Ask LizzyM (Almost) Anything 2012 edition

[BruinBear13]

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LizzyM,

First off, thank you so much for doing this.

My question is: would a sGPA of 3.77 offset a rather average cGPA of 3.65? Or would adcoms tend to put more weight on the cGPA? I fear that my cGPA will be the main thing holding me back from getting in high end schools.

Once again, this is very much appreciated! Hope you are having a wonderful holiday =]

 

[ur2l8]

LizzyM,

First off, thank you so much for doing this.

My question is: would a sGPA of 3.77 offset a rather average cGPA of 3.65? Or would adcoms tend to put more weight on the cGPA? I fear that my cGPA will be the main thing holding me back from getting in high end schools.

Once again, this is very much appreciated! Hope you are having a wonderful holiday =]

Haha. Same here, except switch the numbers.

 

[starx3]

Hi LizzyM,

I have some questions about the GPA. Is the sGPA more important than the cGPA? Can a 4.0 for "All Others"(besides BCMP) offset a 3.6 ish sGPA for your school?

Thanks and happy holidays! Thanks for doing this!!!!!!! =]

 

[flyers]

It never hurts to say thank you for considering my application and it would be an honor to study medicine at this school.

That was exactly what I was looking for. Thanks!

 

[physiologist]

Hi LizzyM,

This will be my last question (promise!)

I just received my interview feedback and I completely bombed the question "what do you do when you're in a team and someone isn't pulling their own weight?"

What are some important things to touch on as well as important things to avoid when answering this question? It gets me every time, since whenever I have this problem what happens is either 1) The rest of the team suggests the "slacker" a task we've agreed upon, which gives them an easy start and end point, which helps them get the work done and motivates them (e.g. "How about you do the introduction?") or 2) The rest of us pick up the slack for the first person because we're more conscientious and would probably do a better job anyway.

Obviously the former answer just isn't enough most of the time and the latter is blatantly wrong and against the team spirit med schools want. What do adcoms want me to say, exactly?

 

[physiologist]

(deleted b/c double post due to internet being wonky)

 

[lolcat]

hey LizzyM!! thanks for doing this 🙂

had a quick question on my situation. i will be graduating in May with a cGPA and sGPA of ~3.5. i haven't taken the MCAT yet, and am aiming to take it in april or may. i also don't have much volunteer hours (1 semester of tutoring and volunteering at hospital), but I have worked ~20 hours a week since my freshmen year and have a VERY strong upward trend over the last two years. i have a semester of research, two years as a TA, and a position at a club under my belt. i was contemplating on doing a masters or do you think i have a good chance at an MD school? i'm a FL resident and looking heavily into USF (my goal school). i'm not sure what to do. please help! thanks 🙂

 

[VitaminVater]

Well, someone who has already graduated has a gap year so we ask ourselves, "what is this applicant doing during the gap year?". Some adcom members also seem to be curious whether this is a reapplicant or a first-time applicant.

Thank you for the response, I ask because I'm really at odds on whether to apply junior year or senior year when I graduate. I feel like some honors/accomplishments that'll finish senior year(senior thesis, graduating with honors, probably my independent research) will give me a big boost(especially to top tier and other big research medical schools I plan on applying) so I'm wondering if adcoms will consider this in my application if I apply a year before graduation.

 

[noncon]

Along with my day job which supports my family, I am pursuing a BS degree from a community college - no competition, hardly any work, no challenge, very laid back and very easy A's without any work. All of which is good for me so I can concentrate on supporting and feeding my family. But I do hope to take premed classes at very challenging schools over the four summer semesters over the next four years. Not all good universities offer back-to-back classes over the summer. So one university will offer only Physics-1 and Phy-2 back-to-back, another will offer Chemistry back-to-back, some other offers Organic back-to-back, some other offers Biology back-to-back, etc. Furthermore, some required classes by my state's med schools (like Diversity Studies) are not available locally, so I will be forced to take those classes elsewhere. The result is I will have transcripts from many universities when I apply to medical schools. Except for my community college, all the others will be from challenging schools like NYU, UNC-Chapel Hill, Yale, etc. How are adcoms likely to react to someone who has pursued education at many different universities? Thanks for your very valuable service to the pre-med community LizzyM!!

 

[stevvo111]

are all volunteering roles looked upon equally? I tried hospital volunteering, but ended it a year in (<100 hours) cause I felt I was getting in the way of nurses and doctors as opposed to helping anyone. Fortunately I have been involved with other volunteering organizations I actually enjoy and care about.

