interesting ways to spend MS1/MS2 summer?

[biggoron42]

i realize it is early to be thinking about the summer, but i like fantasizing about what i'm going to do with all that free time - it helps the sanity. and of course, a lot of summer opportunities have early spring application deadlines, so thinking early probably doesn't hurt.

anyway, i'm posting this to ask if any of you did or will do something "interesting" in your last summer.

the school i attend loves for students to stay on campus over the summer pipetting liquids and such; they'll even give us $3,000 for the work. most kids do this because they think it'll "help their career" and because everyone else is doing it, but i happen to not like research, and i fail to see how two months of lackluster work in which i'm liable to leave my PI less than impressed will help in any way when i'm filling out residency apps. token research? no thank you.

so did any of you out there do something else? travel? community work? second language acquisition? writing programs? etc. i'd be interested to hear. not to copy off your idea - i already have some thoughts on what i'd like to do - but to see what creative thoughts all of you have.
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[Writer1985]

I feel the same way. When they had the big "What to do over the summer" presentation, the guy was like "Do whatever you want. And what you want should be research."

Do you have an advisor or mentor you can go to for suggestions? I talked to mine the other day, and even though she's 100% research, she knows people with other interests and gave me contact info for those whose interests match up with mine.

 

[biggoron42]

i do have an advisor, but while he is not a hardcore research dude, i don't think he really knows of too many summer options himself. it's why i'm trying to dig stuff out myself.

what kind of things were you thinking of doing?

 

[Mr. Freeze]

I spent 10 days in Aruba celebrating 10 years of marital bliss and 3 weeks road-tripping in Ireland. And drinking. A lot. The rest of the time I spent catching up with my son and doing all the home maintenance that had slipped over the course of the year.

It's your life and career. But my 2¢ is that this is your last real summer. Don't spend it in a lab. Do something you won't regret. I left in May not wanting to do anything even medically related all summer. The only slip I had was when my mom went to the ER and had a workup to r/o PE, so I had to brush up on what the standards were, since I didn't agree with everything. Other than that, I didn't stray...

 

[45408]

here's what I did - two weeks in Europe. A week in London and a week in Paris with my lovely wife. It was awesome, and I'm very very glad I did it.

saw Othello being performed here, for five pounds each (standing room, haha)

okay, I'm done whoring out my pics

 

[etudiante04]

run a marathon

 

[Pinkertinkle]

I pipetted, it paid off.

 

[biggoron42]

thanks for the replies so far, folks.

a.) europe is great, i actually backpacked there solo for a month or so this past summer. i'd love to do it again (unfortunately for me, at least, i don't have money anymore lol). i do have visions of perhaps traveling in south america/mexico and learning spanish. i'm currently looking at some options there.

b.) i have no doubt that "pipetting" can pay great rewards if one is highly motivated all summer long and has long-term visions of a research-oriented career. but if i end up doing research - and i think there are a lot of other people out there like me - i'll just clock in for my 40 hours a week and that's all. i think most PIs/mentors can see through this kind of work, and i don't think it leads to the best recommendation letters down the line.

i'm not capable of pretending or "powering through", something i learned while trying to tick boxes for my medical school application a few years ago. now that i'm in a good US school, i'm done ticking boxes; if it hurts my career options, well then those aren't options i really want anyway </off soapbox/>

c.) here are some things i am currently considering:
1.) learning spanish in mexico or south america
2.) traveling in a cheaper area than europe - maybe india
3.) applying to a summer writing workshop program
4.) participating in our schools community action track summer program

we don't have a global health office where i attend school, so most of those kinds of options are closed to me.

 

[biggoron42]

also prowler, not going to the globe theater while in london is a regret of mine

 

[erin682]

I backpacked on the appalachian trail and it was great, though not everyone's cup of tea. I started second year in great shape and now as a fourth year I'm getting research on my CV by doing a project in my spare time.

 

[TMP-SMX]

Is there enough time for vacation and a little clinical research? Maybe. We shall see. I did 2.5 years of bench research. I don't think any more is neccessary and I know enough from working as an undergrad that a summer is just not enough to produce quality research.

Clinical research on the other hand is a whole lot quicker and you can do chart reviews pretty easily.

 

[Nataliemay24]

i'm planning on trying to work as an assistant/intern/coffee-fetcher to the medical advisors on a show such as House or Scrubs (though that last one will be off the air by the time my M1/M2 summer comes). no one steal my idea please. or maybe sanjay gupta's writer's assistant needs an assistant for the summer.

