Nurturing and Expressing Your Research Interest

Pre-Med & Medical School Pre-Med Topics
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<p>There is a great prof I really want to work with for a structured undergrad research program this summer. I talked with him yesterday and I could sense that he has the potential to be an ideal mentor and that I would be able to learn much more from working with him than from many other profs.</p>

<p>To first apply for this program I need to find a supervisor first.
So I approached and requested him to be my supervisor for this undergrad research program.
He asked me what I knew about his lab and if there's something about his research that interests me. I replied that all I know is he does research on RNA and, as for my research interest, I have nothing specific. (In fact, I briefly read one of his papers and general research descriptions from his lab webpage before visiting him.)</p>

<p>He went on to explain various things about his research, most, if not all, of which I barely understood, though I pretended as if I were getting it, by constantly nodding and smiling lol. (embarrassing)</p>

<p>Then he suggested that he wouldn't want to do it with a student who doesn't seem to have interest in his research. He encouraged me to first talk to his students in the lab to learn about their research and then if I get interested, to come back to him and demonstrate that I truly have interest in his research, only after which will he agree to take me for the summer research. </p>

<p>But even if I talk to students in his lab and listen to their stories, I doubt I'll be able to understand most of what they say, let alone getting interested in them, becaue I'm currently only a second-year and lack much background and prior basic knowledge in his research area.
He also seemed to assume that I'm really smart and interested in research, when, in fact, I'm not LOL. (In the first place, however, I've never even had the opportunity to try out real research to see if I like it or not, though I've been volunteering in another prof's lab from Fall to present; the volunteer work I did (cleaning, labeling, and washing beakers) can't really be considered research, though.)</p>

<p>The only reason I want to really work with him for summer research is he is brilliant and ideal as a mentor, not because I have a deep interest (not just any interest) in his research. Nurturing such kind of an interest is a big challenge for me. But still, if I don't have an interest in a particular field of research, should I not even bother doing research in that area in the first place? (Sorry if this is a weird question)</p>

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I talked with him yesterday and I could sense that he has the potential to be an ideal mentor and that I would be able to learn much more from working with him than from many other profs.

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<p>I find this hard to believe. I don't doubt your opinion that he could be a great mentor, but to say that you could learn so much more from him than from "many other profs" a little naive. Why are you writing all the other professors off?</p>

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The only reason I want to really work with him for summer research is he is brilliant and ideal as a mentor, not because I have a deep interest (not just any interest) in his research.

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<p>Well, that's a problem. I think he's already said, in a fairly polite manner, that if you're not interested in his research, then don't bother coming back to him. Since you think he's a great mentor, I suggest that you listen to him. Faking interest in his work is going to be tiring over the long run, and you're eventually going to hate it. </p>

<p>I say this because I've been in a research position where I didn't really care for the professor's research interests. I faked it for two semesters. It was joyless work and in the end, things basically imploded. I hated it. I don't like to think about it anymore because it was a bad experience.</p>

<p>So, take my advice, please. :)</p>

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<p>Most PI's won't care about your previous research experience or your grades or your coursework. What they value the most is work ethic and passion. Research (at the undergrad or post-bac level) doesn't require a lot of intelligence or even understanding of biology. It requires a lot of work. You are going to be miserable working in a lab where you don't care about the subject matter. This professor is actually trying to see if you would be happy working in HIS lab, not just any old research lab. </p>

<p>If you don't have any specific research interests right now, at least find out what you would be doing if hired and if you would like that (would you be doing molecular biology ie pipetting, electrophysiolgy, would you be working with mice or blood, would you be doing a lot of microscope work or a lot of Western blots, etc.). Talk to the other people in the lab and ask if the PI is a good mentor and if he's patient and flexible. You need to be able to articulate your interest in a way that's specific to this lab. Just saying "I want to join this lab because I want to do research" is not going to cut it. Just saying "he's brilliant" is not going to cut it either. Any college professor and PI will likely appear brilliant to you (and they probably are, to get to where they are right now).</p>