Can presenting my abstract at this conference have any positive impact on my application? (Gap Year Student)

[milk-in-my-almonds]

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I am currently in my 2nd gap year and a professor I still keep in touch with recommended that I apply to present an abstract paper at a conference sponsored by a branch of the National Association for African American Studies (NAAAS) dedicated to Hispanic studies. After getting it accepted I realized it’s very expensive ($225) and a long drive from where I live. It seems to be one of the conferences that basically accepts any abstract. I have other presentations/publications from undergrad but I’m just wondering if this one is worth it.

In my view:

PROS

• Adcoms will see that despite not being in school I’ve still tried to pursue academic interests relevant to my community outside of medicine (though I did also have unique extracurriculars/ research involvement in undergrad)
• Medschools seem to appreciate the humanities and projects related to UR communities
• I am passionate about this topic
• Another opportunity to practice public speaking, defending an abstract, etc.

CONS

• Unreasonably expensive (main one)
• Conference has little to no prestige as far as I know
• My abstract is okay but could’ve been much better if I had more time

If there is any way this can help my application I might be willing to pay and make the long drive to attend but if not then I won’t. While I am passionate about the topic, attending would not be worth it to me otherwise. My thinking though was that it fits the themes of my application and it would be another academic interest of mine to possibly discuss in interviews apart from medicine-related topics.

In case it’s relevant, my abstract was harshly (maybe too much so) criticizing a Hispanic scholar whose work in philosophy/sociology I consider detrimental to the Hispanic community/scholarship.

TL;DR - Can presenting my humanities abstract paper at a conference help my app significantly?

 

[chilly_md]

It won't help significantly. If you already have other publications and related service activities to your community, those would be of far greater interest. Save the money and hassle.

 

[deleted1136042]

I think it could help your application depending on your theme/ characterization. Are you interested in working in underserved/ marginalized communities as a physician? Do you have other activities that show your commitment to this area of medicine? I feel like if any of those ideas resonate with you, it would be a great opportunity if the price isn't a burden.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Can you apply for a small travel award to the conference?

 

[milk-in-my-almonds]

Can you apply for a small travel award to the conference?

Nope unfortunately that's not available. It's okay though. Maybe I can improve my abstract in case there's a local conference in the future.

 

[sciencehistorian]

Can you ask if the conference organizers would be willing to waive or discount your organization or conference registration fee if you volunteered at the conference for a certain number of hours? (Usually, volunteering entails being at the registration desk and helping set up / pack up presentation rooms).

 

[milk-in-my-almonds]

Can you ask if the conference organizers would be willing to waive or discount your organization or conference registration fee if you volunteered at the conference for a certain number of hours? (Usually, volunteering entails being at the registration desk and helping set up / pack up presentation rooms).

Thanks for the suggestion, I think they are covered volunteer/staff-wise but I'll give it a shot.

By the way, do you think it would make much a difference though in terms of my application? Assuming I can maybe get a discount, there's still other expensive (travel, hotel, time) and I just want to be practical.

 

[sciencehistorian]

Others in this thread who are much more qualified than I to remark on the impact this might have on your application have offered insightful advice.

FWIW, my 2¢ is that this doesn't seem like something that will 'significantly' benefit your application by itself. Poster presentations in humanities fields tend not to be quite as competitive as their basic science counterparts. But I, nor the others commenters in this forum, know your research background. Have you had sustained research in this subject area that might indicate that you have an interest in humanistic inquiry during your med school days? Was this done under the guidance of a faculty member from whom you are soliciting a letter of recommendation? Or is this a one-off poster based on a humanities class in an area you don't think you'll continue studying? You are the only one who can answer these questions.

There is, as you mentioned, the nice benefit of having this as a talking point on your application. It's not a talking point you'll be able to sustain, however, if you don't have longitudinal experience backing it up — I took an upper division class and turned my final paper into a conference paper, for example, is much less compelling than I reached out to a professor and independently took the initiative to conduct research over the past year for [X] hours, resulting in a presentation at [Y] venue. And if you have other substantive experiences you can talk meaningfully about, it might not even be a talking point at all in your conversations. You have a very discrete price tag for this opportunity — it's up to you to decide if the financial expense is worth the potential benefits.

(One thing I can add to this latter point I made — I am a humanities major who conducted significant research in a humanities field and intend to continue doing so in medical school. There is no situation in which I would have paid money to attend a conference to present my research. It was not the fact that I had presented a poster that was compelling about the work I had done, it was the hours spent on the work itself — and those existed independent of the presentations).