How Important are Extracurriculars?

[Ja mes]

Hi guys,

So I'm a junior biochemistry major right now with cGPA 3.90 and sGPA 3.85 (quite high, I know). I haven't taken the MCAT yet, but I plan to do so fall of 2015 after a good bit of studying through the summer (applying early 2016). I expect a very competitive MCAT score, frankly. All sounds good so far, right?

However, I have virtually no ECs. I'm a bit of a loner - I am hearing impaired (I wear hearing aids in both ears, I was born with severe nerve damage), and large groups of people are really taxing for me - so I dislike clubs and things like that. I haven't assumed any significant leadership roles or anything like that. But I know that I want to be a pediatrician. I am a patient person and I enjoy talking to and helping kids, and I'm about to start shadowing a DO at a small pediatric clinic. I'm hoping I can get 100+ hours doing that and a solid LOR from him.

My questions are:
1) Do you think my lack of extracurriculars will hold me back despite my relatively outstanding GPA and probably MCAT? Am I too boring a person for medical school?
2) Should I absolutely get a few things like non-medical volunteering under my belt, even though I don't really have a passion for it? I honestly feel like I'm just going to get in the way when I shadow next week. I want to be useful.
3) Is a hundred+ hours of shadowing at a small pediatric clinic enough exposure to the medical field?

I've also considered doing some undergraduate research, but I figure since I want to go into primary care it would be time/effort inefficiently spent. And I don't want to waste my professor's time doing research I don't have sincere passion for (even though I think drug design and biochemistry in general is really cool).

Also, I'm posting this in pre-osteopathic because I figure that my weakness in this area makes MD pretty unlikely.

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[chizledfrmstone]

Hi guys,

So I'm a junior biochemistry major right now with cGPA 3.90 and sGPA 3.85 (quite high, I know). I haven't taken the MCAT yet, but I plan to do so fall of 2015 after a good bit of studying through the summer (applying early 2016). I expect a very competitive MCAT score, frankly. All sounds good so far, right?

However, I have virtually no ECs. I'm a bit of a loner - I am hearing impaired (I wear hearing aids in both ears, I was born with severe nerve damage), and large groups of people are really taxing for me - so I dislike clubs and things like that. I haven't assumed any significant leadership roles or anything like that. But I know that I want to be a pediatrician. I am a patient person and I enjoy talking to and helping kids, and I'm about to start shadowing a DO at a small pediatric clinic. I'm hoping I can get 100+ hours doing that and a solid LOR from him.

My questions are:
1) Do you think my lack of extracurriculars will hold me back despite my relatively outstanding GPA and probably MCAT? Am I too boring a person for medical school?
2) Should I absolutely get a few things like non-medical volunteering under my belt, even though I don't really have a passion for it? I honestly feel like I'm just going to get in the way when I shadow next week. I want to be useful.
3) Is a hundred+ hours of shadowing at a small pediatric clinic enough exposure to the medical field?

I've also considered doing some undergraduate research, but I figure since I want to go into primary care it would be time/effort inefficiently spent. And I don't want to waste my professor's time doing research I don't have sincere passion for (even though I think drug design and biochemistry in general is really cool).

Also, I'm posting this in pre-osteopathic because I figure that my weakness in this area makes MD pretty unlikely.

You extrude great confidence. Interviewers will love you.

 

[Ja mes]

You extrude great confidence. Interviewers will love you.

Thank you! I was simply trying my best to go over my stats without sounding pompous/superior. Sometimes I feel like it's all fake, that I haven't genuinely earned my good grades, but I'm sure everyone else in undergrad feels that way, too.

 

[chizledfrmstone]

Thank you! I was simply trying my best to go over my stats without sounding pompous/superior. Sometimes I feel like it's all fake, that I haven't genuinely earned my good grades, but I'm sure everyone else in undergrad feels that way, too.

I knew someone with a 3.8/37 MCAT. He didn't get into medical school because he didn't have any ECs.

I should add he only applied to allopathic schools.

 

[Ja mes]

Dang, that's crazy. He really should've applied to DO schools as well. Did he really not do any shadowing/internships, or just nothing besides those (like me)?

 

[chizledfrmstone]

Dang, that's crazy. He really should've applied to DO schools as well. Did he really not do any shadowing/internships, or just nothing besides those (like me)?

