Research Help For Everyone

[deleted1241220]

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Hey everyone,

I’m currently working on an AI tool called PitchLab which I designed to help premeds and students save time when reaching out to professors or physicians for research opportunities.

The idea is simple: you input your background, the specialty or research area you’re interested in, the university/institution you want to target, and the number of professors you want to contact. PitchLab then helps generate personalized outreach emails based on each professor’s work, so you’re not spending hours manually searching, reading, and writing every email from scratch.

The goal is to make research outreach more efficient, personalized, and accessible especially for students who don’t know where to start or don’t have strong connections yet.

PitchLab is still in development, and I’d love honest feedback from other premeds/students:

1. Would this be useful?
2. What features would you want?
3. Any concerns with the idea?
4. Would anyone be interested in testing it for free once it’s ready?

Appreciate any thoughts or feedback.

 

[mmmcdowe]

I get generated letters of interest all of the time. They go straight in the trash folder. If I get a real email from someone that I cannot help, I will at least take the time to decline and provide guidance towards other potential opportunities. Your investment is often proportional to your return.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

If you don't make the effort to meet professors, cold emails won't work.

This is why you go to department social events organized by the chair, or you go to meetings of your biology/chemistry/whatever major's club.

 

[deleted1241220]

If you don't make the effort to meet professors, cold emails won't work.

This is why you go to department social events organized by the chair, or you go to meetings of your biology/chemistry/whatever major's club.

I get generated letters of interest all of the time. They go straight in the trash folder. If I get a real email from someone that I cannot help, I will at least take the time to decline and provide guidance towards other potential opportunities. Your investment is often proportional to your return.

totally fair points from both of you

the "your investment is proportional to your return" line is exactly why i built this the way i did. the emails aren't generic form letters — the tool actually reads each professor's most recent pubmed papers and writes something specific to their research. the goal was to replicate the effort of a well-researched cold email, just without spending 45 minutes per professor doing it manually

is it the same as showing up to a department event and shaking someone's hand? no, obviously not. but not everyone has access to those events — if you're at a smaller school without strong research ties, or you're trying to reach faculty at institutions across the country, cold email is sometimes the only option you have

i got 4 responses my first week using it including one that turned into an actual conversation about joining a lab. so it's not a replacement for building relationships, just a way to get your foot in the door when you have no other way in

appreciate the honest feedback though, genuinely

 

[mmmcdowe]

Like I said, I get generated emails. They are quite obvious and yes they often do reference a recent study, etc. What is your control sample to suggest your outcomes wouldn't have been better the old fashioned way? Even if you have a control it would be hard to know the caliber of positions you get one way or the other. There's a difference for sure though I can't prove which is superior. Writing with AI is a very nebulous thing right now in academia. It won't be long until emails have AI detectors I'm sure.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

We have a series of articles on getting the most out of research. It is probably time to see if it needs revisions.

Trevor C. Hunt – Student Doctor Network

Student Doctor Network, a nonprofit service of HPSA, offers advising, school data, forums, and resources for future health professionals.

www.studentdoctor.net

 

[Mr.Smile12]

totally fair points from both of you. ...

is it the same as showing up to a department event and shaking someone's hand? no, obviously not. but not everyone has access to those events — if you're at a smaller school without strong research ties, or you're trying to reach faculty at institutions across the country, cold email is sometimes the only option you have

i got 4 responses my first week using it including one that turned into an actual conversation about joining a lab. so it's not a replacement for building relationships, just a way to get your foot in the door when you have no other way in

appreciate the honest feedback though, genuinely

Your experience is most likely a result of the environment. How many faculty did you ask? What did you send them regarding your transcripts or past lab experiences? Are the responses from tenured faculty? Are you a junior?

 

[Med Ed]

3. Any concerns with the idea?

By outsourcing the cognitive work of reading and understanding the scientific literature, a useful skill that takes time to learn, you are essentially misrepresenting yourself to each professor.