ER Volunteering or TAing?

[Amrazzz]

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Hi all,

I'm currently a junior and contemplating dropping my volunteer position winter quarter for being an undergrad TA for Cell Biology Lab. I've been volunteering for about two quarters now for a total of 90 hrs in the Emergency Room at my university's hospital. Prior to this I volunteered at my local hospital in the ER as well as cardiopulmonary rehabilitation center for total of 70 hrs (one quarter and summer). My experiences have all been clinical, I interact with patients and their families as a liason and help those with cardio/pulmonary problems exercise.

Is it okay to drop volunteering at this point? Reason that I'm not doing both at the same time is because I want to devote my time to MCAT (taking 12 cred hours of intense science classes with 20 hrs of ECs a week during winter quarter)

My other stats are fine - 2 years of research, nonclinical volunteering, shadowing, good GPA and all those "standard" things.

 

[powersr8810]

Every pre-med counselor I have talked to has said that continuity is better than having a lot of things that you spent a little bit of time at. Spending years volunteering in an ER would probably be better for you than volunteering then TAing then doing a few other things for only a few months each. Medicine is a long haul and they want to see that you can commit to something and stick with it.

Just my two cents.

 

[Catalystik]

You have two quarters in one ER and one quarter plus a summer in another ER. I'd suggest that you stay with this position for the next 6 months at least, though it would be fine to cut your time down each week or just go twice monthly. JMO.

 

[Druggernaut]

I had an interviewer say something like, "It looks like you did a lot of volunteering. Tell me about a leadership position you had in your volunteer role." I had less hours than you, but it was for about a year to a year and a half. Do you have positive things to say about your volunteer positions? If you can't honestly talk about what you do meaningfully, I considered it to be not worth doing.

You could sell the TA job as both teaching and maybe leadership experience. Would you get paid or get credit for it? And would you have the opportunity to do it for a few semesters?

 

[Amrazzz]

Honestly, I got a lot out of volunteering but I don't know what else I could get from it after spending so much time doing the same thing. There really isn't any leadership positions given to undergrads at my university or local hospital. And to be quite frank, I really don't enjoy volunteering anymore. I feel that if I TA it will show that I can indeed communicate effectively with others, after all, isn't medicine part teaching (educating your patients on their conditions, risk factors, outcomes, etc)?

I am still going to volunteer during spring quarter, just can't do it both at the same time due to research and tutoring.

Also TAing will fulfill my capstone requirement (unpaid) and I can do it next year as well.

 

[Amrazzz]

You have two quarters in one ER and one quarter plus a summer in another ER. I'd suggest that you stay with this position for the next 6 months at least, though it would be fine to cut your time down each week or just go twice monthly. JMO.

Can't cut down time unfortunately. A minimum of 4hrs a week is the commitment for volunteering (and weekly too) at the university hospital and it is time that I cannot spare due to my other ECs and MCAT prep (which I would like to focus on) I'm only stopping it for 3 months, and will pick it back up once spring quarter rolls around and when TAing will be over.

 

[URHere]

While I will agree that volunteer experience looks best when spread out over many months or years, I also have to argue that you should not pass over an opportunity that excites you just because others think your time is better spent elsewhere.

Personally, working as a TA was one of my favorite things about undergrad. It gave me an opportunity to learn even more about the subjects that I loved, and (in my case) it even gave me lecturing experience that I am thankful for every time I need to teach a class or give a scientific talk. If you like to teach, it can be a very fulfilling experience.

At the end of the day, both volunteering and teaching experience will look impressive on a resume. At this point, you have enough clinical experience to keep yourself in the admissions game so the choice is really up to you - which would you rather do?

 

[Druggernaut]

Honestly, I got a lot out of volunteering but I don't know what else I could get from it after spending so much time doing the same thing. There really isn't any leadership positions given to undergrads at my university or local hospital. And to be quite frank, I really don't enjoy volunteering anymore. I feel that if I TA it will show that I can indeed communicate effectively with others, after all, isn't medicine part teaching (educating your patients on their conditions, risk factors, outcomes, etc)?

I am still going to volunteer during spring quarter, just can't do it both at the same time due to research and tutoring.

Also TAing will fulfill my capstone requirement (unpaid) and I can do it next year as well.

I think this post pretty much answers your initial question. You don't like it, you could probably get back into it later if you choose to, and you think there's more positives to being a TA at this point.

 

[fahimaz7]

What do you do as a TA in that class? Unless it's something fantastic, I would continue to volunteer and make your letter's of recommendation more stellar.

 

[MCAT guy]

You have two quarters in one ER and one quarter plus a summer in another ER. I'd suggest that you stay with this position for the next 6 months at least, though it would be fine to cut your time down each week or just go twice monthly. JMO.

Agreed here. Length of volunteer time is important. Don't do only 6 months. Stretch it out.

 

[docelh]

What if you get paid as a TA? If so, would you list it as employment or Tutoring?

 

[Amrazzz]

Agreed here. Length of volunteer time is important. Don't do only 6 months. Stretch it out.

I guess I should have stated the length of time I've been volunteering. March of Freshman year to current. So its approximately 1.5 years.

And is volunteering THAT important? A friend of mine who is a Business major had no clinical volunteering experience and has interviews at 4 schools, so i dunno why people make it a big deal.

 

[Catalystik]

And is volunteering THAT important? A friend of mine who is a Business major had no clinical volunteering experience and has interviews at 4 schools, so i dunno why people make it a big deal.

It's your job to make your application appeal to the broadest number of med schools possible. The vast majority highly regard clinical experience, so yes, it's that important, though it need not be gained by "volunteering." You can also gain patient contact experience through a job, for class credit, through clinical research, or family experience.

If one doesn't get clinical experience through volunteerism, then it's important to have some nonmedical community service, too.

 

[fahimaz7]

I guess I should have stated the length of time I've been volunteering. March of Freshman year to current. So its approximately 1.5 years.

And is volunteering THAT important? A friend of mine who is a Business major had no clinical volunteering experience and has interviews at 4 schools, so i dunno why people make it a big deal.

You won't get an interview at my school without it.

 

[UpQuark]

You won't get an interview at my school without it.

My friend did 😀 (no lies). And glad I have it under my belt.