Combining Shadowing Experiences in One Activity?

[EileenX]

Hi! I have shadowed four physicians individually and then a whole bunch of staff physicians in two hospital units who I don't really want to list all the names of. I've seen advice that I should just list their names, location, hours, and maybe phone number, but I have also gotten advice from my premed advisor that they don't really care who the physicians are and that my hours will be combined under the activity heading anyways, so I should just write a narrative that describes what I gained from shadowing these specialties without specifically mentioned any hours/doctor names/locations/contact. I'm a bit nervous that adcoms will look poorly on this, but is there any strong opinion either way? I did refer to a few of them in my other activities if the physician was related. Generally, my advisor is pushing me to rewrite my activities to a more narrative style rather than just resume listing things out. Thank you guys!

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[Catalystik]

I have shadowed four physicians individually and then a whole bunch of staff physicians in two hospital units who I don't really want to list all the names of. I've seen advice that I should just list their names, location, hours, and maybe phone number, but I have also gotten advice from my premed advisor that they don't really care who the physicians are and that my hours will be combined under the activity heading anyways, so I should just write a narrative that describes what I gained from shadowing these specialties without specifically mentioned any hours/doctor names/locations/contact. I'm a bit nervous that adcoms will look poorly on this, but is there any strong opinion either way? I did refer to a few of them in my other activities if the physician was related. Generally, my advisor is pushing me to rewrite my activities to a more narrative style rather than just resume listing things out.

I suggest listing just the docs from whom you got the highest number of shadowing hours and then referring to the rest collectively as staff physicians, perhaps mentioning some other specialties (especially if in primary care).

Keep in mind that any hours over 50 are more than you needed anyway.

For this space, there won't be space for a lot of reflection, and most applicants don't include any. "Just the facts, ma'am/sir" are all you need.

So my advice represents a blend of what you've done and what your advisor suggests.

 

[EileenX]

Thanks for the advice! If I could include reflection, would that work? I love my advisor, and I want to trust her, but just looking for reassurance that I won't get dinged for trying to make it more reflective. For the individual physicians, I included their last names in if I didn't mention them somewhere else in my Activities (and they show up as the first result if you type the last name and specialty in Google), and I just generally referred to the specialty for the staff scientists. I put hours in brackets as below to save space - will they get the hour breakdown?

For example: I have gained insight into a physician's lifestyle and necessary traits through shadowing several specialties. Though I found Dr. A's (60h) practice in Specialty 1 fascinating, something I learned about what I want to practice. Shadowing Specialty 2 doctors Dr. B and Dr. C (60h), I found something else out. From the Specialty 3's physicians (10h), I learned the value of empathy and blah. I liked something about patient care in Specialty 4 (10h) and Specialty 5 (20h).

 

[Sky138]

I’d separate the 4 physicians and then the two hospital units. I know some could say group it all together but your activities list, in my opinion, should be more than what you did/observed. It should also say something about how it impacts you. It’s also more characters to showcase your thought processes.

 

[Catalystik]

1) If I could include reflection, would that work? I love my advisor, and I want to trust her, but just looking for reassurance that I won't get dinged for trying to make it more reflective. For the individual physicians, I included their last names in if I didn't mention them somewhere else in my Activities (and they show up as the first result if you type the last name and specialty in Google), and I just generally referred to the specialty for the staff scientists.
2) I put hours in brackets as below to save space - will they get the hour breakdown?

For example: I have gained insight into a physician's lifestyle and necessary traits through shadowing several specialties. Though I found Dr. A's (60h) practice in Specialty 1 fascinating, something I learned about what I want to practice. Shadowing Specialty 2 doctors Dr. B and Dr. C (60h), I found something else out. From the Specialty 3's physicians (10h), I learned the value of empathy and blah. I liked something about patient care in Specialty 4 (10h) and Specialty 5 (20h).

1) There's no one right way to do this. Adding some reflection is fine. No dinging if you avoid flowery language and can keep it succinct.
2) I thought it was clear. Be sure to check the PDF appearance from the Main Menu>PRINT (which shows you how it will look if you want to print it out.)

 

[ruledaworlds]

I found that the activities section didn't give you a lot of space to work with, so I only mentioned hours/physician names/locations all in a single slot. In my PS I had a sentence or two about how shadowing as a whole reinforced an interest in (X) specialty/gave me a wider understanding of medical practice. I think just listing hours had a positive impact, as shadowing was specifically mentioned in at least one acceptance letter.