Concerned

[meraki_soul]

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Hi everyone. I have a gap in my application which, I assume from an outsider's view, will not look very productive. I did some volunteering and research here and there, but no classes b/c its after I finished school. It's a pretty discontinuous gap, and I'm concerned that an interviewer will call me out on it. I know the general consensus is to explain gaps in AMCAS, but I don't think I will be able to talk about why I have this gap truthfully. It's a personal, family situation that I needed time to get through. I still have trouble coming to terms with it myself, much less baring it all on an application.

What can I do in my situation? If adcoms ask me about it, and I say, "It's a family situation that I can't talk about at this time," is that asking for rejection?

Thanks for any help!

 

[AttemptingScholar]

Could you make it sound like the research or volunteering was a large portion of the time? If not, I'd recommend a half-answer ("I took the time to make sure medicine was my passion while caring for my family") over a non-answer ("Family thing, I don't wanna talk about it.")

 

[DokterMom]

I'd give a vague but truthful answer that alludes to the nature of the problem but not the specifics. If asked a follow-up question, you could say something to the effect of "It's not really my story to tell. I just needed to take the time to be there for him/her/them."

 

[Spectar]

There is a 9/10 chance the interviewer won't notice the gap. They really don't have time to look at the exact months you put down and realistically just look at the hours, if that.

There will always be a few here and there that do scrutinize the app to the T and could mention it, in which case just be truthful.

 

[Goro]

Hi everyone. I have a gap in my application which, I assume from an outsider's view, will not look very productive. I did some volunteering and research here and there, but no classes b/c its after I finished school. It's a pretty discontinuous gap, and I'm concerned that an interviewer will call me out on it. I know the general consensus is to explain gaps in AMCAS, but I don't think I will be able to talk about why I have this gap truthfully. It's a personal, family situation that I needed time to get through. I still have trouble coming to terms with it myself, much less baring it all on an application.

What can I do in my situation? If adcoms ask me about it, and I say, "It's a family situation that I can't talk about at this time," is that asking for rejection?

Thanks for any help!

If you can't answer the question in interviews, then you are going to have to start looking at Plan B.

"It's a personal, family situation that I needed time to get through" seems like a decent answer, but people (including me) will probably probe for more info. We need to know that you can handle med school.

 

[Goro]

There is a 9/10 chance the interviewer won't notice the gap. They really don't have time to look at the exact months you put down and realistically just look at the hours, if that.

There will always be a few here and there that do scrutinize the app to the T and could mention it, in which case just be truthful.

Spectre, unless OP would have a closed book interview, please don't think that we Adcom members or interviewers are idiots. We look for things like gaps in schooling or employment.

 

[Spectar]

Spectre, unless OP would have a closed book interview, please don't think that we Adcom members or interviewers are idiots. We look for things like gaps in schooling or employment.

Not saying adcoms are idiots, just saying that they often have a limited amount of time. Btw, how long of a gap is needed for it to be mentioned?

I had a 8 month gap and it wasn't brought up in any of my interviews and I did less than OP (1 small thing) and some personal stuff never mentioned on my app. Did I just get lucky?

 

[Goro]

Not saying adcoms are idiots, just saying that they often have a limited amount of time. Btw, how long of a gap is needed for it to be mentioned?

I had a 8 month gap and it wasn't brought up in any of my interviews and I did less than OP (1 small thing) and some personal stuff never mentioned on my app. Did I just get lucky?

You might have indeed gotten lucky. But 8 months isn't too bad. A full year will raise eyebrows. ...I've seen it happen.

 

[meraki_soul]

If you can't answer the question in interviews, then you are going to have to start looking at Plan B.

"It's a personal, family situation that I needed time to get through" seems like a decent answer, but people (including me) will probably probe for more info. We need to know that you can handle med school.

Spectre, unless OP would have a closed book interview, please don't think that we Adcom members or interviewers are idiots. We look for things like gaps in schooling or employment.

The gap was about 5-6 months worth but discontinuously (so 3 months in 2016 and then 3 in 2017). Like I said, I continued my research part-time and volunteering. For a month and half, I did nothing because I was diagnosed with shingles and basically asked not to come in to work since I'm in the clinical field. I think the family situation stressed me out pretty bad haha b/c most youth apparently don't get shingles. After that, another month or two of it was lack of productivity due to the ensuing anxiety and depression I experienced because of it. But I know this should not be put on my med school application. Do you have any suggestions on the best way for me to explain the gap? If you don't think it would be noticed, should I forget explaining it at all? Thank you!

 

[meraki_soul]

Could you make it sound like the research or volunteering was a large portion of the time? If not, I'd recommend a half-answer ("I took the time to make sure medicine was my passion while caring for my family") over a non-answer ("Family thing, I don't wanna talk about it.")

Maybe...but it was only part-time volunteering and research so the hours wouldn't lie 🙁

 

[LizzyM]

Two or three month gaps aren't a huge deal. But if asked, you could give DokterMom's response first (for the family thing) and then address the other by saying, "Would you believe it?? I got shingles and had to stay out of the clinic until I recovered. It really gave me a new appreciation for what patients go through. And I'm a big proponent of the new shingles vaccine. It's going to be a game changer for people at risk, which is almost all of us." You will now have deflected the conversation away from yourself and your medical condition and the interviewer is likely to move on to a new subject or ask a related question about your experiences with patients or your opinion of health promotion/disease prevention efforts (like promoting vaccines).

 

[meraki_soul]

Two or three month gaps aren't a huge deal. But if asked, you could give DokterMom's response first (for the family thing) and then address the other by saying, "Would you believe it?? I got shingles and had to stay out of the clinic until I recovered. It really gave me a new appreciation for what patients go through. And I'm a big proponent of the new shingles vaccine. It's going to be a game changer for people at risk, which is almost all of us." You will now have deflected the conversation away from yourself and your medical condition and the interviewer is likely to move on to a new subject or ask a related question about your experiences with patients or your opinion of health promotion/disease prevention efforts (like promoting vaccines).

Thank you for the advice! So I shouldn't be explaining this on my primary right? Only during IIs if asked?

 

[MedScat]

I had a 5 year gap and 5 years is a long time. I started college in 2009 and took time off and didn't graduate until 2017 so on my app it looks like i was enrolled in my university for 8 years lol. Everyone ADCOM asked about it, I explained that it was a medical reason in my family and that it made me a stronger student, as my grades show which is how I know I can handle medical school. ADCOMS seemed to respond well to that answer

 

[Goro]

Thank you for the advice! So I shouldn't be explaining this on my primary right? Only during IIs if asked?

The PS is not for explanations, where they usually come off looking like excuses. Save explanations for interviews.