EMT and Summer Researches-Questions

[xstarstarx]

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Hi there,

I just have couple questions over here. Hope someone can give me some advices.

EMT:
I have been reading about EMT on this forum. My school offers us to take EMT class on campus (we have to pay about 300 dollar) and this semester will be our last chance to do so. I was thinking about it, however, if I take EMT class, I will have classes from 9am to 9:30 pm on both Monday and Thursday with only about 2.5 hours rest in between.

I am taking Chem II, Bio II, Statistic, Environmental Science and Ballet II...3 lab courses make me feel that maybe I should keep more study hours for myself. And, after I read so many posts on EMT, I feel that maybe it is not very helpful for Med School application after all. Compare to the general hospital volunteer, what do you think you will choose?

*It is hard to tell which one I like better... I have no idea what an EMT going to help me in my area. In the past, the school will hire the student to be a third responser. For hospital volunteer, I hope to be transferred to ER or ICU later (my age doesn't allow me to work in ICU yet).

Summer Researches:
For many reasons, the school is pushing me to graduate in 3 years (I am freshman right now...just started my college career last year). The school is offering me 3 years of full FA included 2 summer, each summer can take up to 2 courses. I was planning to apply for internships or researches in other schools during the summer.

There are also summer researches that we can do on campus. My questions are:
1. Is that really true that Med Schools want a student that have certain amount of research experiences? To be honestly, I like to work in people, for people than in the lab.
2. Is there a difference between to do research in your own institution and in other schools? Do Medical School more like people who have done researches in top university, like Harvard, Yale?

Thank you for reading the post. 🙂

 

[Catalystik]

Since you are pressed for time, I suggest you volunteer in the local hospital for 3-4 hours per week, rather than getting the EMT training.

1. Research is a desirable activity to have on your application, but isn't required. About 60% of students list it on their application. It would be nice if you could try it for at least a summer.

2. It doesn't matter if the research experience is at your school or elsewhere. It has repeatedly been observed here on SDN that doing research at a top school doesn't make it more likely you'll be accepted there. Don't worry about the name of your research institution, instead worry about getting a substantive research project that interests you.

As a side question: How many years have you been speaking and writing in English?

 

[Fuzz052]

Hi xstarstarx,

I graduated college in the spring of 2007, and spent the fall getting my EMT certification. Since then, I have been on a volunteer ambulance, serving a college community of a few thousand. I know some posts on here say otherwise, but I feel that my experience as an EMT really helped my application.

I was recently accepted to the UW School of Medicine, and when I got the acceptance call, my interviewer said the committee was "impressed with my dedication to the ambulance." I've interviewed and cared for nearly 300 patients, and have done much more than I could ever do volunteering in the hospital. However, the certification process is a long and time-consuming one, and it may only be worth it if you plan on getting good use out of the cert.

I know that the combination of volunteering and having legitimate emergency medical care experience really helped my application, but other's situations may be different. In most cities it would also be difficult to find a volunteer organization that will allow you to truly use the cert. Anyhow, those are my thought...hope this helps!

 

[nuneyah]

I'll just speak about the EMT question because I'm in an EMT-I class at my school. If you're not going to pursue volunteering (or getting a job) as an EMT with an ambulance service or hospital, then don't bother with it. However, actively working as an EMT would be great for clinical experience.

 

[tennisball80]

since you are pressed for time, i suggest you volunteer in the local hospital for 3-4 hours per week, rather than getting the emt training.

+1

 

[equios]

I'll just speak about the EMT question because I'm in an EMT-I class at my school. If you're not going to pursue volunteering (or getting a job) as an EMT with an ambulance service or hospital, then don't bother with it. However, actively working as an EMT would be great for clinical experience.

+1. If you don't plan to use it, don't bother. EMS is a time hog, if you volunteer, or do part time, expect 30+ hours a week, minimum. If you work full-time, expect to live at the station. EMS is a commitment, not a job. Working full time, I easily can rack up 70-80 hours in a single week.