 

[VitaminVater]

Well, someone who has already graduated has a gap year so we ask ourselves, "what is this applicant doing during the gap year?". Some adcom members also seem to be curious whether this is a reapplicant or a first-time applicant.

Thank you for the response, I ask because I'm really at odds on whether to apply junior year or senior year when I graduate. I feel like some honors/accomplishments that'll finish senior year(senior thesis, graduating with honors, probably my independent research) will give me a big boost(especially to top tier and other big research medical schools I plan on applying) so I'm wondering if adcoms will consider this in my application if I apply a year before graduation.

 

[mr chievous]

LizzyM,

I noticed you said it's a bad idea to put boxing as a list of activities. What would you recommend for someone that spent 20 hours a week training and in the ring for boxing? Any ideas on how I can spin this to make it sound not as aggressive?

 

[stevvo111]

Hi LizzyM,

This will be my last question (promise!)

I just received my interview feedback and I completely bombed the question "what do you do when you're in a team and someone isn't pulling their own weight?"

What are some important things to touch on as well as important things to avoid when answering this question? It gets me every time, since whenever I have this problem what happens is either 1) The rest of the team suggests the "slacker" a task we've agreed upon, which gives them an easy start and end point, which helps them get the work done and motivates them (e.g. "How about you do the introduction?") or 2) The rest of us pick up the slack for the first person because we're more conscientious and would probably do a better job anyway.

Obviously the former answer just isn't enough most of the time and the latter is blatantly wrong and against the team spirit med schools want. What do adcoms want me to say, exactly?

let me see if I can help....

my response would be to confront said slacker. Asking why he isn't pulling his weight would be the next thing (he could be going through some crazy stuff...you never know...like a lose in his family....other bad news....relationship issues...etc.etc). Ask if there is anything you (as in I) can do to help him get back on track...then go on to explain why we need everyone on track for whatever to work well. Make it clear that there are consequences to slacking and that if he needs help, to come to another teammember, and that if he doesn't then there will be further issues. It's inappropriate and unfair to both team members and slacker to ignore the slacker, give him bullsh** work to do, and have to do extra work to pick up for his slack.

I don't wanna answer the question for you fully cause it's something you learn from constantly being on teams (and I can't teach you that on here).



I hope this was helpful?

 

[LizzyM]

LizzyM,

First off, thank you so much for doing this.

My question is: would a sGPA of 3.77 offset a rather average cGPA of 3.65? Or would adcoms tend to put more weight on the cGPA? I fear that my cGPA will be the main thing holding me back from getting in high end schools.

Once again, this is very much appreciated! Hope you are having a wonderful holiday =]

The first thing we look at is cGPA. sGPA is secondary, I don't know why, but I think that it might be that cGPA is a better predictor of success in med school. Anyway, I tend to look at the individual grades and try to figure out if something really ugly happened (like getting D's in theology or philosphy) that shouldn't be too much of a concern.

Overall I wouldn't worry too much about a difference of 0.12 between cGPA and sGPA.

 

[LizzyM]

Haha. Same here, except switch the numbers.

A cGPA of 3.72 with a science gpa of 3.65 is actually better than the reverse, at least at my school. That said, someone might take a closer look to be sure you didn't bomb one of the pre-reqs.

no worries, my friend.

 

[LizzyM]

Hi LizzyM,

I have some questions about the GPA. Is the sGPA more important than the cGPA? Can a 4.0 for "All Others"(besides BCMP) offset a 3.6 ish sGPA for your school?

Thanks and happy holidays! Thanks for doing this!!!!!!! =]

cGPA is more important. An AO (all others) of 4.0 with a BCPM of 3.6 can give you a gpa of (I'm guessing) somewhere around 3.8, higher if you are not a science major, and lower if you are a double science major. Either way, again, we will be looking at the classes and trying to figure outif you are a solid A- sort of student or if the 3.6 was the result of an uphill slog after a bad stretch of pre-reqs.

Keep in mind that unless the school is in "stat *****" modee, the adcom is asking "where is the evidence that this person be successful in the med school classroom and lab?" they want to be able to point to your gpa and trnascript and say, "this is the proof we seek".

 

[LizzyM]

Hi LizzyM,

This will be my last question (promise!)

I just received my interview feedback and I completely bombed the question "what do you do when you're in a team and someone isn't pulling their own weight?"

