Hobbies in Experiences Section?

[100chickadees]

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Hey guys! Working on my experiences section and I've got everything down. I have 12 relevant, meaningful experiences that are all volunteering, research, ECs, etc. I also have a few hobbies that are really important to me including running, music, rock-climbing, backpacking, and hiking. I was wondering if I should make a 13th experience summarizing some of these hobbies or if it would just be superfluous.

 

[arc5005]

Ditto that. I'm interested in knowing if we should use one of the experiences section for hobbies as well.

 

[curbsideconsult]

OP you really want to dot your i's and cross your t's, eh?

I definitely would add a hobby if it really is a part of who you are/what you do AND it's kind of unique. It'll give you a lot more to talk about during interviews (though, in my case, none of my interviewers brought it up and it made me kind of sad). Even though you're a unique person and there's no one like you in the world, blah, blah, blah, every medical school candidate does pretty much the same stuff in order to get into medical school. So if you like to rebuild classic cars or do woodworking or are active in your community baroque orchestra you should include those. As for something like running/hiking/etc. I would include it only if you can add something special about it. Like you run 8 marathons a year or you do the type of rockclimbing where you don't use equipment. Others might say include it anyway even if there's no unique aspect to your hobby.

 

[Nickraj13]

In my experiences section, I used one to talk about my marathons. I described why I run them, how I've grown from them, etc. Basically describing the qualities that it takes to run marathons, and how they relate to becoming a doctor. Good luck!

 

[100chickadees]

OP you really want to dot your i's and cross your t's, eh?

I definitely would add a hobby if it really is a part of who you are/what you do AND it's kind of unique. It'll give you a lot more to talk about during interviews (though, in my case, none of my interviewers brought it up and it made me kind of sad). Even though you're a unique person and there's no one like you in the world, blah, blah, blah, every medical school candidate does pretty much the same stuff in order to get into medical school. So if you like to rebuild classic cars or do woodworking or are active in your community baroque orchestra you should include those. As for something like running/hiking/etc. I would include it only if you can add something special about it. Like you run 8 marathons a year or you do the type of rockclimbing where you don't use equipment. Others might say include it anyway even if there's no unique aspect to your hobby.

Hahaha you've noticed my extensive posting, huh? This seems like sound advice. I think I might just mention the music, then, since I frequent local open mics! Thanks for taking the time to answer my many questions ^.^

 

[John1513]

Be careful putting too much down for hobbies and experiences.

I have known someone who was ripped into for having what seemed to be “Willy Nilly” random hobbies and interests listed - makes them seem flakey and not committed.

Have the hobbies “fit” into the bigger picture of you and be prepared to dive in and explain each and every one potentially.

 

[scbiology]

When including the race in your experiences section, did you put the average total hours as the hours you spent training and running the race? Or just the hours spent running the race?