No Teaching/Tutoring? Wetlab vs Research?

[klever]

Hello SDN!

I've returned with a few more questions just to plan out my next openings.

1. I don't have teaching/tutoring experience planed for the near future, and I don't have any, is this a problem?

2. I have a very disproportionate shadowing spread, something like this (changed slightly for anonymity): 90 primary care, 15 specialty, 15 surgical specialty. Is this alright? Is there too big of a primary care overwhelm?

3. Is wet lab research or clinical research looked upon more favorably, which one is a more valuable experience in general?

Thank you so much!

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[Mr.Smile12]

1) no problem.
2) your mix is fine.
3) it's valuable if you come out appreciating whether research is something you want to do.

 

[klever]

1) no problem.
2) your mix is fine.
3) it's valuable if you come out appreciating whether research is something you want to do.

Sweet and concise, thank you, perfect! Always a pleasure hearing your feedback.

 

[SahilMehtaMD]

Hey there,

Your lack of teaching/tutor experience is only a problem if you want to be teaching/tutoring! The goal should be to have good mix of pre med-adjacent extracurriculars and experiences that you're actually passionate about. If you're not passionate about teaching and would rather spend your time doing something else (e.g. getting research/clinical experience), then don't worry about it.

In terms of shadowing, your breakdown is perfectly fine, unless you would like to learn more about certain specialities. If your goal is to be a PCP, then your breakdown makes perfect sense, as it provides evidence that you're already starting to pursue your interests in medicine. If you're interested in another specialty, then it might make sense to do some more shadowing in that area. 120 shadowing hours is plenty for an applicant though, so don't feel like you need to do more shadowing just to check a box.

In terms of wet lab vs clinical research, it depends on what your interests are and how well either fits into your holistic story as a pre-med. If your goal is an MD/PhD, then get as much research experience as possible (like, 1000s of hrs, and publications, posters, etc.). If not, then choose the research opportunity that aligns best with your preferences and goals as a pre-med. Clinical research can be a good way to get some patient exposure, if you're light on that. In the end, though, you're probably going to want to have at least one other additional clinical experience in addition to your clinical research if you choose to do it.

Hope that helps!

 

[klever]

Hey there,

Your lack of teaching/tutor experience is only a problem if you want to be teaching/tutoring! The goal should be to have good mix of pre med-adjacent extracurriculars and experiences that you're actually passionate about. If you're not passionate about teaching and would rather spend your time doing something else (e.g. getting research/clinical experience), then don't worry about it.

In terms of shadowing, your breakdown is perfectly fine, unless you would like to learn more about certain specialities. If your goal is to be a PCP, then your breakdown makes perfect sense, as it provides evidence that you're already starting to pursue your interests in medicine. If you're interested in another specialty, then it might make sense to do some more shadowing in that area. 120 shadowing hours is plenty for an applicant though, so don't feel like you need to do more shadowing just to check a box.

In terms of wet lab vs clinical research, it depends on what your interests are and how well either fits into your holistic story as a pre-med. If your goal is an MD/PhD, then get as much research experience as possible (like, 1000s of hrs, and publications, posters, etc.). If not, then choose the research opportunity that aligns best with your preferences and goals as a pre-med. Clinical research can be a good way to get some patient exposure, if you're light on that. In the end, though, you're probably going to want to have at least one other additional clinical experience in addition to your clinical research if you choose to do it.

Hope that helps!

Helps a lot, thanks!

 

[cj_cregg]

Agree with above advice you've gotten regarding teaching/tutoring not being a necessity, and that you have plenty of shadowing and more will not help your application.

The one other thing I'd add regarding research - I think the level of involvement you have in the entire project is most important. Personally I am more impressed by research where the student comes up with a research question, writes the proposal, does the lit review, develops the methods, does the data collection in whatever form themselves, and writes the final manuscript/presentation/poster even if it doesn't get published or presented anywhere significant. I think the important thing about research is understanding how the scientific method works and how we gain knowledge, and you'll get that much more from actually developing and doing a project yourself vs. just pipetting stuff in a lab or doing checkboxes with patients for somebody else's project.

 

[klever]

Agree with above advice you've gotten regarding teaching/tutoring not being a necessity, and that you have plenty of shadowing and more will not help your application.

The one other thing I'd add regarding research - I think the level of involvement you have in the entire project is most important. Personally I am more impressed by research where the student comes up with a research question, writes the proposal, does the lit review, develops the methods, does the data collection in whatever form themselves, and writes the final manuscript/presentation/poster even if it doesn't get published or presented anywhere significant. I think the important thing about research is understanding how the scientific method works and how we gain knowledge, and you'll get that much more from actually developing and doing a project yourself vs. just pipetting stuff in a lab or doing checkboxes with patients for somebody else's project.

Yes! Thank you! This is the goal, but attaining resources to allow me to do this will only come in time.