However, consider that as an MD, applying for research funding and academic positions will be much harder when your competition is PhDs who have several more years of experience doing exclusively research.
Hopefully it rewards by other means! While becoming a physician-scientist to see patients and do basic or translational research is the traditional route most people will take, there are plenty of other options.
Others go on to work in industry, where they become leaders in drug development and draw from both their clinical and research training. Some graduates may become involved in startups and form their own company. There is no preferred career pathway, although graduates are certainly encouraged to take advantage of both degrees, and not just one of them.
To learn more about becoming a physician-scientist, check out APSA the American Physician Scientists Association and read these articles about physician-scientists.
Contact Us. Health Track. Medical school application statistics. Volunteering, employment and gap year resources. International Service Trips. Informational interviewing. Personal statement. Virtual Screening Assessments. MMI Resources. The names of departments and graduate programs vary from school to school. This is not an exhaustive list, and you should check before you apply to see what is actually offered at any particular school. Not everyone does this, however, either because he or she did not learn about the option early enough, he or she did not make a decision in time, or he or she does not have an academic and research experience record that supports an application.
Not finding out early enough turns out to be a common problem. The disadvantages of this approach include taking longer to finish training and the likely need to cover the cost of medical school on your own. I am frequently asked about the strategy of starting medical school and then applying to graduate school as a medical student.
The rules and requirements vary from school to school. Note that not all of the MSTP programs have chosen to participate, so if you have your heart set on a specific medical school, you should be sure to ask. Another option is to complete medical school and residency training before doing an extended period of supervised research.
A number of Nobel Prize—winning physician—scientists did just that. At some point you will benefit from that additional piece of your education if you intend to become a physician—scientist. As noted above, in years past it was not uncommon to learn how to do research by doing an extended postdoctoral fellowship after or instead of a clinical residency. I am often asked whether it is possible to save time on the path to becoming a physician—scientist by skipping graduate school and just going to medical school.
On the other hand, if you are sure you want to be a doctor, but less sure about being a scientist, then my advice is to go to medical school and figure out the rest of what you need when you know more about the opportunities that being a physician provides. The answer varies from school to school, but historically students begin with 2 years of medical school, switch to graduate school in the third year of the program, and then return to finish medical school after completing and defending a thesis research project.
Now most programs emphasize integration of the MD and PhD parts of the training, with graduate school courses during years 1 and 2 and clinical experiences during graduate school. Some programs allow completion of 3—12 months of clinical training before the start of full-time graduate training. Be sure to ask how things are organized at schools that you are considering.
Depending on the number of clinical months completed before starting the thesis research, students returning to medical school will need 1—2 years to finish their training and meet the requirements for medical licensure. However, numbers from across the country show that some students finish in 6 years, while others take 10 years or more.
The average currently is 8 years Akabas et al. Note that medical education in the United States continues to evolve. One trend is away from the classic two years of preclinical education followed by 2 years of clinical education. However, some schools are choosing not to do this. Corny as this may sound, the process is never really finished. Your education will continue throughout your career. A more pragmatic answer is that training will extend beyond medical school and graduate school as you complete your post graduate education.
Residency, 3—6 years. Postdoctoral fellowship, 3—6 years. After that I became an assistant professor and started my own lab. That timing was fairly typical when I did it. Now it would be considered fast. On the other hand, my job description when I finished included running a research team, looking after postdocs and graduate students, and taking care of sick people with complicated medical problems, so maybe all of that training time was necessary.
Paths to becoming a physician who is also a scientist. These save time at the start, but usually require a longer period of postgraduate clinical and research training to reach the point where a job as a physician—scientist in academia becomes feasible.
See the text for details. Short-term, nearly all do additional clinical training. Those who do not are usually headed toward careers at research institutes or outside clinical medicine entirely. Long-term, most program graduates end up with careers in which they combine patient care and research. The research may be lab-based, translational, or clinical. Those who build research careers and apply for NIH research grants find that having the PhD in addition to the MD improves their chances of obtaining funding Ginsburg et al.
Where are they working? Adapted from Brass et al. Industry includes the biotech and pharmaceutical industries. Pvt Practice refers to full-time clinical practice outside of an academic medical center. The process of application varies from school to school. Most people apply after finishing their junior year in college, but a growing number of applicants finish college and work for a year or more before applying.
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