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[KendallJennerSniperLady69]

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[paradoxic_toxic]

1. I have a strong GPA, but throughout undergrad, I had some difficult semesters due to health/personal circumstances and opted to take some elective classes for a P/NP grading system in order to focus on my premed/science classes. For example, some semesters, I took 13-16 credits, but only opted to take 8 of them for a letter grade. How concerning is this? This happened 2/8 semesters. I still took a full courseload each semester, just not all of those credits were for a letter grade.

It isn't too concerning if you have stellar grades for your pre-reqs/sciences and have a good GPA trend towards the end of your undergraduate career.

2. I'm currently looking for research experience in my gap year. Is it looked down upon to volunteer as a research assistant rather than work (paid) as one? I'm working part-time as a medical assistant and trying to find work as a research assistant, but I believe my experience is holding me back. I have ~800+ hours working in a lab, but unfortunately, I did very niche tasks in that lab (mostly rodent behavioral experiments/sectioning tissue/counting cells), meaning I don't have a lot of experience in the typical skills that wet labs look for.

Research is research--doesn't matter if it is paid or not. What matters is if it's a quality learning experience for you. From personal experience and having friends who are heavily vested in the world of research, it is quite hard to get a paid RA position unless you have the proper connections. Most labs will not invest time and money into training premeds who will leave after a relatively short time, i.e., they prefer people that are in it for the long haul. It's probably best to cut your search short and start as a volunteer again if time is an issue.

3. If I do return to my lab to volunteer, I'd like to make something more of my time other than assist others with their projects. If possible, I'd like to make at least a poster of a small more independent project that may still help with others' projects (e.g. generate 1-2 figures to make a poster, that may also be used as data for others in the lab). Is this possible? And how long does a poster take working 3-4 days (or 5-6 if you include weekends) a week? Can I make a poster within 6 months?

This is hard to say. It really depends on the PI and the scope of the research you get into. My lab had researchers who completed their posters within half a year, while others took around 1.5 years.