Taking time off before medical school..will job help my chances?

[HollandLops]

Hello all! First time posting on here.. I'll give some brief info about me and my complete question will be below. Thank you in advance!

Currently pre-med and very behind due to health issues. It's going to take me 5 years for my undergrad and I'll only have half of my prerequisites done. I'm taking the MCAT in 2015 (freaking out b/c of how much harder it will be), and I plan on graduating with my bachelors and then completing the remaining amount of my preqs in whatever state I desire.

I am getting my bachelor's degree in speech and hearing science, and ideally I would like to get a
Speech-Language Pathology Assistant job after I graduate, while I finish my preqs, and I'll also be declaring residency in the state I desire. SO far..I'm looking at Colorado, Rocky Vista.

I will have a good GPA and probably an average MCAT. I have a lot of volunteering/community service right now (20,000+ hours). Also about 86% sure I am going to get my Master's prior to med school.

Anyway, if I do get the job I want, would that possibly improve my chances of being accepted to medical school? Due to the healthcare experience and patient contact I mean.

Any other advice is extremely appreciated!!

Thank you.

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[woltej1]

Obviously it won't hurt. Can't see how having direct clinical experience is a negative.

Also, you realize 20,000+hours is about 2.5 years of volunteering, every single hour of every day. If you actually have that much then why the hell didn't you cut back and finish your degree on time?

 

[Heplayer92]

Healthcare related job would be awesome!

Also, I hope the 20,000+ is a typo...that seems like a ridiculous amount lol. High school volunteering generally doesn't count unless it's continued into college.

 

[HollandLops]

My volunteer hours are not a typo. I've accumulated accumulated that during the past 3 years. I train service dogs for people with disabilities. I have the dog 24 hrs a day, and it is considered 24 hour volunteering.

As stated in my post, I am behind due to a disease I was diagnosed with. It is still not under control and it's affected my studies.

Thank you for your help though!! Medical school is my dream, and I know the medical field is my passion. Even if I'm 35 and just then entering medical school..I don't care. I will never give up!

 

[Abstractions]

My volunteer hours are not a typo. I've accumulated accumulated that during the past 3 years. I train service dogs for people with disabilities. I have the dog 24 hrs a day, and it is considered 24 hour volunteering.

As stated in my post, I am behind due to a disease I was diagnosed with. It is still not under control and it's affected my studies.

Thank you for your help though!! Medical school is my dream, and I know the medical field is my passion. Even if I'm 35 and just then entering medical school..I don't care. I will never give up!

No it isn't.

 

[HollandLops]

No it isn't.

Yes...it is. According to the university director of a well known international service dog non-profit organization, it is...

 

[DK2014]

No it isnt.

 

[DokterMom]

Claiming 24/7 volunteering could backfire on you if the person reading your application disagrees with the director of your service dog organization. If you insist on claiming the 20,000 hours, I'd suggest listing it two ways: 20,000 / 5,000 active so you can differentiate the time you spend actively with your dog and the time spent sleeping, 'sit stay while in class', etc. Either way, you'll have a LOT of hours and it's a great activity.

 

[gyngyn]

Listing those hours will get you eliminated by every screener that doesn't think it's a typo.
It's like listing 24/7 motherhood as a volunteer activity.