Application Work Load / Choosing Job During Year Off

[fencinghippie]

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What is the work load like once one has turned in their applications (in terms of secondaries, etc)?

I am trying to choose between two jobs for the year in between undergrad and medical school, and I don't know what would be preferable - advice?

One is only part time, but I would be doing MRI research at UCSF and Berkeley, as well as working with pediatric neurologists and going to grand rounds, etc. I would love this job, but it pays very little (part-time).

The other would have me work like a dog doing neuro-marketing research, but I would get paid -much- more.

Would it be helpful to work part-time instead of full/over-time?
Would it be really beneficial on my secondaries to be able to talk about doing clinical research rather than the second option?

It's a matter of experience versus $$ and both seem important...

 

[Stratego]

Which one will give you the flexibility to leave for two days a week to go to interviews? I suspect it would be option #1 which sounds way more interesting anyway and would give you interesting things to report on in update letters through the application cycle.

 

[235009]

you should have a full time job during your year off and you will need the money when you are in med school so go for the neuro-marketing research. secondaries don't take THAT long to complete that you won't be able to hold down a full time job concurrently

Which one will give you the flexibility to leave for two days a week to go to interviews? I suspect it would be option #1 which sounds way more interesting anyway and would give you interesting things to report on in update letters through the application cycle.

i agree that flexibility to be able to go to interviews is key, however unless you are applying MD/PhD needing two days a week for interviews is unrealistic...at most you will probably need to take off two or three non-consecutive days a month.

as for update letters, i'm sure your job will give you plenty to talk about in update letters. not to mention that update letters do not hold nearly as much weight as what is on your AMCAS. in other words the money is way more important than the marginal benefit of the marginally better update letter.

 

[Spiker]

Correctly if I am wrong, but you want to make as little as possible the year before med school, so you will be better off as far as FAFSA number is concerned.

 

[235009]

Correctly if I am wrong, but you want to make as little as possible the year before med school, so you will be better off as far as FAFSA number is concerned.

i've seen that advice being thrown around in some of the threads about financial aid ...i strongly disagree with it though. the vast majority of schools will not give you much in need-based grants...especially state schools, which means you will end up having to take out loans anyway. also, if you are from a family that is well off you won't get any institutional aid (though you aren't penalized for family income/assets on your FAFSA EFC, almost every school uses it to determine need-based institutional aid) so you're better off maximizing your earnings. the only thing you should avoid is making so much money that you become ineligible for subsidized stafford loans but you would need to be making (i estimate) over $115k and saving most of it for that to happen.

 

[fahimaz7]

I like my job atm.. 38k/year + benefits and I'm working in a phase 1/2 cancer clinical trials unit, at a medical school, and I get 2 days of vacation/month!
🙂

 

[quirks]

I like my job atm.. 38k/year + benefits and I'm working in a phase 1/2 cancer clinical trials unit, at a medical school, and I get 2 days of vacation/month!
🙂

😱

My job sucks in comparison. I thought 28K was really good! Either you have a great salary or I have a terrible one.


Anyway, I say go with whichever job you actually want to do. Applying to med school is enough of a hell of its own that you don't want to throw in a job that you resent. Long hours are fine so long as you enjoy it.

 

[aznb0y129]

😱

My job sucks in comparison. I thought 28K was really good! Either you have a great salary or I have a terrible one.


Anyway, I say go with whichever job you actually want to do. Applying to med school is enough of a hell of its own that you don't want to throw in a job that you resent. Long hours are fine so long as you enjoy it.

I have a similar job. 38K + free health/dental insurance, 3 vacation days/month. Research coordinator FTW 🙂

To the OP, I would say go for the job you like more, even if you get paid less. Since you're likely only working there for a year, the money difference is less significant.

 

[megan143]

I worked during my year off and my EFC is $17,000. So you can choose to work a little, have a lower EFC and be able to take out more in Stafford loans OR work a lot, and take out more in Federal PLUS loans which have an 8.5% interest rate.

 

[genswim24]

If you start a job after graduation, you wont' be working a full year for tax purposes. Therefore, you will likely have a lot lower EFC than you would have if you kept a job for the entire year. Don't let the increased income deter you, it is not likely to change your financial aid.