What are some important things to touch on as well as important things to avoid when answering this question? It gets me every time, since whenever I have this problem what happens is either 1) The rest of the team suggests the "slacker" a task we've agreed upon, which gives them an easy start and end point, which helps them get the work done and motivates them (e.g. "How about you do the introduction?") or 2) The rest of us pick up the slack for the first person because we're more conscientious and would probably do a better job anyway.

Obviously the former answer just isn't enough most of the time and the latter is blatantly wrong and against the team spirit med schools want. What do adcoms want me to say, exactly?

They want you to answer the question "what do you do when a member of your team is not pulling their weight?" Just answer the question.

Why don't you start a thread and ask people what suggestions they have for you when you have a team member who isn't pulling their weight?

 

[LizzyM]

hey LizzyM!! thanks for doing this 🙂

had a quick question on my situation. i will be graduating in May with a cGPA and sGPA of ~3.5. i haven't taken the MCAT yet, and am aiming to take it in april or may. i also don't have much volunteer hours (1 semester of tutoring and volunteering at hospital), but I have worked ~20 hours a week since my freshmen year and have a VERY strong upward trend over the last two years. i have a semester of research, two years as a TA, and a position at a club under my belt. i was contemplating on doing a masters or do you think i have a good chance at an MD school? i'm a FL resident and looking heavily into USF (my goal school). i'm not sure what to do. please help! thanks 🙂

Post this in What are My Chances... this really isn't a question I can handle.

 

[plumhill]

Either way, again, we will be looking at the classes and trying to figure outif you are a solid A- sort of student or if the 3.6 was the result of an uphill slog after a bad stretch of pre-reqs

I've heard multiple answers to this question, but how do you look at, and compare, the applicant who is a solid A- sort of person, as compared to someone who had a bad stretch of pre-reqs but managed to get A's and A-'s for the last three years? If a candidate has a strong upward trend that ultimately resulted in a 3.55 or 3.6 (after say, two or three years of straight A's and A-'s in upperclass and grad-level science classes) would those last few years be enough? Or would that applicant's academic performance be more convincing with a strong master's or SMP performance?

 

[LizzyM]

Thank you for the response, I ask because I'm really at odds on whether to apply junior year or senior year when I graduate. I feel like some honors/accomplishments that'll finish senior year(senior thesis, graduating with honors, probably my independent research) will give me a big boost(especially to top tier and other big research medical schools I plan on applying) so I'm wondering if adcoms will consider this in my application if I apply a year before graduation.

I do see people mention in the experience section of their application that they are currently in the "Smith Lab" and plan to remain there for their senior thesis. i usually give people credit for that even if it is anticipated rather than completed at that point.

 

[LizzyM]

Along with my day job which supports my family, I am pursuing a BS degree from a community college - no competition, hardly any work, no challenge, very laid back and very easy A's without any work. All of which is good for me so I can concentrate on supporting and feeding my family. But I do hope to take premed classes at very challenging schools over the four summer semesters over the next four years. Not all good universities offer back-to-back classes over the summer. So one university will offer only Physics-1 and Phy-2 back-to-back, another will offer Chemistry back-to-back, some other offers Organic back-to-back, some other offers Biology back-to-back, etc. Furthermore, some required classes by my state's med schools (like Diversity Studies) are not available locally, so I will be forced to take those classes elsewhere. The result is I will have transcripts from many universities when I apply to medical schools. Except for my community college, all the others will be from challenging schools like NYU, UNC-Chapel Hill, Yale, etc. How are adcoms likely to react to someone who has pursued education at many different universities? Thanks for your very valuable service to the pre-med community LizzyM!!

Frankly, I think, I'm glad that's not me... it is a pain to have to request (and pay for) transcripts from so many schools every time to apply for graduate programs, credentials, federal jobs (e.g. VA hospital), etc.

If you don't do well at the tougher schools, your entire transcript will be discounted... "oh, so a 4.0 at Littletown Community College is the equivalent of a 2.6 at NYU" so if you go this route you had better be prepared to be a top performer.

How do you intend to support and feed your family while in medical school?

 

[Notsureuser]

Deleted: found my answer

 

[LizzyM]

are all volunteering roles looked upon equally? I tried hospital volunteering, but ended it a year in (<100 hours) cause I felt I was getting in the way of nurses and doctors as opposed to helping anyone. Fortunately I have been involved with other volunteering organizations I actually enjoy and care about.

