Should I apply this cycle or wait?

[kswyjc]

I graduated from undergrad last spring and have been indecisive about applying to medical school. After graduating, I turned down being a scribe because I didn't want to be just limited to med school if I wanted to pursue some other type of public health/health policy route. But then, I kind of didn't know what to do and was pretty stagnant for awhile...

I just started AmeriCorps this month in a public health position. Throughout college, I volunteered at the hospital with entrance screening patients for COVID and with delivering meals to patients (about 80-90 hours total - mainly the second activity). I also volunteered as a peer advocate at a mental health center (42 hours). The summer after my junior year, I did a clinical research internship and shadowed an ER pediatrician (30-40 hours). Since graduating, I shadowed a primary care pediatrician for a bit (~12 hours). I've been studying for the MCAT since late December, less so now that I started working full time, but I believe that I could get a decent score in the next few months to apply. However, I know my clinical experience is lacking with only 80-90 hours. I've only just started my AmeriCorps program, and I have gotten a couple hours of clinical experience that was cool, but it's not a consistent activity and I'm not sure how much experience I will get by May.

Would it be better to wait another year to apply after finishing AmeriCorps and doing some other volunteering on the side? Tbh, I don't feel like I have a lot to talk about from my hospital volunteering, and it feels weird for the majority of my application to be primarily based on these next few months... But damn, 3 gap years.
If I should apply next cycle, should I still try to take the MCAT soon? My GPA is 3.8X

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[LizzyM]

You have very little exposure to clinical settings and patients. Signing on the dotted line to spend a boat-load of money and many years of your life, to professional education for a career you have little insight into is not a recipe for success in admissions.
Better to do it right and only do it once than to botch it and have 3 gap years (or more) for your trouble. Also consider the time, money, and emotional distress of an application cycle that might yield nothing.

 

[kswyjc]

You have very little exposure to clinical settings and patients. Signing on the dotted line to spend a boat-load of money and many years of your life, to professional education for a career you have little insight into is not a recipe for success in admissions.
Better to do it right and only do it once than to botch it and have 3 gap years (or more) for your trouble. Also consider the time, money, and emotional distress of an application cycle that might yield nothing.

Oof it is 3 gap years if I don't apply this cycle though, right? Because applying next year would be for Fall of 2026. But yeah I see your point.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I graduated from undergrad last spring and have been indecisive about applying to medical school. After graduating, I turned down being a scribe because I didn't want to be just limited to med school if I wanted to pursue some other type of public health/health policy route. But then, I kind of didn't know what to do and was pretty stagnant for awhile...

I just started AmeriCorps this month in a public health position. Throughout college, I volunteered at the hospital with entrance screening patients for COVID and with delivering meals to patients (about 80-90 hours total - mainly the second activity). I also volunteered as a peer advocate at a mental health center (42 hours). The summer after my junior year, I did a clinical research internship and shadowed an ER pediatrician (30-40 hours). Since graduating, I shadowed a primary care pediatrician for a bit (~12 hours). I've been studying for the MCAT since late December, less so now that I started working full time, but I believe that I could get a decent score in the next few months to apply. However, I know my clinical experience is lacking with only 80-90 hours. I've only just started my AmeriCorps program, and I have gotten a couple hours of clinical experience that was cool, but it's not a consistent activity and I'm not sure how much experience I will get by May.

Would it be better to wait another year to apply after finishing AmeriCorps and doing some other volunteering on the side? Tbh, I don't feel like I have a lot to talk about from my hospital volunteering, and it feels weird for the majority of my application to be primarily based on these next few months... But damn, 3 gap years.
If I should apply next cycle, should I still try to take the MCAT soon? My GPA is 3.8X

We have a Public Health forum too.

Public Health Degrees (Masters and Doctoral)

For students interested in public health either as an individual degree or in combination with another degree.

forums.studentdoctor.net

It's better to apply once with your best possible application. How are you doing on the MCAT? What about your letters?

 

[LindaAccepted]

I graduated from undergrad last spring and have been indecisive about applying to medical school. After graduating, I turned down being a scribe because I didn't want to be just limited to med school if I wanted to pursue some other type of public health/health policy route. But then, I kind of didn't know what to do and was pretty stagnant for awhile...

I just started AmeriCorps this month in a public health position. Throughout college, I volunteered at the hospital with entrance screening patients for COVID and with delivering meals to patients (about 80-90 hours total - mainly the second activity). I also volunteered as a peer advocate at a mental health center (42 hours). The summer after my junior year, I did a clinical research internship and shadowed an ER pediatrician (30-40 hours). Since graduating, I shadowed a primary care pediatrician for a bit (~12 hours). I've been studying for the MCAT since late December, less so now that I started working full time, but I believe that I could get a decent score in the next few months to apply. However, I know my clinical experience is lacking with only 80-90 hours. I've only just started my AmeriCorps program, and I have gotten a couple hours of clinical experience that was cool, but it's not a consistent activity and I'm not sure how much experience I will get by May.

Would it be better to wait another year to apply after finishing AmeriCorps and doing some other volunteering on the side? Tbh, I don't feel like I have a lot to talk about from my hospital volunteering, and it feels weird for the majority of my application to be primarily based on these next few months... But damn, 3 gap years.
If I should apply next cycle, should I still try to take the MCAT soon? My GPA is 3.8X

Wait. You're not ready now.

 

[ablanco]

I took 3 to wait until I was ready, seems to be going well so far. It's a journey, make sure you're all set to try to get through it in 1 go.