Great tips for entering your "Work/Activities" for AMCAS

[moto_za]

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For a publication, what do you put down as the country? Decline to answer (blank) or the place where you worked or the location that it was published?

 

[RySerr21]

In regards to publications, not to be whining but is it ok if I was the last author?

Also, the article has been accepted (April 08) and is in press so how do I go about citing it? Is this correct:

Elowert R, Aadeh N, Iaan M, Asteh M. Development of cell based ELISA for HIV. J Immun Med published April 16, 2008.

Last question, is it necessary to list conferences that you have attended that were related to your research or volunteer experience?

if you are the last author on a publication, its actually a negative thing. its like wtf dude, you are a pre med you should be the first author or at the very least the second!!

k back to reality....no it doesnt matter. as far as referencing your article, i'm not sure if there is a right or wrong. If you look at any scientific paper tho the references generally look like this looks like this....

Pedowitz, R., Dalal A., and Jacobs, K. How to reference a journal article. The Journal of Referencing Journal Articles. 24(2): 63-64, 2007

 

[What up doc]

LizzyM,

i am confused as to why it is frowned upon to list activities from hs. does this include high school employment? is it okay to list a job if you feel like it has left a signigicant impact on who you are individually? or are ALL hs activities not continued into college a no-no?

 

[sushichopstickz]

I am having troubling coming up appropriate labels to put under the "Experience Name" text-field. The "organization name" is pretty straight forward, but the former I am having trouble with. Could some of you guys help me with an appropriate "Experience Name" for the following ECs:

1. Alpha Epsilon Delta - this is a pre-medical honor society that I am a part of; I also hold an executive position
2. Joint Education Project - I tutored elementary students (Should I list the experience type as "Teaching/Tutoring" or "Community Service Non-Medical"?
3. Lastly, I am unsure how to list cultural/humanitarian college clubs that I am a part of; some I have a executive position with.

Thanks everyone!

 

[talbo]

does anyone know if intramural sports goes under hobbies or athletics?

 

[RySerr21]

does anyone know if intramural sports goes under hobbies or athletics?

intramural sports are not considered collegiate athletics so it probably should go under hobby.

 

[LizzyM]

LizzyM,

i am confused as to why it is frowned upon to list activities from hs.

because the instructions say not to.

does this include high school employment?

Yes.

is it okay to list a job if you feel like it has left a signigicant impact on who you are individually?

no.

or are ALL hs activities not continued into college a no-no?

Correct.

There may be exceptions to the rule... if you won an Olympic medal while in HS and then left the sport, you might list your sport. Something that exceptional might be OK but most run of the mill stuff looks like padding.

 

[LizzyM]

I am having troubling coming up appropriate labels to put under the "Experience Name" text-field. The "organization name" is pretty straight forward, but the former I am having trouble with. Could some of you guys help me with an appropriate "Experience Name" for the following ECs:

1. Alpha Epsilon Delta - this is a pre-medical honor society that I am a part of; I also hold an executive position

Leadership

2. Joint Education Project - I tutored elementary students (Should I list the experience type as "Teaching/Tutoring" or "Community Service Non-Medical"?

'

Your choice. Depends on what you want to highlight.

3. Lastly, I am unsure how to list cultural/humanitarian college clubs that I am a part of; some I have a executive position with.

Thanks everyone!

Leadership or hobby.

And of course, there is always the ever popular "other".

 

[LizzyM]

does anyone know if intramural sports goes under hobbies or athletics?

I've seen it both ways. doesn't much matter.

 

[nogolfinsnow]

if you are the last author on a publication, its actually a negative thing. its like wtf dude, you are a pre med you should be the first author or at the very least the second!!

k back to reality....no it doesnt matter. as far as referencing your article, i'm not sure if there is a right or wrong. If you look at any scientific paper tho the references generally look like this looks like this....

Pedowitz, R., Dalal A., and Jacobs, K. How to reference a journal article. The Journal of Referencing Journal Articles. 24(2): 63-64, 2007

Wrong. Last author is usually the PI or lead investigator, first author is the person who did the project. I'm not sure why previous poster would be last author on a project. Now second to last, that is not a very prestigious spot. But you should list all publications.

