NIH intramural MD/PhD

[DMSO]

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Has anyone heard of this program? My pre-med advisor sent it as an email my way and I am worried that it is the sign-up form for NIH funding? I have most of its app. complete, but I wanted a little more background information if I could get it from those more familiar with this.

This is an exerpt:

We are asking for your help in seeking exceptionally high achieving, independent and focused
students to apply for partnership training at NIH in conjunction with M.D./Ph.D. programs that

participate in the MSTP. Your advisees applying to M.D./Ph.D. programs for Fall 2008 admission

are all eligible to apply for partnership training. All they would need to do would be to fill out the

free application for NIH graduate partnership training at the GPP website: [FONT='Arial','sans-serif'][FONT='Times New Roman','serif']http://gpp.nih.gov/Prospective/InstitutionalPartnerships/AppInfoProspective.htm.
.I have enclosed the program flyer for 2008 applicants to the program and I would appreciate

your passing these on to your colleagues and advisees. If you or they have any questions, please

do not hesitate to contact us at the addresses below. This information and more, including a

FAQ sheet and list of participating MSTP programs can be found at the program web site: [FONT='Arial','sans-serif'][FONT='Times New Roman','serif']http://gpp.nih.gov/Prospective/InstitutionalPartnerships/MSTPatNIH/.
.

 

[solitude]

yeah, heard of it. Actually because of a scholarship I received, I was able to do a conference call held by the director of this program and some students. Honestly I was not convinced that this program is as good as a typical MSTP. There are all sorts of funding and logistical issues, and it is awfully disruptive (socially, academically, etc.) to stay for two years, leave your institution for your PhD, and then return. I'd be happy to post at length about the little I know of the program if you have more specific questions.

Has anyone heard of this program? My pre-med advisor sent it as an email my way and I am worried that it is the sign-up form for NIH funding? I have most of its app. complete, but I wanted a little more background information if I could get it from those more familiar with this.

This is an exerpt:

We are asking for your help in seeking exceptionally high achieving, independent and focused
students to apply for partnership training at NIH in conjunction with M.D./Ph.D. programs that

participate in the MSTP. Your advisees applying to M.D./Ph.D. programs for Fall 2008 admission

are all eligible to apply for partnership training. All they would need to do would be to fill out the

free application for NIH graduate partnership training at the GPP website: [FONT='Arial','sans-serif'][FONT='Times New Roman','serif']http://gpp.nih.gov/Prospective/InstitutionalPartnerships/AppInfoProspective.htm.
.I have enclosed the program flyer for 2008 applicants to the program and I would appreciate

your passing these on to your colleagues and advisees. If you or they have any questions, please

do not hesitate to contact us at the addresses below. This information and more, including a

FAQ sheet and list of participating MSTP programs can be found at the program web site: [FONT='Arial','sans-serif'][FONT='Times New Roman','serif']http://gpp.nih.gov/Prospective/InstitutionalPartnerships/MSTPatNIH/.
.

 

[Zmoney12]

Basically, to be fully funded for both MD and PhD years, you need to get into an MSTP program anyway, and only then you can do all/a portion of your PhD at the NIH or one of its partner institutions.

The director suggested to me that if you think you might be interested, apply to MSTP programs and concurrently apply to the NIH program, and if you are accepted into both, you can decide in May if you want to do some of your PhD with NIH.

Solitude is right, there are still some logistical problems. Check out their website for a list of schools that will participate (ie UCSF and Cornell are absolutely not, Stanford and Duke will only partially fund, etc). Also, I think you have to be willing to take on the role of coordinator, because you will need to devise a project that fits research being done with you NIH mentor with research being done at your institution or whatever NIH partner institution your PhD degree will come from.

So its definetly not for everyone, but is an interesting and different experience I think.

 

[chylo]

Can't you do your Phd at the NIH if you're at Penn? I know that regular Penn graduates can rotate through the NIH, so I imagine they can do their thesis there too. I wonder if that's not something MD/PhDs here can do though? I don't know combined degree people who have done a rotation there, only straight PhDs.

One of the attendings I work with did her MD/PhD at UMaryland & did her PhD at the NIH. I feel like that would be less disruptive since everything is so geographically close it might be easier to work between the two institutions.

 

[Neuronix]

Can't you do your Phd at the NIH if you're at Penn?

Some PhD graduate programs allow it. The MD/PhD program forbids it.

 

[gstrub]

Basically, to be fully funded for both MD and PhD years, you need to get into an MSTP program anyway, and only then you can do all/a portion of your PhD at the NIH or one of its partner institutions.

This is not true. I am at the MCV MD/PhD program, and we are fully funded for every year.

 

[DMSO]

Excellent. Thanks all. That lessens the worries about needing to apply to it to get a stipend.

 

[semolina]

I am currently at the NIH for all of the PhD portion of my program. I am in a non-MSTP MD/PhD program and am here as a predoctoral IRTA fellow. I arranged this as an individual agreement (i.e., not via the GPP route) between university and NIH mentor. So, unless your program explicitly states that you cannot do your PhD at the NIH, then something can probably be worked out, even if you don't apply to the MSTP and NIH GPP concurrently.

I feel that being at the NIH has sped my project along considerably given the incredible resources both in funding/equipment and sheer volume of smart people. I know that my mentor would love to have another MD/PhD student in the lab so feel free to PM me with any questions.

 

[qqq]

Can anyone provide feedback on entering the NIH PhD program during medical school (as an MD only student)?


"Track 2: Admission to Ph.D. training from medical school. Medical Students can apply to an NIH GPP program, and begin graduate training generally after completing the pre-clinical medical school curriculum. Students in ‘year-out’ programs such as the NIH-HHMI Research Scholars Program or the Clinical Research Training Program can also apply for Ph.D. training in this track. Upon acceptance to the GPP, students can then apply for MSTP status to the MSTP program of their medical school."

http://gpp.nih.gov/Prospective/InstitutionalPartnerships/MSTPatNIH/

 

[qqq]

Also, I do not want to have to study for and take the GRE. Does this mean I can only get a PhD from one of the European schools (I'd never get accepted).

"Is the GRE General Test required or can I substitute the MCAT? All partnerships with US universities require the GRE general test. Partnerships with European universities will accept the MCAT as a substitute for the GRE exam."

 

[RxnMan]

The GRE is not hard. I took it on an evening after work on short notice. Scored high enough to get into just about any PhD program. In my experience, the GRE has more sensitivty than specificity, if you catch my drift. At any rate, they'll be more interested in your work record in the sciences than anything.

 

[fyli260]

For those of you who have an interest in doing your PhD research at the NIH, the NIH MD/PhD partnership program is a great option --click on the banner for more info. The NIH has unprecedented resources for research, and this program is highly flexible with many tracks. I'm a currently doing my research here at NIH even though I never intended to do this when I entered the MD/PhD program. There are many perks including splitting up your long training into more than one location. You can also do it with the OxCam PhD program too for those of you who are interested in studying in England. Doing research at the NIH is not as funds restricted as outside the NIH.

 

[Neuronix]

Click on the banner for more info? We have a stickied link on this topic here: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=619308