Any Pre-Med athletes out there?

[fortunefaded]

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I was just wondering if any of you are athletes and if being an athlete is an advantage or disadvantage in this whole process. Personally, I am a baseball player at a Division 1 school and have found that playing a sport makes the school aspect a little more challenging at times, but have heard that being an athlete may be an advantage when applying to med school. Just wondering what everyone else thinks.

 

[derf]

are you kidding me, you're set man.

i would write my personal statement about a pressure situation you endured in baseball and relate it to medicine's pressures. Something like, it was the ninth inning and you're the final batter. You keep fighting off pitches and your perserverance and persistence is unwavering and unflagging, then you hit a grand slam in the ninth to end the game for your team. As you round the bases, you feel a rush of energy that radiates through your body, the same rush that radiates when you work as a team in the hospital. Man, you're set in terms of interviews. As you can see, I always wished I were an athlete. Med schools LOVE athletes because of their ability to cope with pressure situations.

 

[lane]

it's definitely an advantage, especially if you've maintained a good GPA while playing.

 

[constructor]

i think being an athlete is advantageous because they seem to lower their standards and go out of the way to give you an interview at some places. i don't know why, but i feel this way after personal experience. it's almost as if they give you special importance because they think you're much different from the other applicants (i actually never thought about it in this way before). i'm a division I athlete, too, and i was surprised at some of the interviews i got and at the extent to which they talked about athletics during the interviews. at the very least, it keeps you away from having the same old boring conversations with random people.

 

[derf]

what sport do you play constructor?

 

[constructor]

PM'ed you.

 

[watsupdoc15]

I was just wondering if any of you are athletes and if being an athlete is an advantage or disadvantage in this whole process. Personally, I am a baseball player at a Division 1 school and have found that playing a sport makes the school aspect a little more challenging at times, but have heard that being an athlete may be an advantage when applying to med school. Just wondering what everyone else thinks.

I'm a baseball player as well...i play DII, but I had a few DI offers for a thousand dollars or so; I chose the 3/4 scholarship in favor of the DI offers. No doubt, being an athlete takes about .2-.4 off your gpa. Probably one grade/semester suffers one, in some cases, two letter grades. I know a lot of people work and do other things, but i think you and i know the demands that coaches and institutions put on you in the realm of athletics. I'm a senior, and understand the demans very well. On top of pre-med, playing, and practicing i work and am a member of 3 clubs on campus, however it's what i want to do, and chose to do, not what i am required to do. I believe that it is appreciated by adcoms, and taken into consideration as an EC. If you're a leader on your team, bring that to the forefront. Give examples of your experiences...don't just be part of it, be a leader.

This summer, after talking about things like shadowing, and other aspects of applying, before my last year of baseball, my uncle who is a surgeon asked me, "why don't you quit baseball and work on your studies if medicine is what you really want to do?" I just told him that I have one time to do this which is now, and i want to finish it, but i want to devote my life to medicine. He said "well it sounds like your reasoning is good and you know what you want to do with your life." Basically, it comes down to it being something that exposed you to something that will help you out in the field of medicine; teamwork, leadership, success, commitment. Additionally my team does a lot in the community for underprivelaged children and such. I don't know what year you're in, but athletics set me back about a year and a few gpa points but it's been worth it to find out that playing ball is NOT what i'm going to do with my life. I suggest this...i told my coach junior year that he'll conform to my desires in school or i wouldn't play and he did, so point being, put school first and if he doesn't comply, and if medicine is what you really want to do, don't play. I hope this is pretty straight ahead and informative. If you need anything else, just ask. peace

 

[CanuckRazorback]

It's a huge advantage. I'm a track athlete and I've been ask so many questions in interviews. I'm a hammer and discus thrower so the WTF factor helps

What do you guys do and where are you guys at? I'm at Arkansas (duh). 39 national championships and counting.

 

[solitude]

I think that in some cases, naive adcom members tend to think of athletics as just "another extracurricular" and overlook the huge amounts of time that go into it. I personally believe that doing college athletics and maintaining a strong GPA is an awesome accomplishment, but I have seen cases where adcoms showed no respect for a college athlete/pre-med. 4.0, 35+, college athlete did not get into my state school (top-25), and she was IN STATE! With her stats well above the average for in-state students, either she made an egregious error (interview?) or the adcom simply didn't respect the fact that she spent a ton of time doing athletics and still pulled all A's.

