Research in a lab under a famous person

[NP545]

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So I got a position in a research lab, and was interviewed by my PI. However, there is someone higher ranking than my PI in the lab I work in, and he is well known for his publications throughout the world. He developed a theory which is held to a high standard in the US and in many parts of Europe (where he was from).

Even though he is not my personal PI, he is still present during our lab meetings and we report our findings to him. I thought this was cool and was wondering if I could include this anywhere in a med school app.
I plan to fill the boxes with the name of my normal PI, but do you think I should include the famous one too somewhere else in the app (maybe in the description) ?

 

[el_duderino]

I think you want to avoid simply name-dropping. If you've had some significant interaction with or direction from him, or if his presence has significantly influenced you in some way, then you might want a sentence or two in the description field for the activity (or the "most meaningful" section). Otherwise, I wouldn't try to shoehorn a famous name into my app somewhere in the hopes that it'll impress some adcom. It won't.

 

[Reckoner]

No. Anyone familiar enough to know of this guy will know what lab he works in. When they see your PI's name they'll make the connection. Unless he writes you a letter of recommendation, working with him is not going to mean much for your application.

 

[Goro]

Trying to score brownie points by mere association will do you no favors. You'll look like a fool at interviews when asked about this and it comes out your only association with the guy was that you were in proximity tot he guy, and not actually working for him or under him.

So I got a position in a research lab, and was interviewed by my PI. However, there is someone higher ranking than my PI in the lab I work in, and he is well known for his publications throughout the world. He developed a theory which is held to a high standard in the US and in many parts of Europe (where he was from).

Even though he is not my personal PI, he is still present during our lab meetings and we report our findings to him. I thought this was cool and was wondering if I could include this anywhere in a med school app.
I plan to fill the boxes with the name of my normal PI, but do you think I should include the famous one too somewhere else in the app (maybe in the description) ?