Pre-MD/PhD summer decisions

[HaverfordSquirrel]

SOS. I am a rising senior who is pursuing an MD/PhD. I attend an all-undergraduate college.

Here is my research experience:
Summer after freshman year: 10-week cancer research internship at a cancer center near home (convenient commuting)
Sophomore year: on-campus molecular biology research
Summer after sophomore year: stayed on campus for 10 weeks
Junior year: continuing same on-campus research position

This summer, I can stay on-campus again, but I was recently offered a summer internship position at Penn (ugh they're only giving me five days to make a decision...). Can you help me sort out the pros and cons of taking the position at Penn as opposed to continuing my on-campus project? Should I stay on campus again?

For example,
Pros:
-Penn program provides a generous stipend (while my on-campus job gives me less than half)
-Good opportunity to make career network for future gap year jobs and meet Perelman faculty

Cons:
-A third summer project (would MD-PhD adcomms see this as a red flag? Consider that I've been doing the same on-campus research since sophomore year. I'm returning to my on-campus research project for my senior year thesis work anyways...)

Thanks for helping me out!

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[Fencer]

Summer at Penn would show that you went out and found a higher quality research experience. If you do well there, it will improve your chances for admission into quality MD/PhD programs.

 

[gch2015]

Haverford (if that's where you go via username) has some pretty good research for being an undergrad only school and can offer a great deal of development and involvement in your projects. I'd say if you work were to be the difference in a first/second author publication submitted before secondaries then it wouldn't be worth it to go to Penn. If not, as Fencer says Penn has a lot of high power labs and a summer of work could mean exposure to a big institution more similar to the place you will do an md/phd and the possibility of a paper depending on the state of the project you hop on to. This is speaking strategically of course and obviously money can be a decisive factor.

 

[Maebea]

I am with Fencer on this. Even if you are at an elite undergrad institution such as Haverford, doing a summer at Penn will give a boost to your application. While it is only a couple of months, it will generate a recommendation letter from a faculty member at one of the top research institutions in the country. As someone who reviews hundreds of MD-PhD applications a year, I can tell you that this will gain you points in the application review process.

 

[ValentinNarcisse]

Nobody knows what Haverford is....go to Penn.


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[Fencer]

Most program directors know what Haverford is (and is not). One of the best liberal colleges of the world with a great track record for developing creative minds. Nevertheless, it will be useful to you to attend the summer program at Penn.