Possibly no research in undergrad

[RittaTitta]

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Hey guys, I just talked with my counselor today and it seems I won't have time to do research. I am currently a junior, and I have 40 credit hours left to take. Based on the fact I will be taking 20 credit hours a semester, volunteering, and plan to do shadowing, and a work study; I might not have time to do research. I will be taking the MCAT this August and applying to med school after I graduate, and I plan to spend this summer studying for the 2015MCAT. Am I screwed of I don't have research? So far, my stats are:


cGPA:3.61 with an upward trend
sGPA:3.55
MCAT: Still have to take in August
Volunteering at same hospital for about 2 years on the stroke floor
Treasurer of a few clubs
Cofounded a NGO in Kenya
Taught English in Kenya for four months
Assistant manager at Dunkin Donuts for two years
Plan to shadow a doctor sometime next year
I plan to apply for a CDC work study next year
Economically disadvantaged(parents make $11500 a year and it hindered me a lot, especially in high school)
Note: I transferred schools since it was getting expensive to commute and there wasn't cheap or reliable transportation to my college.

 

[Willy38]

This belongs in WAMC thread. But I don't think you are screwed. I didn't have research and got in. I do think having research is the norm though. Try to do some if you can but if not maybe don't apply to research heavy programs. Best of luck.

 

[Ruby31]

Also WAMC= What are my chances. She is right, you will get a better response on that thread

 

[Willy38]

Also WAMC= What are my chances. She is right, you will get a better response on that thread

I'm a guy lol

 

[Ruby31]

I'm a guy lol

Oh sorry lol

 

[lodestar]

Hey guys, I just talked with my counselor today and it seems I won't have time to do research. I am currently a junior, and I have 40 credit hours left to take. Based on the fact I will be taking 20 credit hours a semester, volunteering, and plan to do shadowing, and a work study; I might not have time to do research. I will be taking the MCAT this August and applying to med school after I graduate, and I plan to spend this summer studying for the 2015MCAT. Am I screwed of I don't have research? So far, my stats are:


cGPA:3.61 with an upward trend
sGPA:3.55
MCAT: Still have to take in August
Volunteering at same hospital for about 2 years on the stroke floor
Treasurer of a few clubs
Cofounded a NGO in Kenya
Taught English in Kenya for four months
Assistant manager at Dunkin Donuts for two years
Plan to shadow a doctor sometime next year
I plan to apply for a CDC work study next year
Economically disadvantaged(parents make $11500 a year and it hindered me a lot, especially in high school)
Note: I transferred schools since it was getting expensive to commute and there wasn't cheap or reliable transportation to my college.

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Fellow GSU alum (grad school) here...not sure that research is make or break...our daughter who graduated Summa from Ga. Tech got accepted by 3 medicals schools with NO RESEARCH, despite being complete a bit late.
So many medical schools DO factor in disadvantaged status...MCG/Ga. Regents has a major emphasis there. Concentrate on getting a 30 or better on the MCAT...prep work CAN make a difference.
Emory (my undergrad alma mater) there in Atlanta now requires their premeds to take a formal MCAT prep course. Self study, which is cheaper, can work fine-- our daughter did that. Good luck! 🙂

 

[RittaTitta]

~~~~~~~

Fellow GSU alum (grad school) here...not sure that research is make or break...our daughter who graduated Summa from Ga. Tech got accepted by 3 medicals schools with NO RESEARCH, despite being complete a bit late.
So many medical schools DO factor in disadvantaged status...MCG/Ga. Regents has a major emphasis there. Concentrate on getting a 30 or better on the MCAT...prep work CAN make a difference.
Emory (my undergrad alma mater) there in Atlanta now requires their premeds to take a formal MCAT prep course. Self study, which is cheaper, can work fine-- our daughter did that. Good luck! 🙂

Interesting, I wouldn't mind go into Mercer or MCG for med school since I thought they would require research. Your post gave me a little more confidence that I don't need research. Besides, I don't plan on going to top 20 schools; I will apply to few top 10 schools since I qualify for FAP and I figure why not, but acceptances from Mercer and/or MCG would make me more than happy. Thanks for sharing the info!

 

[Blown Away]

You've posted 2 other threads with the same question...

Research is not required to get in unless you have dreams of a top 25 school. Service was emphasized more in every interview I attended. Clinical experience trumps all 3 (service, shadowing, research).

 

[peanutsss]

....

 

[RittaTitta]

Your post says 'plan to shadow a doctor next year'. Does this mean you have not shadowed a doctor before? I know you have two years in a hospital but some schools I visited put these in discretely different categories. Shadowing is pretty important, I'd focus on that sooner than later even if it's just a few hours here and there. If I'm reading that wrong feel free to disregard everything I said.

As far as research, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Required for some schools but, definitely not others. If research was a big deal almost no non-science majors would get into med school, and non-science majors matriculate at a strong rate.

You're right, I haven't shadowed a doc before. I was actually planning to apply to med school after I graduate in Spring/Summer 2016 and taking the 2015MCAT this summer. I figured I'd have enough time to find a doc to shadow, it's just that I transferred schools last semester and I'm still getting the hang of things.

The reason why I've been asking around for research is because my biochem professor recommended I do research to get into med school, but I don't plan on going to top 10 schools. I am a GA resident, and I wanted to go to Mercer or MCG since they are in my state and are good safety schools. I might apply to a few reach schools, but that's just because I qualify for FAP.

 

[2015hopeful]

Are you interested in doing research? Bottom line, do what you're interested in and passionate about. I did clinical research as part of a course and did independent sociology research on a health issue for my thesis, but only because I was interested in both areas.

I have no interest in bench lab science research so I didn't pursue anything in that area. Med schools want smart, driven, caring and passionate people. If you do research but don't get much out of if because you're only doing it to fulfill a supposed requirement, that will probably be evident in your application.

 

[RittaTitta]

Are you interested in doing research? Bottom line, do what you're interested in and passionate about. I did clinical research as part of a course and did independent sociology research on a health issue for my thesis, but only because I was interested in both areas.

I have no interest in bench lab science research so I didn't pursue anything in that area. Med schools want smart, driven, caring and passionate people. If you do research but don't get much out of if because you're only doing it to fulfill a supposed requirement, that will probably be evident in your application.

You're right, as you can see I am more interested in helping underserved populations directly than I am at being a lab monkey. Thanks for the advice.