Undergraduate Research

[Supernatural17]

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I wanted to know does it matter what type of lab research you do in undergrad if you plan on applying to medical school. I'm doing Animal Behavior Research in a biology lab and it's not like a chemistry lab or a genetics/Microbiology lab but just field work with birds and analyzing there songs and calls and data analysis afterwards, rather than actual laboratory work with microscopes, etc.... Even though it's not actual laboratory work I really enjoy it. Is this kind of biology research still considered acceptable in what medical schools actually wanna see when you apply? Thanks

 

[Lawpy]

It doesn't matter what research you do as long as it's hypothesis-based and you can talk in detail about your research work in interviews. An SDNer got to a Top 10 doing ant research, and many others got into good schools doing research on topics ranging from exotic chemical reactions to social behavior analysis.

 

[soccerusa]

I wanted to know does it matter what type of lab research you do in undergrad if you plan on applying to medical school. I'm doing Animal Behavior Research in a biology lab and it's not like a chemistry lab or a genetics/Microbiology lab but just field work with birds and analyzing there songs and calls and data analysis afterwards, rather than actual laboratory work with microscopes, etc.... Even though it's not actual laboratory work I really enjoy it. Is this kind of biology research still considered acceptable in what medical schools actually wanna see when you apply? Thanks

I had a really successful research experience in physical chemistry. Not exactly medical relays. I think the most important thing is the professor you are working with. Finding someone willing to teach and mentor over a long time period is much more important than the field you are in. And ok yeah, make sure they are going to help you get your name on a paper or two.

 

[Loveinglife97]

Thank you for posting this helped me to!

 

[ChillDawg]

I had a really successful research experience in physical chemistry. Not exactly medical relays. I think the most important thing is the professor you are working with. Finding someone willing to teach and mentor over a long time period is much more important than the field you are in. And ok yeah, make sure they are going to help you get your name on a paper or two.

Yes, absolutely this.
Find a good mentor and you'll be golden.
My research was very relevant (viruses, potential cancer treatment) but my PI was terrible and I ended up not even asking him for a letter.
Find someone who will take the time to talk to you, and someone you communicate with well. Of course, do good work.

 

[Shirafune]

Don't stress about authorship as an undergraduate. It sounds like you're enjoying your work so your PI is at least tolerable. If you ever decide to explore another field, ask your friends and upperclassmen what their experience has been with other PIs. Like what others have said, a PI willing to mentor and push your academic potential is key. Even if there isn't as much freedom to begin with, it's important to know there's always the chance.

 

[Grace184]

Honestly, although it wasn't "conventional" type research in my under grad (I was a pharmacy major) I did retrospective research on my own time- I made my own hours, read through old studies, etc, compiled what had been done to help with the final manuscripts. It taught me a lot later when I did my post doc residency bc that all I ever did- read retrospective studies lol.

But honestly one of the my works in undergrad got me published at another university (through their med school) so you can't brush off retrospective studies completely!

Edit: plus I'm terrible at labs to props to you guys! I can make great suppositories though 😉

 

[soccerusa]

Don't stress about authorship as an undergraduate. It sounds like you're enjoying your work so your PI is at least tolerable. If you ever decide to explore another field, ask your friends and upperclassmen what their experience has been with other PIs. Like what others have said, a PI willing to mentor and push your academic potential is key. Even if there isn't as much freedom to begin with, it's important to know there's always the chance.

You should definitely worry about authorship as an undergrad. Publications measure successful research. Yes, I realize research can still help you without papers, but realize that most successful candidates at top research schools have had success publishing. I think this is something worth discussing with your PI when you are considering working with them. Say something like, "I am really excited about your research and the potential to work with you. I am planning to apply to medical school and publications are an important part of the application process. Provided I work hard and contribute in the lab, would you support me working towards getting my name on a paper?"

Some of the best feedback I got in interviews came from looking at my publication record. It shows ingenuity, persistence and the ability to finish what you started.

 

[WedgeDawg]

You should definitely worry about authorship as an undergrad. Publications measure successful research. Yes, I realize research can still help you without papers, but realize that most successful candidates at top research schools have had success publishing. I think this is something worth discussing with your PI when you are considering working with them. Say something like, "I am really excited about your research and the potential to work with you. I am planning to apply to medical school and publications are an important part of the application process. Provided I work hard and contribute in the lab, would you support me working towards getting my name on a paper?"

Some of the best feedback I got in interviews came from looking at my publication record. It shows ingenuity, persistence and the ability to finish what you started.

I would disagree that most incoming students at top schools have publications. I think it's more important that they have something of value they produced (whether that be a paper, poster, abstract, presentation, thesis, or something else) rather than a publication. Everyone I know who got into a top 20 has research experience and something on that list, but very few have actual publications. Yeah, you have to show you're productive, but not necessarily through a pub.

 

[soccerusa]

I would disagree that most incoming students at top schools have publications. I think it's more important that they have something of value they produced (whether that be a paper, poster, abstract, presentation, thesis, or something else) rather than a publication. Everyone I know who got into a top 20 has research experience and something on that list, but very few have actual publications. Yeah, you have to show you're productive, but not necessarily through a pub.

I was using the term publication in a looser term to include conference presentations or whatever. But I still maintain that everyone I talked to at interviews at the big research schools had pubs in journals.

 

[WedgeDawg]

I was using the term publication in a looser term to include conference presentations or whatever. But I still maintain that everyone I talked to at interviews at the big research schools had pubs in journals.

I guess we had different experiences then. I would say for people who took a year or two off to do research, absolutely, but for people going straight through, it was much less common. Could just be slightly different populations we saw. Heck I still don't have a publication.

 

[Doug Underhill]

Do we have any statistics on what percentage of students have publications? There are a lot of statistics on who "did research", but that's different from getting published.

 

[WedgeDawg]

Do we have any statistics on what percentage of students have publications? There are a lot of statistics on who "did research", but that's different from getting published.

No, but in another thread on a similar topic, @gyngyn, who is an adcom at a research-heavy school, said that it was "rare".

 

[Caroline2818]

I recently met with an friend of mine who works for Pitt Medical School admissions. He gave me some really good advice on research when it comes to applicants who have experience vs. who do not -
it was that the medical schools are looking for applicants who are able to see problems in medicine with an established scientific lens, like someone said above, hypothesis-based research and be able to know what you are talking about.

He also told me that in terms of getting your name on a publication it is great and shows a lot, but that what really counts is your ability to explain well what you worked on and how you contributed to the lab. He said that sometimes applicants will come in with their name on a paper but really can't explain what they did in regards to the whole picture, because all they did was just help out with basic experiments. I guess the best thing is to really have a grasp and passion with what you were working on and show that to the admissions committee.