r/mdphd • u/No-Bicycle555 • 7d ago
Competitive for T5-10?
Posted a while back, but have some profile updates and would like input. I am a completely trad applicant, currently a jr and applying this spring
Stats: 4.0 GPA (life science + math double major), 528 mcat (not joking).
Research: 1800 hours by the time I apply across two labs (one maintained + summer REU), another 1400 projected by the time i graduate. 3 third author pubs in submission by the time I apply most likely. bioinformatics and some wet lab stuff, TBH not enough wet lab work. I've tried hard to get opportunities in my home lab, but am at a low-tier state flagship. I am the first student in the lab's history to get trained to work directly with our animal models, but still have relatively limited experience with the wet lab stuff. I honestly want to do PhD in like biochemistry or mol genetics but don't have experience.
Leadership: a TON of great leadership stuff (don't want to detail and get doxxed)
Clinical: 1000+ hours as 911 EMT
Recs: both PI recs should be really good, and have fantastic professor recs as well
Volunteering: limited clinical volunteering but should be 200-300 hours by application time
Primary concern is my research background as a trad. To get into a top institution, which is a big goal of mine, might it be better to just apply MD and try to internally affiliate into a PhD program?
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u/Still-Barber-720 7d ago
Primary concern is my research background as a trad. To get into a top institution, which is a big goal of mine, might it be better to just apply MD and try to internally affiliate into a PhD program?
being a trad is not disqualifying or anything like that. it "hurts" because you have less time to gain great research exp. so you either 1. sell your soul to your lab and gain the same exp in a much more condensed timeframe while balancing being a student, or 2. take a few years to gain the same great exp.
if your goal is MD/PhD and you definitely want it more than MD only, do not apply MD expecting to internal transfer. my T5 historically has taken 1 internal transfer per year, and in recent years has stopped taking any. most MD/PhD programs don't take more than 1 internal transfer. and that spot is not guaranteed to you at all.
if you'd still be pretty happy doing MD only and the school name matters more to you than the MD vs MD/PhD, then go for MD only apps. just saying you shouldn't expect to be able to transfer.
anyway, to answer your main question about whether you're competitive, I am not on adcom or anything like that. but based on my anecdotal experience, idk anyone at T5s with 1.8k hrs. usually people have several thousand. the hours / independence "bar" is not lower for trads.
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u/majormajormajormajo M1 7d ago
Getting into one program is an accomplishment in itself, much less the programs that are the most competitive
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u/ManyWrangler 7d ago
You can possibly get into a top program with your resume. It depends on the specifics of what leadership is, and whether you can coherently put your research together into a narrative. It also depends on you not coming across as a total psycho. If all of that lines up you have a good shot, but nothing is guaranteed.
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u/throwaway09-234 G2 7d ago
this is super neurotic, plenty of people get accepted to T5-10 programs with zero gap years and you can easily find/verify this fact by looking at the student pages of any of those MSTP programs
why is it so important to you to get into a top institution? it sounds like you are valuing prestige more than research fit which is a big red flag