 

[nogolfinsnow]

does anyone know if intramural sports goes under hobbies or athletics?

Collegiate athletes will put more time into their sport than almost any other premed will put into all of their ECs combined, thus intramural sports should not be lumped with athletics. IM sports are great, but they are not on the same level as intercollegiate athletic competition.

 

[LizzyM]

Collegiate athletes will put more time into their sport than almost any other premed will put into all of their ECs combined, thus intramural sports should not be lumped with athletics. IM sports are great, but they are not on the same level as intercollegiate athletic competition.

I strongly disagree. The category is athletics. The number of hours per week and the number of months will tell the rest of the tale.

Don't be a jock snob. It isn't attractive.

 

[iduwanna]

I strongly disagree. The category is athletics. The number of hours per week and the number of months will tell the rest of the tale.

Don't be a jock snob. It isn't attractive.

Thanks LizzyM, you're a big help to a lot of people.

Maybe they changed the category this year. It's "Intercollegiate Athletics."

It's unfortunate for me because I spent a lot of time training and competing in a sport that my school doesn't offer. Now I'm stuck listing another hobby.

On that note, how many hobbies can one list before it looks excessive? I was planning to lump a few into one slot, but I'd like my athletic experience to have it's own. Is that reasonable?

 

[bpman14]

Hey LizzyM! Thanks for all the advice! I joined just so I could ask you these questions.

1.) I spend my summers working and living at an orphanage in Peru (and am currently here right now). I first spent 3 weeks here in June of 2006, returned in June of 2007 and stayed through August of 2007. I came back in May of this year and will be here until August. How should I list this? When I am here I spend most every breathing moment with the children and when I am home in the states I help to fund raise money etc for the orphanage (But this is not a huge time commitment when broken up over the course of a school year).

2.) For labs that I work in during the school year can I simply check current or should I say that I ended in may then state in the description section that I am still a member of the lab and will be returning in the fall.

3.) For descriptions, I hear what you are saying about being concise and I have also heard the other side about describing experiences effect on you. However, today I read another admissions officer give a simple rule of 2-4 sentences at max and if that includes the experiences effect on you fine. Would you agree with this "rule"?

Thanks a ton!

 

[schismal]

1. Dr. _____ Research Lab [Research/Lab]
2. Editor for Undergraduate Journal of Science [Leadership]
3. Hardware and Network Technician [Paid Employment - non-Military]
4. Howard Hughes Medical Institute Summer Research Intern [Research/Lab]
5. Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship [Honors/Awards]
6. 1 Publication [Publications]
7. 3 Posters [Posters/Presentations]
8. Scholarships, Awards, and Honor Societies [Honors/Awards]
9. Shadowing [Other]
10. UAB Parkinson's Disease Conference [Conferences Attended]
11. Wheelchair Basketball Team Volunteer [Volunteer - non-Medical]
12. Precalculus Tutoring [Tutoring]
13. Intramural Football [EC/Hobbies]
14. Piano and Saxophone [Artistic Endeavors]
15. Clubs [EC/Hobbies]

#5: this is listed separately from all my other scholarships because it gave considerable funds for research. The other awards in #8 consist of things such as Phi Beta Kappa, scholarships covering tuition/housing, and all the minor honor societies. Is it appropriate to separate the Goldwater scholarship like this?

#11: this only lasted a semester and took up maybe 3hr/week. Although I had fun doing it and have several good stories from the experience, I didn't do very much actual work and this wasn't something that profoundly changed my worldly outlook. Considering how brief an experience this was, should it stay? Note that I'm not trying to make room for something else.

#12: this also lasted only a semester, although it took 6-9hr/week. But it wasn't any official setup through the school; instead he and I met through a mutual friend and we arranged meeting times ourselves. Should I explain this arrangement in the comments section? Again, I don't want to be deceptive here.

#14: should I list weightlifting under this heading? (perhaps changing the title to accommodate) It's something I've done pretty regularly, but lots of people have healthy habits and I'm unsure whether it belongs on an application. It'd be one thing if I were striving to compete in bodybuilding shows, but I'm just a normal guy trying to stay in shape. Are healthy habits something adcoms like to see or should I just leave it out?

