Will a Master's in Biochemistry hurt if I need time a gap year?

[mushedcupcake]

I am a senior and did not realize I wanted to become an MD until recently. I did extremely well in my undergrad and got very involved in my research (I thought I wanted to get my PhD initially), but my CV looks like that of a scientist, not a premed student. Now I realize I need some time to prepare to apply since I didn't do so over the past 4 years. While I prepare, I know I need to take at least one gap year. I am trying to decide what is best to do in my gap year:

1) I could work for a year or two in a biotech company, make decent money and have a lot of free time to volunteer but do more monotonous tasks as a lab tech.

2) I could enroll in a one-year Master's program that my PI in my lab agreed to fund me for. I will have less time (but more flexible as it does not need to be 9-5). I will also need to take difficult graduate courses. I will have a high likelihood of publishing if I put the work in.

3) I could be more open and volunteer/work at a hospital or travel. I am not trained in anything medically related so I am not sure if I could be paid.

Regardless of what I do I need to have time to study for the MCAT as well as volunteer at a hospital and shadow doctors.

What looks best/will help me the most? Does a Master's really matter if it's not a MPH? Is it common for a researcher to switch to premed late in the game and will it look bad to not want to have been a doctor since freshman year?

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[theseeker4]

I am a senior and did not realize I wanted to become an MD until recently. I did extremely well in my undergrad and got very involved in my research (I thought I wanted to get my PhD initially), but my CV looks like that of a scientist, not a premed student. Now I realize I need some time to prepare to apply since I didn't do so over the past 4 years. While I prepare, I know I need to take at least one gap year. I am trying to decide what is best to do in my gap year:

1) I could work for a year or two in a biotech company, make decent money and have a lot of free time to volunteer but do more monotonous tasks as a lab tech.

2) I could enroll in a one-year Master's program that my PI in my lab agreed to fund me for. I will have less time (but more flexible as it does not need to be 9-5). I will also need to take difficult graduate courses. I will have a high likelihood of publishing if I put the work in.

3) I could be more open and volunteer/work at a hospital or travel. I am not trained in anything medically related so I am not sure if I could be paid.

Regardless of what I do I need to have time to study for the MCAT as well as volunteer at a hospital and shadow doctors.

What looks best/will help me the most? Does a Master's really matter if it's not a MPH? Is it common for a researcher to switch to premed late in the game and will it look bad to not want to have been a doctor since freshman year?

What is your sGPA and cGPA? That will determine whether you need to take classes of some sort or just need to get your ECs in order.

If your GPAs are decent, I would vote for number 1. Money always helps, the freedom to get in ECs you are missing is important, as is adequate MCAT study time, and you already have research experience. Working to support yourself also looks better than simply traveling (though feel free to quit your job and enjoy yourself after you are accepted if you have the desire and the resources to do so.)

No one cares if you wanted to be a doctor since you were 2 years old, they care that you are serious and committed about it now. ECs and your discussion of them will be what convinces adcoms you are a good choice as a doctor. Having a CV of a PhD student isn't a problem as long as you get in the medical ECs as well; research is very big in academic medicine after all. I would not do the Masters expecting it to help your admissions chances in a significant way; do it if you are interested in it and can still do what you need to get your application in order for med school. Good luck, and let us know if you have any other questions.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

Your application looks like a scientist, so you want to make it look more like a scientist? That should answer your question.

 

[mushedcupcake]

I have a 4.0 GPA biochemistry major, but chemE for 2 years so I took some pretty tough courses. I want to do the Master's regardless simply because I really cannot stand not challenging myself mentally. I have interned at biotech companies before and the work is not as mentally stimulating. Plus the MCAT I think will be a different type of learning that I doubt will be exciting but instead a chore. I also think getting the volunteer work will be easier to schedule with a Master's because I can volunteer during the week and go to lab at night/weekends since hospital volunteer positions are pretty competitive especially on weekends.

I fear that med schools will think I'm just a science major who realized senior year that she has the credentials to get into med school and chose to go just for that reason. I don't want to take 3+ years off of school just to volunteer the 500+ hours I've heard other students doing just to prove my interest in medicine. For PhD programs even remotely looking like a premed looks terrible because it looks like the PhD was the backup plan, is the reverse the same with medicine?

 

[popopopop]

^Honestly, you don't need hundreds of hours of volunteering or clinical experiences because quality/commitment > quantity. Length of commitment is always better than cramming hundreds of hours over a summer or something. This doesn't mean you should have NO clinical experiences, but just enough to show the adcom you have a real motivation and that you understand what it means to be a physician. Your personal statement should reflect this and your clinical experiences should back this up.

My advice is to take option #3, but you won't be paid for volunteering. If you're graduating this year, take the '14 MCAT (new one in '15 but hey, more biochem in that one) while adding 4+ hours of clinical experience a week and get maybe 50-100 hours of shadowing, and then apply in '15 cycle. Call your state medschool and tell them about your situation and I bet they will tell you the same thing. Do not delay your app for medschool simply for the sake of a master's (although it sounds like you're convincing yourself down this route). The master's is unnecessary when you've already shown you can withstand hard sciences. If you go this route and don't get an interview, then your worst case scenario is that you apply in '16 cycle with a 1+ year to your clinical experience. You should be highly competitive at this point! Preserve that 4.0 and fill in the rest!

