Is research actually an unwritten requirement?

[sleepyDaisy]

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I just got my MSAR subscription and began looking at schools and their matriculate stats.

I had the understanding that research wasn't required to get into medical school. Well, now I'm seeing that 80-90% of matriculates at most schools have research! Is it safe to say now that research is an unwritten requirement?

If so, that really sucks! I'm really not passionate about doing research. I've been doing some interesting civic leadership projects with a local nonprofit and I would like to continue doing that. I don't think I could do research, that, and continuing with classes and working full time, so something would have to give.

 

[deleted1139574]

I don't know, maybe at like Top30s it might be? Getting research isn't too hard though, you don't only need to do wet lab. Qualatative research might be fun as well if your interested in that (interviewing people etc.)

 

[caterwaiter]

Honestly, I don't think it is a requirement. If you're aiming for research-heavy schools it's definitely an asset. But long-term, meaningful involvement in something you're passionate about is MUCH more important, and will certainly show more when you're asked about experiences in interviews.

 

[deleted1139574]

Honestly, I don't think it is a requirement. If you're aiming for research-heavy schools it's definitely an asset. But long-term, meaningful involvement in something you're passionate about is MUCH more important, and will certainly show more when you're asked about experiences in interviews.

tangent, why did they add upvote and downvotes to SDN...

 

[Goro]

I just got my MSAR subscription and began looking at schools and their matriculate stats.

I had the understanding that research wasn't required to get into medical school. Well, now I'm seeing that 80-90% of matriculates at most schools have research! Is it safe to say now that research is an unwritten requirement?

If so, that really sucks! I'm really not passionate about doing research. I've been doing some interesting civic leadership projects with a local nonprofit and I would like to continue doing that. I don't think I could do research, that, and continuing with classes and working full time, so something would have to give.

It's a situation where most people do research because most people do research.

That said, go to Admissions websites and see what they say on the issue.

Here's what three have to say:

MD Application Requirements

medicine.utah.edu

U AZ-T:

Competencies​

Our admissions process considers many factors and is designed to view you as a whole person—not just a collection of scores. The factors that we consider include the competencies defined by the Association of American Medical Colleges:

Thinking and reasoning

• Critical thinking
• Quantitative reasoning
• Scientific inquiry
• Written communication

NYMC
The Committee strives to select those candidates who demonstrate proficiency in the Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students that have been endorsed by the AAMC Group of Student Affairs (GSA) and Committee on Admissions (COA). These competencies fall into four categories: (1) Interpersonal; (2) Intrapersonal; (3) Thinking and Reasoning; and (4) Science. The Committee believes these foundational competencies are essential for success in medical school and future professional practice

So yeah, for some schools, it is a requirement.
The wise DrMidlife on research: “you've preferably had some exposure to research so you can be convinced that Wakefield used malicious dirtbag methods and is not the savior of the world's children.”

The wise Crayola227 on research: So tired about the whining over the foundation of knowledge that is expected in a physician. We're applied scientists ffs. Own that. If you can't own it and take pride in it, gtfo.

Consider that you're in a marathon, but not a sprint.

That said, there are service loving schools and even the research wh...um, sex workers can and do admit people who don't have any research.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

As @Goro said: The 80% research experience you see may also reflect the fact 80%of applicants do some kind of research (bench, computer, social) and that it isn't a requirement for every school. It is the type of student that winds up applying. It includes people who did maybe 1 semester with those who did 3 years. It is self reported too.

 

[LizzyM]

What proportion of matriculants have research is rather like looking at the proportion who have ever consumed a glass of milk in their lifetime. The proportion is likely to be very high but correlation does not equal causation. If the proportion in the pool of candidates is high, then the proportion in the subset who are admitted and choose to matriculate will be high, too. Then you have the self-selection where those who got in despite not having done research will choose a school that doesn't require a thesis over one that does, thus increasing the proportion of matriculants who have done research at the thesis-requiring school and decreasing the proportion at the school that does not emphasize original research in its graduation requirements. See how this works?

You do you. The cookie cutter applicants all have research (and all the rest). You have your policy interests and that might make you a unicorn but sometimes that's just what the adcom is looking for.