#15: these are clubs of which I was just a member, just attending weekly meetings. Is it better to list this as an alternative to a blank space? I wasn't sure if fluff was inherently bad, or only bad insomuch as it took up a valuable spot where one could otherwise mention something else.

 

[What up doc]

LizzyM,

My professor is writing a book that will be the course text book this coming semester. He just emailed me saying a group research project that I worked would be cited in a chapter and I would be listed as an author. Can I list this as a publication even though the book has yet to be published? Thanks so much, you have been a life saver. (Cant say it enough!)

 

[nogolfinsnow]

I strongly disagree. The category is athletics. The number of hours per week and the number of months will tell the rest of the tale.

Don't be a jock snob. It isn't attractive.

Wow, name calling. I was much more than just a "jock" in college (and before that). I was the nerdy jock who took science classes and studied on the bus. I was simply observing that there is a HUGE difference between intramural athletics and intercollegiate athletics. And I already have a beautiful wife, I don't need you to find me attractive.

And I'm also referring to intramural, like softball, soccer, etc that people play once a week for 1 semester a year. I'm not sure what iduwanna did, but I know people who spent a lot of time doing martial arts and the like. Still, intercollegiate athletics is a unique situation due to the time commitments and travel involved.

 

[bpman14]

Hey LizzyM! I have another quick question.

I am taking a independent research class at my university where I serve in a hospital setting as a spanish translator as well as the hospital laboratory as a iron deficiency researcher. My translating is always for the purposes of the study but I am really in the hospital setting at all times. Furthermore, my director/professor is an MD and is writing me a LOR. How should I categorize this experience? It has been both an amazing research and clinical experience for me! This is what I currently have (I followed the 4 max sentence rule I heard earlier):

Activity: Spanish Medical Translator and Iron Deficiency Researcher in Hospital Setting
Dates: December 2007- Current
Description/Significane:
As part of an independent study course Pediatrics 699, I work in a hospital laboratory focusing primarily on translating medical documents from English to Spanish and serving as a Spanish translator in patient rooms during infant blood draws and research follow-up visits. Furthermore, I am working under a medical doctor to discover a method of testing for infantile iron deficiency using an already established filter paper test.
Studying in the pediatrics lab and being able to unify both my passion for Spanish as well as provided me with regular clinical exposure. Additionally, the lab has challenged me on how to successfully write scientific papers, clearly present my research findings, and independently suggests solutions and alternative approaches to problems in my research or data.

 

[bpman14]

Hey Everybody,

This is not to counter LizzyM because it is obvious that she knows a ton, but this is what my Kaplan director and mentor told me when I dropped LizzyM's ideas on the description of activities:

"Okay, we apparently have a discrepancy. I did exactly what you
said...only a few lines, my first time I applied. Utter failure. I
went to Chicago for my master's program, and the committee there
advised me to expand DRASTICALLY upon those experiences...just a few
lines about what the activity was, but filling the rest up with
reflection. Then I get into 11/11 schools I interviewed, got in to
another i didn't even have to interview for, and canceled 4 interviews
after my UW acceptance. I realize there are multiple factors
involved, but the positive feedback I got from my interviewers about
my activities leads me to believe this is preferred...after all, you
get 1 page for the personal statement, and if you don't expand with
reflection in your experiences section, that one page is all the
personality the admission committee gets from you about you. Makes
the game a little more on the numbers then, less about the fit.

Something to think about. I don't think the admissions committee at
Loyola University-Chicago would sit with a ~89% acceptance rate of
students in the program if they didn't know what in hell they were
talking about. I'm not trying to change how you want to do your
application, but this definitely worked overwhelmingly well for
me...100% of 11 interviewing schools..."

Just food for thought.

 

[Dalki2007]

Hey Everybody,

This is not to counter LizzyM because it is obvious that she knows a ton, but this is what my Kaplan director and mentor told me when I dropped LizzyM's ideas on the description of activities:

"Okay, we apparently have a discrepancy. I did exactly what you
said...only a few lines, my first time I applied. Utter failure. I
went to Chicago for my master's program, and the committee there
advised me to expand DRASTICALLY upon those experiences...just a few
lines about what the activity was, but filling the rest up with
reflection. Then I get into 11/11 schools I interviewed, got in to
another i didn't even have to interview for, and canceled 4 interviews
after my UW acceptance. I realize there are multiple factors
involved, but the positive feedback I got from my interviewers about
my activities leads me to believe this is preferred...after all, you
get 1 page for the personal statement, and if you don't expand with
reflection in your experiences section, that one page is all the
personality the admission committee gets from you about you. Makes
the game a little more on the numbers then, less about the fit.

