BigRedBeta, blackngoldengrl, and XOMichelle (if she still posts here) would seem to be your best resources for this - I think they're the most recent medical school applicants.

If you are wanting to be a researcher, medical school is NOT the best way to go. If you want to be a physician researcher, then an MD/PhD program is a possibility, but that adds at least 2 years to your medical school training. Medical school includes very little real research and does nothing to prepare you for actual bench research. Some fellowship programs after residency (my husband is doing bench work at Hopkins in the pediatric endocrinology section) require some bench work, but you are thrown in like you know how to run western/southern blots, develop knock-out rats,etc. My husband (who is extremely smart is constantly wishing he'd done a PhD since he only wants to do research.) You really need to figure out what you want from your career. If you'd like to see patients and have a medical based genetics lab, then MD/PhD is probably a good choice. If you just want research, skip medical school.

What I usually say is you should only go to medical school if you want to do the things that a doctor does. If you want to see patients, diagnose conditions, and provide treatments to them (or in the case of genetics, counseling patients and their parents), then you need to go to medical school.

If you want to do research you can do it with an MD alone, so long as you want to do some of the MD aspects...

If you don't want to do the things a physician does, then a PhD is the only way to go. An MD is just wasted time. It requires extra time, you have to do a residency and a lot of time spent NOT doing research.

IDK? There isn't much money in research today. And it's changing for physicians too. PhD's do not get paid that much at all and you can love all the science in the world, it still does not pay. All the genetic encoding is outsourced to Singapore and China to be honest. Post Docs have been outsourced, too, because to pay a US PhD costs researchers too much and there is too much back talk.

At least with an MD you have a "steady paycheck"... You can also sign on to Clinical Trials with is a tad bit of public health skills and stats. And you make more "inflected presentations" to "stakeholders"/"shareholders".

If you do MD/PhD program, it is expected that you will be in school for a very long time.

With the reviews of the NIH that will be going on, and with Dr. Collins being at the forefront, a full audit of NIH grant money will be reviewed. That will make quite a few major researchers jump ship. There is quite a bit of scientific misconduct going on and houses will be cleaned thoroughly...

With the "frontlines" coming at us, such as "swine flu" and initial comments on the websites, that this infection affects obese people--who knows what 21st century research will look like?

You have some decisions to make, weigh your options, good luck and if anything regardless of what course your choose, also take some business classes. I sure wish I did while I was in school.

You are so right about all of this. The money is getting tighter and tighter. There is so much pressure to produce that people are taking short cuts and falsifying research. Getting a PhD takes just as long as getting through med school and a short residency. The money is better in medicine, but if you want to do research and don't want to see patients, med school isn't the field for you...

Ironically, I know quite a few physicians that choose NOT to see patients... LOL! Don't know how they don't see patients, though? I mean, doesn't Admissions ask ppl. if they want to see patients in the interview?

Doing hardcore research biotech is NOT easy. When I cloned my first plasmid "pre-kits", it took me nearly 2 months--and I had to MAKE competent DH5a cells--they were not sold at that time. When I cloned my second trangenic plasmid as a Post doc, it took me 1 month, with the sequencing to be injected into pluripotent blastocysts for chimeras.

These days you have Bayesian volcano plots from chips of relative transcriptomes...

Thank you everyone for the advice! I'm going back and forth right now on whether or not I want to see patients or just do research. I know that is somewhat of a big decision, but I kind of want to do both. I'd like to see patients, but could I handle it? If I just do research will I grow tired of it? So thank you everyone for your responses!

Any general advice from the GC docs for an incoming M1? As excited as I am to finally start medical school, I'm equally nervous!

Well, I won't be of much assistance, KappaMD. Just thought you might chuckle at the fact that I am going to plagarize your tagline and post it in my 5th grade classroom this year.

My students often need to put not-so-cute stuff on mute.

Oh, and congrats on the beginning of your med. school education.

My advice? Don't be nervous. Everyone else is as confused as you are. Just take it one day at a time and remember to have some fun - and in four years, you'll be a doctor! (I still get a little thrill every time I answer a page with 'this is Dr. Sweetie', although it's less of a thrill at 3AM.)

I GOT AN INTERVIEW!

(Heck yes!)

Any advice? I've been to the mock interviews at school, but I am still quite nervous.

Any tips for impressing the board? What else should I keep in mind for the day of the interview?

Take a deep breath, try not to giggle if you have a nervous giggle and realize that you will most likely be accepted if you are interviewing this early. I interviewed the first week of Oct and got my acceptance letter the next week. Schools didn't start interviewing before Oct at that time so it was early. They don't interview borderline people that early, so that's a good clue. All you have to do at this point is not screw it up. Other than that, be up to date on current events concerning health care since they may ask you your opinions regarding the current situation.

AOE, Congrats! I just went through the application/interview process last year, and remember how exciting it was to get that first interview.

A website I found useful when preparing was http://more.studentdoctor.net/schoollist.php?type=2. People who interviewed at a particular school post feedback and tips for future interviewees. It was a good way to see what kind of questions are typically asked, whether the interviews are one-on-one, two-on-one, open or closed, how intense, etc.

My personal advice is, as cliche as it sounds, is to relax and be yourself. Also, read up on current events in healthcare (ESPECIALLY now, since it is a hot-button topic), consider your stance on certain ethical dilemmas, and solidy within yourself your reasons for wanting to be a doctor. If I was asked any question more than once, it was "why do you want to be a doctor?"

GOOD LUCK, and let us know how it goes!

Whoo haven't been on this thread in a while, gotta love being an intern...

congrats on your interview!

Definitely be yourself, know about the current healthcare/medical issues, and if you have some idea of what you might want to do, that isn't so bad either. Also, know the institution where you are having the interview very well. Meaning, if it is more research-focused or primary-care focused; any aspects of the program/institution that you admire or interest you; any faculty/researchers/community programs that interest you.

Confidence (but not arrogance) is key!

AOEforme, have you had your interview yet?


On another note, one of my dear friends from HS just landed an interview at Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine-they don't pay tuition! How AMAZING would that be? I am crossing my fingers for her that it goes well. Same for you too AOE if you haven't had yours yet!