Hospital volunteering is not required. What is required is some exposure to the sick and injured who are seeking and receiving medical care. This can be accomplished through employment, shadowing or volunteering.

Separately, some adcom members like to see non-clinical volunteering and having been involved in some of that and actually enjoying it is a big plus.

 

[beethousand]

It sounds like this might not be so relevant to your school, but I saw that you touched upon bench research often being preferred to clinical research die to the potential for "intellectual autonomy" in the lab. However, at schools that have less of a research focus and more of a clinical focus, do you think that clinical research might be preferred in this case? I know it depends a bit on the specifics of your role in the lab. Thanks for your help!

 

[LizzyM]

LizzyM,

I noticed you said it's a bad idea to put boxing as a list of activities. What would you recommend for someone that spent 20 hours a week training and in the ring for boxing? Any ideas on how I can spin this to make it sound not as aggressive?

I never said that. I merely directed someone to the official statements of the AMA and American Academy of Pediatrics regarding their position on boxing.

I really don't have any recommendation or ideas about how to make boxing look good on an application. I should say that I can't recall ever seeing anyone who listed it as an activity... for all I know, adcom members wouldn't have a problem with it despite the stance of the organizations most of them don't belong to anyway.

 

[LizzyM]

I've heard multiple answers to this question, but how do you look at, and compare, the applicant who is a solid A- sort of person, as compared to someone who had a bad stretch of pre-reqs but managed to get A's and A-'s for the last three years? If a candidate has a strong upward trend that ultimately resulted in a 3.55 or 3.6 (after say, two or three years of straight A's and A-'s in upperclass and grad-level science classes) would those last few years be enough? Or would that applicant's academic performance be more convincing with a strong master's or SMP performance?

Well, my school tends to focus most of its attention on applicants with 3.7 and higher so we seldom see 3.55 or 3.6. Good pre-reqs are preferred over bad so those are going to be a black mark if they are noted at all. I seldom see applicants with a storng masters or SMP in an attempt to make up for a weak undergrad because those applicants just don't apply to the top tier schools in great numbers.

 

[Notsureuser]

.

 

[noncon]

How do you intend to support and feed your family while in medical school?

I do intend to be a top performer whichever schools I attend and I usually am. I am prepared to go into serious debt for medical school. But I don't dare to go into debt for an undergraduate degree. My only worry is how adcoms will react when they see multiple transcripts, even if the GPA is fairly high and MCAT is fairly high?

 

[LizzyM]

It sounds like this might not be so relevant to your school, but I saw that you touched upon bench research often being preferred to clinical research die to the potential for "intellectual autonomy" in the lab. However, at schools that have less of a research focus and more of a clinical focus, do you think that clinical research might be preferred in this case? I know it depends a bit on the specifics of your role in the lab. Thanks for your help!

I don't know. At a school with more of a clinical focus, I would expect that they'd prefer to see students doing clincal service or social service activities over reseach of any kind in preparation for medical school. (I'm thinking of schools that focus on preparing primarycare providers for underserved areas.)

 

[medhoper]

I did reseearch at a school that i applied to and received a recommendation letter from the PI, he's faculty at that school. How much weight does the letter hold in getting an interview from that school? How would you as an adcom look at it? I received the letter about a month after applying.

 

[noncon]

Are there any elite/top research schools that focus on preparing primary care providers for underserved areas?

 

[LizzyM]

I did reseearch at a school that i applied to and received a recommendation letter from the PI, he's faculty at that school. How much weight does the letter hold in getting an interview from that school? How would you as an adcom look at it? I received the letter about a month after applying.

It doesn't mean a lot. If someone is on the cusp between interview or no interview, I usually try to tip the person into the "interview" category if they've worked in a lab at our med school. However, there are a few faculty members who I think are jerks and I don't always give their letters the same weight I give to others. So it could help or it could be no help. (I never reject someone I would have otherwise recommended for interview because I'm not fond of the LOR writer so I would not say that a letter will hurt.)

 

[noncon]

Earlier you had said the top research schools focus on producing academic physicians. By this, do you mean MD-PhDs or MD's who do research in academic settings or both?

 

[LizzyM]

Are there any elite/top research schools that focus on preparing primary care providers for underserved areas?

US News has a ranking of top schools for primary care.

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankings...ols/top-medical-schools/primary-care-rankings

and a ranking for top research schools:

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankings...schools/top-medical-schools/research-rankings

There are some schools toward to the top of both lists although some have a strong preference for instate students.

