<p>Here is the thing, I'm currently a high school student interested in a career as a researcher in the biological sciences (not sure I want to do research in the health field). My plan was to major in a "bio" area and then go to graduate school, get myself a master's degree, then a PhD and become a researcher. However, I've been told that by going to medical school (and becoming a physician) and getting a PhD after that, it would be easier for me to become a researcher in the biological sciences. Is that true? I know no institution will ever say "It's true", but have you ever heard that universities look at people who went to medical school with "better eyes"?</p>
<p>Your question is kinda jumbled, but I suggest looking up Md/Phd programs, MSTP, etc.</p>
<p>You also have the option of getting an MD, doing a research fellowship and then getting a research job that way.</p>
<p>I don’t know if having an MD improves your odds in grad school admissions, per se, but I don’t think that should be the question you’re asking if you aren’t in med school already.</p>
<p>Thanks for the answer!
But my question kind of remains unanswered: Does Medical School open doors to research that regular Grad School doesn’t?</p>
<p>Not really. Med school opens up doors to different kinds of research than graduate school, but I wouldn’t say the number or quality of those doors is any different. If anything, med school closes research doors as it’s not a research degree. If you want to do research, a PhD is the degree to do. Definitely do not plan on MD then PhD. It’s inefficient and incredibly expensive. Either do a combined MD/PhD training or do a research fellowship post MD and never go for the PhD.</p>
<p>You have a lot of time to figure this out, and the key questions will be what kind of research you want to do and how much does being a physician mean to you. When you have the answers to those (which I promise you don’t have yet), you’ll know whether to go MD, PhD, MPH, MD/PhD, or MD/MPH (or even PhD/MPH of which I know one).</p>
<p>Thanks for answering i<em>wanna</em>be_Brown! I do have a lot of time to think about that…</p>
<p>The MD/PHD programs are usually for those who want to do clinical research.</p>
<p>If you don’t have MD then you can’t do any research that involves patients.</p>
<p>False and false.</p>
<p>MD/PhDs almost exclusively do their PhD in a basic science discipline and the research they do afterwards can be basic, translational, or clinical. I would argue pure clinical research does not need a PhD at all.</p>
<p>PhDs can do research on patients depending on what you mean by “on patients.” All an MD allows you to do is diagnose and treat patients. PhDs can research tissue samples or design drugs that MDs administer in clinical trials, they can do research involving questionnaires or anything that doesn’t involve doing something to a person’s body that could require medical intervention.</p>