Polymath: to be or not to be?

Postgrad Med J · May 2024

Polymath: to be or not to be?

Is it best to achieve excellence in one or multiple fields? Is it better to be a medical doctor reading only medical textbooks all your life or is it better to also tour around the world as a concert pianist and investigate the mysteries of the brain by conducting research projects? As a medical doctor, classical pianist, and neuroscientist, I discuss the advantages, disadvantages, opportunities, and challenges of pursuing multiple careers, drawing from my own experience and from polymaths of the past.

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- Marianna Evangelia Kapsetaki.
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Division of Biosciences, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom.
- Postgrad Med J. 2024 May 18; 100 (1184): 440441440-441.
AbstractIs it best to achieve excellence in one or multiple fields? Is it better to be a medical doctor reading only medical textbooks all your life or is it better to also tour around the world as a concert pianist and investigate the mysteries of the brain by conducting research projects? As a medical doctor, classical pianist, and neuroscientist, I discuss the advantages, disadvantages, opportunities, and challenges of pursuing multiple careers, drawing from my own experience and from polymaths of the past.© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

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Polymath: to be or not to be?

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