research question!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[marcus "the gun" pupil]

Lets say you had an offer to do research in a big study that spans 12 research centers (NIH sponsored), and you know that there is no chance you will be published (due to the amount of people involved in the study), would you still do the research. How much of a CV booster is such a study (considering the fact that it is real cutting edge stuff!).

[HN_MD]

If your name's not on the paper, it's not worth doing. If you get a paper out of it, then do it.

[RossMD2006]

If your name's not on the paper, it's not worth doing. If you get a paper out of it, then do it.

I second that. Your goal is to publish no matter what research you do. If you have on your CV "Harvard University" for research on the "Next Cure for AIDS" for let's say one year, and you have no publication out of it, it doesn't mean didley squat. There is a lot of work put into publishing. First author papers (who are responsible for all the data gathering, writeup of manuscript, revising the manuscript, re-revising the manuscript when the original manuscript is returned to you, doing the statistics on your study, editing photos in your article) are the best. Those who have published first author papers will understand what I am saying. Any author other than a first author, is better than nothing, but is nowhere near impressive as a first author paper. Don't get me wrong, second, third author papers are great, but it doesnt take much work to get to this level. Sometimes if you work with an investigator who is trying to get you an authorship, he/she can just put your name on the paper because he liked you. There are exceptions though. If you are the fifth author of an article in a major journal, like the New England Journal of Medicine/JAMA, then you are money.

In summary, if you spend months or one year doing research, and if you have no publications out of it-->TOTAL WASTE OF TIME! With that time, you could have gone out partying.

I did basic science research back in the day. I know of PhD students who have spent years of research to just publish one article as a first author. In my experience, those who are second, third, fourth authors do very little in the whole process. These authors usually provide resources for the research project (antibodies, cells, etc.), do one experiment, etc. There are also those ppl who try to get on papers for minimal work, just to add another publication to their CV. If I was a PD, and I saw one applicant who had 10 papers and no single first author paper, I would seriously question how much work he/she has actually put in.

I doubt any research that does not result in a publication will have any impact in your residency application. However, if you are able to publish (case report, review article, research project) that may show some residency directors committment to a project and ability to complete a project to its end.

Also, publishing is really dependent on what field you are planning to enter. In my opinion, publications are more impt in certain fields than others. Board scores are most important. If you are able to combine strong board scores with a 1-2 publications, you will be golden. Publications, IMO, will only strengthen your application.

My recommendation to you, if you are looking to publish, is to find a physician who has a track history of publishing. Go to PUBMED and do a search on the Drs. name. Email the doc and ask if they have any positions available. Ask the doc the chances of you publishing (before you start), and do what you can, given the time you have, to do whatever is necessary to get a publication out. Case reports/review articles are easier to publish while full-fledged research papers can take at least a year!

Good luck.

[autolycos]

This is not exactly true. You can use this to your advantage to get improved letters of reference as well.

There is no magic bullet to getting into medical school. Medical schools look at many things to decide on admission.

[RossMD2006]

Yes, you can also use research opportunities as a way to get a letter of rec. Also, you can use the opportunity to "infiltrate" the department where you want to do residency. There are a number of advantages to doing research.