Dumb question, but is there any harm in putting my new job on my secondaries?

[Maybedoc1]

Hello all,

This is probably a dumb question, but I'm wondering if I should be putting my new job as a mountain bike patroller on my secondaries? I worked as a ski patroller (after getting my EMT-B) this past winter where I was able to individually treat nearly 100 patients in 4 months. I lead all of patrol and it was a really good, albeit uncommon premed experience. I was hoping to get a job as a ER tech/on an ambulance this summer/fall and I was enrolled in a EMT-IV certification class, but it was canceled because of COVID. Since I don't have my IV certification I can't get those jobs.

A week ago some of my old coworkers called me and asked if I would be interested in doing mountain bike patrol until labor day. I said sure and started a couple days ago. It's similar to ski patrol where we mainly respond to medical injuries on the mountain/in the base area, however we don't get as much calls as ski patrol. We also do trail work and stuff like that.

Most of my secondaries are submitted, but I'm wondering if I should be putting this on the remaining ones? I guess my only concern is how it looks. I was already a little worried about taking the ski patrol job because I didn't want it to look bad to adcoms (is he ski bumming instead of doing research/something more traditional). I'm serious about medicine, but I've chosen somewhat unconventional ways of getting experience. I think they've been valuable and have lead to great patient interactions (for example, 2 days ago I helped someone with a broken collarbone and today I helped someone with a dislocated shoulder), but still I have this concern in the back of my head.

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[M&L]

so, ultimately, its your call to put it or not. I will just say what i did: majority of the stuff that i put was not even remotely close to medicine (i put my waitressing jobs, teaching assistant jobs, accounting jobs). And people asked me a lot of questions about all those, and they said that they liked that i kept myself busy, because it showed that i can multitask, prioritize my time, hard-working, etc.

 

[Goro]

No it won't hurt. Why on earth would it look bad?

 

[M&L]

No it won't hurt. Why on earth would it look bad?

i think a lot of people, - and possibly, the OP, - worry that EVERYTHING they put has to be medicine related, or it would show that they dont have real commitment to medicine. But this is not true. Medical schools do want to see commitment, but they also want to see an actual person, with other interests in life, who is strong, and has an actual life. People like that seem to do better under emotional pressure of medical school, and burn out less (in my limited opinion).

 

[Goro]

i think a lot of people, - and possibly, the OP, - worry that EVERYTHING they put has to be medicine related, or it would show that they dont have real commitment to medicine. But this is not true. Medical schools do want to see commitment, but they also want to see an actual person, with other interests in life, who is strong, and has an actual life. People like that seem to do better under emotional pressure of medical school, and burn out less (in my limited opinion).

Employment is always good too!!

 

[M&L]

Employment is always good too!!

exactly. I think it shows that you are hardworking, disciplined, etc. If i was interviewing someone, for example, i would love to see in the application that they worked as a food running for 20 hours a week all through college, for example. Yes, it has nothing to do with medicine, but it reflects that they probably know how to get along with people, have good time management skills, are responsible, and are not afraid to work hard in not so glamorous situations. I respect that a lot.

 

[Catalystik]

I'm wondering if I should be putting my new job as a mountain bike patroller on my secondaries? I worked as a ski patroller (after getting my EMT-B) this past winter where I was able to individually treat nearly 100 patients in 4 months. I lead all of patrol and it was a really good, albeit uncommon premed experience. I was hoping to get a job as a ER tech/on an ambulance this summer/fall and I was enrolled in a EMT-IV certification class, but it was canceled because of COVID. Since I don't have my IV certification I can't get those jobs.

A week ago some of my old coworkers called me and asked if I would be interested in doing mountain bike patrol until labor day. I said sure and started a couple days ago. It's similar to ski patrol where we mainly respond to medical injuries on the mountain/in the base area, however we don't get as much calls as ski patrol. We also do trail work and stuff like that.

Most of my secondaries are submitted, but I'm wondering if I should be putting this on the remaining ones? I guess my only concern is how it looks.

I think it makes you look interesting.

 

[Maybedoc1]

Thank you, everyone. I think @M&L said it better than I could have. There is definitely a concern in the back of my head that everything I should be doing before I get into school should be related to medicine in some way. I'm glad to hear that this is not the case.

 

[LunaOri]

It's a totally cool job! List it!

 

[Blueprint Med School]

Super cool job, add it for sure. Interview connections are made or broken often on just having something interesting to talk about that's not medicine. Embrace your personality, especially here where it's a squeaky clean topic.

David D MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[Maybedoc1]

Super cool job, add it for sure. Interview connections are made or broken often on just having something interesting to talk about that's not medicine. Embrace your personality, especially here where it's a squeaky clean topic.

David D MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

Awesome I went ahead and listed it! Thank you for the advice.