Something to think about. I don't think the admissions committee at
Loyola University-Chicago would sit with a ~89% acceptance rate of
students in the program if they didn't know what in hell they were
talking about. I'm not trying to change how you want to do your
application, but this definitely worked overwhelmingly well for
me...100% of 11 interviewing schools..."

Just food for thought.

Hi!
So should I individually list my volunteer experiences and use the "description" space to write what I did/learned?

I'm currently combining all my volunteering at the same hospital as one activity and using the description box to list the different time/departments?

 

[futuredrcrawfor]

I have a question for LizzyM or whoever else feels they can answer it-

I am a nanny for 2 families- I have been with the two families different time spans and different hours each week (one family longer but only 5 or so hours a week and the other 6 month less but averaging 15-20 hours a week with them).

Should I list them together or separate so the descriptions can be more tailored to the actual details of what I do at each house. (Together I have 13 activities so I have a couple open)

Also, should I list organizations I am a member of but don't have a leadership position in?

Thanks!

 

[LizzyM]

Wow, name calling. I was much more than just a "jock" in college (and before that). I was the nerdy jock who took science classes and studied on the bus. I was simply observing that there is a HUGE difference between intramural athletics and intercollegiate athletics. And I already have a beautiful wife, I don't need you to find me attractive.

And I'm also referring to intramural, like softball, soccer, etc that people play once a week for 1 semester a year. I'm not sure what iduwanna did, but I know people who spent a lot of time doing martial arts and the like. Still, intercollegiate athletics is a unique situation due to the time commitments and travel involved.

If someone writes: "intramural soccer, 3 hours per week" and another writes "varsity soccer, 25 hours per week" the adcom knows the difference. I've seen many people use the "intercollegiate athletics" category for intramural athletics and no one minds.

 

[LizzyM]

I have a question for LizzyM or whoever else feels they can answer it-

I am a nanny for 2 families- I have been with the two families different time spans and different hours each week (one family longer but only 5 or so hours a week and the other 6 month less but averaging 15-20 hours a week with them).

Should I list them together or separate so the descriptions can be more tailored to the actual details of what I do at each house. (Together I have 13 activities so I have a couple open)

Also, should I list organizations I am a member of but don't have a leadership position in?

Thanks!

Since the hours, time frame and duties are different, you might list them as two separate jobs. If you had a job at two different restaurants would you list them separately or together?

membership in organizations tends to be filler, IMHO. Never saw anyone who was impressed or commented one way or the other on membership.

 

[jsr52]

Hey Lizzy,

Two summers ago I attended Alumni week with my grandfather at George Washington Medical school.

During this week I:

- Learned about the current trends in medical education, public health, and health policy.

-Learned about patient simulation-based education

-Practiced advanced cataract surgery on a robotic device

-Explored the insides of cadavers in the Gross Anatomy Lab.

Could I classify this as a conference? I basically attended various lectures all week, and went through what it is like to be a medical student.

Also would it be inappropriate to list the name of the school on my application? If so how should it be listed?

Thanks

 

[schnauzr]

Hi, well, this is technically unrelated to Work/activity,
but I just wanted to ask LizzyM for her thoughts on this.
It's about the personal statement.

So I took one year off after 2nd year,
did some traveling for four months, some volunteering, some part-time job, wrote the mcat, and stuff.
I didn't achieve much during that time,
although I did mature personally or so I feel.

So I'm not too sure, if I should mention this in my ps.
I mean, it was personally fulfilling, but has less to do with medicine.
But should I still mention something about this?
Thanks so much!

 

[Scean]

What do you all make of this:

Im beginning to wonder if I am doing too much lumping. I have 10 or 11 activities but most of them have a couple things within them. Is this alright? The reason I did it this way is because many things needed to be lumped together to even come to a grad total of an hour or two per week.

