Tips for IMGs Seeking US Clinical Research Jobs

I am gonna let this thread build up over time - as of now, I am putting up cues posted on the Harvard Medical school website:


"Foreign medical graduates who have not obtained ECFMG certification can be admitted to the United States for the purpose of observation, consultation, teaching, and for research not involving responsibility for patient care. These applicants should identify an area of research in the discipline in which they wish to work, then identify scientists working in that field in a number of medical schools and hospitals in the United States (possibly through papers published in medical journals). At Harvard, each basic and social science department and each clinical department recruits its own researchers, so applicants should apply directly to the scientist with whom they would like to work, informing him or her of their qualifications and enclosing a copy of their curriculum vitae and an overview of their longterm professional goals.

Applicants should also identify funds to support themselves and their research projects while they are in the United States. These funds might be available from home institutions, from governments, or from international fellowship sources. Applicants who have identified sources of support have a better chance of acceptance. Once the scientist has been accepted by a United States educational institution, a certificate of eligibility for a J-1 research visa, good for three years can be issued by this institution. Applications for a J-1 clinical visa cannot be made while a foreign medical graduate is on s J-1 research visa. "

Source


You can disregard the last line in the segment above about visa issues - we already discussed about transferring from Research J1 visa status to Clinical J1 visa status.



Another thing to do is check out research related positions on career sites of individual websites of universities known to carry out lotsa clinical research - a good way to get a list of such places would be the to look up the USnews ranking for Top-50 US Medical schools for Research.

Research positions for visa-needing IMGs could be:

- J1 Research Positions
- H1b Research jobs
- Volunteer Positions (Visitors visa)
- International Scholar Program cum Residency positions - example - University Pittsburgh's ISP - and thats the only one I know :(



Also Read:

- Clinical Research Advantages for IMGs
- Does Clinical Research Help for Residency

How much does Clinical Research Help in getting a Residency ?

One of the big differences between Physics and Medicine is that Physics have 'Laws', while Medicine, Biology and other life-sciences have 'Rules' - what's the big deal ? 'Laws' have no exceptions - while 'Rules' almost always have exceptions. Unfortunately , all that you learn about Tips and Tricks for getting into a medical or surgical residency program are Rules i.e. they are true most of the time..but every now and then , a few exceptions do crop up. Why I am boring you with philosophy here ? Coz, I want you guys to get the right perspective on what you read on this blog :-)



Arrite ! Back to our topic - Clinical Research & Residency. These are tips and pointers that come from a ex-program director of a University program and from current residents.

For most program directors, the working principle is that a Resident is first a Resident - someone who needs to be a competent worker first. So for most clinically intense residencies like Internal Medicine, General Surgery, etc. a program needs a competent clinician first; other additional qualifications count like an icing on the cake. About 4-5 years ago, Clinical Research in a US Hospital Setting certainly stopped eyes on IMG applications - but now with so many IMGs getting the more valued US clinical experiences like externships and observerships, research is beginning to lose it's charm. Secondly, having a short-term research assisting experience is almost like a cliche now - since almost everyone shows some clinical research component on their resumes. This certainly reminds me of laws of microeconomics - when something is abundant , prices drop OR saying that in our context, the importance drops. :-)

BUT - that does not mean Research is useless, it is important and is gaining increasing importance in the US Residency circuits. Of course they will matter more for a academically and research oriented University programs or University-affiliated programs. However, remember that even in these programs, residents do not easily find time to conduct any sort of research in the first year at least, clinical skills still hold importance!

Clinical Research will help your application greatly if :

1. If your clinical / medical research results in a publications in a well known magazines ( JAMA, NJEM, for example). Guys doing PhDs or dedicated research jobs / fellowships are more likely to have these credentials.

2. If your research was done under a highly renowned figure whose recommendation will carry a lot of weight.

3. You did the research in a major research institute like Johns Hopkins, CDC, Harvard etc.

4. It will certainly count more if you applying for a non-clinical specialty like pathology ! For a clinical residency, choose a research with a strong clinical component and publications possibility. This is how the University of California San Francisco puts it about research on the resumes of applicants to its Family Medicine Residency program : "We do not consider research to be adequate clinical experience unless it contains a strong component of history, physical, assessment, plan and treatment."


