Are these EC's/Volunteering enough?

[Livestrong51085]

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So, I pretty much did NOTHING in undergrad except take classes and do well in them. Now that I know I am going to med school and am currently in a post-bacc program, I obviously have to get all of the EC's/Volunteering started. I am applying in June of '11, so I have 1 1/4 years to do these activites in order to show longevity. So, my plan is this:

-Red Cross Club (they organize blood drives and some other things at my school, and I would try to get into some sort of leadership position in this club, like being a principal organizer or something)

-Gymnastics Club (I was in this in undergrad since I was a serious gymnast and I have already been going since I came back for my post-bacc. I don't have any position, but I will be a safety officer for the club starting this summer, which just means I'll be CPR certified and make sure safety rules are followed...pretty much a nothing position)

-Volunteer @ local hospital's free health clinic doing some kind of patient contact work

-Volunteer @ local food bank doing whatever they want me to do

-Being an online pen-pal with elementary school kids and discussing books they have read with them.

-Being a camp counselor for some kind of summer camp this summer. Don't know what yet, but it will prob be gymnastics, since they have them at my school, and I am qualified.

-Doing a semester of summer research this summer with one of my professors (probably bio related)

-Doing a few "missions" like helping to repair homes in rural areas, etc. I will try to do like 2 or 3 of those.

** I should prob also add that after graduation, I worked in a surgeon's office at a busy city hospital for over a year; I was the practice manager and it was all administrative, but I did have a lot of patient contact and I ordered all of the Imaging tests and bloodwork, etc and scheduled all the surgeries, so wouldn't that count for something?**


All of these things, I have already started to initiate and will be able to start doing them within the next 2-3 weeks, except the summer stuff obviously.

Overall, is this enough, granted that I continue to have stellar academic work and a good MCAT?

Thanks in advance!

 

[LizzyM]

No. Obviously you are filling your plate like a pig because you think you will impress someone with your appetite for volunteerism when you are just doing it to impress someone -- who remains unimpressed because it looks like it is just for show. Where was your heart all those years of undergrad?

/bitch mode

 

[Livestrong51085]

I probably should have explained myself a little bit better. I REALLY DO WANT TO GET INVOLVED IN THE COMMUNITY. ALL OF THESE THINGS I LISTED I REALLY HAVE A GENUINE INTEREST IN.

To answer LizzyM's question, throughout undergrad, it wasn't so much that I didn't have the "heart", but I was more of an introvert and was always afraid to get involved in things. I always thought volunteering would be great, but I never did it. But due to my desire to be a physician and seeing that it REQUIRES that I do get involved, I am approaching it with a lot of gusto, and I REALLY AM TRULY EXCITED to get involved and I think it is great for me and will help me grow as a person. Better late than never, right?

I'm just wondering if those activities that I listed are going overboard, or if they are comparable to the general amount that OTHER people are doing.

I don't think I would need to do more, but I don't want to underestimate the process.

 

[JJMrK]

Honestly, I think that would get you into a school. (Not LizzyM's, though, apparently. )

 

[Livestrong51085]

But wouldn't the fact that I would have been doing them for over a year consistently show commitment even if i hadn't done anything previously...honestly over a year should be good enough.

 

[Catalystik]

Ouch! LizzyM is being harsh (but realistic) about how a lot of last-minute volunteerism will be viewed by adcoms.

Don't get so over-involved that your grades in the postbac suffer, or you'll shoot yourself in the foot, GPA-wise.

The longevity of the gymnastics club is good. It is a logical extension of that activity that you'd teach these skills as a camp counselor. One might argue that though you don't have a track record for community service, intense involvement with a sport could be viewed as an altruistic activity, where you sacrifice your own interests and time for the betterment of a team. It would also be a logical extension for you to display leadership ability through this same organization.

At least a summer of research is a good idea (more if possible). Getting involved in the free clinic ASAP is the most crucial. I'm glad you have patient experience through the surgery office for more than a year. It actually sounds like a very good EC. Presumably, you have some shadowing? If not, get on that too, eventually spending 60-80 hours to satisfy the expectations of a wide range of schools, to include at least one primary care doc (not just surgeons).

The house building, food bank, Red Cross, and on-line mentoring are all nice for community service. But "overboard" covers my sentiments nicely. Why not pick just one and get more involved in it?

Another tip: continue whatever activities you begin during your application season and beyond, so you have pertinent material for update letters, fodder for interview conversations, and if worse comes to worst, an improved application if you end up reapplying.

 

[apumic]

I agree with the above posts. You seem to be wanting to "binge" on volunteering....and we all know what comes after a binge...so will you begin purging during or shortly after med school (or maybe just as soon as you have that acceptance in hand)?

