OT: Unrelated Research, but Interest in Ortho

[vir0n]

I'm currently a M1 planning on doing research over the summer that is focused on nuclear medicine. Research experience should be 40% clinical (phase 1 trials, radiology, surgery) and 60% bench.

Anyway, I'm early in my medical school career and trying to kept an open mind as to what I want to eventually go into. So...I'm trying to keep myself competitive in case I plan to go into a competitive field.

So I guess my question is a general a: is research experience (regardless if it is in the specific field I eventually go into) helpful as an applicant to the more competitive residencies?

Thanks!

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[JDWflash44]

I think that the general answer is that doing any research and doing it well will help you no matter what field it is in. Remember that research isn't necessarily about what specifically you learn from your research, but it is about learning how to do good research because later on this skill can be applied in whatever field that you enter. That being said doing some really good ortho research may make you slightly more competitive for ortho, but i think at this point in your career it is more important to find a good mentor/project that will allow you to acquire the skill set needed to conduct good research in the future .

Just my $.02 FWIW

 

[ORS]

Any research will help you get into an ortho residency. Of course ortho res is better, but our attendings are much more impressed with a person that actually performed research on drosophila (sp?) than someone who barely helped and put their name on an ACL paper.

The key is knowing your research in and out so you can answer questions at your interview.


Best of luck