Some shadowing I believe.
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The best person to answer your OP is @Goro

 

[frosted_flake]

Hi guys,

So I'm a junior biochemistry major right now with cGPA 3.90 and sGPA 3.85 (quite high, I know). I haven't taken the MCAT yet, but I plan to do so fall of 2015 after a good bit of studying through the summer (applying early 2016). I expect a very competitive MCAT score, frankly. All sounds good so far, right?

However, I have virtually no ECs. I'm a bit of a loner - I am hearing impaired (I wear hearing aids in both ears, I was born with severe nerve damage), and large groups of people are really taxing for me - so I dislike clubs and things like that. I haven't assumed any significant leadership roles or anything like that. But I know that I want to be a pediatrician. I am a patient person and I enjoy talking to and helping kids, and I'm about to start shadowing a DO at a small pediatric clinic. I'm hoping I can get 100+ hours doing that and a solid LOR from him.

My questions are:
1) Do you think my lack of extracurriculars will hold me back despite my relatively outstanding GPA and probably MCAT? Am I too boring a person for medical school?
2) Should I absolutely get a few things like non-medical volunteering under my belt, even though I don't really have a passion for it? I honestly feel like I'm just going to get in the way when I shadow next week. I want to be useful.
3) Is a hundred+ hours of shadowing at a small pediatric clinic enough exposure to the medical field?

I've also considered doing some undergraduate research, but I figure since I want to go into primary care it would be time/effort inefficiently spent. And I don't want to waste my professor's time doing research I don't have sincere passion for (even though I think drug design and biochemistry in general is really cool).

Also, I'm posting this in pre-osteopathic because I figure that my weakness in this area makes MD pretty unlikely.

1. Yes. You don't seem boring, but it will serve you well to get out of your comfort zone. You say you like working with kids? Maybe a program like big brother/big sister would be a good thing for you to try out.
2. Yes. You will feel like you are in the way when shadowing. Just stand in the corner and don't say a word.... shadow...
3. I think 50(ish) hours is the consensus here. It may be good to look at other specialties too, but if you like peds, you might be okay. You never know though, your interests may change after some shadowing experience. I know mine did.

 

[Goro]

Yes. We, and other schools, have rejected high GPA/high MCAT applicants because they've never touch or even looked at a patient. Let's put it this way: would you buy a new car without test driving it? Buy a new suit or dress without trying it on? You need to show us that you know what you're getting into, and that your really do want to be around sick people for the next 30-40 years. "saying " I like kids" isn't good enough.

My questions are:
1) Do you think my lack of extracurriculars will hold me back despite my relatively outstanding GPA and probably MCAT? Am I too boring a person for medical school?

These types of things are also required, but not sufficient for entry to medical school. You need to show us that you're an altruistic person. A career in Medicine is a reward for being a good student, it's a privilege. there's a difference between doing what's convenient, and what's necessary. You're not entitled to be a doctor, you have to earn it. And in shadowing, you're not there to be a doctor's assistant...you're there to see what his/hjer day is like, and to see the difference between the specialites...like radiology vs ER vs Primary Care.


2) Should I absolutely get a few things like non-medical volunteering under my belt, even though I don't really have a passion for it? I honestly feel like I'm just going to get in the way when I shadow next week. I want to be useful.

No. As shadowing experience, yes.

3) Is a hundred+ hours of shadowing at a small pediatric clinic enough exposure to the medical field?

For DO schools it probably won't be an issue.

I've also considered doing some undergraduate research, but I figure since I want to go into primary care it would be time/effort inefficiently spent. And I don't want to waste my professor's time doing research I don't have sincere passion for (even though I think drug design and biochemistry in general is really cool).

As I mentioned above, this type of person would get quickly rejected at my school as well.

I knew someone with a 3.8/37 MCAT. He didn't get into medical school because he didn't have any ECs.
I should add he only applied to allopathic schools.

I've had hearing impaired students in the past. If they could do it, you can too.

However, I have virtually no ECs. I'm a bit of a loner - I am hearing impaired (I wear hearing aids in both ears, I was born with severe nerve damage), and large groups of people are really taxing for me - so I dislike clubs and things like that. I haven't assumed any significant leadership roles or anything like that.

 

[Ja mes]

Thank you emilym and goro for the honest and constructive responses.