 

[a_distant_dream]

Anecdotal evidence from 2019, but I know someone who got into HMS and a few other schools with no research at all. 3.7 and 519 but their leadership / volunteering / writing was absolutely crazy.

 

[TragicalDrFaust]

I thought it was a written requirement. Of course I defer to the wise adcoms. But it was phrased to me like this: 90% of applicants will have research. The bar to entry on research is low and you only need a few hundred hours. Don’t let research be the thing that makes your app fall short of average.

 

[supahfresh]

Research helps but isn’t required. My colleague got into Harvard med school because he did a mission with peace corps. Sometimes it’s about doing something truly unique and solving a problem for a community. Most people are not proactive enough to start a project on their own which is why taking a scribe job is so popular and so common.

My advice to my students had been to try and write a short opinion piece or letter to an editor at a journal or website publication. Schools know you can’t publish major articles on your own. But there is an entry point with a very short well crafted opinion or perspective piece. Even writing your blog is a good place to show you are committed to writing and putting your ideas out there. And “putting your ideas out there is how you become a thought leader.” (Julie Silver, MD)

Unfortunately nobody listens to this advice because it’s easier to just do what everybody else does. It’s harder to forge your own path. But if you make your own path, deviate from the herd, try and solve someone else’s problem, you’ll be rewarded 10 times over.

 

[Princeton Medical Student]

I thought it was a written requirement. Of course I defer to the wise adcoms. But it was phrased to me like this: 90% of applicants will have research. The bar to entry on research is low and you only need a few hundred hours. Don’t let research be the thing that makes your app fall short of average.

I certainly wouldnt look at it as a requirement. Personally I had very few hrs of research and while I am part of the 90% I certainly have far less exp then average.

Imho I have seen too many applicants with research exp good enough for PhD admissions apply with very subpar clinical exp which usually also translates to boring PS and essays.

 

[supahfresh]

I certainly wouldnt look at it as a requirement. Personally I had very few hrs of research and while I am part of the 90% I certainly have far less exp then average.

Imho I have seen too many applicants with research exp good enough for PhD admissions apply with very subpar clinical exp which usually also translates to boring PS and essays.

True. I read a lot of lousy personal statements. Try reducing it to 1/4 the length. Do 10 revisions.

A program director once told me, “Everybody writes long statements. I want to read a one paragraph statement. That’s the person I’d like to know about.”

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Research helps but isn’t required. My colleague got into Harvard med school because he did a mission with peace corps. Sometimes it’s about doing something truly unique and solving a problem for a community. Most people are not proactive enough to start a project on their own which is why taking a scribe job is so popular and so common.

My advice to my students had been to try and write a short opinion piece or letter to an editor at a journal or website publication. Schools know you can’t publish major articles on your own. But there is an entry point with a very short well crafted opinion or perspective piece. Even writing your blog is a good place to show you are committed to writing and putting your ideas out there. And “putting your ideas out there is how you become a thought leader.” (Julie Silver, MD)

Unfortunately nobody listens to this advice because it’s easier to just do what everybody else does. It’s harder to forge your own path. But if you make your own path, deviate from the herd, try and solve someone else’s problem, you’ll be rewarded 10 times over.

To add briefly, TikTok influencer or monetizing YouTube blogger... ehh... I definitely prefer long-form writing and reflection.

Writing for the campus newsletter or paper has become less common nowadays. I think it is because fewer schools are supporting student journalism.

P.S. We still accept and pay for articles for SDN to publish.

 

[supahfresh]

To add briefly, TikTok influencer or monetizing YouTube blogger... ehh... I definitely prefer long-form writing and reflection.

Writing for the campus newsletter or paper has become less common nowadays. I think it is because fewer schools are supporting student journalism.

Yes, stick with writing. Read On Writing Well by Zinsser. A student that can send a well crafted email will get me to write a badass rec. It never happens. Nobody don’t proofread nothing. ;-)

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Yes, stick with writing. Read On Writing Well by Zinsser. A student that can send a well crafted email will get me to write a badass rec. It never happens. Nobody don’t proofread nothing. ;-)

We have become an autocorrect/Grammarly generation. 🙂

 

[koyemu]

I believed it was a requirement for top schools. My classmates at those schools have years of research in biology/chem