Extras!

[AngelaChanel76]

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I keep hearing about extracurriculars that look good to be accepted. Im 31 and I would like to know what I could do to stand out? Im really interested in Natural Health and Preventive Medicine. I was thinking about something along those lines. I really like encouraging people to take care of themselves. But there arent many jobs in that field in my area. I was wondering what type of Extras stand out when applying. Im looking at Creightons Distance Program I've heard great things about it. Thanks Everyone!

 

[AbsoluteEthanol]

I keep hearing about extracurriculars that look good to be accepted. Im 31 and I would like to know what I could do to stand out? Im really interested in Natural Health and Preventive Medicine. I was thinking about something along those lines. I really like encouraging people to take care of themselves. But there arent many jobs in that field in my area. I was wondering what type of Extras stand out when applying. Im looking at Creightons Distance Program I've heard great things about it. Thanks Everyone!

you can't go wrong with volunteering at a local free clinic. doing so will allow you to not only help people by educating them about preventive measures but it will also allow you to work closely within the healthcare team of doctors, nurses and of course pharmacists

 

[sle3pyguii]

If you are a non-trad that's making a career switch, I'm sure that volunteering at a hospital a few hours a week would be fine. If you are currently working full-time, schools wouldn't expect you to have a ridiculous amount of hours of volunteer work. Just go to a hospital and volunteer in a hospital so you can get some healthcare exposure. If you feel that you would need more ECs, just do something you like. If you like to help kids, join a Big Brothers/Sisters organization, etc etc.

 

[berkeleytwinkie]

www.volunteermatch.com is a great place to start

 

[mrblah]

Think carefully, are you doing these EC's because you are a compassionate, responsible, dedicated, and driven indvidual. Or are you doing it because you want/need experience in the field you are interested in?

If you are doing it because you need experience or because you are interested in doing something, you are no different than a billion other applicants, who do the 4 hour generic hospital gig so they can put it on their apps. You won't stand out, and your interviewer won't even bother with it.

If you are doing EC's because you are compassionate, responsible, etc. Then you will separate yourself from the rest of the crowd. If you are one of these, skip the generic hospital gig, and go with a organization that truly makes a difference such as the red cross, big sis/big bro programs, or free clinics.

You will score major points if you are volunteering with these organizations because you truly want to help someone, and you truly are willing to put others before you. The point of the EC is to tell the interviewer something about you, and your past actions that led you to become who you are, explain why you want to do and what you have become as a individual as a result of your EC.

I did the hospital gig, the frat. gig, the environmental gig, the church gig, and my interviewers didn't care. What they did care for, was back in 2005 before I became interested in pharmacy, I volunteered for the Red Cross hurricane relief. Just say, my interviewer's were speechless. A friend of mine volunteers for the LA Sheriff's Search and Rescue once a month, and he leaves his interviewer's starry eyed everytime.

You don't have to do something as extreme as I did, but you should carefully
pick and choose your EC's. While having more EC's won't hurt you, it may not help you either. Whereas, picking the right EC's will be worth its weight in gold.

 

[ADN1226]

Just wanted to input a lil with mrblah.

I did the hospital volunteering/ clubs / local church. What got my interviewer really excited was when they asked what was a hobby / what I liked to do. I talked about how I like to webdesign and I had designed a website and help maintain it for my bro-in-law's (volunteered) viet grammar/catholic school in california. And how the other teachers liked the idea of posting homework on the net so i've been asked to make websites for each class.

I guess its just something thats different.

 

[omnione]

To be honest, I think that one shouldn't panic over ecs too much. Of course, it's a bad idea to not have any but a few good volunteer positions where you work consistently and for a while is better than a random assortment of one-time deals. The latter appears to be token efforts than genuine experiences.

With the small space PharmCAS provides for describing extracurriculars, adcoms probably have to guess at the quality of your experience. The "grading" of that section probably resembles more of a pass/fail type of perception with perhaps extra kudos for really active people and frowns on zero to little activity.

Regarding Creighton, you'll be pressed to show that those experiences are a "part of you" as they like the comprehensive world hero type of applicant.😀

 

[ilovePharmD2]

Think carefully, are you doing these EC's because you are a compassionate, responsible, dedicated, and driven indvidual. Or are you doing it because you want/need experience in the field you are interested in?

If you are doing it because you need experience or because you are interested in doing something, you are no different than a billion other applicants, who do the 4 hour generic hospital gig so they can put it on their apps. You won't stand out, and your interviewer won't even bother with it.

If you are doing EC's because you are compassionate, responsible, etc. Then you will separate yourself from the rest of the crowd. If you are one of these, skip the generic hospital gig, and go with a organization that truly makes a difference such as the red cross, big sis/big bro programs, or free clinics.

You will score major points if you are volunteering with these organizations because you truly want to help someone, and you truly are willing to put others before you. The point of the EC is to tell the interviewer something about you, and your past actions that led you to become who you are, explain why you want to do and what you have become as a individual as a result of your EC.

I did the hospital gig, the frat. gig, the environmental gig, the church gig, and my interviewers didn't care. What they did care for, was back in 2005 before I became interested in pharmacy, I volunteered for the Red Cross hurricane relief. Just say, my interviewer's were speechless. A friend of mine volunteers for the LA Sheriff's Search and Rescue once a month, and he leaves his interviewer's starry eyed everytime.

You don't have to do something as extreme as I did, but you should carefully
pick and choose your EC's. While having more EC's won't hurt you, it may not help you either. Whereas, picking the right EC's will be worth its weight in gold.

would volunteering for Meals on Wheels (delivering food to seniors at their homes) count as substantial?

 

[BlueCrayon]

I think you need to have a well balanced application. If your grades and your PCAT are low, then you might want to have ECs and vice versa. I, such as yourself, am a 31 year old non-traditional student and I have absolutely zero extracurricular work...but I had high grades, good PCAT and 10 years pharmacology research experience instead. So it just goes to show, you do not NEED extracurricular...it just helps if other parts of your application are weak. It also might've helped me that my boss of the last decade happens to be the senior associate dean of research at Univeraity at Buffalo .

 

[JimblyUK]

ECs have been something that I have been concerned about too. Before I started college, and during my college years I volunteered in the Summer. But that was maaaaany years ago 😀. I also took a year out of college and worked doing research in a Pharmaceutical company (only 2 out of my class of 200 did this). I have wondered if the recency of the ECs is a big deal.

It's good to hear that you don't NEED ECs, but they're a plus if you have downsides to your app. I don't know where I would find to do volunteer work, even though I'd like to...have a full-time job doing research, plus a house to take care of, and a kid to spend time with.

 

[WannaBRxDr]

check out the local non-profit agencies around you, those that offer WIC, food shelf, meals on wheels, nutrition counseling, etc. they often have many volunteer opportunities.

Check out resources that are targeted to seniors, as they often tie into pharmacy. I was lucky enough to become a part of the SHIP program (state health insurance assistance program) where I counseled medicare beneficiaries on medicare part D. Many states have some agency, like in MN, the Minnesota area agency on aging, or the Senior Linkage Line.

Most of all, do something that is interesting, meaningful, and truly important to you. These are the experiences that will shine through on your application.