 

[LizzyM]

Earlier you had said the top research schools focus on producing academic physicians. By this, do you mean MD-PhDs or MD's who do research in academic settings or both?

Both, plus physicians who do patient care plus bedside teaching. lecturing and supervision of students, residents and fellows.

 

[Si Se Puede]

Do you think either of the following could be a powerful addition to the LORs you send?

- Pediatric physician who has taken care of you from birth to 18 years old. He has known you for 18 years and seems like he would be an ideal candidate to describe you over a time course.
- Professor of medicine at school you are applying to
- Director of a major department at the university hospital at the med school you are applying to that you shadowed

Gracias! 😀

 

[nabilesmail]

Would you mind showing us a cookie cutter applicant you recommended for interview (not name or anything just stats, and basic activities)

Aside from people with olympic gold medals and resumes that include being Surgeon General (with no med school 😛) of a third world country, I'd like to see what kind of stats/activities a non-unique applicant needs!

Thanks!

 

[LizzyM]

Do you think either of the following could be a powerful addition to the LORs you send?

- Pediatric physician who has taken care of you from birth to 18 years old. He has known you for 18 years and seems like he would be an ideal candidate to describe you over a time course.

Absolutely not. There is nothing remotely useful that such a person could offer about an applicant that would add anything to the adcom's deliberation.

- Professor of medicine at school you are applying to

Yes, if the professor taught you in an undergrad or grad school class.

- Director of a major department at the university hospital at the med school you are applying to that you shadowed

Gracias! 😀

Only if the director is a DO and you are applying to osteopathic school. Except for osteopathic schools, I don't find shadowing letters to be very useful at all.

 

[LizzyM]

Would you mind showing us a cookie cutter applicant you recommended for interview (not name or anything just stats, and basic activities)

Aside from people with olympic gold medals and resumes that include being Surgeon General (with no med school 😛) of a third world country, I'd like to see what kind of stats/activities a non-unique applicant needs!

Thanks!

OK. This isn't any particular person just what is considered strong enough at my school.
gpa 3.8 from a top 50 liberal arts college or research university
MCAT 36
research experince including a publication and/or senior thesis
shadowing
hospital volunteering
tutoring grade school or HS kids x 1 academic year
volunteering at a camp for sick kids for 1 week x 3 summers
highest level letters of recommendation
well written application materials
a musical instrument or an intramural sport or dance shows

 

[CrazyNonTrad]

Hi LizzyM,
I am a non-traditional medical school aspirant who holds a PhD degree in Veterinary Biomedical Sciences. My overall graduate GPA during PhD was 3.548. I have 2 questions.
1. As part of my PhD curriculum, I took several courses titled like veterinary pharmacology, veterinary pathology, special topics course in immunohistochemistry etc. Will these courses be grouped under BPCM or AO in AMCAS? Also, what about pre-dissertation research courses which carried credits and given 1-4 GPAs, but involved only research and no classroom teaching? And there are dissertation courses which had only pass/fail option. How are they grouped?

2. How important are the graduate GPAs compared to undergraduate GPA? It might sound hypothetical but would a future 4 GPA in post-bacc program cover for a modest 3.54 graduate GPA?
thanks a lot in advance.

 

[Kaiser Soze]

Hi LizzyM,

I withdrew from OrgoII last year because of a family emergency. I retook the class and got an A, and I have a 3.97gpa. Would 1 W be seen as a "cop out" and completely invalidate my GPA to an adcom?

Thanks!

 

[alamofire]

LizzyM, thank you for spending the time to do this! I have just one more question if that is okay:

Approximately what is the lowest GPA you have admitted, and what characteristics about the applicant enabled them overcome their below average statistics?

 

[ur2l8]

Hi LizzyM,

I withdrew from OrgoII last year because of a family emergency. I retook the class and got an A, and I have a 3.97gpa. Would 1 W be seen as a "cop out" and completely invalidate my GPA to an adcom?

Thanks!

Not LizzyM, but no. Especially with that 3.97 cgpa. You're good man. Just don't make that 3, 4, 5...+ withdrawals.

 

[VitaminVater]

Thanks for the response to my previous question LizzyM.
Another one, does independent research solely mean research conducted outside of a research lab or also research done in conjunction with a PI(even though he and the head of my lab will be first/second author, I'd still be a major part of the project and take charge of seeing its timely completion)?