Example: Campus extracurriculars

AMSA: meetings, fundraisers, blah
AED: meetings, mentoring program
HERO: Program helping kids infected with/affected by aids
Intramural soccer: Once a week during season and tourney blah...

All in all I describe them all in 500 or less characters so I feel they really dont all need an individual heading.

I also did this for two long standing jobs I held during college, two intermittent jobs, shadowing experiences, two awards, and Some service stuff. About half of my entries involve multiple activities, is that overkill? I just kinda grouped anything related and didnt get into any touchy feelies.

 

[pianola]

Does it matter if 9 of my 15 activities have nothing whatsoever to do with volunteering/medical-clinical experiences/research/teaching/academic scholarship?

Arguably, they've had an impact on my development and have increased my communication skills, ability to work under pressure, ability to plan and organize independently, ability to work with others, manual dexterity, etc.

Perhaps I may need to make the above point clear in the work/activities section...?

 

[moto_za]

...

 

[chad5871]

Does it matter if 9 of my 15 activities have nothing whatsoever to do with volunteering/medical-clinical experiences/research/teaching/academic scholarship?

Arguably, they've had an impact on my development and have increased my communication skills, ability to work under pressure, ability to plan and organize independently, ability to work with others, manual dexterity, etc.

Perhaps I may need to make the above point clear in the work/activities section...?

Isn't that what the personal statement is for?

If you're experiences are varied and interesting, it shouldn't be a problem provided you have the requisite amount of clinical exposure and volunteering covered in the remaining 6 spots.

 

[moto_za]

Hey Everybody,

This is not to counter LizzyM because it is obvious that she knows a ton, but this is what my Kaplan director and mentor told me when I dropped LizzyM's ideas on the description of activities:

"Okay, we apparently have a discrepancy. I did exactly what you
said...only a few lines, my first time I applied. Utter failure. I
went to Chicago for my master's program, and the committee there
advised me to expand DRASTICALLY upon those experiences...just a few
lines about what the activity was, but filling the rest up with
reflection. Then I get into 11/11 schools I interviewed, got in to
another i didn't even have to interview for, and canceled 4 interviews
after my UW acceptance. I realize there are multiple factors
involved, but the positive feedback I got from my interviewers about
my activities leads me to believe this is preferred...after all, you
get 1 page for the personal statement, and if you don't expand with
reflection in your experiences section, that one page is all the
personality the admission committee gets from you about you. Makes
the game a little more on the numbers then, less about the fit.

Something to think about. I don't think the admissions committee at
Loyola University-Chicago would sit with a ~89% acceptance rate of
students in the program if they didn't know what in hell they were
talking about. I'm not trying to change how you want to do your
application, but this definitely worked overwhelmingly well for
me...100% of 11 interviewing schools..."

Just food for thought.

Bump What do people think about this? Should we talk about what we learned?😎

 

[iduwanna]

Bump What do people think about this? Should we talk about what we learned?😎

It seems suspect at best. Too dramatic to be true. Nobody goes from nothing to 100% acceptance rate because they reworded their activities.

Getting a master's and whatever else they did during that time might have accounted for something. Seems wierd that they attribute all of their success to the activities section.

And why does it come off as an ad for Loyola?

 

[chad5871]

It seems suspect at best. Too dramatic to be true. Nobody goes from nothing to 100% acceptance rate because they reworded their activities.

Getting a master's and whatever else they did during that time might have accounted for something. Seems wierd that they attribute all of their success to the activities section.

And why does it come off as an ad for Loyola?

I echo this post. There are far too many possible variables involved (additional work, postbacc, MCAT retake, LORs, personal statement revision, date of application/secondary submission, interviewing skills, etc.) I personally feel that if you "tell all" on the primary application, what are you going to talk about for secondaries and interviews?

 

[PAGuyana]

Hi,

I've been playing chess competitively for over 20 years, winning numerous tournaments. Based on what I've read here, I should list this as a hobby and bullet my noteworthy accomplishments. My questions are: 1) what do I put for the start dates? ; 2) what are the hours per week?;and 3) am I correct with my reasoning above.

The start dates and hours per week make this thing sort of silly. Do they expect me to literally account for the average hours per week I've devoted to this hobby for 20 years and the date I learned to play. Please help, I feel lost and stupid with this stuff.

Thanks.

