What is the point of research?

[iqe2010]

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I don't really see a point in research in undergrad, what exactly can a 21 year old find out anyway? All the real/genuine stuff starts in medical school. Pre-meds get ahead of themselves a lot, thinking that just because they looked up a lot of stuff on the internet means they know a lot. Sometimes you have to just 🙄 at some people.

 

[gettheleadout]

I don't really see a point in research in undergrad, what exactly can a 21 year old find out anyway? All the real/genuine stuff starts in medical school. Pre-meds get ahead of themselves a lot, thinking that just because they looked up a lot of stuff on the internet means they know a lot. Sometimes you have to just 🙄 at some people.

Some premeds actually are involved in experimental design/analysis/execution/etc. and experience what it's like to be a true researcher other than running gels. Just saying. A 21-year-old can find out a lot when they've been working in the same lab (not necessarily a wet/bio/chem lab) for a couple years and have the experience needed to design and execute a novel project.

 

[chiapet874]

Anyone who says research has no prevalence in the medical field has obviously not shadowed extensively in a hospital before.

Maybe what you physically DO in a lab isn't very related, but the real purpose of research experience is to expand your ability to integrate information and be able to apply it intellectually- beyond the obvious.

But I do understand that a lot does depend on the undergraduate research environment you find yourself in. I was lucky to work in a lab I love, work hard to establish myself, and find myself going to be on a couple papers. Others might not be so fortunate (or willing to put in as much work).

What most pre-med don't understand is that you can't just put in 3 hours a week and expect to get anything done. I go to lab about 5 hours a day, in addition to academic work and extracurriculars.

 

[Charles_Carmichael]

I don't really see a point in research in undergrad, what exactly can a 21 year old find out anyway? All the real/genuine stuff starts in medical school. Pre-meds get ahead of themselves a lot, thinking that just because they looked up a lot of stuff on the internet means they know a lot. Sometimes you have to just 🙄 at some people.

Um, I wouldn't say "all the real/genuine stuff starts in medical school." If anything, it starts in grad school. Med school is designed to put out clinicians, for the most part. Not researchers.

And like gettheleadout said, some of us lowly premeds do engage in actual independent research, where there's involvement in the the design of the project, analysis, publishing, etc. If by looking up "a lot of stuff on the internet," you mean that we scour through PubMed for literature that gives us better direction, etc, then yes, you're right.