 

[LizzyM]

Hi LizzyM,

I withdrew from OrgoII last year because of a family emergency. I retook the class and got an A, and I have a 3.97gpa. Would 1 W be seen as a "cop out" and completely invalidate my GPA to an adcom?

Thanks!

Here's what one adcom member says with a sigh of relief when he sees an applicant with a gpa between 3.97 and 3.99, "Well, he's not perfect..."


A W does give rise to a concern that one was protecting the gpa but if you had < 4.0 before the W, it is a moot point. If not, it really is no big deal.

If there is some way to work the family emergency and its time frame into an essay (AMCAS or secondary) someone who takes the time to read it will put 2 and 2 together...

 

[shahcoco]

OK. This isn't any particular person just what is considered strong enough at my school.
gpa 3.8 from a top 50 liberal arts college or research university
MCAT 36
research experince including a publication and/or senior thesis
shadowing
hospital volunteering
tutoring grade school or HS kids x 1 academic year
volunteering at a camp for sick kids for 1 week x 3 summers
highest level letters of recommendation
well written application materials
a musical instrument or an intramural sport or dance shows

Is it ok if the tutoring of K-12 kids is paid/not through an org?

 

[LizzyM]

Hi LizzyM,
I am a non-traditional medical school aspirant who holds a PhD degree in Veterinary Biomedical Sciences. My overall graduate GPA during PhD was 3.548. I have 2 questions.
1. As part of my PhD curriculum, I took several courses titled like veterinary pharmacology, veterinary pathology, special topics course in immunohistochemistry etc. Will these courses be grouped under BPCM or AO in AMCAS?

I think pharmacology and pathology might go under HEAL (short for Health). immunohistochemistry might be CHEM. HEAL is classified as AO while CHEM is, obviously BCPM.

Also, what about pre-dissertation research courses which carried credits and given 1-4 GPAs, but involved only research and no classroom teaching? And there are dissertation courses which had only pass/fail option. How are they grouped?

they are either BIO, CHEM, MATH, or PHYS or they get another tag and are grouped with AO. If there are no grades, the classes aren't factored into the gpa but they are noted on the application as the number of credits take P/F. (Not something adcoms get too excited about with regard to grad school because everyone knows that there's stuff graded P/F in grad school.)

2. How important are the graduate GPAs compared to undergraduate GPA?

You must be new here. It is frequently said that grade inflation in graduate school results in grad school gpa's being taken less seriously than undergrad. Now if you were in vet school whcih would be considered "professional" not "graduate" (like law school or graduate level seminary), then all bets are off because we aren't as familiar with the grading schemes (aside from the fact that I know that law school grading is very rigorous and tons of smart people hobble out of first year with < 3.0)

It might sound hypothetical but would a future 4 GPA in post-bacc program cover for a modest 3.54 graduate GPA?
thanks a lot in advance.

Why would someone with a graduate GPA from vet school need post-bac? That tends to be for folks who had few if any pre-reqs in college. Aren't the pre-reqs the same for vet school as for med school? Some folks recommend a SMP which is often medical school classes taken along side med students. If one does above average in that crowd, then it is easy to make the case that they can handle medical school. The problem is that you've alread taken the equivalent of a SMP in vet school (pharmacology, histochemistry).

You might want to head over to "What are my chances"... Catalystik is a big help over there.

 

[LizzyM]

LizzyM, thank you for spending the time to do this! I have just one more question if that is okay:

Approximately what is the lowest GPA you have admitted, and what characteristics about the applicant enabled them overcome their below average statistics?

I can think of two or three and they were very special snowflakes... two are licensed physicians now and the third is still in school and doing well. They were unqiue and I could not describe them without having someone recognize them and it would be a breach of confidentiality to discuss their undergrad gpa in this context.

 

[LizzyM]

Is it ok if the tutoring of K-12 kids is paid/not through an org?

Paid work doesn't get you any points for altruism... an exception might be made for full-time job done for a modest stipend as with Ameri-corps, Jesuit Volunteers, etc.

That said, some schools might value tutoring/teaching of any kind, paid or unpaid.... on the other hand, they might give more weight to college teaching/tutoring rather than k-12 if they are looking for the ability to be a peer educator in a small group setting like PBL.

 

[Cptn Loko]

How would you recommend describing in the primary app non-clinical community service that is not tied together? I.e. beach / street clean ups, walks, science fairs, health fairs, fundraising, etc?