 

[LizzyM]

Hi,

I've been playing chess competitively for over 20 years, winning numerous tournaments. Based on what I've read here, I should list this as a hobby and bullet my noteworthy accomplishments. My questions are: 1) what do I put for the start dates? ; 2) what are the hours per week?;and 3) am I correct with my reasoning above.

The start dates and hours per week make this thing sort of silly. Do they expect me to literally account for the average hours per week I've devoted to this hobby for 20 years and the date I learned to play. Please help, I feel lost and stupid with this stuff.

Thanks.

If it is been 20 years call it July 1988 for a start date. "Close enough for government work" as one of my fellow adcom member likes to say.

make an estimate of hours: 7 hours per week doesn't sound excessive and maybe it is much higher-- make your best guess of the time you spent during the academic year while in college and explain in the text section your maximum time per week and the time periods that you were that heavily involved. I think this distinguishes you from the person who plays a match with grandpa on Sunday afternoons.

 

[gujuDoc]

Hey Everybody,

This is not to counter LizzyM because it is obvious that she knows a ton, but this is what my Kaplan director and mentor told me when I dropped LizzyM's ideas on the description of activities:

"Okay, we apparently have a discrepancy. I did exactly what you
said...only a few lines, my first time I applied. Utter failure. I
went to Chicago for my master's program, and the committee there
advised me to expand DRASTICALLY upon those experiences...just a few
lines about what the activity was, but filling the rest up with
reflection. Then I get into 11/11 schools I interviewed, got in to
another i didn't even have to interview for, and canceled 4 interviews
after my UW acceptance. I realize there are multiple factors
involved, but the positive feedback I got from my interviewers about
my activities leads me to believe this is preferred...after all, you
get 1 page for the personal statement, and if you don't expand with
reflection in your experiences section, that one page is all the
personality the admission committee gets from you about you. Makes
the game a little more on the numbers then, less about the fit.

Something to think about. I don't think the admissions committee at
Loyola University-Chicago would sit with a ~89% acceptance rate of
students in the program if they didn't know what in hell they were
talking about. I'm not trying to change how you want to do your
application, but this definitely worked overwhelmingly well for
me...100% of 11 interviewing schools..."

Just food for thought.

Somehow I'm willing to bet that the masters program had a bigger part in your acceptance then rewording your application. But if you say so.

 

[PAGuyana]

And what's the deal with the asterisk (*) next to the hours and dates for Work/Activities? I can't find an explanation for it.

 

[chad5871]

And what's the deal with the asterisk (*) next to the hours and dates for Work/Activities? I can't find an explanation for it.

* = required field

"Hours per week" shouldn't have an asterisk. It should only be "Experience Type," "Experience Name," "Start Date," and "End Date."

 

[pianola]

Isn't that what the personal statement is for?

If you're experiences are varied and interesting, it shouldn't be a problem provided you have the requisite amount of clinical exposure and volunteering covered in the remaining 6 spots.

Haha...no the personal statement is for issues related to (1) why I would be a good doctor and (2) how I found a passion for medicine.

It's NOT the story of "why I chose not to become a pianist" and it's not the story of how the 9-10 artistic endeavors on my AMCAS app led me to a career in medicine (because they didn't and it would be a hard case to make anyhow).

 

[jsr52]

Question for Lizzy

Hey Lizzy,

Two summers ago I attended Alumni week with my grandfather at George Washington Medical school.

During this week I:

- Learned about the current trends in medical education, public health, and health policy.

-Learned about patient simulation-based education

-Practiced advanced cataract surgery on a robotic device

-Explored the insides of cadavers in the Gross Anatomy Lab.

Could I classify this as a conference? I basically attended various lectures all week, and went through what it is like to be a medical student.

Also would it be inappropriate to list the name of the school on my application? If so how should it be listed?

Thanks

 

[tncekm]

Okay, so I've realized I need to really reduce the size of my EC descriptions!

Anyway, I have two questions:
1) Should I be listing all of my jobs I held while in school? If so, should I put it all under a single paid employment activity and then elaborate a little in the comments section? Otherwise I end up using up almost all my space with jobs.
2) If I spent quite a bit of time tutoring my classmates (non-paid), should I mention it i the EC section? (I liked doing it, and I didn't have time to take the actual SI offers)

Thanks!

