r/mdphd

Thoughts on Phd before MD? I’m finishing up my masters (research based) right now. I’m not stupid, I know my stats aren’t good enough to get me into MD PhD dual program. 3.4 undergrad gpa (though AMCAS shows 3.2?), 4.0 masters 520 MCAT. I am very interested in completing a PhD in evolutionary genetics, (focused on the role of regulatory elements and their role in disease evolution in humans), which is just not a lab found in any MD PhD MSTP program rhat i’ve seen… and i’m not willing to compromise my research interests just to go to a dual program. Also, I probably wouldn’t get in. I was thinking of doing PhD before MD. My stats are good enough to get me into a good PhD program. I have 8000+ research hours, 5 publications (3 first author), NIH research internship for 2 years, 3 additional summer research internships 1 of which was with Hopkins, 13 conferences attended with a couple of awards, extensive leadership, 500+ volunteer hours, 500+ clinical hours (will have more accumulated over duration of PhD of course), 100 shadow hours. The whole 9 yards. Just not willing to get caught in a cycle of applying and being rejected due to my undergrad GPA when I could just be actively working on PhD. Thoughts? I would of course continue to be clinically involved during my PhD and hope to hit the 1-2000 range of clinical hours, and gather more volunteer hours. I would have to retake MCAT because it’ll expire but i’m more than confident in my ability to secure a score similar to my current 520.

My applications were complete on dates ranging from 8/30-9/11, and I’ve received 2 Rs and no IIs. Is this cycle over, should I retake the MCAT (worst part of my application) in January to salvage, etc?

I’m 22 and recently completed my MSc in Cancer, following a BSc in Medical Biology. I’ve always been passionate about cancer research and medicine, and an MD–PhD really appeals to me because of everything it represents, particularly the opportunity to combine scientific discovery with patient care.
However, the time commitment is making me hesitant. Between the MD–PhD, residency and potentially fellowship, especially if I pursue oncology or surgery, I could be approaching 40 before completing my training.
My biggest concern isn’t necessarily my age, but the experiences I might sacrifice along the way. I want to travel the world, explore different cultures, pursue adventure sports and experience life beyond academia. I’m worried about spending my twenties and thirties constantly working towards the next milestone.
I still have a year before I need to decide, so I’m just trying to understand what life is actually like on this path.
For those pursuing or who’ve completed an MD–PhD, do you feel the sacrifices were worth it? Have you managed to maintain a fulfilling life outside medicine, or do you feel you’ve missed out on certain experiences?
I don’t want to give up on one dream, but I also don’t want to sacrifice all my others to achieve it.

Hi all,

I’m planning to apply MD/PhD with no gap year and would appreciate some perspective on my research trajectory.

I started research during the second semester of freshman year and continued full-time over the summer.

Unfortunately, my PI is leaving my institution, so I had to switch labs at the beginning of sophomore year. I’m leaving that lab without a publication or other major output.
I recently joined a new wet lab, but during the academic year I can realistically dedicate only ~9 hours/week because of the constraints of bench work. Since research is arguably the most important component of an MD/PhD application, I was worried that this would leave me with relatively limited depth by the time I apply.

Because of that, I also joined a computational lab. The work is much more flexible, including evenings/weekends and remote work, so I can realistically aim for ~20–30 hours/week. So far, the two labs have not conflicted, I enjoy both, and all three of my research experiences are in closely related areas of cancer biology. Both current PIs also seem supportive of undergraduates working toward meaningful research outputs.

My questions are:

Was joining both labs a reasonable decision, or would I be better off committing fully to one?

Would it make sense to leave the wet lab relatively early and focus on the computational project, where I can invest substantially more time and potentially develop greater independence?

How do MD/PhD admissions committees generally view applicants working in two labs simultaneously?

Should I prioritize continuity/depth in one lab even if the total weekly research time is lower, or pursue both as long as I can contribute meaningfully to each?

I’m less concerned with simply maximizing publications than with building the strongest possible record of sustained, substantive research before applying.

Would appreciate any perspectives, especially from current MD/PhD students or people familiar with MSTP admissions.

I have been lucky enough to schedule an "informal interview" with a professor this Thursday, before my actual MD/PhD interview. What should I expect? Should I prepare to answer traditional interview questions, or expect more questions about my background and research?

Relatedly (and I might be overthinking this), I know I should ask about the professor's research, but how detailed should I be? Should I be asking specific questions about their recently published papers, or keep it more broad? So far I plan to ask about the current/upcoming projects in their lab, how they see their lab's work evolving over the next 5 years, and for more information about a specific cohort they are setting up.

Thank you in advance!!

I want to apply to MD-PhD schools in 2028 and I'm currently trying to navigate LOR from my professors. My only issue is that I'm majoring in a non-STEM major (antropology) and my professors are willing to write me a LOR but they are under non-STEM LOR. I'm actively trying to ask my STEM weed out class professors but obviously, they do not remember me. I was wondering how yall were able to get LORs from a STEM professor as a non-STEM major?

Hi there! I'm a first semester sophomore undergrad. Freshman year was a bit rocky and my cGPA is currently 3.5. BCPM is a little lower. No Cs, just even As and Bs. I hate making excuses, but objectively I am chronically ill and spent a lot of last year in and out of hospitals. Some of my professors weren't super lenient about that, which is fine, but I didn't score as high as I know I could have.

I'm doing a lot better this year now that I have a proper care team and ODA accommodations (previously was undiagnosed). I also have okay ECs - 9 months of a clinical job, a year of various positions in hospital volunteering (currently a trainer in the ER), RA in two labs, officer for a charity org, tutor. About 400 research hours from one lab, and I just started the second so about 10. Expecting co author on a few projects and hoping to present some posters soon. PI highly encourages individual projects and I plan to graduate with my undergrad thesis. I'm double majoring in bio and psych.

I'm considering retaking my statistics class, but I'm not entirely sure what else to do other than get all As going forward. Any help would be really great.

I finished 30 secondaries mostly during the first week of August to the end of august. I’ve only received one interview from a T10 program and a rejection from UW.

Is it worth adding more schools and are there any schools that have later cycles? Also, when should I send updates if at all?