuable. In fact, I love it when people talk about how they published in Cell when they were a fourth or a fifth author...BUT, rest assured that 10 first author publications will trump your one good first author paper (unless it is Nature, Cell, Science, JAMA, NEJM, etc), especially if there are a few good first author papers in those 10. Productivity and hard work are very desirable qualities and productivity in research is a very tangible evidence of this.

Guys, it's not rocket science. That said, no one said it was easy. That's why there are only a few that can put in the work to get there. But, it's not as hard as you think. Just so that you know I did not go to a top 25 medical school...I know that I had way more interviews than people that went to top 5 medical schools and I interviewed at their schools too. Yes, I have a social life and passionate hobbies/interests that are way outside of medicine.

If you prefer to be jaded about the process, then suit yourself. I realize that people have had a variety of experiences and some people really did have bad experiences and bad mentors...so I do respect the other point of view and my heart goes out and I'm truly sorry to hear about anyone that has been taken advantage of or screwed.
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Dermathalon, thank you so much for your input 😀. I really appreciate your post but I have a couple of questions, because you were publishing Derm abstracts how did you know which journal to submit your abstract to? I know AAD is one place you can present but what are some other conferences and journals that are Derm-related that medical students can submit to? Did you get Junior or Senior AOA as well? Lastly, what if you know what speciality you are interested in but you're not quite sure on the area of research because you never researched in that field before, should we shadow a couple of labs or something?
 
dermocrat88 said:
Dermathalon, thank you so much for your input 😀. I really appreciate your post but I have a couple of questions, because you were publishing Derm abstracts how did you know which journal to submit your abstract to? I know AAD is one place you can present but what are some other conferences and journals that are Derm-related that medical students can submit to? Did you get Junior or Senior AOA as well? Lastly, what if you know what speciality you are interested in but you're not quite sure on the area of research because you never researched in that field before, should we shadow a couple of labs or something?
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No problem at all about the post...it's things that I've picked up along the way.

For derm, you can submit to AAD, SID, and another other conference that may be relevant along the way. I was Junior AOA.

The mentor is more important than the area of research. Keep that in consideration when you choose. Shadowing is a good idea and you should talk to them about the research projects that they may have available. If the person comes of as difficult to talk to, it's a red flag. If the person is very open to hear your ideas and has a good publication record, I would think about working with that person.
 
What is a good amount of publications to see if a PI you're looking at is "not lazy" (or just productive let's say)?

And how would you factor little undergraduate research experience into this?
 
dermathalon said:
No problem at all about the post...it's things that I've picked up along the way.

For derm, you can submit to AAD, SID, and another other conference that may be relevant along the way. I was Junior AOA.

The mentor is more important than the area of research. Keep that in consideration when you choose. Shadowing is a good idea and you should talk to them about the research projects that they may have available. If the person comes of as difficult to talk to, it's a red flag. If the person is very open to hear your ideas and has a good publication record, I would think about working with that person.
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This may seem naive, but what would you qualify as a good publication record, or one that's good enough that someone who has 30 pubs would be willing to work with? 😉
 
dragon529 said:
I think the PI should have at least 3 pubs a year to be considered active and worth your time as a MS.
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Thank you dermathalon! 😀

I feel like I am about to ask a stupid question, but I will ask it anyway:

If the PI publishes his or her research 3 times a year, doesn't that mean, at most, you will also only be able to publish 3 times a year. Assuming you do research in all years except 3rd year, then that is 9 publications in total.

I am guessing the solution to this problem is to get involved with more than one PI?
 
Frazier said:
Remember, when thinking of the often cited numerical means from "Charting Outcomes", abstracts & presentations & manuscripts are ALL included under the umbrella figure of "7.5" for students that successfully matched derm. (IIRC, you are shooting for a diff specialty [same as me], one that will remained unnamed heh, so your respective mean of interest is rather "8.3")

I would hardly consider the occurrence of one achieving 9 manuscript publications during med school as a "problem"...even if gunning hard for competitive residencies. 😉

...especially since it would be reasonable to assume that the aforementioned student would also have a number of abstracts and presentations to their credit when involved so heavily.
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I like the way you phrase your sentences. 😍
 
Frazier said:
Remember, when thinking of the often cited numerical means from "Charting Outcomes", abstracts & presentations & manuscripts are ALL included under the umbrella figure of "7.5" for students that successfully matched derm. (IIRC, you are shooting for a diff specialty [same as me], one that will remained unnamed heh, so your respective mean of interest is rather "8.3")

I would hardly consider the occurrence of one achieving 9 manuscript publications during med school as a "problem"...even if gunning hard for competitive residencies. 😉

...especially since it would be reasonable to assume that the aforementioned student would also have a number of abstracts and presentations to their credit when involved so heavily.
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Does your expectation fall if you had little undergraduate research?
 
Law2Doc said:
They "count", but are weighted significantly less.
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This was in regards to a publication during undergrad as opposed to something published during med school.