 

[theseeker4]

I have a 4.0 GPA biochemistry major, but chemE for 2 years so I took some pretty tough courses. I want to do the Master's regardless simply because I really cannot stand not challenging myself mentally. I have interned at biotech companies before and the work is not as mentally stimulating. Plus the MCAT I think will be a different type of learning that I doubt will be exciting but instead a chore. I also think getting the volunteer work will be easier to schedule with a Master's because I can volunteer during the week and go to lab at night/weekends since hospital volunteer positions are pretty competitive especially on weekends.

I fear that med schools will think I'm just a science major who realized senior year that she has the credentials to get into med school and chose to go just for that reason. I don't want to take 3+ years off of school just to volunteer the 500+ hours I've heard other students doing just to prove my interest in medicine. For PhD programs even remotely looking like a premed looks terrible because it looks like the PhD was the backup plan, is the reverse the same with medicine?

No, MD schools don't care. They want some evidence that you are committed; when you became committed doesn't matter to them (at least most schools). You definitely don't need to take any time off to accrue extra volunteer hours, get them in while studying for the MCAT, and while applying, and you should be good.

Why do you want to become a physician? What are your motivators? What exposure do you have? How do you know you want to do this, including all the sacrifices you make along the way? Have solid answers for those questions, and adcoms won't care when you realized this is what you want to do.

What was your GPA including the prior chemE stuff? It probably shouldn't matter considering your more recent GPA, but bottom line is it does matter to med schools, so we can advise you better if we know your total sGPA and total cGPA including every class ever taken at the college/university level.

 

[Quik]

A direct quote from one of my meetings with an ADCOM officer: "We turn away a lot of 4.0's, a lot of 36+ MCAT scores. We are looking for applicants with a strong academic record but most importantly, an application that speaks to their lifelong commitment to service... You can never have too much clinical and volunteer experience." While this was one person at one MD school, I think the message is likely echoed by most admissions committees.

 

[Five0tomed68]

A direct quote from one of my meetings with an ADCOM officer: "We turn away a lot of 4.0's, a lot of 36+ MCAT scores. We are looking for applicants with a strong academic record but most importantly, an application that speaks to their lifelong commitment to service... You can never have too much clinical and volunteer experience." While this was one person at one MD school, I think the message is likely echoed by most admissions committees.

I could be off base here, but a lifelong commitment to service doesn't necessarily mean a service to medicine. I'm not saying volunteering and shadowing are not important, but I interpret the statement as an applicant who demonstrates selflessness and caring may be preferred over someone only displaying academic aptitude.

 

[theseeker4]

I could be off base here, but a lifelong commitment to service doesn't necessarily mean a service to medicine. I'm not saying volunteering and shadowing are not important, but I interpret the statement as an applicant who demonstrates selflessness and caring may be preferred over someone only displaying academic aptitude.

This. If there was a need for a "lifelong" pursuit of medicine, there would be no successful non-traditional applicants.

 

[Quik]

I could be off base here, but a lifelong commitment to service doesn't necessarily mean a service to medicine. I'm not saying volunteering and shadowing are not important, but I interpret the statement as an applicant who demonstrates selflessness and caring may be preferred over someone only displaying academic aptitude.

Everything else being equal, I think your interpretation is correct. Selflessness and caring for people are excellent and rather necessary attributes of Doctors, this school seems to apply that philosophy to the core of their selection process. I think the thesis of the statement is that this school prefers candidates with selfless qualities AND (not without) strong academic aptitude over candidates with only strong academic abilities.

This. If there was a need for a "lifelong" pursuit of medicine, there would be no successful non-traditional applicants.

I think the "lifelong" statement is referring to the displayed commitment to medicine from the application process forward,regardless of age. True lifelong commitment would begin at birth, through death; that's not realistic nor hardly relevant. I believe they are trying to select matriculants who they believe can handle the stress of a medical career and are doing it for more than the motivation of money or social status.

 

[theseeker4]

I think the "lifelong" statement is referring to the displayed commitment to medicine from the application process forward,regardless of age. True lifelong commitment would begin at birth, through death; that's not realistic nor hardly relevant. I believe they are trying to select matriculants who they believe can handle the stress of a medical career and are doing it for more than the motivation of money or social status.

I agree. OP seems worried that not having a huge length of time that they were pursuing medicine before applying will hurt him or her.

 

[Quik]

I agree. OP seems worried that not having a huge length of time that they were pursuing medicine before applying will hurt him or her.

Ahh, I see the point now. I would agree that it would hurt, just based on the fact that there is a giant hole in the application in way of clinical experience and volunteering.

OP, this is a hugely important aspect of one's application. It sounds like the rest of your app is pretty well polished, save for the MCAT. Focus on the holes and improve them. Yours are obvious. You could apply this year, but you would likely see much less in the way of acceptances. A personal anecdote from several years ago, my ex-GF graduates with a 3.9 GPA in Biochem (from an IVY), gets a 31 MCAT, only has about 4 hours shadowing and nil volunteering... she goes through one app cycle and gets a handful of rejection letters, decides she can't wait through a gap year to improve her application, and is now a chiropractor.

If I were you, I'd cherish this gap year and spend the next year volunteering (clinical & community), traveling (with a volunteer project) and focusing on the weak parts of your app.