Independent Research

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813459

Hello Everyone!

So I have a research topic that I have come up with on my own and would like to pursue. However, I do not know how to make it legit enough, to add in my med school application. Can I work on an independent research/experimental project on my own without a PI and still be able to mention and discuss it in my app ( works and activities section)?

Thanks in advance!

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The short answer is, no. This is not something that you can do that will positively impact your application.

The long answer is that the purpose of research experience on someone's application is not to see how much they have contributed to science through research. The reality is that few undergrads each cycle make meaningful contributions to science that merit note on its own. Certainly happens, but it is not the norm. The purpose is to see if this is someone who may potentially do research in the future and beyond that, has some background that will help them be more productive in that realm down the road. Coming up with a topic is the easiest part of research. Everything else from there is learned one way or another. Is it possible to do everything on your own, of course it is. But, it is tremendously inefficient.

While scientific contribution is a great bonus, what we want as adcoms to know that you got from a research experience is mentorship. Did you learn how to read scientific papers? Did you learn how to design a hypothesis? Did you learn how to design an experiment? Did you get exposed to scientific writing? Did you deal with ethical considerations? Did you deal with regulatory issues? Did you lay the foundations in how to do any of that on your own? Unless you have previous experience in all of those things (and a dozen or so other areas), you are not going to make meaningful progress on your own. There are certainly people out there in their late teens, early twenties that contribute right away. But, to be frank, they generally have very early backgrounds and exposures and are very rare to boot.

The most practical advice is, find a PI that has similar interests to you and figure out how to help them with what they are doing. The goal being that if a good enough relationship evolves and they think you are ready to do things on your own, they will take an interest and support/help you do what you want to do.
 
Hello Everyone!

So I have a research topic that I have come up with on my own and would like to pursue. However, I do not know how to make it legit enough, to add in my med school application. Can I work on an independent research/experimental project on my own without a PI and still be able to mention and discuss it in my app ( works and activities section)?

Thanks in advance!

As long as you’re not doing anything unethical or illegal, and you’re actually getting something out of it, I don’t see why not.

Edit: I did two independent research projects, both of which yielded publications. I put them both on my app, and an adcom I spoke with in person said they were good additions (not make or break, since research experience is actually considered of low importance at public schools). *shrug* I’m guessing it will be at worst of no benefit and at best, something interesting to talk about.
 
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And what Contact can Sem123 use who will attest to the scientific integrity of the project?

I took the advice of the person I talked to and listed the editor of the journal.

Edit: my research also wasn’t wet lab or anything. Not sure how you’d do anything like that independently as an undergrad.
 
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