Let’s start with a few scenarios: You’re trying to decide between a residency program with a built-in research year as opposed to one without. Or you’re already in residency and looking to pursue an eventual career in academia, but don’t have a PhD or extensive research training which would help you run a lab. Conversely, you’ve had meaningful research experiences in the past, but haven’t been able to fully dedicate your time and resources to the lab due to clinical or classroom obligations.

How do you evaluate the importance of research to your career trajectory? Most importantly, if you hope to become a physician-scientist, how do you develop the ability to think scientifically and the technical skills required to produce high impact, meaningful basic science, clinical, or translational contributions to your field?

While getting a PhD is often the most direct route to developing the necessary skills, this is not always a feasible option, and most students applying to medical school are forced to choose either the “MD” or “MD/PhD” routes when their own preferences are not yet well-defined. My interest in an academic career as a surgeon-scientist did not arise until after the first few years of medical school. My undergraduate and medical school research experiences helped pique my scientific curiosity, but this lab time was fragmented between exams, clerkships, and the many rigors of medical training. I found myself asking the same questions outlined above. How could I really experience the research world before it was too late? I eventually decided taking time away from medical school to pursue a research fellowship would be the ultimate resource that could provide me with a glimpse into an academic career. This led me to pursue an avenue for uninterrupted, intensive research training—the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Medical Research Fellows Program—between my third and fourth years of medical school. I often consider this protected year of research training as one of the most important experiences in my early career.

Now, after recently being selected as an Outstanding Graduate Scholar by the AUA and Urology Care Foundation (UCF) at the conclusion of a 2-year grant funded through the UCF Research Scholar Award, I reflected on my ongoing pursuit of a career as an academic surgeon-scientist and some lessons I’ve learned along the way. My hope is these simple lessons will help our next generation of trainees and encourage them to follow a similar pursuit:

1. Academic medicine requires a significant commitment of time—success in research, patient care, and any additional academic pursuit mandates dedicated hours. There is no question that I’ve been successful due to the significant additional time I’ve spent focused on research (1 year in medical school, 2 years in urologic oncology fellowship).
2. Focus on excelling in your medical education and build a strong foundation of knowledge in a specific area of interest. For me, coursework and mentoring in 4 areas has been central to my continued education: (1) clinical trial design and implementation; (2) biomarker and therapeutic target discovery, validation, and application; (3) bioinformatic and biostatistical methods; and (4) career advancement and grantsmanship.
3. When deciding what area of study to pursue, choose people, not projects. While it’s always important to focus your area of research on topics that are your true passions or have a high likelihood of success, initially it’s more important to work with the right people. Finding mentors that are dedicated to your continued development will always lead to sustained successes.
4. Collaboration is the hallmark of academic medicine—look for opportunities to collaborate with colleagues from different disciplines and institutions, as this can lead to innovative discoveries and broaden your network.
5. Challenge yourself and apply for competitive grants and fellowships. By actively seeking grant funding and challenging yourself with ambitious research projects, even if unsuccessful, you are pushing yourself forward and developing a portfolio of items that will prove useful in the future (ie, career vision, mentorship plan, personal statements, collaborator letters, mentor letters).

Becoming a successful surgeon-scientist is difficult, but I’ve learned it’s not impossible. There is no question that having had support from the AUA and UCF has allowed for substantial progress and effort devoted to this pursuit. My plan is to continue clinical and translational research throughout my career in academia. Having support from the UCF, which in turn has provided many scientific opportunities, has only strengthened this desire. I’ve had the chance to truly immerse myself into a high-powered research environment, attend scientific conferences, build tangible expertise, publish, and develop significant mentoring and collaborative relationships with countless people in our field—all of which will undoubtedly lead to a more productive research career. Many will tell you becoming a surgeon-scientist is an outdated path, but I can tell you it’s fully feasible. Becoming an Outstanding Graduate Scholar, to me, is a validation of that ongoing journey.