I would really appreciate some advice. I'm not sure whether to work in an ecology lab that studies mosses, which is a lab I believe I have a chance of getting published, an environment I would enjoy and where I pretty much have the position if I tell the PI yes. Or if I should pursue a genetics lab or integrative physiology lab (both PI's have contacted me) which conduct studies I am more interested in, but I have to apply for the position and have the possibility of not getting offered a spot? Does the research I help in matter at all for med school admissions? I need help please!
Medical schools don't care about what topic you investigated. What they do care about is -
(1) Your role and level of engagement in the lab - servicing equipment? Running experiments? Designing experiments?
(2) Your understanding of the topic - can you describe the project, its methods, results, and implications? If your experiment failed, can you articulate why and propose how it might be improved later on? More importantly, are you as prepared to describe this all to a layperson? (Your interviewer is not always an expert on the genetic pathways underlying the embryonic development of the zebrafish eye ..)
(3) Your understanding of the scientific method - do you have an appreciation for how a question is developed? Can you review and critique existing literature in your field? Can you select an appropriate method to investigate a question and understand its scope and limitations? Can you analyze results and draw appropriately-generalized conclusions? These are essential elements of being an evidence-based thinker; even if your future doesn't entail
doing medical research, it will inevitably involve
reading and
applying research.
(4) Any results that come from the work - IMO, this is way too overhyped on SDN, but it's nice to be able to work towards something. This is not so much for the line it adds to your resume, but because the process of communicating your research in a poster or paper or public talk is a worthwhile lesson.
