Summer Ortho Research - Not sure if interested in Ortho

[scrubswannabe]

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So I'm an MS1 and I've been accepted to a really nice Ortho Research program for the summer. I have no other options for the summer at the moment and definitely wanted to do research between MS1 and MS2.

I am not 100 percent sure even after Anatomy Lab that I want to be a surgeon and never seriously considered going into surgery, let alone Ortho, until I got into this program and started thinking about it.

My question to those that perhaps are fourth years and have matched is, do you think it would hurt me if I did research this summer in Ortho but then come fourth year was interested in doing a residency in Internal Medicine. Would it look like I can't make up my mind, and perhaps that I'm not even sure about Internal Medicine?

My thinking is that I'm not going to know for sure whether or not I want to be an Orthopaedic surgeon unless I do this. I can use this to find out about myself and what I like - shadow a bunch and do a lot of research.

Thanks,

 

[xanthomondo]

So I'm an MS1 and I've been accepted to a really nice Ortho Research program for the summer. I have no other options for the summer at the moment and definitely wanted to do research between MS1 and MS2.

I am not 100 percent sure even after Anatomy Lab that I want to be a surgeon and never seriously considered going into surgery, let alone Ortho, until I got into this program and started thinking about it.

My question to those that perhaps are fourth years and have matched is, do you think it would hurt me if I did research this summer in Ortho but then come fourth year was interested in doing a residency in Internal Medicine. Would it look like I can't make up my mind, and perhaps that I'm not even sure about Internal Medicine?

My thinking is that I'm not going to know for sure whether or not I want to be an Orthopaedic surgeon unless I do this. I can use this to find out about myself and what I like - shadow a bunch and do a lot of research.

Thanks,

Do it. It sounds like an awesome opportunity. Even if you decide to go into something else having research (even though it's not related to your field) will be great on your app. If you end up going into ortho it's that much better.

 

[gravitywave]

yeah, no way does it hurt you, not as an M1/2. congrats!

 

[kissmyasthma99]

Definitely do it. There is no down side. No program is going to fault you for doing research in a field that you thought you might be interested in. You can say that you were interested in the field, and that you did research to find more about it. Also, if you do end up wanting to do ortho, that research is going to pay off (big time). You don't want to be on the other side of the fence saying, "Man, I wish I would have done that research back then..."

 

[PistolPete]

Do it. Research will help you no matter what specialty you go into, and it will be required if you end up wanting ortho. End up wanting IM? No problem, it'll be an added bonus and something you can talk about in interviews, even if not directly related.