Honestly, just do a couple of activities that interest you. As for the length of service... just over a year is a relatively short period of time if that includes all of your volunteer experience. Many of us non-trad students had volunteer experience from before we became PB students and/or before we decided we wanted to go to med school. As a result, that's what you're being compared to. You need to find an activity and stick w/ it for a long time. Become increasingly involved in just a couple of volunteer projects. There should be an ongoing theme as well. Good luck!

 

[Livestrong51085]

I am definitely planning on continuing the activities beyond the application, etc. I will begin the free clinic right away and I forgot to mention that, yes, I def plan on doing shadowing, prob about 20 hours each of the major specialties. I will def do the research, and will prob do the book discussion with the kids, b/c I actually really want to do that and believe that reading is really important for kids, and it's online and doens't take up a lot of time. I will prob still try to do a summer camp for leadership experience. I will prob leave out the food bank. I just have to find a nice equilibrium.

 

[Planet Ocean]

I probably should have explained myself a little bit better. I REALLY DO WANT TO GET INVOLVED IN THE COMMUNITY. ALL OF THESE THINGS I LISTED I REALLY HAVE A GENUINE INTEREST IN.

To answer LizzyM's question, throughout undergrad, it wasn't so much that I didn't have the "heart", but I was more of an introvert and was always afraid to get involved in things. I always thought volunteering would be great, but I never did it. But due to my desire to be a physician and seeing that it REQUIRES that I do get involved, I am approaching it with a lot of gusto, and I REALLY AM TRULY EXCITED to get involved and I think it is great for me and will help me grow as a person. Better late than never, right?

I'm just wondering if those activities that I listed are going overboard, or if they are comparable to the general amount that OTHER people are doing.

I don't think I would need to do more, but I don't want to underestimate the process.

I think you will be fine as long as you can explain why you didnt do many ecs during undergrad. I mean a lot of people don't grow up saying they want to be doctors and go through undergrad to that effect. Use something like that and if you have an experience or a revelation that made you realize you wanted to be a physician that would be good too. The point is that your heart is in it now and you are willing to show the trend.

 

[Livestrong51085]

I think you will be fine as long as you can explain why you didnt do many ecs during undergrad. I mean a lot of people don't grow up saying they want to be doctors and go through undergrad to that effect. Use something like that and if you have an experience or a revelation that made you realize you wanted to be a physician that would be good too. The point is that your heart is in it now and you are willing to show the trend.

Thanks, this is what I was trying to convey, and what I will convey to the admissions committe.

 

[extremophile]

people change. less cynical adcom members will understand this. as long as you explain that, and pursue whatever volunteer work you are interested in, you'll be fine. I think it is advisable to focus on a few activities though, since I think you'd rather have depth than spreading yourself too thin. good luck.

 

[bobsmith]

My initial reaction was much like LizzyM's, considering the highlighted parts below:

So, I pretty much did NOTHING in undergrad except take classes and do well in them. Now that I know I am going to med school and am currently in a post-bacc program, I obviously have to get all of the EC's/Volunteering started. I am applying in June of '11, so I have 1 1/4 years to do these activites in order to show longevity. So, my plan is this:

-Red Cross Club (they organize blood drives and some other things at my school, and I would try to get into some sort of leadership position in this club, like being a principal organizer or something)

-Volunteer @ local food bank doing whatever they want me to do

** I should prob also add that after graduation, I worked in a surgeon's office at a busy city hospital for over a year; I was the practice manager and it was all administrative, but I did have a lot of patient contact and I ordered all of the Imaging tests and bloodwork, etc and scheduled all the surgeries, so wouldn't that count for something?**

All of these things, I have already started to initiate and will be able to start doing them within the next 2-3 weeks, except the summer stuff obviously.

Overall, is this enough, granted that I continue to have stellar academic work and a good MCAT?

Thanks in advance!

To answer LizzyM's question, throughout undergrad, it wasn't so much that I didn't have the "heart", but I was more of an introvert and was always afraid to get involved in things. I always thought volunteering would be great, but I never did it. But due to my desire to be a physician and seeing that it REQUIRES that I do get involved, I am approaching it with a lot of gusto, and I REALLY AM TRULY EXCITED to get involved and I think it is great for me and will help me grow as a person. Better late than never, right?

I'm just wondering if those activities that I listed are going overboard, or if they are comparable to the general amount that OTHER people are doing.

I don't think I would need to do more, but I don't want to underestimate the process.

But wouldn't the fact that I would have been doing them for over a year consistently show commitment even if i hadn't done anything previously...honestly over a year should be good enough.

When people use phrases like "this should be enough" and talk about "I need to do this [volunteering, leadership] so I can get into medical school," it raises questions about what that person's motivations really are.

Basically, your posts made me think, "If an admissions officer looked at your application right now and told you 'Hey, I guarantee you that you're going to get admitted to my school anyway, don't do volunteer activities if you don't want to," you would probably not do any of these activities that you talked about. Maybe I'm wrong on this, but that's the impression I got from reading your posts.

