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Medical Scientist Training Program

MSTP Fall Physician Scientist Speaker Series: Dr. Ciara Shaver

Posted by on Monday, November 25, 2024 in MSTP Workshop News .

by Yash Pershad (G2)

The MSTP’s Fall Physician Scientist Speaker Series recently featured Dr. Ciara Shaver, physician-scientist and transplant pulmonologist. On the first floor of Central Library, students enjoyed a Thanksgiving-style dinner and Dr. Shaver’s career journey.

Dr. Shaver kindly provided ten key takeaways from her journey:

  1. This is your life and it’s not just training. Don’t put things off until you are “done”. Find joy. There is more to life than work.
  2. The purpose of grad school is to learn to think and to design/do science. Study something you think is interesting, but really make sure you pick an environment in which you can thrive.
  3. Embrace your clinical time. Pay attention to how the attendings are spending their time.
  4. Celebrate negative data and recognize that science often fails. Lack of difference is sometimes more impactful/valuable than a big effect.
  5. Don’t be afraid to pivot your science. Everyone needs to do that from time to time.
  6. Don’t be afraid to try new things or to do hard things. I wanted to do something that didn’t exist at Vanderbilt – it took 10 years, but now we have transplant research spanning from basic to translational to clinical studies.
  7. There is no “typical” or “required” balance of work for an MSTP – figure out the right balance of science and medicine for you and choose the way your fields overlap (or don’t). What works for someone else, might not be right for you.
  8. Listen to advice from those with gray hair…but make your own choices about what works best for you.
  9. Build collaborations. Communicate openly about expectations for project ownership, authorship, grants, etc.
  10. Find your support system. You’ll need it and that’s ok.

We thank Dr. Shaver for taking the time to speak with us and candidly discuss her experiences as a physician-scientist.

Thank you to APSA representatives Neil Chada (G3) and Yash Pershad (G2) and MSTP Senior Program Manager Bryn Sierra for organizing the Physician Scientist Speaker Series!