NSGY Research - First Author Pub or US recognition?

[CtrlAltDelBrain]

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Hi all! I'm a (or will be) US IMG, currently third year medical student at a university in Europe, and I'm looking for a little bit of advice! I'm hoping to match into neurosurgery upon graduation, and while I realize how unlikely that is, right now I'm trying to build my application by joining more research projects (sitting at 0 pubs right now, one systematic review in the works), especially while I have more time this summer.

I've been cold emailing, and I've got a potential spot in a lab at a US institution that has what's probably a top 10 neurosurgery residency program. I would be doing preclinical work (not sure exactly what yet, probably cell culture?) for 8 weeks over the summer with little possibility for continuation, as they do not allow remote work. They publish quite frequently, although not with medical students as authors terribly often from that I can tell. I'm not sure if working there for only 8 weeks would get me a publication, which I desperately need, but I know how important networking/connections is in a field as small as neurosurgery.

My other option is that a resident in the neurosurgery department in the hospital affiliated with my uni (probably the closest thing I could get to a home program) reached out to me recently and offered for me to do a project as first author. It would be a quick retrospective case series/cohort study, but I would have to be in person to go through charts. Assuming I stayed over the summer, I could probably get at least one other project done at the hospital if I utilized my time well, as I have connections with at least one other attending.

The TL;DR of my dilemma: "guaranteed" first author publication OR not-necessarily-guaranteed publication (low authorship) but possibility of a LOR from a neurosurgeon in the US? Both would be good experiences, but realistically, I don't know which would help my application more.

Can anyone offer some advice or insight?
Thanks in advance! And sorry for the wall of text 🙂

 

[NotAProgDirector]

I assumre you're looking for honesty.

Hi all! I'm a (or will be) US IMG, currently third year medical student at a university in Europe, and I'm looking for a little bit of advice! I'm hoping to match into neurosurgery upon graduation, and while I realize how unlikely that is,

Apparently, you don't.

right now I'm trying to build my application by joining more research projects (sitting at 0 pubs right now, one systematic review in the works), especially while I have more time this summer.

I've been cold emailing, and I've got a potential spot in a lab at a US institution that has what's probably a top 10 neurosurgery residency program. I would be doing preclinical work (not sure exactly what yet, probably cell culture?) for 8 weeks over the summer with little possibility for continuation, as they do not allow remote work. They publish quite frequently, although not with medical students as authors terribly often from that I can tell. I'm not sure if working there for only 8 weeks would get me a publication,

No, it won't. And you're unlikely to garner much in connections over 8 weeks.

which I desperately need, but I know how important networking/connections is in a field as small as neurosurgery.

My other option is that a resident in the neurosurgery department in the hospital affiliated with my uni (probably the closest thing I could get to a home program) reached out to me recently and offered for me to do a project as first author. It would be a quick retrospective case series/cohort study, but I would have to be in person to go through charts. Assuming I stayed over the summer, I could probably get at least one other project done at the hospital if I utilized my time well, as I have connections with at least one other attending.

The TL;DR of my dilemma: "guaranteed" first author publication OR not-necessarily-guaranteed publication (low authorship) but possibility of a LOR from a neurosurgeon in the US? Both would be good experiences, but realistically, I don't know which would help my application more.

Can anyone offer some advice or insight?
Thanks in advance! And sorry for the wall of text 🙂

Neither is going to help much with a match in NS in the US. That's the cold hard truth. You'd need to perform spectacularly well in medical school, ace the USMLE exams, do research in a US or well known international lab for several years and get good publications, gain connections in the US and hopefully US clinical experience, and get very lucky. All without any mistakes.

 

[CtrlAltDelBrain]

I assumre you're looking for honesty.

Apparently, you don't.

No, it won't. And you're unlikely to garner much in connections over 8 weeks.

Neither is going to help much with a match in NS in the US. That's the cold hard truth. You'd need to perform spectacularly well in medical school, ace the USMLE exams, do research in a US or well known international lab for several years and get good publications, gain connections in the US and hopefully US clinical experience, and get very lucky. All without any mistakes.

I do appreciate your honesty and have heard much the same even while I was in undergrad. I've looked at the NRMP reports year after year, and I know I certainly haven't cured cancer or done anything wildly exceptional to be one of the very few IMGs who match every year. I'm keeping up my First Class Honors, will take Step 1 this summer, and am planning to work hard to score as high as possible on Step 2. This has been my dream before I even entered undergrad, and maybe you're right and it won't work out, but I am committed to trying. If it takes a post-grad research year, so be it.

Again, I do really appreciate your input! Do you think my best bet then would be to get as many publications with my home institution as possible for the time being until I can get some meaningful US research/clinical experience?