I know this is anecdotal, but just a warning that, even to athletes, the admissions process is random and there are no guarentees.

For those pre-meds on this board, congratulations on being able to balance athletics and academics. I'm not sure I could do it.

 

[doogyhowser]

i think the value of being an athlete( 👍 ) is similar to anyone that has a hobby or extracurricular interest that they devote serious time to. the adcoms definitely dig people like this, it broadens their life experiences and shows that they're more than just someone with their nose in the books all day. i'd love to talk about this in my interview over getting cotton-mouthed from a string of bull**** ethical questions.

 

[JDAD]

Fours Years NCAA Div 1 Baseball. I would say it has helped me so far, although I haven't received an acceptance yet....... What school are you at op?

 

[CanuckRazorback]

i think the value of being an athlete( 👍 ) is similar to anyone that has a hobby or extracurricular interest that they devote serious time to. the adcoms definitely dig people like this, it broadens their life experiences and shows that they're more than just someone with their nose in the books all day. i'd love to talk about this in my interview over getting cotton-mouthed from a string of bull**** ethical questions.

I'd say it's similar to anyone having a full-time job. I am not saying that having a hobby or EC is less serious than athletics, but the physical part really takes a toll. I admire anyone who can play the violin suberbly or is involved in organizing rallies for whatever cause. But when you get home at 7pm after getting your a$$ whipped in practice and in the weightroom for the last 4 hours and you've been up since 6:45 because you had practice from 7-8:30 before class, the last thing you want to do is study. And you can't miss practice because you have a big test coming up. Your academic achievement is the last thing on the coaches' minds.

I am not saying this to prove that athletes are better than the rest. Everyone contributes in their own way and everyone on here has done something incredible enough to be accepted or interviewed by med schools. That's not my point. My point is that while ADCOMs do like athletes, they really don't understand what comes with the territory and don't really respect it for its true value.

Being an athlete is advantageous, but it can also be a downfall. I don't know about the other sports, but I know in track you spend the whole summer competing and training. I never could take off for Hopkins to do research or go to an unverdeveloped country to volunteer. So in the end, it's a good thing they look somewhat more favorably on us because I know some of us are lacking in other areas.

 

[eralza]

I run ultra-marathons.
At one of my interviews, a big part of the questions revolved around the psychology of running for 12+ hrs, what food to eat, complicated exercise physiology, and most importantly...why? It was a lot more enjoyable than discussing the problem with American healthcare.

 

[fourthyear]

It is certainly harder to be an athlete than "any other hobby". After I stopped doing my DI sport (due to injury), I was able to take a bigger course load, work 20-30 hours a week at a part-time job, and still have a very busy social life compared to the one I had when I was doing my sport and was getting up for morning practice or traveling to compete on weekends (both of which precluded me from going out at night like my non-athlete friends did) - and my grades were better.

But, I did do my sport for 3 years and it was a great experience. It may not have helped a lot to get into med school or residency, but it really does help in learning time managment skills that you will need in med school and residency. Also helps decrease the whining factor most med students have, always complaining about how much studying they have to do -former athletes know what it's like to have to study after being sapped of all thier physical energy at practice, so they're less likely to whine and more likely to appreciate that they now have time to focus on school more. Plus I think former athletes stay in better shape during med school and residency - a 20 minute workout seems easy to fit in when you're used to making time for 2+ hour workouts, and exercise has become such a habit.

 

[Sundarban1]

How did you go about incorporating this into your PS? 😕

 

[CanuckRazorback]

How did you go about incorporating this into your PS? 😕

PMed you.

 

[akpete]

I think that in some cases, naive adcom members tend to think of athletics as just "another extracurricular" and overlook the huge amounts of time that go into it. I personally believe that doing college athletics and maintaining a strong GPA is an awesome accomplishment, but I have seen cases where adcoms showed no respect for a college athlete/pre-med. 4.0, 35+, college athlete did not get into my state school (top-25), and she was IN STATE! With her stats well above the average for in-state students, either she made an egregious error (interview?) or the adcom simply didn't respect the fact that she spent a ton of time doing athletics and still pulled all A's.

