Is the "Publications" section only for research publications?

[blinks]

A small hobby of mine is writing and I finally got around to self-publishing a YA novel I've been working on for the past couple years. I have an ISBN number, would this be appropriate to put in the "publications" section of AMCAS or should I put it in my "Hobbies" entry?

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[GoSpursGo]

I think you can include this in publications. I have an area on my CV for non-peer reviewed pubs, and if you had a formal CV you would probably put this there as well.

 

[LizzyM]

This might be considered a slight-of-hand given that most applicants who list a publication are doing so because they have published in the scientific literature.

I'd strongly recommend that you not bias anyone against your application by looking as if you are pulling a fast one. Much better that you use the tag "hobbies" and describe your fiction writing. However, given the low bar for self-published novels, I wouldn't recommend highlighting that with an ISBN number, etc.

 

[Catalystik]

A small hobby of mine is writing and I finally got around to self-publishing a YA novel I've been working on for the past couple years. I have an ISBN number, would this be appropriate to put in the "publications" section of AMCAS or should I put it in my "Hobbies" entry?

You might also consider tagging it as an "Artistic Endeavor."

 

[blinks]

This might be considered a slight-of-hand given that most applicants who list a publication are doing so because they have published in the scientific literature.

I'd strongly recommend that you not bias anyone against your application by looking as if you are pulling a fast one. Much better that you use the tag "hobbies" and describe your fiction writing. However, given the low bar for self-published novels, I wouldn't recommend highlighting that with an ISBN number, etc.

Thanks @LizzyM @GoSpursGo @Catalystik , I'll put it under Artistic Endeavor or Hobbies!

If there is a risk that some people might down on it, do you recommend not mentioning this then? While this is purely just a passion project of mine, I'm thinking of including it just to be interesting but definitely will leave it out if it has a chance of backfiring.

 

[GoSpursGo]

You should 100% find a place for this. It is cool, and if it is brought up in an interview setting it is likely to lead to a favorable line of questioning

 

[lacrossegirl420]

It’s noteworthy but I wouldn’t put it under Publications, I’d imagine adcoms are looking for research publications in peer-reviewed journals in that category