Extracurriculars

[CanAmPremed]

Hey guys,

I'm so worried about this

I have a 3.5 gpa (science and overall), have a 33 mcat, but my extra curriculars are crap. I only have the fact that I volunteer at my local pharmacy and that I volunteer a lot in my church. I know for canada, this is a really important fact. But I will be applying in the states (specifically: in the midwest MI, IL, IN,). How much do american med schools care about extracurriculars.

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[solitude]

Hey guys,

I'm so worried about this

I have a 3.5 gpa (science and overall), have a 33 mcat, but my extra curriculars are crap. I only have the fact that I volunteer at my local pharmacy and that I volunteer a lot in my church. I know for canada, this is a really important fact. But I will be applying in the states (specifically: in the midwest MI, IL, IN,). How much do american med schools care about extracurriculars.

Yeah, you probably need more EC's. Not many though. What you need to do is get some clinical experience (volunteer in a hospital and shadow a doctor) for a few months. If you can do that, and you are good at selling your dedication to the EC's that you have right now, you might be alright. The thing I am afraid of is that your GPA is about average for accepted applicants, although your MCAT is great. Some med schools may want a "hook" to neutralize your average GPA--this is where EC's would come in. But my suggestion would be to find clinical EC's right away.

 

[CanAmPremed]

Hello,

Thanks for the reply.

Wow really So volunteering in a pharmacy wouldn't be good enough.

Well I am applying for med school next year. So if I start volunteering this january and by the time I apply ill prolly have 10 months or so of experience on top of the two years I have for working in a pharmacy...you think thats enough.

 

[xylem29]

Hello,

Thanks for the reply.

Wow really So volunteering in a pharmacy wouldn't be good enough.

Well I am applying for med school next year. So if I start volunteering this january and by the time I apply ill prolly have 10 months or so of experience on top of the two years I have for working in a pharmacy...you think thats enough.

yeah, it's strange in canada - they don't really care if you volunteer for hospitals or if u have clinical experience - so as long as u have ec's and can show that ur a well rounded person. but for the us - u need clinical experience or shadowing - same for dental in the us...

 

[FrkyBgStok]

yeah pharmacy doesn't get you the patient contact required by most US schools.

 

[autoimmunity]

While getting patient contact is definitely important, do not underestimate the importance of simply showing dedication to a personal interest. If you can demonstrate that, it will go a long way to illustrating your passion, initiative, blah blah blah. And of course, when you get interviews, it will also make for a great conversational piece.

 

[autoimmunity]

Where in Canada are you from anyways?

 

[jon stewart]

i geuss this a somewhat related question, but if your a canadian citizen and not an american citizen, and you apply to us med schools then arnt you considered an intl applicant?