<p>What should one interested in pursuing medicine at a top 50 research school focus on during premed - doing a lot of research or gaining practical experience by volunteering or getting a job in a medical institution?</p>
<p>if ur going for MD/PhD then research, if ur going for just MD then either.</p>
<p>This is going to be a horrible answer, but you really will need some of both. Shraf is right - it makes sense to focus on one or the other, but you will probably need at least a little bit of both. My personal philosophy is a little of everything and a lot of something.</p>
<p>Thanks guys...one more thing, </p>
<p>What does it take to get published for research and is it a must for getting into a top tier?</p>
<p>If the answer to your first question were know-able, the science world would be much less interesting than it actually is. Bottom line: to get published, you have to convince the person in charge that you made a significant contribution. To be honest, I have no tips on how to maximize your chances. Your own project would certainly give you authorship, but it might not get published. Your PI's project probably will get published, but might not (almost certainly will not!) have your name on it. Small labs, big labs - all of them have these tradeoffs. I'm interested, too, if anybody else has tips.</p>
<p>Accordingly, given how difficult it is, it is wonderful and amazing if you actually manage to get a publication at a first-class medical journal. But I'm quite sure it's not mandatory at any kind of medical school.</p>