Research Match

• Systematic review / meta-analysis: The most rigorous design here, and usually the slowest to complete.
• Prospective study: Needs ethics approval before data collection can start. Build that into your timeline.
• Retrospective audit to publication: Uses data that already exists, so it is often the fastest realistic route to a first publication.
• Case series: Quick to write up once you have enough eligible cases.
• Case report: The fastest to publish, usually written from a single case you are already managing.

How each type is weighted is set by your target college, not by intoSET. Check your specialty’s CV calculator for what it specifically counts.

• Keep the acceptance email once a paper is ‘in press’. Some colleges count an accepted-but-not-yet-published paper the same as a published one. Check your specialty’s calculator for the exact wording, and keep the email either way as proof for your application.
• Many colleges weight first-author work more heavily than co-authored work. See your specialty’s calculator for how it splits the two. Aiming for first authorship on at least one paper is rarely the wrong call.
• Research alongside full-time clinical work takes longer than it looks on paper. Build in buffer time rather than assuming the shortest plausible timeline.
• Target supervisors with active publication records in your specialty. Check their PubMed profile before applying.