M1 making internal MSTP application - hate current PI..

[madindalab]

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I am an M1, first year is done. I am applying to our MSTP internally this summer.

I did research this year with a guy so I could strengthen my resume for the MSTP program. HOPEFULLY he turns in a good LOR for me (as I previously posted about, he made me write my own letter and said he'd make "alterations").

In short, I dislike how he runs the lab and he keeps adding stuff to my plate. Things were great at first, he gave my a project or two just so I could learn some skills. Now he keeps heaping stuff on me, review after review, project after project, teaching undergrads, etc. And he gets mad when I tell him I don't have time for this bull****. I was ok with being in the lab 10-20 hours a week. Now he wants 40-50, pretty insane stuff with medical school classes but I needed a good recommendation letter from him so I smiled with gritted teeth and carried on. My grades have suffered. I am still in the top 50% of my class but I know I can do way better if I only had time.

So, I previously told him I wanted to work until winter of med 2. I have changed my mind, I don't want to work there past this summer. I have a review submission date in early fall and then I want to peace out. Hopefully interviews will be around that time. He won't take kindly to this, as our summer is short (<2 months) and he is trying to get grant data out of me.

After he turns in my LOR and I interview for the MSTP is there any chance he could sabotage my application? I really just want to focus on step 1 during M2...

 

[miz]

Yes. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. It's not like he's at a different school from your MSTP committee, he can just say to them "I have reason to doubt my student's commitment" anytime he wants.
Does he think you plan on doing your thesis work with him? If he thinks you are likely to rejoin the lab after you are accepted to the MSTP he may take more kindly to giving you the year to focus on step 2 before rejoining.
On the other hand you have said that you don't like his management style, so maybe you would prefer not to do your thesis there...

 

[madindalab]

Does he think you plan on doing your thesis work with him? If he thinks you are likely to rejoin the lab after you are accepted to the MSTP he may take more kindly to giving you the year to focus on step 2 before rejoining.
On the other hand you have said that you don't like his management style, so maybe you would prefer not to do your thesis there...

I believe he thinks I will end up joining, but I have never told him I want to and as you guessed, I have no desire to join. The financial situation is bleak and I don't particularly like all of the animal work.

eh, I guess I will have to wait for an acceptance before I can leave...

 

[solitude]

I believe he thinks I will end up joining, but I have never told him I want to and as you guessed, I have no desire to join. The financial situation is bleak and I don't particularly like all of the animal work.

eh, I guess I will have to wait for an acceptance before I can leave...

As soon as you get accepted to the program, tell the MSTP director exactly why you want to leave your current PIs lab. Then leave his lab and start from scratch. Do not leave his lab until you get accepted--this will tank your application.

 

[r1oid]

If you get in you'll most likely have a chance to do a rotation in summer of M2 if you ask for it. Then you can jump to another lab. To be fair as the summer goes on you should make it clear to him that your time commitment once school starts will be not more than X hours/week b/c you need to start incorporating step 1 studying. Try and plan out what work can be done with that time commitment and who else in the lab can take on your work so the momentum does not stop. That is about as fair as he should be asking of you. To jump ship after you get in will leave a bad impression not just with him but may hurt your chances with other PI's for rotations if you have a bad rep from the get go.

 

[Fencer]

This is about fairness but also about your educational needs. My suggestion is that when you interview with the MSTP program director (might be an associate PD), indicate that while you have enjoyed working with your PI, you want to be open to other areas of research. That will give you more latitude for your future. Make it more about "other areas of research" and don't indicate that it is about the person (PI). I recently faced this exact situation with one of my MD/PhD students.

 

[Neuronix]

Everyone in this thread is giving good advice. My experience was that my PI and my thesis committee were not understanding of clinical demand. They expected me to continue at near thesis level and write my thesis while in clinical rotations. Before starting rotations, I was expected to continue working in the lab. The motto was: "it doesn't matter what you score on step 1, just pass. You're an MD/PhD so you'll get whatever residency you want." This was terrible advice. I'm glad you're thinking about step 1 already, though you really don't need to focus directly on step 1 until about 6-8 weeks before taking the exam. Just focus on learning the material. Honors isn't a bad idea.

That said, you can't burn any bridges at this point. Play a tight political game until you get accepted. One thing you may need to do is not give any firm commitments, and just miss deadlines for non-crucial things in the lab. This is a passive-aggressive aka "professional" behavior game that you sometimes have to play in this business.

 

[madindalab]

As soon as you get accepted to the program, tell the MSTP director exactly why you want to leave your current PIs lab. Then leave his lab and start from scratch. Do not leave his lab until you get accepted--this will tank your application.

This is what I feared, I'll plan on sticking it out until I get an acceptance. That might be around winter, when I initially told him I planned on quitting. Thanks for the help.

This is about fairness but also about your educational needs. My suggestion is that when you interview with the MSTP program director (might be an associate PD), indicate that while you have enjoyed working with your PI, you want to be open to other areas of research. That will give you more latitude for your future. Make it more about "other areas of research" and don't indicate that it is about the person (PI). I recently faced this exact situation with one of my MD/PhD students.

I hadn't thought yet about how I was going to address rotations while interviewing. I probably would have focused on him personally if they asked me about if I was going to continue there, thanks for the advice. I'll just chalk up I want more experience and to see different aspects of research.

One thing you may need to do is not give any firm commitments, and just miss deadlines for non-crucial things in the lab. This is a passive-aggressive aka "professional" behavior game that you sometimes have to play in this business.

Thanks for the advice, can you elaborate for my sake about this passive-aggressive handling of dates? Is this something everybody does...? Should I be ok with doing it when I enter my thesis lab?