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Affichage des articles dont le libellé est Should I drop research?. Afficher tous les articles

Should I drop research?

vendredi 16 octobre 2015

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So I've worked under a graduate student doing biochemistry research for a year now. I have about 750 hours racked up, however my degree is starting to turn into all upper division sciences and my semesters are getting a lot harder. Essentially all I do is run the experiments for the grad student, meaning I might scrape by with an acknowledgement on a paper if I'm lucky, which is also projected to be published around a year from now.

At this point I'm not feeling I'm getting a lot out of research. I feel my EC's are the strongest part of my app (CEO of 501(c)(3) company ~3000 hours, 250 hours clinical volunteer, 250 nonclinical volunteer, 1500 hours of work as bartender, 80 hours shadowing, 750 hours research) however my sGPA is a 3.4 and cGPA is a 3.5 (One bad semester due to illness that I regret not taking leave everyday :bang:) and I'm currently a Junior (Taking a gap year so my senior classes will be able to boost my GPA on app).

Currently weighing the pros and cons of quitting research and would appreciate input!

Pros/Reasons to drop:

  • ~15 hours more free time per week. Much needed as classes get harder and harder and my GPA cannot go any lower.
  • Good friends with the PI and I also TA one of his classes so he'll still write me a great rec letter.
  • Likely won't get my name on a paper anyways. Even if I did it would require another year of commitment.
  • I wouldn't have to continue during the summer, meaning that three months is 100% dedicated to MCAT prep and I need a high score to balance my GPA.
Cons/Reasons to stay:
  • Having the extra year or two of research shows long term dedication to one project. The only other thing on my app that could be considered "long term" is my work experience & CEO position (2 years each) which aren't related to medicine. My clinical volunteering was the second longest commitment at 6 months straight
  • It pays $5200 a year, but only if I work 20 hrs/week during the summer as well. All of my college is paid for with student loans and the $5200 helps me take out a little bit less loans, but it's not like I'll starve without the stipend.
  • The schedule is extremely flexible. They completely work around my schedule, which is something really hard to find with EC's.

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Should I drop research?

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