I'm not disagreeing with you as you obviously have more experience in applying to residency programs than I do, but I wonder why this is.

I mean, a first author publication in a good journal is still a first author publication in a good journal regardless of whether or not the research was done prior to or during med school. Having a first author publication on your CV isn't something a ton of students have and is still pretty impressive in my book regardless of when the paper was published.
 
SoundofSilver said:
This was in regards to a publication during undergrad as opposed to something published during med school.

I'm not disagreeing with you as you obviously have more experience in applying to residency programs than I do, but I wonder why this is.

I mean, a first author publication in a good journal is still a first author publication in a good journal regardless of whether or not the research was done prior to or during med school. Having a first author publication on your CV isn't something a ton of students have and is still pretty impressive in my book regardless of when the paper was published.
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PDs will question how much a pre-med is really able to contribute to said manuscript. That being said, I have had manuscripts published prior to med school that were discussed at interviews, they were basic science pubs in high IF journals (i.e. JAMA/Science/Cell/NEJM)
 
dermathalon said:
No problem at all about the post...it's things that I've picked up along the way.

For derm, you can submit to AAD, SID, and another other conference that may be relevant along the way. I was Junior AOA.

The mentor is more important than the area of research. Keep that in consideration when you choose. Shadowing is a good idea and you should talk to them about the research projects that they may have available. If the person comes of as difficult to talk to, it's a red flag. If the person is very open to hear your ideas and has a good publication record, I would think about working with that person.
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Dermathalon,

How did you manage to be so efficient in your studying and research at the same time? In other words, can you give us an idea on your studying tactics and how you managed your time? I am just curious since there are only 24 hours in a day. Did you sleep for only 6 and decided to eat, sleep and breathe your basic science courses and research? At your school, was Junior AOA based on Step 1 scores or both grades and scores? Last question, I know the AAD has a mentorship program should we use that program as a gateway in finding the perfect mentor ^_^.
 
Frazier said:
Remember, when thinking of the often cited numerical means from "Charting Outcomes", abstracts & presentations & manuscripts are ALL included under the umbrella figure of "7.5" for students that successfully matched derm. (IIRC, you are shooting for a diff specialty [same as me], one that will remained unnamed heh, so your respective mean of interest is rather "8.3")

I would hardly consider the occurrence of one achieving 9 manuscript publications during med school as a "problem"...even if gunning hard for competitive residencies. 😉

...especially since it would be reasonable to assume that the aforementioned student would also have a number of abstracts and presentations to their credit when involved so heavily.
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I know the specialty 😛. What is the meaning of IIRC?
 
dermocrat88 said:
I know the specialty 😛. What is the meaning of IIRC?
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IIRC = if I recall correctly
and I know it too, and it's the main one I'm leaning towards too, so I want in on the pow wow 😀.
 
dermathalon said:
Warning: Long message.

Secondly, it's clear that there needs to be more clarity on what a pub is. Pubs include everything like: oral presentations, abstracts, reviews, case reports, clinical pilot studies, book chapters, basic science manuscripts, survey based studies, epidemiological studies (retrospective and cross-sectional chart reviews as two examples), clinical trial manuscripts (BTW this is a true black hole for medical students because clinical trials, unless a pilot study, take a long time to publish...keep this in mind).
Click to expand...

Great post dermathalon!

I was wondering if you, or anyone else for that matter, could describe what some of these terms mean? Particularly I'm not to sure what an abstract is in this freestanding form.
 
I'm still laughing at the poster who coined the term "pub-gunning." Hilarious.
 
dermocrat88 said:
Dermathalon,

How did you manage to be so efficient in your studying and research at the same time? In other words, can you give us an idea on your studying tactics and how you managed your time? I am just curious since there are only 24 hours in a day. Did you sleep for only 6 and decided to eat, sleep and breathe your basic science courses and research? At your school, was Junior AOA based on Step 1 scores or both grades and scores? Last question, I know the AAD has a mentorship program should we use that program as a gateway in finding the perfect mentor ^_^.
Click to expand...

If you use a time machine, you can get in around 66-70 hours in a day. Only gunners know how to access it though.
 
Frazier said:
Don't worry, man. Here's the plan: I'll put you as co-author on my projects and you put me as co-author on your projects... :highfive:

You do 15 and I'll do 15...bumping us automatically up to the 30-baller-status. We can't lose. 😉
Click to expand...
sounds like a plan, I'll see you at harvard in 5 years.

JP2740 said:
I'm still laughing at the poster who coined the term "pub-gunning." Hilarious.
Click to expand...
thanks, though some jerk posted a facepalm pic in response to that. IDK if he just had no sense of humor and took it literally, or just posts facepalm pics because it makes him feel cool
 
Sephiroth said:
]sounds like a plan, I'll see you at harvard in 5 years.
[/B]

thanks, though some jerk posted a facepalm pic in response to that. IDK if he just had no sense of humor and took it literally, or just posts facepalm pics because it makes him feel cool
Click to expand...

Tactical_76914c_133816.jpg
 
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