I know this is anecdotal, but just a warning that, even to athletes, the admissions process is random and there are no guarentees.

For those pre-meds on this board, congratulations on being able to balance athletics and academics. I'm not sure I could do it.

I can completely relate with this statement. While I'm not an athlete, I'm an athletic trainer, and during my program in undergrad (just finished in May) we work with athletes 20 hours per week, and also travel with them too. Adcoms/interviewers just don't seem to understand that it's a lot of work and dedication. On top of that, I worked 2-3 jobs as well and maintained a good gpa (3.77). All I get in response is, "well, what OTHER experience to you have?" and "I'm not sure you understand the committment and the scope of a career in medicine." Gee thanks for thinking I'm completely naive and ignore the fact that I've been evaluating patients for 2 years. Poop on you.

Whew, I feel better.

Not to say that I work any harder than anyone else. It just sucks when everything you've done is misunderstood and basically told that it's not good enough. So when athletes say that work hard, believe them, they do.

 

[Quentin Quinn]

I played football for Rice, then [big step down] a community college and Washington & Lee. I actually think that football is one of the least time-intensive sports, compared to say, basketball or track. Academics weren't too tough to balance, after I figured out that adding a massive drinking problem into the mix wasn't helping matters.

Hope the athletic background helps me, it certainly did in the law school admissions process!

 

[ead]

i def agree with fourth year--college athletics are not like any other extracurriculars. They require a tremendous amount of time and energy in-season and out. I played a DI sport and it required 40+ hours per week year-round!

 

[CanuckRazorback]

Wow, I would be so insulted if someone told me that. I know how hard you guys work. 20 hours usually turns into 60 before you know it. Some interviewers are so narrow minded, it's amazing 😡 I'm sorry and I hope this doesn't happen to you again.

I can completely relate with this statement. While I'm not an athlete, I'm an athletic trainer, and during my program in undergrad (just finished in May) we work with athletes 20 hours per week, and also travel with them too. Adcoms/interviewers just don't seem to understand that it's a lot of work and dedication. On top of that, I worked 2-3 jobs as well and maintained a good gpa (3.77). All I get in response is, "well, what OTHER experience to you have?" and "I'm not sure you understand the committment and the scope of a career in medicine." Gee thanks for thinking I'm completely naive and ignore the fact that I've been evaluating patients for 2 years. Poop on you.

Whew, I feel better.

Not to say that I work any harder than anyone else. It just sucks when everything you've done is misunderstood and basically told that it's not good enough. So when athletes say that work hard, believe them, they do.

 

[CanuckRazorback]

I played football for Rice, then [big step down] a community college and Washington & Lee. I actually think that football is one of the least time-intensive sports, compared to say, basketball or track. Academics weren't too tough to balance, after I figured out that adding a massive drinking problem into the mix wasn't helping matters.

Hope the athletic background helps me, it certainly did in the law school admissions process!

That's because you guys get babysitted If a track or tennis athlete becomes ineligible, nobody cares. If a football guy gets ineligible, watch out! I'm just kidding around, but I have to say that football does get much more attention than any other sport, and since you guys bring in the bacon, I guess we can't complain I don't know about Rice, but I know Arkansas charters to every single game which makes it a lot easier to be back for class. With other sports, we fly commercial so we end up missing more. I remember my sophomore year I was taking a microbio class that met every day. I missed so many classes and I was so confused at one point that I thought I had walked into the wrong classroom.

 

[akpete]

Wow, I would be so insulted if someone told me that. I know how hard you guys work. 20 hours usually turns into 60 before you know it. Some interviewers are so narrow minded, it's amazing 😡 I'm sorry and I hope this doesn't happen to you again.

Thanks!! Yeah, we used to do much more than 20 hours, but then our program director mandated my senior year that we could only do 20 hours max during school or we'd be kicked out or something. He's on the accredidation board for the national association, so he's really big on rules. It sucked. But during fall camp and winter break...sleep, what's sleep!!! Good luck to you CanuckRazorback