What's a good "yield" for a research year?

[RadicalRadon]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Just wondering.

What's the expected output for a dedicated research year? How many outright publications, posters, abstracts, reviews/whatever are expected? And, what kind of numbers will make you look like a superstar?

 

[NickNaylor]

Depends on the project. If you're starting a basic science project from scratch I would consider a poster presentation pretty productive. If you're finishing a project up then obviously a pub would probably be the expectation. But it'll really just depends on what kind of research you're doing, how far along the project is, and how dedicated you and your PI are to knocking something out.

(sent from my phone)

 

[CrimsonKing]

Depends on the project. If you're starting a basic science project from scratch I would consider a poster presentation pretty productive. If you're finishing a project up then obviously a pub would probably be the expectation. But it'll really just depends on what kind of research you're doing, how far along the project is, and how dedicated you and your PI are to knocking something out.

(sent from my phone)

👍

Yep, if it's basic science you should at least be able to put together a poster; if you're lucky, you may get a pub out.

If you're doing clinical/outcomes research, you should be able to put out several publications with a dedicated year.

 

[RadicalRadon]

.

 

[JJMrK]

At least get a pub submitted, IMO. If you're stuck growing cells that will be harder. If you're involved in a long, drawn out project see if your PI has any ideas for side projects (case report/series, review article, etc).

 

[RadicalRadon]

At least get a pub submitted, IMO. If you're stuck growing cells that will be harder. If you're involved in a long, drawn out project see if your PI has any ideas for side projects (case report/series, review article, etc).

Idk, I'm of the opinion that reviews and case reports aren't really research. They are just work and don't substitute for hypothesis-driven works. Idk, maybe I'm wrong.

Yeah, personally, I think I'm doing okay with output (hopefully). I'm curious what "top" applicants have though for comparison.

 

[evilbooyaa]

Basic lab science will take significantly longer.

I'm taking a year off, planning to do mostly lab research with some clinical projects on the side. Based off your name, likely in the same field. I've heard people who have done purely clinical research for a full year and get a lot more publications than those committed to basic science research. What the importance is in PD's eyes, I'm not 100% sure. However, my mentor told me that PDs in the field like basic science better, and allows for 2 types of research, while purely cilnical has no lab component.

 

[RadicalRadon]

.

 

[mmmcdowe]

probably varies with each program, as a place like stanford probably weighs basic much more heavily even if there is low yield. idk, kind of in the dark about preferences.

Are you talking about taking a year off in college or in medical school?
IMO if your are a medical student taking a year off then you should be shooting for at least one first author paper of some kind.

 

[RadicalRadon]

.

 

[pandoraone]

Med school. Looking at 6-8 abstracts, prob 4-5 first author with a mix of clinical and basic. Don't know what the relative merits are of any of this is.

You've done it already? Or is this projected for that year?

 

[RadicalRadon]

.

 

[mmmcdowe]

Abstracts done, papers and posters at conferences to follow. Data all analyzed/etc. The manuscript publication process is another issue. Your work may get published after interviews/etc.

Try to have at least one paper in print by the time of applications, but yeah sounds like your year off is up to par at least.

 

[GadRads]

It really depends on the kind of basic science project and the kind of support you have. In general, basic science projects will take longer before you see any papers. There's a reason why many PhD and MD/PhD students only have 1 first-author paper after the years of toil. And it's not because they didn't work hard or were stupid.

Clinical research is often more fruitful in terms of papers.

 

[pandoraone]

It really depends on the kind of basic science project and the kind of support you have. In general, basic science projects will take longer before you see any papers. There's a reason why many PhD and MD/PhD students only have 1 first-author paper after the years of toil. And it's not because they didn't work hard or were stupid.

Clinical research is often more fruitful in terms of papers.

Do many MD only students end up with 1st author basic science papers when applying to residency? Or is that very rare (without taking a year off)

 

[alpinism]

Very very rare.

 

[Thama]

Just finished up a research year and wound up with 2 1st author papers (under review right now), an oral presentation + award at a major conference, and a bunch of abstracts and posters. The key for me was talking to a lot of PIs first and finding a project that was:

a) interesting, because you won't want to be running scans/gels/etc at 3 AM if you don't care about what you're trying to learn,
b) well-defined, because you only have a year, and
c) already had some proof-of-concept done, so you don't get 3 months in and find out that the entire plan was doomed to fail completely from the start.

Work hard and it can be done. Lots of energy drinks and techno got me through surgeries and MRIs in the middle of the night. Be ambitious but plan your time and goals well and realistically.

 

[pandoraone]

Just finished up a research year and wound up with 2 1st author papers (under review right now), an oral presentation + award at a major conference, and a bunch of abstracts and posters. The key for me was talking to a lot of PIs first and finding a project that was:

a) interesting, because you won't want to be running scans/gels/etc at 3 AM if you don't care about what you're trying to learn,
b) well-defined, because you only have a year, and
c) already had some proof-of-concept done, so you don't get 3 months in and find out that the entire plan was doomed to fail completely from the start.

Work hard and it can be done. Lots of energy drinks and techno got me through surgeries and MRIs in the middle of the night. Be ambitious but plan your time and goals well and realistically.

What kind of work did you do? What pitfalls did you encounter?