Decided to take a year off...

[Serie]

I was wondering what kind of paid jobs would strengthen my application for med schools? Anyone know any jobs that would work?(i.e. Scribe, hospital job, etc??)

Thanks!

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[NotAsking4Much]

Paid research and publish a few papers, work in DC on health policy, etc...Hospital jobs ironically dont add much a lot of times mainly b/c with your level of training there really isnt anything you can do.

 

[loveoforganic]

It depends where your application was weak.

 

[zwitter]

Do something you are passionate about. This will be a great point of conversation in interviews and help distinguish you from other run-of-the-mill applicants who worked at a hospital or researched. But if you like researching....by all means.

 

[Serie]

well I mean im just looking for a means to get paid and still be involved with healthcare. I mean im graduating next year with a dual degree so i mean idk in terms of weakness in my application. I do have clinical volunteer experience and nonexperience as well. I also did work in 2 research labs(for credit hours). I had to quit one due to time committment and I dont think they'll pay me if I do graduate. So yeah im sorta in a dilemma in what to do. haha thanks for your guys input!

 

[phantomx87]

One of the absolute biggest talking points during interviews was my time spent working for Apple. Everyone went nuts over that (and spent 30 minutes asking me the requisite "How do I..." questions about iPhones and iTouches -----> I fought really hard not to scream "IT'S AN IPOD TOUCH, NOT ITOUCH!!! IT'S NOT THAT HARD!!!" after hearing that 1 billion times).

 

[Serie]

One of the absolute biggest talking points during interviews was my time spent working for Apple. Everyone went nuts over that (and spent 30 minutes asking me the requisite "How do I..." questions about iPhones and iTouches -----> I fought really hard not to scream "IT'S AN IPOD TOUCH, NOT ITOUCH!!! IT'S NOT THAT HARD!!!" after hearing that 1 billion times).

Hey Phantomx87

So it wouldnt be a negative if I did work for something outside of healthcare? I was thinking of going to a business career fair at my school and looking at all the options there.

Thanks again!

 

[loveoforganic]

People gotten make money. Make it how you can. Stay involved in medicine/active learning somehow though.

 

[JoshUNCW]

Not to slightly derail this thread but I had a similar question and didn't want to make a new thread but figured I'd get some other peoples opinions. I think I'm going to take a year off school and work. But not in a medical related job. I'm an intern at a software company and they've offered me a very good paying job for when I graduate. It would allow me to put a lot in the bank and be comfortable during med school. I guess my question is, will med schools care I did something non-medical related during my work year? I guess I can still volunteer at the hospital and maybe get more shadowing in at the same time.

Edit: I guess I should have read this thread more before posting in it haha.

 

[phantomx87]

People gotten make money. Make it how you can. Stay involved in medicine/active learning somehow though.

This... Do whatever you want, but make sure that a) it's not something you don't want the adcom/parents/CIA finding out, and b) you supplement it with shadowing/research (showing continued interest in medicine is a biggie). Other than that, have a blast doing whatever!

 

[RedandBlack7]

Paid research and publish a few papers, work in DC on health policy, etc...Hospital jobs ironically dont add much a lot of times mainly b/c with your level of training there really isnt anything you can do.

I somewhat disagree. I work as a scribe and the amount I have learned in 4 months is pretty amazing. I know atleast 100 new medical terms, how charting and billing works, different drugs and their uses, and different medical conditions that I never knew about. Plus I spend my entire shift with a doctor so I get to talk to him directly about anything and also see how he interacts with patients, nurses, other doctors, etc. I've also seen some pretty awesome things like strokes and heart attacks. I think being a scribe or EMT or tech is a great experience because you get paid and you get a feel for what being a physician is all about.

 

[phantomx87]

I somewhat disagree. I work as a scribe and the amount I have learned in 4 months is pretty amazing. I know atleast 100 new medical terms, how charting and billing works, different drugs and their uses, and different medical conditions that I never knew about. Plus I spend my entire shift with a doctor so I get to talk to him directly about anything and also see how he interacts with patients, nurses, other doctors, etc. I've also seen some pretty awesome things like strokes and heart attacks. I think being a scribe or EMT or tech is a great experience because you get paid and you get a feel for what being a physician is all about.

I agree with you that you can and do learn a lot by working in the hospital, but what I think what the OP was getting at is that as a pre-med with no certification or training (98% of all pre-meds), you can't really do much in the hospital with regard to patient care.

 

[RedandBlack7]

I agree with you that you can and do learn a lot by working in the hospital, but what I think what the OP was getting at is that as a pre-med with no certification or training (98% of all pre-meds), you can't really do much in the hospital with regard to patient care.

That is true but do medical schools really expect you to do that? If you were to be a scribe, do some shadowing, do some research, and do some leadership/community service stuff around campus, wouldn't that cover all the bases of your ECs and make you a pretty strong applicant?

 

[Serie]

This... Do whatever you want, but make sure that a) it's not something you don't want the adcom/parents/CIA finding out, and b) you supplement it with shadowing/research (showing continued interest in medicine is a biggie). Other than that, have a blast doing whatever!

haha nice. In all seriousness would there be something that would be a turn off to adcoms?

 

[phantomx87]

It's all in the context... Adcoms are surprisingly good at seeing through all the AMCAS bs and really know how to pick out the application filler from the real meat. Personally, my advice is this: no matter what you do, stick with it, own it, and try your damndest to really excel at it. I am always in favor of eschewing 1001 activities (for more titles) in favor of 1 or 2 things that I really stick with. In college, the stuff I did spanned across all four years (as an example). Just do something that really excites you and try to stand out in it, whether that be scribing, research, or throwing down some gnarly arials and variels (maybe teach the younguns a thing or two)!