silvermen85 Posted January 21, 2009 Report Share Posted January 21, 2009 Say someone with a Nature paper but mediocre grad GPA, would that person be more competitive than a grad app with 4.0 grad GPA but 1 meeting abstract? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnDakota Posted January 21, 2009 Report Share Posted January 21, 2009 heh.. well to be realistic Nature or Science isn't very likely for a grad student. Most professors work entire careers to get an article in those journals. I've never heard of anyone commenting on if U of T, or any Med School for that matter, takes into account journal impact factor. I hope they do, because it means something. What I fear is that they just look at number of publications. Also remember, most MSc. students don't get a publication until the very end of their degree, or after it's finished. Things like presentations, awards etc.. are important too. And to be honest, I have no clue what 'abstracts' are. I know they're the summary of your work, but everything you do in a grad project has an 'abstract.' So if you were to claim each one you'd be double dipping everything you've participated in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvermen85 Posted January 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2009 I think for many famous journals that the admission committee will recognize them with no problem, that list includes but not limited to all Nature family journals, Science, NEJM, Cell family journals etc. For specialized journals its probably the number of first authors, followed by the number of coauthors etc. I don't know if too many papers can be beneficial or not. I had a friend who had a first author Nature Biotechnology and NEJM paper during graduate school that was invited for Harvard HST MD interview, apparently the interviewer was puzzled that why a person who is on his way for a great career in research would want to start over and enter medical school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alastriss Posted January 21, 2009 Report Share Posted January 21, 2009 I think for many famous journals that the admission committee will recognize them with no problem, that list includes but not limited to all Nature family journals, Science, NEJM, Cell family journals etc. For specialized journals its probably the number of first authors, followed by the number of coauthors etc. I don't know if too many papers can be beneficial or not. I had a friend who had a first author Nature Biotechnology and NEJM paper during graduate school that was invited for Harvard HST MD interview, apparently the interviewer was puzzled that why a person who is on his way for a great career in research would want to start over and enter medical school. Too many papers is never bad enough, it demonstrates a lot of potential. Just because the interviewer was puzzled that doesn't mean you can give a well thought out answer that really demonstrates your commitment to becoming an MD. It just goes to show what you are willing to give up (a great career in research) for medicine. In the words of Kumar, just because you are hung like a moose, doesn't mean you have to do porn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ointment007 Posted January 23, 2009 Report Share Posted January 23, 2009 Say someone with a Nature paper but mediocre grad GPA, would that person be more competitive than a grad app with 4.0 grad GPA but 1 meeting abstract? how much emphasis does UT put on research productivity for grads? A LOT! (i'm talking about research-based, not course based theses) i found that most people tend to have higher GPAs for their grad courses (for my grad program, a B- was a fail, and the average mark in most courses was an A-). i feel like most of the med schools are aware of this, and don't really weigh grad marks heavily. some grad programs don't even have course requirements (lucky buggers)! good luck! the wait is almost over Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvermen85 Posted January 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2009 Actually that was not the case for me. I pretty much focused all my energy on research during grad school and as a result my grad GPA really sucked. how much emphasis does UT put on research productivity for grads? A LOT! (i'm talking about research-based, not course based theses) i found that most people tend to have higher GPAs for their grad courses (for my grad program, a B- was a fail, and the average mark in most courses was an A-). i feel like most of the med schools are aware of this, and don't really weigh grad marks heavily. some grad programs don't even have course requirements (lucky buggers)! good luck! the wait is almost over Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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