Year-off research fellowships

[chicamedica]

I've been considering taking a year off next year (after 3rd yr) to do research, just because I like doing research a lot and there has not been an adequate opportunity for me to concentrate on doing quality research when trying to juggle with schoolwork/rotations.

so far, the programs I know about and am very interested in are:

(in order of interest)

1.Sarnoff (I'm strongly considering cardiology)
2. NIH CRTP
3. NIH cloisters
4. Doris Duke

Now, my questions are:

1) how difficult is it to obtain one of these fellowships?
2) would it be a bad idea to apply to all of them? I don't know if I want to risk applying to just one program, but on the other hand, will it seem that I'm less interested, say, in Sarnoff, if I also apply to NIH?

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[blackwell]

Good for you. If you think research will be part of your
career, now is a good time to explore and see what it's
really like.
I think the competitiveness of these programs varies
from year to year and depends a lot on the number of
people who apply. I believe the NIH programs are more
well known and thus attract more applicants to their
programs, but you can call up the directors and ask about
the previous year's stats. Most people who apply to one
will apply to others. It will not reflect poorly on you as an
applicant and they understand that it is in your best interest
to apply to different places and see where your interests and
personality fit in best. A lot of people's experiences with
these programs is strongly dependent on the mentors they
end up with so make sure you find a good match. Hope this
helps and good luck

 

[alina_s]

The HHMI/NIH cloisters program is quite competitive and from what I've heard, much depends upon who writes your recommendations. I go to CWRU- not a bad research institution- and only 1 or 2 of the applicants (of ~ 40) over the years has been accepted to the program. There is another NIH program that provides funding for students to work with a researcher at the NIH main campus and I heard that it was much less competitive, but it of course requires you to find someone to work with/sponsor you before applying for the funding. I believe that the Doris Duke program is less competitve than Cloisters but it can be a lot of work- if you want to apply to more than one campus, you need to send out multiple applications and recommendations. Also, read all of the details on the individual school sites, because most of them require additional material. As far as applying to multiple programs, there is no reason for the Doris Duke program to know that you applied to the NIH.

 

[dynamic02]

There is also a year program at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. And at the end of it, you receive a "Certificate of Research". I was there this summer and had the opportunity to meet some of the students in the program-- they were really enjoying it and love the faculty and facilities. Just something to check out!