 

[sassalicious]

thanks for the replies so far, folks.

a.) europe is great, i actually backpacked there solo for a month or so this past summer. i'd love to do it again (unfortunately for me, at least, i don't have money anymore lol). i do have visions of perhaps traveling in south america/mexico and learning spanish. i'm currently looking at some options there.

b.) i have no doubt that "pipetting" can pay great rewards if one is highly motivated all summer long and has long-term visions of a research-oriented career. but if i end up doing research - and i think there are a lot of other people out there like me - i'll just clock in for my 40 hours a week and that's all. i think most PIs/mentors can see through this kind of work, and i don't think it leads to the best recommendation letters down the line.

i'm not capable of pretending or "powering through", something i learned while trying to tick boxes for my medical school application a few years ago. now that i'm in a good US school, i'm done ticking boxes; if it hurts my career options, well then those aren't options i really want anyway </off soapbox/>

c.) here are some things i am currently considering:
1.) learning spanish in mexico or south america
2.) traveling in a cheaper area than europe - maybe india
3.) applying to a summer writing workshop program
4.) participating in our schools community action track summer program

we don't have a global health office where i attend school, so most of those kinds of options are closed to me.

If you want to travel, I'd also throw Southeast Asia out there, but I'm biased. Summer is rainy season in parts, but if you go early, it's not too bad and guesthouses are cheaper.

 

[biggoron42]

1.) wow, the appalachian trail seems cool. i don't have any real outdoor hiking experience or any of the equipment, though. hm...

2.) yea, the possibility of finishing anything worthwhile doing research for two months is another concern. i for one have two left hands; it takes me forever to learn protocols.

3.) yea i really want to travel in asia. i've been to india six times, so my only concern for that entire region is just the heat in july and august. you said that SE asia mainly just has rain in that period of time? i know that the monsoon in india is in august, is that what you're talking about here? most of my family lives up by nepal, so it is a little bit cooler there anyway, and i think i could move around a bit more. the thought of lugging a 60L pack around in 120 degree heat is....unappealing

 

[MartianOddity]

I travelled around a little in my country and met my girlfriend's family.

Do whatever you think will help you the upcoming semester, let it be relaxing, travelling or working.

 

[DwyaneWade]

here's what I did - two weeks in Europe. A week in London and a week in Paris with my lovely wife. It was awesome, and I'm very very glad I did it.

saw Othello being performed here, for five pounds each (standing room, haha)

okay, I'm done whoring out my pics

Hah I went to the same places as you.

 

[bbggw]

sleep, sleep and sleep some more it does your body good

 

[montessori2md]

Totally ignorant, but...

If you wanted to do something public health related, couldn't you just google "global health charities" and find an organization to volunteer with? If there are places that take groups of undergrads to Costa Rica, or whereever, seems like you could find someone to take an MS1.

I'm hoping to find a summer camp where I can go hang out in the first aid cabin in exchange for my son's tuition and all the horseback riding and hiking I can fit in between sprains and tummyaches....but that's a good 1.5 years away, so if that's hopeless, don't tell me for another year.

 

[montessori2md]

Oh yeah, lots of affordable language institutes in MX -I took a class in medical terminology in Cuernavaca -they'll basically give you a tutor if you want, and set up whatever schedule you want. Maybe you could even shadow a doc there, if you had enough comprehension for it to be worthwhile. Also could be fun to tag along with someone providing services for migrant workers here in the states.

 

[biggoron42]

well, the problem with that plan is that most of those types of trips are the medical mission/volunteer types that run for about a week or two. they are fun, but not really what i'm looking for. the expense is a little high for what i'd be getting out of it.

to get involved in a research project is considerably more difficult, especially if you don't go to a school like penn or harvard that has connections in the field. the logistics/expense of trying to coordinate a trip w/o any sort of guidance is very challenging for an MS1 already hard-pressed for time.

we have a fledgling global health interest group at my school, and at our first meeting, a group of girls who made a huge effort to put together a research project in ghana spoke. basically outlined all the challenges i summarized above: money, bureaucracy, the difficulty of finding a research mentor in the field. if one of them hadn't been a native ghanaian with some pre-existing connections with health officials there, i get the impression it would have been close to impossible logistically to make the trip and do the work. that's just the impression i get though.

funny side story: they talked about how much red tape and hassle they went through to get the money and necessary permits, but when they reached there they found a harvard undergrad who had pretty much been given thousands of dollars, no-strings-attached - all he had to do was provide a write up when he returned. oh the luxury

also, yea, learning spanish in mexico seems to be pretty doable. i know of a good institute in guadalajara that an MS4 at my school recommends. the community surrounding our school/hospital is heavily, heavily hispanic, so it may be the most "useful" thing to do that still falls within my interests.

 

[maestro1625]

My two goals are to spend most of the summer on the beach... and go on a trip to either Glacier national park with some friends, or to Switerland to try to scalp some tickets to Euro 2008.

I've spent the last 3 summers doing research. The only advantage I can see for going back to my old job is to see old friends from back at home in my old state.