Moral of this post : As an IMG with better overall chances at a community program, If I had to choose between doing an hands-on clinical externship at a small program and short-term research at a big place like Harvard - I would still say that an externship would put me in a better overall position for a residency match. If it has to be research for you then keep in the mind the three pointers on top - long term research with resulting publications go a long way :-).

Q. Would Research in my home country matter ?

A. American Research results in an American LOR and is more advantageous - but, again, if there is no choice , something is better than nothing :-)


Having said this, it's important to know that solid research will never go futile - coz' life aspirations do not end after a residency - there's fellowship competition after that residency. And search for fellowships begin during the second year itself.

To improve fellowship chances after residency, here are the things that matter:

- How much you train yourself during residency for the particular specialty you want, like special procedures and cases
- Research and publications
- faculty recommendations
- Personal calls to programs from senior specialist faculty in the related field





Coming soon - How to search and seek research opportunities in the USA




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Clinical / Medical Research: Advantages for IMGs

Earlier on "Does Clinical Research Improve Residency Chances", I had dealt with the factors that WILL help - This post is about the overall advantages that research can confer on the IMGs


1. University programs and even University-Affiliated residency programs love research and publications on the resumes of incoming candidates- Of course you gotta also have the scores and other credentials in addition, but in many University programs, its possible for low scores to get in with excellent research credentials. Community programs may not care much about them - they would rather look at scores, US clinical experience, US LORs, and freshness from medical school

2. A friend who got into a cardiology fellowship told me how he had to take a "research break" for a year after completing his Internal Medicine Residency, in order to qualify for good cardiology fellowship programs. He wished he had devoted time to research while he had time before applying for his internal medicine residency. His opinion = a candidate with fellowship aspirations will need to do research sometime - better to do it BEFORE residency while you still have the patience and inclination, gets kinda tough once you are used to the working life as a resident.



3. Often the researching MD faculty at University Residency programs are very influential since they get a good amount of Grant money to the University. Doing good work for them makes them good 'contacts' for you for residency programs in the same institution and their strong word can potentially be a big trump card for you to get in. Either ways, even for other programs their Letter of Recommendation will matter a lot a too.

4. Two visa-related advantages for the International Medical Graduates:

a. If you manage to land a H1b Research job, the advantage is that residency Programs are more willing for a H1b visa transfer than to sponsor a new H1b Visa for candidates- coz' the transfer is faster and a bigger surety that the IMG will be able to start residency on time. The disadvantage though is that you can hold an H1b for 6 years at a stretch and the research job may 'eat up' your H1b tenure, which could rather be used for residency+ fellowship. Increasingly though, IMGs are beginning to take up H1b physician jobs after H1b residencies, get a Labor Certification, get a green card and THEN apply for fellowships.

b. Having publications in magazines of repute and International Circulation makes it possible for a lawyer to help you apply for your green card on the faster EB1 track reserved for Aliens with Extraordinary ability, which DOES NOT need Labor certification, unlike the regular EB3 track. A friend tells me more than three first-author publications will make it easier for a candidate to apply through the Eb1 Track, but I am not entirely sure. Read about the EB1 track on the US Immigration Website Here.



When I was a kid and was still able to run the athletic race-tracks, I enjoyed the 800-meter multi-lap run better than the frenzied 50-meter dash. The former gave me the joy of strategy part - starting out slow and then running past the "initially-overzealous-but-now-tired" guys with a smug smile..he he....So, for a fresh, well-informed and pre-planner IMG with Residency & Fellowship aspirations in University programs, indulging in publication generating research might be a long-term but an extremely powerful route with excellent benefits. The ideal route, then would look like this:

Medical School (with US Clinical Electives done in the Last Year) --> Complete USMLE Step 1, Step 2 CK, Step 2 CS With Good Scores --> Voluntary /Paid Research Position at a US University with Observerships / Externships now and then in the same University for a Year or Two -> Apply for Residencies within 3 to 5 Years of Graduating from Medical School Graduation --> Enjoy the Benefits :-)


I shall soon put up a post on going about the clinical research track for residency, as time permits...of which I wish I had like 48 hours a day ;-). Hmmm...For Starters, you might wanna check out the individual websites for research job openings in this list of Top-50 American Universities for Medical Research.




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