Thread by @mostafa0shehata

(1/20) Many ask me how to get a research position in the US, so I wanted to post a thread to share the knowledge and help my colleagues! This🧵 will be dedicated to the methodology, including tips & tricks to secure a research position!
#Research #MedTwitter #IMGs #MedEd

(2/20 ) I told this strategy to my colleagues, and at least 10 of my friends are here in the US conducting research in big institutions now after following this strategy!! It is helpful for anyone interested in research in the medical field in the United States.

(3/20) I wanted to share the knowledge so maybe someone benefits from it, and I encourage other colleagues to share their advice and questions to this thread as well.

(4/20) To find a research position in the US is something that requires a lot of effort... This should be in your mind... You should send a lot of emails.... Too many emails! Maybe not less than 50 to 100 per day. If you do not know a faculty who is taking you.

(5/20) Because I hear people telling me that after 50 emails with no reply, they feel they have done their part! - Keep in mind that faculty do not respond to you in the first place because faculty here are busy and receive tens and hundreds of emails daily,

(6/20)so they are not free to check your email or open it, so when you send a lot of messages, it increases the chances that someone opens your email and respond.

(7/20)- Personalize the emails to the faculty you are interested in joining their lab.
- They expect two things from you 1- dedication and motivation and 2- work for at least 1 year with them

(8/20) You may transfer your sponsor to another faculty or institution if you get a better opportunity or a paid position and your current sponsor agree.

(9/20)- When you search for emails, use emails that are easy to get first; one of the things which was life-changing for me and my colleagues searching for research positions is this website
elsevier.com/solutions/pure…

(10/20) Open it > go to North America> the United States> the place where you want to get a research position “for example, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research”

(11/20)Then type in the search the organ that you are interested in (for example, “Brain” do not type “neuro” you will get fewer results) > go to profiles and you will find many emails to send them asking for a research position. Examples:
mayoclinic.pure.elsevier.com

(12/20) - When you finish all the emails on this website, go to this USNews website and know the places that do research in America usnews.com/best-graduate-…

(13/20)Then go to Google and write the name of the university name+ the department name +”faculty” for example (Duke University Cardiology Department Faculty)
- You will find that they put the faculty, you will find faculty emails next to their names most of the time

(14/20)If you don't find it, search for the name of the doctor you are interested in joining their lab and put it on Google Scholar or ResearchGate then, try to find a paper where he is a corresponding author, then you will find his email address.

(15/20) Another tip is you can use mailtrack, an extension for Google Chrome. It helps you know who opened your email and who did not. Send gentle remind to Drs didn't open your email 2 weeks later. Ensure you remove watermark before sendin each email when using the free version.

(16/20)- Do not attach your CV in the first email, as it may be considered spam.
- Make your email as concise as possible!
- Add in the subject of the email (unpaid research fellow/ visiting scholar) if you want to increase the chances of getting your email read by the faculty

(17/20)- How do you know that the place has funds and can give you payment after a while?
Search for the faculty name on these two websites, and you will know what grants he has and the numbers beside the amount he receives
grantome.com
report.nih.gov

(18/20)- Do you have to have research experience to be accepted? The answer is no; mostly, you are here to learn and build your skills. However, previous research experience is a plus.

(19/20)- Can you find a paid position from the start? The answer is yes, but either you have great skills, or there is a faculty member who knows you, and you have worked with him for a period of time, and he trusts you and is willing to take the risk.

(20/20)- It is better to be here in America, and then you may change the sponsor to a paid position if the current sponsor agrees; it is much easier, takes much less time, and has little risk.