EC dilemma

[Xcited392]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hey all,

I'm trying to decide on which EC I should do next fall.

1) Immunology/bacteria research with a professor for a whole year. I'm unsure if a publication is going to happen. It will be his second year teaching, so his research group is quite small.

2) Volunteering as a music teacher for a school for homeless kids (K-5th grade) for the entire school year. I'm unsure if the teaching will be private or group.

Note that both opportunities aren't guaranteed positions--I'll have to convince the professor to let me do research, and I'm going to have to apply for the teaching position.

I'm a post-bacc student who has a degree in a non-science field. I have tons of ECs in music and will have about 240 hours of volunteering as a patient wheelchair escort (which will satisfy clinical experience and volunteering). I'm thinking about doing some shadowing over the summer, too. Also, I don't have any non-medical volunteering experiences and a small amount of leadership skills.

Assuming that both will accept me, which one is better for me?

 

[haxtor21]

I'd say music, because as of what I read, it is good to show that are really involved in something you like. I guess adcoms like that.

Have fun.

 

[LizzyM]

Research. You need to show that you've gone beyond your comfort zone (music) and are learning more about research. Even if you don't engage in research as a physician, understanding the scientific method is important for understanding the scientific basis of medicine.

 

[Catalystik]

You mentioned that you already have tons of ECs related to your music and you also already have nonmedical community service. Research should be your focus to round out your application further.

 

[Xcited392]

You mentioned that you already have tons of ECs related to your music and you also already have nonmedical community service. Research should be your focus to round out your application further.

The thing is I don't have non-medical community service--sorry if my post wasn't clear.

 

[LizzyM]

The thing is I don't have non-medical community service--sorry if my post wasn't clear.

If you have some clinical volunteering, you don't really need non-medical community service. It is nice to show that you are a generous person who gives back to the community but the record shows that >75% of accepted applicants at most schools have research experience so getting some of that is rather important.

 

[ArkansasRanger]

What do people in these research positions do anyway?

Sweep up?

Wash beakers?

Take notes while someone works?

Suck stuff up into a pippette?

😴

 

[LizzyM]

What do people in these research positions do anyway?

Sweep up?

Wash beakers?

Take notes while someone works?

Suck stuff up into a pippette?

😴

Ideally, a student comes in with some bench skills that the investigator can use. Some get some skills on the job. I've interviewed college students who've run gels, done PCRs, cultured cells, worked with small animals, even operated on animals... one I recall was removing organs (I can't remember which ones) from fruit flies. Fruit flies! Ideally one is working toward a testable hypothesis. What happens when we....? Sometimes there are false starts or failures and you have to think creatively to come up with a solution to why the experiments haven't been working as expected. A good lab worker keeps a notebook of results and discusses results in team meetings. There is also some degree of "good citizienship" in terms of keeping the lab neat, preparing solutions, washing up after one's self, helping others, remaining cheerful.

These things get mentioned in letters of recommendation all the time.

 

[ArkansasRanger]

Ideally, a student comes in with some bench skills that the investigator can use. Some get some skills on the job. I've interviewed college students who've run gels, done PCRs, cultured cells, worked with small animals, even operated on animals... one I recall was removing organs (I can't remember which ones) from fruit flies. Fruit flies! Ideally one is working toward a testable hypothesis. What happens when we....? Sometimes there are false starts or failures and you have to think creatively to come up with a solution to why the experiments haven't been working as expected. A good lab worker keeps a notebook of results and discusses results in team meetings. There is also some degree of "good citizienship" in terms of keeping the lab neat, preparing solutions, washing up after one's self, helping others, remaining cheerful.

These things get mentioned in letters of recommendation all the time.

Ah, interesting. ....so not the type of thing for a man with little patience, lol.

 

[Xcited392]

Thanks for the advice!

I guess it's research then.

On a side note, is it important that I get shadowing? As a patient escort volunteer, I have experience working in a clinical environment (the hospital) and significant clinical interactions with patients. Is shadowing necessary for me then?

Thanks again.

 

[LizzyM]

Thanks for the advice!

I guess it's research then.

On a side note, is it important that I get shadowing? As a patient escort volunteer, I have experience working in a clinical environment (the hospital) and significant clinical interactions with patients. Is shadowing necessary for me then?

Thanks again.

What do doctors do all day? How do you know? What proportion of the day is spent with patients, what proportion is spent with paper (or on the computer or on the phone) with issues related to reimbursement or administration? How much to doctors move around from site to site during the day or from day to day during the week? How are the tasks of the week scheduled/organized? How does the doctor keep up-to-date/engage in life long learning? What is the length of the typical day? When does it start? Who are the co-workers with whom the physician interacts on a regular basis? Do they work for the doctor or are they employed by the hospital?

I think that these are some questions you can't answer well unless you have shadowed a doc or have lived with one.

 

[Catalystik]

is it important that I get shadowing? As a patient escort volunteer, I have experience working in a clinical environment (the hospital) and significant clinical interactions with patients. Is shadowing necessary for me then?

Clinical experience, like that gained as a transporter, focuses on the patient. Shadowing is a passive observership, where you focus on what the physician does all day. You need to know what you'll be doing as a doc beyond the occasional saving of lives, like interactions with staff, insurance companies, paperwork, dictations, phone calls, as well as observing bedside manner, annoying, rude, or demanding patients, teaching moments, etc.

Some med schools do not regard shadowing at all, and others value it highly as it gives one the best idea of what being a physician is all about. In order for your application to appeal to the broadest number of schools, it is wise (but not obligatory) to include this type of experience. Regardless, you should do it for yourself, anyway, so you know what you're getting yourself into.