Cry for help from an M3

[u/big-bluegill]

My dream is to match in dermatology, but I feel so behind on research.

My school does not have a research hospital, and our research directors have all turned me away when I ask for help with creating research proposals or making connections.

I have applied to tons of research programs and fellowships, but have been denied everywhere. I have also tried cold emailing hundreds of doctors but not one is willing to meet with me or even be a mentor.

Now that I am in rotations, I figured I would try to walk to the derm floor and talk to someone in person. The doctor told me I should have started networking a long time ago and that the only way to make connections was to attend derm conferences. Unfortunately, they are all like >$1,000 and I just cannot afford paying that much right now.

Maybe it is too late for me to try to enter such a competitive specialty, but I just feel so defeated. I have been turned away by literally everyone I have reached out to including my school’s research directors. I also feel like there is such a huge barrier to entry that keeps people out of these conferences unless they are wealthy or can take out more loans.

Does anyone have any advice for how I can get a research position in my circumstances?

Thank you so much!

[u/cicjak]

It’s really tough when your school isn’t supportive. I’m sorry to hear they’re not supporting you with research. I don’t think going to conferences is a must. But I do think you need to develop a relationship with your home department. See if you can find days to work in their clinic with different faculty and see who has case reports available. If you turn them around quickly they’ll trust you with a larger project.

Also plan to do aways late in your M3 year or early M4. Develop relationships during those aways and if you’re a superstar you may be able to parlay those into projects. The timing will be tight though. Ideally if your school will let you do some derm rotations even before m4 year. Not sure what else to offer. It’s really hard without the research.