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[Jack Bushak]

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[seewhathappens]

I would consider the astronomical cost of medicine in the US.  Also, there is nothing stopping you from pursuing that master's during your residency - I know plenty of people who have done that.  I'm not sure why you would gamble away your guaranteed Med acceptance now, for something uncertain.  There's no guarantee you can get an acceptance again either in Canada or in the US - admissions always have an element of luck involved.

[offmychestplease]

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[DrOtter]

A Master's, regardless of where you do it (except maybe at Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship), will not help you to get into a top-tier school in the US. People who get into these schools have put in years of their lives into impactful achievements that a master's degree is unlikely to offset. You're better off going into med now and if you really have it in you, you can always go to Harvard or any other top-tier schools for residency/fellowship. That will make a much bigger difference in your future career than gambling on a brand name school now. 

[jnuts]

Agree, no real tiers in Canada, each university has strengths and weaknesses.  This is a life goal question.  If you want to be a doctor in Canada go to med school there. If you want to resettle to the US then go directly to med school here (but expect a lifetime of decreased opportunity unless you can get permanent immigration status). 

If you want to do research in Canada primarily l'd reconsider doing medicine at all.  MD academics in Canada have the same obligations and tenure track obligations as non-MDs.  There's little to no prestige and true hybrid positions are almost non-existent. Invariably you'll end up shunted to the side you're better at. Direct competition with non-MDs on the track is almost impossible.

The best advise I had from one of my PIs when I was making the call between research and medicine was that if you try to do both you'll do neither well (this was a highly successful MD/PI with tenure in Toronto). 

During residency we had a parade of surgeon scientists give guest lectures.  A standard question they were asked by our dept chair was "what advice do you have for residents who are considering a similar career?" Almost universally the answer was to "spend more time with your family."

If you want to dabble in research, medical school will teach you to do that.  You don't need the Masters.  The limiting factor is time management. 

[JohnGrisham]

48 minutes ago, Jack Bushak said:

I am currently choosing between a mid-tier Canadian medical school and a masters of bioethics from Harvard. I am really unsure of which path to take. I have a 3.9 GPA and a 521 MCAT (also a Canadian citizen, no US citizenship). My reasoning is that if I were to do the masters of bioethics, I may go on to a highly ranked medical school in the US. I would appreciate any insight. 

If you have a Canadian medical school acceptance, I would not turn it down.  The masters at harvard is nothing special, at all, and is very unlikely to open up doors in the US if you already didn't get any interviews at US medical schools. 

High probably troll post.