Interested in MD/PhD

[Salient]

Hey all!

I was hoping for a little bit of advice, and thought that maybe you guys could offer a little.

I went to college for one year as an art major back in 2001, but failed two or three classes because I never went and got Bs and Cs on the rest because I didn't do homework (in art, hah! Homework is all there is!).

I joined the Marines for a structured environment to help me build my self-discipline while deciding what to do with the rest of my life, and I've come to a point where I feel like I've learned everything I can from that environment.

I've applied for and been accepted to a B.S. Biochemistry program, on track to finish in three years.
1st Year: Bio/GChem/Calculus
2nd Year: Physics/A&P/OChem
3rd Year: Biochem

I'm not scared of the academic aspect of doing the core courseload in 3 years, but I'm a little worried that it might not give me enough time to get involved with enough research to make me competitive for the PhD programs. As an alternative to medicine, I'm also considering some pure graduate programs like toxicology.

Thoughts/Suggestions?

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[JHopRevisit]

You seem to have a good plan and have things on track. With the way your previous academic experience went, there will be tremendous pressure to show that the discipline you hopefully picked up in the marines will serve you well. You should be shooting for top grades, A's and a few B's maybe, especially because biochemistry at the undergraduate level often lends itself to memorization , so studying hard gets you 90% of the way to a good grade.

I also like that you are keeping an open mind at this point and have several options on the table. Have you shadowed any doctors? If you can, contact a few physicians and start feeling out whether that lifestyle appeals to you. You might enjoy volunteering at the VA, I don't have a military background but I loved hanging out with the guys. Of course, any type of shadowing situation that interests you is a good step. Basically, you want to gain familiarity with the clinical and research aspects of an MD/PhD before you start thinking about whether and how you want to combine the two.

As far as research, you'll want to get on that as soon as possible. Are you doing any research this summer? IMHO, summers are the ideal time to get started in a lab because you have a free schedule and can tag along and pick up techniques while you get settled in. This isn't a hard and fast rule, but I think you should aim for at least one summer and two academic years of research experience, although more (on the order of two summers and three years) would be preferable. Then again, since you were up and down with your coursework last time, at least the first semester you might just want to focus on school. My recommendation is, if you can quickly get into a lab for this summer I would do it (I think eight weeks is a minimum time to get anything out of it, but again, not a hard and fast rule), but when you start school try to take at least the first semester off and focus on your classes.

 

[Salient]

Well I'm still "in" until a few weeks before school starts in September, so I'll only be able to do any kind of research if anyone has room for a volunteer on weekday evenings or on Sundays. I e-mailed by Biology Prof about it since she's well connected with many scientists in the area, but I'm not holding my breath.

Thanks for the tips!

 

[QofQuimica]

Is there any reason why you must finish your degree in three years instead of the normal four? I ask for two reasons: 1) you absolutely, positively *must* earn excellent grades this time around, and 2) you may not have enough time to do significant research and get clinical experience if you're focused on #1, particularly with an accelerated course load. I would suggest going to school for the normal four years so that you have time to build up your research and clinical record while maintaining an excellent GPA. If cost is an issue, you are now a veteran, so you may be eligible for the GI bill (worth looking into if you haven't already).

It is infinitely better to do your UG degree at the normal pace and do well, rather than rushing and having to do further damage control because you tried to take on too much and couldn't handle it all. You are not going to be starting medical or graduate school at age 22 no matter what you do now, so you may as well take the extra year to make your app as competitive as it possibly can be. I say this as someone who started medical school at age 31. Best of luck to you.

 

[Salient]

I'll have to think about that.

I am thinking that if I treat my undergrad like medical school and really take it seriously, I should be able to have my cake and eat it too. I'm not doing 4 years of coursework in 3 years, I'm just doing (almost) all of the core work for 4 years in 3. Several of my generals are taken care of, so I will only be taking an average of about 16 credits a quarter (with a couple classes each summer).

One year isn't really a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but I'm really chomping at the bit to get on with my life and don't want to take any more time than I have to.

 

[Brunette1981]

I guess I would worry more about having to take classes in the summertime than about your normal year courseload. I think it's expected undergrads don't have as much time during the school year so shooting for 10-20 hours a week in lab is reasonable but then you are expected to stay on in your lab over the summer and be able to put in the 50-60 hour weeks that move the project along. Plus at some point you need to take 1-2 months to study for the MCAT without much research or other classwork going on.

If you think you can realistically do that in 3 years, more power to you. But bear in mind summer classes are compressed so they are many more hours per day and relatively less time to learn/process/do well with the information. I'd avoid booking all your summers with classes if you can - focus on research and the MCAT during those times.