I have a research/teaching heavy app, and I'm not sure if I should mention academics in my personal statement.

[lull]

Is there a demand for physicians in academia, or are position just as difficult to come by as someone getting a PhD? I'm working on my personal statement early, and I realized that my personal statement and extracurriculars have a heavy teaching/research focus, and I mention wanting to go into academia/enjoying teaching quite a bit. I've heard on here that it's not a good idea to bring up wanting to go into a competitive specialty, should I avoid mentioning an interest in academia for the same reasons?

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[Blueprint Med School]

No. It's bad to say you're interested in competitive specialties because it's just like how 50% of a college's freshman class comes in as "premed" and only around 10% of that class will matriculate into medical school (anecdotal data from my undergrad). Everybody comes in wanting to do ortho until they realize how difficult it is to get ortho. Additionally, not to dig at any specialty, but the applicant applying to medical school saying they want to do dermatology (or other similar uber-competitive specialty) without any experience in derm or any real reason to want to do derm is going to be perceived as going into medicine for all the wrong reasons. Look into derm stereotypes if you're curious what that means. If you're interested in academia and it fits your narrative, then you should absolutely talk about that interest.

Kevin W, MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[DNAJB6]

No. It's bad to say you're interested in competitive specialties because it's just like how 50% of a college's freshman class comes in as "premed" and only around 10% of that class will matriculate into medical school (anecdotal data from my undergrad). Everybody comes in wanting to do ortho until they realize how difficult it is to get ortho. Additionally, not to dig at any specialty, but the applicant applying to medical school saying they want to do dermatology (or other similar uber-competitive specialty) without any experience in derm or any real reason to want to do derm is going to be perceived as going into medicine for all the wrong reasons. Look into derm stereotypes if you're curious what that means. If you're interested in academia and it fits your narrative, then you should absolutely talk about that interest.

Kevin W, MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

I think you're over generalizing. I do not want to be an orthopedic surgeon. I know many fellow pre-meds that feel the same way. I'm leaning towards academics and neurology or IM/EM.

 

[LunaOri]

It's fine to mention academics, because that is your interest, and you have valid experience to support that.

 

[LizzyM]

Some schools are particularly interested in training people for careers in academic medicine including teaching, research and patient care. Do keep in mind that teaching in medical school if much more like coaching with assessment of competence in a specific skill than it is teaching in a college classroom (there is some of that but not as much as hands-on demonstrations and providing feedback as a student attempts a skill multiple times. Just be sure that is what you have in mind when you say "teaching".