Research during MS1

[pola465]

Hi! I am going to be starting medical schools this fall and I wanted to see if anyone had advice on what kind of research to focus on. I know I'm interested in pediatrics but not sure as to specialties within that. Right now, I think cardiology would be a good fit for me, but I want to keep my options open. Should I be as intentional as possible in the projects I am applying to right now like looking at only pediatric cardiology (which I'm having trouble finding as many opportunities in right now) or is it ok at this stage to just do anything in pediatrics and get more specific opportunities later on in 2nd or 3rd year?

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[Reanox24]

Can't speak to peds fellowship, but to match peds at this point in time (assuming you are USMD grad), have a pulse. Before finding/doing research, get a firm grounding in academics b/c nobody can prepare you for what med school is like. And I assume pediatric cardiology is a small field, but the whole damn point of research other than fluffing your CV is to make connections with / from mentors. Don't fall into the trap of thinking that becoming a good research monkey will get you what you want - the people who get what they want are those that use research as a means to build relationships and become undeniable come residency / fellowship selection, regardless of research output.

 

[operaman]

If you’re dead set on Peds then you honestly don’t have to worry about research at all. Focus on classes and find your footing.

Honestly, your time would be better spent exploring some of the non-Peds fields that have a pediatric component. ENT, anesthesia, Ophtho, etc. If you end up loving one of these fields then you’ll definitely need to get involved with research in that field. From time to time I do encounter students who find a competitive field late and then have to scramble for research or have to take an extra year.

You’ll also want to do some shadowing in Peds and the subs as well. If you discover you don’t actually like it, better to find out now than in M3. Unending Peds and IM rounds have produced a lot of great surgeons and anesthesiologists and psychiatrists!

If your heart is truly set on Peds though, you can probably wait on research a bit. Join the internet group, do some shadowing from time to time. Maybe dabble in a project or two if your department has some things going on.