So when you're deciding how much and what to commit to, make sure you've thought about why you're doing these activities (specifically, be able to answer questions like "What makes you want to work at a food bank? How in the world did you decide to do that?") because when you get asked in an interview "Why did you start 4 random volunteer activities within 3 weeks?" you better have a good, non-BS answer.

 

[Livestrong51085]

I can definitely see where you are coming from, especially when you highlighted those parts of my post. I mean, I'm obviously trying to fulfill the requirements to get into med-school, I'm not going to lie. But I really do think I will benefit from the experience and I am looking forward to it. Like I mentioned before, I haven't always been an entirely outgoing person.

I think I was just kind of having a freak-out moment, when I was saying those things that you highlighted. Getting into med school is so competitive and when you come here to SDN and see all the stuff people are doing, you kind of get anxlous/nervous and feel like you're not doing enough. After reading everyone's responses, I realize now that I should probably limit it down some more and really commit myself more to those things, which is what I will do. But I am not insincere about this process, I really am looking forward to giving back.

 

[duress]

When people use phrases like "this should be enough" and talk about "I need to do this [volunteering, leadership] so I can get into medical school," it raises questions about what that person's motivations really are.

Basically, your posts made me think, "If an admissions officer looked at your application right now and told you 'Hey, I guarantee you that you're going to get admitted to my school anyway, don't do volunteer activities if you don't want to," you would probably not do any of these activities that you talked about. Maybe I'm wrong on this, but that's the impression I got from reading your posts.

I mean... how many people would specifically volunteer at certain places or do the research they do if it weren't directly relevant to medicine? As a non-trad, I empathize with the OP- almost all of my college ECs were things I enjoyed, but most were not medically relevant. Yet, I'm told they aren't enough by the prehealth commitee, SDN, AAMC, and so on, and that I need to do X,Y and Z to be competitive for medical school. So really, we're all doing a bunch of stuff that's tacitly required, and I know a lot of people in person who loathed the required part.

Granted, I agree with you that it would require a mountain of effort to explain why you started unrelated 4 volunteer efforts within 3 weeks and still sound genuine, but I find myself hard-pressed to imagine that the ADCOMs invariably believe that someone who volunteered to do paperwork and answer phones for a free clinic during sophomore year (while on the premed track) was any more genuine.

 

[Livestrong51085]

I mean... how many people would specifically volunteer at certain places or do the research they do if it weren't directly relevant to medicine? As a non-trad, I emphasize with the OP- almost all of my college ECs were things I enjoyed, but most were not medically relevant. Yet, I'm told they aren't enough by the prehealth commitee, SDN, AAMC, and so on, and that I need to do X,Y and Z to be competitive for medical school. So really, we're all doing a bunch of stuff that's tacitly required, and I know a lot of people in person who loathed the required part.

Granted, I agree with you that it would require a mountain of effort to explain why you started unrelated 4 volunteer efforts within 3 weeks and still sound genuine, but I find myself hard-pressed to imagine that the ADCOMs invariably believe that someone who volunteered to do paperwork and answer phones for a free clinic during sophomore year (while on the premed track) was any more genuine.

Thank you. I mean, we all have to do it. Yes, it's good to try to make it something you are passionate about or would enjoy, but how many of you can tell me you would have done all the things you did if you weren't applying to med school?

 

[bobsmith]

I can definitely see where you are coming from, especially when you highlighted those parts of my post. I mean, I'm obviously trying to fulfill the requirements to get into med-school, I'm not going to lie. But I really do think I will benefit from the experience and I am looking forward to it. Like I mentioned before, I haven't always been an entirely outgoing person.

I think I was just kind of having a freak-out moment, when I was saying those things that you highlighted. Getting into med school is so competitive and when you come here to SDN and see all the stuff people are doing, you kind of get anxlous/nervous and feel like you're not doing enough. After reading everyone's responses, I realize now that I should probably limit it down some more and really commit myself more to those things, which is what I will do. But I am not insincere about this process, I really am looking forward to giving back.

I think this "freak-out" moment is pretty common (welcome to SDN! lol), and I think the typical "pre-med" response where you go and sign up for 14 volunteer activities to boost your resume is also very common. In my opinion, I just think that it's pretty transparent to do so and adcoms can see through this (as seen by LizzyM's response).

I agree with other people that it's better to concentrate on one or two things. I think the key is to not just choose things randomly and instead try finding things that fit with your "story" and your interests. That way, when you get asked in an interview, "why did you start volunteering at a boys and girls club?" you can talk say something more concrete and meaningful like, "well I was very serious about gymnastics when I was younger and decided that I could use what I knew to ..."

I think answers like that are more meaningful than "I did it because it's an unwritten requirement" (not that anyone would say this!) or something vague like "I thought I would get a lot out of the experience"