Clinical vs. Non-Clinical Volunteering

[Shelby Franks]

Is it better to have more volunteer experiences in a clinical setting or a non-clinical setting? Or does it not really matter either way as long as an applicant has both?

As of now I have completed ~200 hours of volunteer work in a hospital and have shadowed an oncologist, and have also completed 200+ hours of volunteer work at a homeless shelter. I really want to apply to tutor/mentor younger kids this semester, and hopefully obtain a leadership/board position in this org because I don’t really have any leadership positions, but I’m not sure if I have "enough" clinical experience? I know it's really important for applicants to show that they have spent ample time with patients. So, that being said...should I volunteer at a clinic instead?

Any help is much appreciated. 🙂

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[ellia]

I'd say go for the tutoring/mentoring young kids since you already have ample clinical experience.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Is it better to have more volunteer experiences in a clinical setting or a non-clinical setting? Or does it not really matter either way as long as an applicant has both?

As of now I have completed ~200 hours of volunteer work in a hospital and have shadowed an oncologist, and have also completed 200+ hours of volunteer work at a homeless shelter. I really want to apply to tutor/mentor younger kids this semester, and hopefully obtain a leadership/board position in this org because I don’t really have any leadership positions, but I’m not sure if I have "enough" clinical experience? I know it's really important for applicants to show that they have spent ample time with patients. So, that being said...should I volunteer at a clinic instead?

Any help is much appreciated. 🙂

I’d say go for the tutoring. It sounds like you care about it, so you’ll probably get more out of it (and be able to talk more about it in interviews). I tutored people for the SAT for a while. It was rewarding when they’d come back and tell me how they did.