Medical student research can make waves, and the first ripple usually begins with curiosity and passion.
That was the case for Bijoya Basu, an MD-PhD student who recently earned a spot in the AMA Research Challenge finals and People’s Choice Recognition for Rising Star in Medical Research.
An AMA member, Basu’s award-winning research poster—“A hormone circuit from fat to hippocampus drives a novel, druggable anxiety pathway” (PDF)—revealed that a hormone previously tied to metabolic conditions also plays a significant role in anxiety, opening up new avenues for potential therapies and deeper understanding of brain function.
Armed with autonomy and genuine interest, she had no idea where it would end up.
“When I joined the lab, we were only studying metabolism and obesity and diabetes with this hormone,” she said. “When I came in, I said, ‘I want to study the brain—like, what can we do?’ I was lucky that my research mentor was on board and basically said, ‘Here are the tools. Have at it.’”
The end result of Basu’s research offered a chance for clinical translation. But how do medical students get from an idea to the bench to that application phase? Basu offered these tips for medical student researchers.
Patience pays off
As an MD-PhD student who spent years on a research-focused doctoral track after completing the first three years of medical school, Basu didn’t see immediate results.
“One of my goals was to do discovery research,” she said. “That kind of work takes time, but it’s incredibly rewarding. Along the way, I’ve had the chance to uncover some really exciting findings, and that’s what makes the journey worthwhile."
For medical students, residents and international medical graduates looking to hone their research skills, the AMA offers resources and programs that bring you from the basics all the way to the AMA Research Challenge, where you too can compete for the People’s Choice Recognitions and a $10,000 prize presented by KeyBank.
The 2025 AMA Research Challenge Finals show is available to watch, and the call for abstracts is open for the 2026 AMA Research Challenge. The submission deadline is July 16.
Know your bandwidth
The research that earned Basu a spot in the Research Challenge Finals was done at a bench in a lab. She was able to commit to a more time-consuming type of research because of her MD-PhD track.
“What makes bench research so challenging as a student is that it's very time consuming,” she said. My day-to-day is doing a lot of testing and mouse work. Unless you have some dedicated time, like a research year, I would not encourage medical students to pursue basic science bench research.”
“I also do clinical research which is more focused on chart review and statistics and analyzing the data. That type of work is more feasible to do as a medical student because you have more flexibility and time.”
Outputs aren’t just in print
A study published in a peer-reviewed medical or scientific journal is a coveted result of conducting research, but it’s hardly the only result that matters.
“When you apply to residency, and if you’ve done research, you’re going to want to have some research outputs,” Basu said. “But I don’t think that should be your only focus. I’ve grown tremendously as a scientist and grown my critical thinking skills doing research.”
"Your outputs don’t just have to be papers. They could be posters or abstracts. I have patent applications. I've presented my research at places like the AMA Research Challenge and talked to people about my science. So that's really cool. Those less tangible outputs are things you can be proud of.”
Explore research in your preferred specialty
Basu has had an interest in studying the brain since she was a teenager. Because of that, her research work aligns closely with neurology, her preferred residency specialty.
“If you have a sense of the specialty you’re interested in, especially if it’s a more competitive field, it can be helpful to explore research in that area,” she said. But it also depends on the specialty.
“It’s just as important to follow what genuinely interests you,” Basu added. “Different specialties place different emphasis on research, and there’s often more flexibility than people think. Ultimately, research is a chance to learn more about the field, build skills, and figure out what excites you most.”
Doing specialty-specific research, she added, can either confirm your passions are well placed or show that you might want to explore other options.
“At the end of the day, research shouldn't feel like too much of a chore,” she said. “And the way that it doesn't feel like a chore is that it gets you doing things and studying a topic that interests and excites you. As obvious as it sounds, a big piece of advice is: Don't do research that makes you miserable. There's so many different types of research and topics to explore. You'll find something that's exciting."
