Residency and type of research

[caliMDkid]

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Hey all,

would some people familiar w the ophtho match quickly say if residencies prefer either clinical/epi ophtho vs basic science optho research?

thanks

 

[rubensan]

dear calikid,
your question comes up from time to time on SDN and I always maintain that you should do whatever interests you with a PI who is going to giude you along. major clinical trials are based on discoveries that stem from basic science research and you can't get NIH funding these days unless the basic science you are pursuing has clinical relevance. Bottom line, both are important and the best vision scientists can do both.


All of this being said, and from someone who did basic science for 2 years between my 2nd and 3rd year of medical school, what I believe impressed the people that interviewed me the most (Dr. Doan excluded...don't think i impressed him much 😉 ) was the fact that I published my research as first author in major journals like IOVS. It won't be the fact that you did "a year of research" that will make you a shoe-in to your dream program, it will be what you did during that year (abstracts, funded grant proposals, publications, etc) and your ability to talk intelligently about your research when residency interviews come around. Hit the groud running when you get to NIH, get into a lab with a PI who cares about your professional career and will help you with things like experimental design and manuscript preparation. become very good friends with grad students, lab techs and post-docs, they will save you months of spinning your wheels. Best of luck!

Hey all,

would some people familiar w the ophtho match quickly say if residencies prefer either clinical/epi ophtho vs basic science optho research?

thanks

 

[brendang]

I did the preponderance of my publications in vascular surgery and had nothing but positive feedback during my interviews. Some asked why, in particular, did I publish in that field but otherwise they were all interested in it. Above all, it demonstrates, in my opinion, a willingness to work hard and dedicate yourself, yada yada yada...

 

[caliMDkid]

thanks for the input fellas. 😀

I did the preponderance of my publications in vascular surgery and had nothing but positive feedback during my interviews. Some asked why, in particular, did I publish in that field but otherwise they were all interested in it. Above all, it demonstrates, in my opinion, a willingness to work hard and dedicate yourself, yada yada yada...