Do you have "great EC's"??

[relatively prime]

Originally posted by Street Philosopher
i really don't know why people would say they have GREAT EC's. nobody says they have a GREAT GPA or a GREAT MCAT score. but many people have GREAT EC's.

I have a great gpa and a great MCAT score...

My ECs... I love my ECs... if I saw someone with my ECs I'd think "now that person is pretty cool." Are they "Great?" I don't know... but I've had a good time and learned a lot... and I think that makes me cool.

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[chloe5]

Originally posted by Tweetie_bird


Nobody that takes the MCAT, does the premed load, and applies to medical school is "dumb." There are shades of "dumbness." Surely, a 4.0 GPA and 40 MCAT person would be dumb compared to Einstein. But does that mean you wouldn't want that person to be your doc?

I think we overestimate the need for "smarts" in medical school. A lot of my friends tell me that medical school is not jsut about being SMART. IT's about being hard working. It's about having to constantly cram all the time because there is so much information being thrown at you. Yes, intelligence is required but so are things like motivation and dedication. A smart person could absorb all the material they want, but if they don't the dedication and motivation (which are dispensable according to you) to keep pursuing medicine, they will not be a well-informed physician. Learning, is part of medicine. One who is motivated will keep learning throughout his life as a physician, and there is a lot of learning involved even while you are in practise. eg: you have to constantly keep on on medical news through journals, conferences etc.

Indeed, I think med schools are looking for people who are "smart," hardworking, motivated and dedicated. Therefore, people who have good numbers, mcat 30 or higher and good ECs have the best chances of getting in somewhere on their first try. I don't think the need for "smarts is overestimated." Intelligence is a must and physicians really should have strong problem solving and analytical capacities. Physicians who only memorize and regurgitate present a rather disturbing prospect. Further, motivation and dedication alone aren't enough. The whole package has to be there. Still, "intelligence" is so hard to measure, so the MCAT etc are basically used to judge whether one will be able to handle the academic load of med school. It's just that the MCAT and GPA don't do a great job of describing the character and integrity of a person, so they aren't adequate to judge humanity-related aspects of an applicant. Just my $.02.

 

[DW]

my rundown, not all of it but a handful

-undergrad research, all 3.5 years

-research at CDC for two years since graduating. did some international work in subsaharan africa for a summer. one first author publication on the shelves. another in the works

-volunteer in std screening/counseling project for at risk teens in southwest atlanta

-prez of alternative spring break in college, organized 3 trips to build ramps for indigent wheelchair bound residents of nashvillle.

-sophomore advisor and resident advisor in freshman residence halls

-tutored high schoolers in indigent atlanta

-help organize and promote some of the big charity road races in atlanta (susan komen race for the cure, etc)

-wrote for the school humor magazine

most things done, oddly enough, before i was sure i wanted to go to medical school. and i have a 35 mcat

 

[Tweetie_bird]

Originally posted by chloe5
Indeed, I think med schools are looking for people who are "smart," hardworking, motivated and dedicated. Therefore, people who have good numbers, mcat 30 or higher and good ECs have the best chances of getting in somewhere on their first try. I don't think the need for "smarts is overestimated." Intelligence is a must and physicians really should have strong problem solving and analytical capacities. Physicians who only memorize and regurgitate present a rather disturbing prospect. Further, motivation and dedication alone aren't enough. The whole package has to be there. Still, "intelligence" is so hard to measure, so the MCAT etc are basically used to judge whether one will be able to handle the academic load of med school. It's just that the MCAT and GPA don't do a great job of describing the character and integrity of a person, so they aren't adequate to judge humanity-related aspects of an applicant. Just my $.02.

Excellent points, Chloe. I should have said instead, "the needs for smarts in medical school MAY BE A TAD overestimated." That is not to imply that intelligent people are not needed in med school. All I'm saying is that most people who take MCATs and go through the rigorous premed series, are intelligent. Until med school, a lot of us have been cramming before a test and done "okay" in school. But it does not work that way in med school!! You HAVE to work. From the smartest kid in med school to the last person in the class, they all have to work. Intelligence is a must, but it's not the ONLY thing required--was my main point.

A lot of med students I have seen and am friend with are smart. Yet their smarts are not enough to do well in school. They all work extremely hard. Nobody in med school can cram the night before the test and pass. It simply doesn't work that way. HARD WORK is very important in med school, perhaps even more so than plain ol' intelligence which every med student obviously has (they made it in, didn't they?)

I guess I am thinking of my own example. I don't think of myself as being "smart" but I am very, very hard working. I know that if anything, my hard work is going to get me in and through medical school. This is just my opinion and I am sure others may feel differently about themselves.
Anyway, I understand what you said and I should have clarified earlier. Thanks for correcting me.

 

[Street Philosopher]

Originally posted by relatively prime
I have a great gpa and a great MCAT score...

My ECs... I love my ECs... if I saw someone with my ECs I'd think "now that person is pretty cool." Are they "Great?" I don't know... but I've had a good time and learned a lot... and I think that makes me cool.

is what i wrote so profound that you had to quote me twice?

 

[relatively prime]

Originally posted by Street Philosopher
is what i wrote so profound that you had to quote me twice?

Huh? I only quoted you once

 

[Street Philosopher]

nuh uh

 

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