Apply in July 13th, or just apply now? =(

[chaser0]

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I currently have about only 18 hours of shadowing~
However, I have scheduled with additional doctors to shadow them in ealy July, which would allow me to send off my Application around July 13th.


Considering my application is not stellar (cGPA: 3.55, sGPA: 3.48, MCAT: 32Q)
Do you think July 13th might be way too late for me?
Or do you recommend that I instead just apply next year or just send my application now??

 

[CougarMD]

I currently have about only 18 hours of shadowing~
However, I have scheduled with additional doctors to shadow them in ealy July, which would allow me to send off my Application around July 13th.


Considering my application is not stellar (cGPA: 3.55, sGPA: 3.48, MCAT: 32Q)
Do you think July 13th might be way too late for me?
Or do you recommend that I instead just apply next year or just send my application now??

More information please....
18 hours of shadowing as in "These are the only EC's I have" or 18 hours of shadowing in addition to other stuff?

You can always enter the hours of shadowing in as though they continue through the end of the application cycle by averaging the "hours per week shadowing", and those hours will be counted. Does that make sense?

Otherwise...I am not sure that an additional 10 hours shadowing will make a lot of difference. If you have a ton of EC's, it will be a drop in the bucket. If not, then you may just need to work on that and apply later anyway.

 

[foofish]

I currently have about only 18 hours of shadowing~
However, I have scheduled with additional doctors to shadow them in ealy July, which would allow me to send off my Application around July 13th.


Considering my application is not stellar (cGPA: 3.55, sGPA: 3.48, MCAT: 32Q)
Do you think July 13th might be way too late for me?
Or do you recommend that I instead just apply next year or just send my application now??

So, I will ask the question that adcoms will (if, indeed, this is your only clinical experience)....what on earth have you been doing for the last 2-3 years that you've been a premed? Keep in mind that you have to list the dates for these experiences, so they'll see that you've only just started now that you have to apply.

One of the reasons clinical exposure is so important is that it helps you evaluate whether this is really and truly the correct career path for you...this, in turn, is important to adcoms because they get thousands of applicants who "want to help people" and be a doctor without actually having a realistic expectation of what that actually entails. Adcoms like to see actual reflection and quality of experience, not just something someone does to check off a box in their application...which starting in June/July the year you're applying tends to suggest.

Of course, this all depends on what else you've done. If you have 150 hours of hospital volunteering and just 18 hours of shadowing, it's not a big deal. But if you really only have 18 hours all together, I'd sit down with your advisor and have a heart-to-heart about when to apply.

 

[getright]

I doubt the OP only has 18 hours of shadowing as his only EC. He/she has been registered since May 09 and has posted a few times. It seems really unlikely that chaser has completed nothing during that entire span.

 

[chaser0]

Getright is correct

I have numerous ECs ranging from Medical mission trips in Africa, to Research, to local community service, to over 150 hours of hospital volunteering. aside from my shadowing and my lack of publication, I would say that my ECs are atleast decent (I'll be filling out all 15 available ECs with significant entries)

The problem here is that I can make my application even stronger with 20 additional shadowing hours.


The question is,
does the 2 weeks (I'll apply on July 1st if I just decide to submit it) outweigh the 20 hours of shadowing?

 

[CougarMD]

I don't see why this is such an issue....all your shadowing will go in one entry anyway and since it is happening so soon, just list it as future shadowing and with whom and apply ASAP.

 

[chaser0]

oooo, i didn't know that we could list future shadowing~~


thank you!!
=)

 

[foofish]

Getright is correct

I have numerous ECs ranging from Medical mission trips in Africa, to Research, to local community service, to over 150 hours of hospital volunteering. aside from my shadowing and my lack of publication, I would say that my ECs are atleast decent (I'll be filling out all 15 available ECs with significant entries)

The problem here is that I can make my application even stronger with 20 additional shadowing hours.


The question is,
does the 2 weeks (I'll apply on July 1st if I just decide to submit it) outweigh the 20 hours of shadowing?

In that case, I'd apply now and just indicate within the entry you already have that you'll be continuing....I don't think the extra couple of hours is worth the wait. Also, when you interview you can mention that you've continued to shadow.

Also SDN, I think, makes a much more drastic distinction between shadowing vs. volunteering (so long as the volunteering has actual patient/MD contact) than med school adcoms do.

 

[ronaldo23]

oooo, i didn't know that we could list future shadowing~~


thank you!!
=)

you can't technically list in future activities, since it only lets you end in the present month for start date. But you could just enter in June-present and explain in the description that you are doing this all summer (assuming you start shadowing in June). Regardless, it's better to submit sooner rather than later, especially if you aren't a shoe-in.

 

[CougarMD]

you can't technically list in future activities, since it only lets you end in the present month for start date. But you could just enter in June-present and explain in the description that you are doing this all summer (assuming you start shadowing in June). Regardless, it's better to submit sooner rather than later, especially if you aren't a shoe-in.

In this case, OP has done shadowing that presumably started before this month. So you list all shadowing as a single entry with whatever start date to the present, then in the description some of the details and physician names will be for that July shadowing and you make a note of it.

It is also not clear to me that 20 more hours shadowing makes or breaks your app if you have other ECs, but that is just my opinion.