Md/Phd again...

[djfermion]

I tried to search for Md/Phd but it didn't meet the character minimum or something. Anyways, I was wondering if you do Md/Phd, what field do you get your Phd in? I figured it would be biology. Now if it is biology, do you need a biology degree from undergrad just as you would if you were entering a separate biology grad program? Or does your first two years of medical education give you enough knowledge to go straight to the Phd? (Please don't just tell me I can major in anything I want, I already know that. I just figured this was a slightly special scenario since stand-alone Phd programs do have a specific degree requirement.)

Also, is there anyway we can sticky a "Small Questions" thread? I feel like my question can be answered with one reply.

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[HumidBeing]

Actually, we have an entire forum here devoted to MD/PhD questions and issues. It's our Physician/Scientist forum. I'll move your question to that forum. Pre-allos who would like to participate in this discussion can follow it there.

The "Small question" sticky proposal is interesting, but it's unlikely that we will add one. If we overdo the number of stickies, they lose their effectiveness and we lose room for active threads to show up on the first page. Simple, quick questions tend to be answered and scroll quickly off of the first page.

 

[GliaGirl]

You honestly can major in anything you want, but you should try to take a lot of upper level courses to prove that you can handle "hard" science. If your interests lay outside of science, I would suggest having a double major with a "real" science anyway (physics, chemistry, or some sort of biology (biochem, neuroscience, etc)). I am a double major in chem and neuroscience, and I have received a lot of positive feedback during interviews about the upper level courses I've taken. People notice that sort of thing (especially if you GPA is not amazing, like mine. my GPA is no great, but I've taken some VERY hard courses, and that says something about my love for science and my disregard for padding my GPA).

The most important thing, though, is having research experience. In my opinion, it's a lot easier to do effective and meaningful research if you've taken upper level science classes (especially 4 credit labs where you learn techniques). I would say that if you have multiple publications in reputable journals, you can get away with majoring in whatever you want, but you can't really count on that happening.

So in conclusion, take the classes that interest you in college, but if you're not interested in biology and science, you should probably re-think MD/PhD, since there is probably a LOT of science in medical school and graduate school.

 

[djfermion]

Thanks for your response. I will be completing a physics major so I will have to take a good deal of upper level classes, I just wanted to make sure they did not have to be in biology.

Also, what field do you get your Phd in? Biology?

 

[MudPhudHopeful]

You can get your phd in almost anything. Most schools offer your traditional biology degree, but you can also find schools that will allow you to do your phd in engineering, physics, chemistry, or even in the social sciences.

 

[djfermion]

Wow that's very interesting. Thanks for the quick responses, you guys have been very helpful.

 

[Neuronix]

I did my PhD in Biophysics. It's best to aim for a Biomedical science or Bioengineering for a PhD if that's what you want to do, as opposed to a PhD in straight Physics. It sets you up for far less headaches in your program and down the road. Similarly, almost nobody gets their PhD in Biology, as that tends to imply things like Ecology and Plant/Animal Biology and all these other random things that aren't particularly medically related. If anything, Biology undergrads typically head for Cell and Molecular Biology, Immunology, etc...

I think the typical undergrad majors for MD/PhDs are Biology, Chemistry, Biochem, Physics, Neuroscience, etc... As long as you're in a basic science or have taken a lot of basic science you're good to go.