Clinical Volunteering vs. Research

[Eddie Chahar]

Hi guys,

I am applying next cycle and have approximately 180 shadowing/clinical volunteer hours (most of which are from shadowing), and I may earn a position volunteering in a clinical research team in a few weeks. Long story short, will this be seen by adcoms as clinical volunteering or research? Or does it depend on the nature of the research?

Thanks guys.

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[Ismet]

It will mainly be seen as research, but with clinical exposure. And you're also volunteering, not getting paid. So technically both, but mainly research. This doesn't replace clinical volunteering, but you already have a good amount.

 

[Eddie Chahar]

Hmm interesting. Anyone have some advice on what to do here? I have a pretty well rounded app with some unique experiences as well, and I am currently involved in two research projects (one is academic for ~2 years total, and the other is ~6 months of independent research. Will have a paper submitted for publication sometime in the near future, and a national conference presentation, along with various other poster presentations and fellowships). I want to be competitive at the higher-tier schools, so would the clinical volunteering or research benefit me? I am leaning towards the research because I have a strong interest in it, but I feel like having 3 separate research experiences could be seen as overkill.

 

[Ismet]

Hmm interesting. Anyone have some advice on what to do here? I have a pretty well rounded app with some unique experiences as well, and I am currently involved in two research projects (one is academic for ~2 years total, and the other is ~6 months of independent research. Will have a paper submitted for publication sometime in the near future, and a national conference presentation, along with various other poster presentations and fellowships). I want to be competitive at the higher-tier schools, so would the clinical volunteering or research benefit me? I am leaning towards the research because I have a strong interest in it, but I feel like having 3 separate research experiences could be seen as overkill.

If you're asking what to label it in AMCAS, it is research.

Are you applying to research-focused schools? Would you like to pursue research in med school? If so, having 3 entries for research really isn't overkill. It's not uncommon in the applications to my school, but I'm at a research-focused institution with a required longitudinal research project.

 

[Eddie Chahar]

Yes I'm very interested in pursuing research throughout medical school and beyond (not sure what the process is like to get research spots once I'm in, but I definitely know I want to be a part of it). I guess I'm just a little worried because volunteering in general is the only "weak" spot in my application, simply in terms of quantity. The experiences themselves were great and I got solid letters from shadowing/volunteering.