 

[ssh18]

I attended a summer program at an university where as part of the program we took a 6 week course in anatomy and biochemistry. We also shadowed doctors etc. Now we didn't get any credit for the program or anything like that. At the end, we got a certificate saying that we completed the program. Do I need to send AMCAS a letter from the registrar's office at this school and have them say that 'no transcript is available?' it wasn't even a class..which is why I'm confused. Also, naturally this school has no record of me in their registrar's office since I never took a course there. So if I have the program director send AMCAS a letter saying that I completed the program and that no official transcript is available for students who took part in the program then would that be sufficient? or does the registrar still need to send a mail? Furthermore, do I need to list this under one of the colleges/universities? This seems so bizarre considering I never attended the school for a course. Anyways, should I list this as one of the schools and then generate a transcript request form?

On those lines, if the AMCAS receives transcripts from your schools but you haven't submitted your application yet, is there a place on your application that you can check where it verifies that AMCAS as received the transcript? and if so, where can we look?

Thanks so much!

 

[pianola]

I attended a summer program at an university where as part of the program we took a 6 week course in anatomy and biochemistry. We also shadowed doctors etc. Now we didn't get any credit for the program or anything like that. At the end, we got a certificate saying that we completed the program. Do I need to send AMCAS a letter from the registrar's office at this school and have them say that 'no transcript is available?' it wasn't even a class..which is why I'm confused. Also, naturally this school has no record of me in their registrar's office since I never took a course there. So if I have the program director send AMCAS a letter saying that I completed the program and that no official transcript is available for students who took part in the program then would that be sufficient? or does the registrar still need to send a mail? Furthermore, do I need to list this under one of the colleges/universities? This seems so bizarre considering I never attended the school for a course. Anyways, should I list this as one of the schools and then generate a transcript request form?

On those lines, if the AMCAS receives transcripts from your schools but you haven't submitted your application yet, is there a place on your application that you can check where it verifies that AMCAS as received the transcript? and if so, where can we look?

Thanks so much!

(1) Unless you got a grade in the course, do not submit it as a college/universities attended -- submit as a work/activities (no transcript necessary, clearly).

(2) To check transcripts: Go to Main Menu, click under the part where it says you haven't submitted, and it will tell you what you want to know.

 

[ssh18]

thank you so much!

 

[DrJD]

LizzyM,

What do you think about a film award? I was involved in a 24 hour film competition and for it and the leadership of my team, I won Best Editor and Best Cinematographer... Is that worth putting in this section?

Thanks for any thoughts!

 

[lottaluv]

Hi Lizzy M,

My PI is currently working on writing a scientific article on her clinical research project that I contributed to and plans to add me as an author. If the work is not complete and has not yet been published is it obvious that I shouldnt list it on the activities as a future publication.

 

[LizzyM]

Hi Lizzy M,

My PI is currently working on writing a scientific article on her clinical research project that I contributed to and plans to add me as an author. If the work is not complete and has not yet been published is it obvious that I shouldn't list it on the activities as a future publication.

Yes, it is obvious that you shouldn't list it.

 

[LizzyM]

LizzyM,

What do you think about a film award? I was involved in a 24 hour film competition and for it and the leadership of my team, I won Best Editor and Best Cinematographer... Is that worth putting in this section?

Thanks for any thoughts!

Sounds different and it makes you sound "interesting". Go for it.

 

[Begaster]

I'm sure this has been asked before, but it's a long, long thread, so:

How many hobbies/ECs should we list? Should we fill up to the 15 with them, or is it okay to have fewer than 15 and omit fluff?

 

[schismal]

On a similar note, is fluff inherently damaging to an application? If there's nothing else you can think of, why not add an item or two of fluff instead of leaving the blanks?

 

[Begaster]

Actually, I just realized I hit the 15 cap without any. I thought I had like three or four more slots to fill up.

That being said, I do have an entry about a book club I do with a few friends. Which works well for me, because I adore reading. Is this too snarky for the short blurb, though?

"I started a book club with a couple of friends about two years ago. We meet every other week for a few hours to grab dinner and drinks, discuss the book, and spend the last half-hour arguing over where we should go eat next time."

😛