I definitely see your point, actions speak louder than words. I'm going to seek out extracurriculars that prove beyond what words can say that I enjoy being around and care about children. If my pediatrician had caught my hearing disability earlier in my first three years, I probably would not have struggled to learn English (my only language) so much during the years after. I'd love to prevent things like that for other kids. But I can't just say that, gotta show it.

I'm definitely going to do whatever it takes to become a doctor - it's what I want to do. Better to leave my comfort zone now than later. Thanks for clarifying how relevant extracurriculars are to medical school acceptance. Not many people seem to have my problem after I did some searching around SDN!

 

[Mx300]

Don't assume that because you have a high Gpa that it will translate over to a high mcat. I personally know someone with a 4.0 in a tough major and the best they could score was a 24. The mcat is a different animal. You'll also see people with barely a 3.0 scoring In the mid 30s. Study hard and don't assume it could make you overconfident and affect your study habits.

 

[Ja mes]

I'll keep that in mind - I'm going to consciously study the specific subjects I hate to make sure I'm not just reviewing stuff I already know. I won't let confidence get the best of me.

 

[Ja mes]

^ No, that would be weird, but if they were asked "why pediatrics?" it would be an appropriate but boring/bad answer. I think Goro used that as an example because I said I want to go into pediatrics.

 

[studentp0x]

Do you have any hobbies or interests? You should be showing a mixture of clinical experience and involvement, leadership, community service, dedication/commitment as well as research (somewhat, more so for MD though not something that's needed if everything else is top notch).

 

[vagitarian001]

People say "I like kids" as an answer to "why medicine"?

 

[Ja mes]

My hobbies are not very varied: reading sci-fi, playing PC games, and Netflix. More the latter two than the former, lately. I used to lift weights semi-seriously, but I've gone off that a bit (still in shape, though). I don't party, I do homework on Friday nights, that's just who I am. I know introverts make just as good doctors as extroverts.

I suspect that most people who do volunteering and most other ECs before medical school do it because it's seen as basically necessary to get into medical school, not because they actually want to do it (i.e., they would probably not do it if not aiming for med school). But most people wouldn't admit that to ADCOMs/interviewers, would they?

That is not to say I can't dedicate myself to things I wouldn't do otherwise. The fact that I don't really have any friends apart from my girlfriend has kept me pretty sheltered. I didn't start college as a pre-med so I haven't had much medical advising. I'm a natural leader when I work in groups, but of course that's not good enough. I had an assistant TA position for a general bio lab last semester, and I taught one lab by myself. It hardly feels worth mentioning because it was easy to do.

I've emailed my university's HCSAC (a student action committee) and am going to one of their general meetings to maybe get involved with one of their projects. But one of their recent projects was the whole campus-wide smoking ban thing, which I think is a violation of personal freedom... Hopefully they have other projects I can agree with. Is this a good thing to do?

As for clinical experience, volunteering, and internships - is it okay if I don't do these until my gap year? There is something 100% preventing me from doing them right now that I can't disclose here.

 

[studentp0x]

My hobbies are not very varied: reading sci-fi, playing PC games, and Netflix. More the latter two than the former, lately. I used to lift weights semi-seriously, but I've gone off that a bit (still in shape, though). I don't party, I do homework on Friday nights, that's just who I am. I know introverts make just as good doctors as extroverts.

I suspect that most people who do volunteering and most other ECs before medical school do it because it's seen as basically necessary to get into medical school, not because they actually want to do it (i.e., they would probably not do it if not aiming for med school). But most people wouldn't admit that to ADCOMs/interviewers, would they?

That is not to say I can't dedicate myself to things I wouldn't do otherwise. The fact that I don't really have any friends apart from my girlfriend has kept me pretty sheltered. I didn't start college as a pre-med so I haven't had much medical advising. I'm a natural leader when I work in groups, but of course that's not good enough. I had an assistant TA position for a general bio lab last semester, and I taught one lab by myself. It hardly feels worth mentioning because it was easy to do.

I've emailed my university's HCSAC (a student action committee) and am going to one of their general meetings to maybe get involved with one of their projects. But one of their recent projects was the whole campus-wide smoking ban thing, which I think is a violation of personal freedom... Hopefully they have other projects I can agree with. Is this a good thing to do?

As for clinical experience, volunteering, and internships - is it okay if I don't do these until my gap year? There is something 100% preventing me from doing them right now that I can't disclose here.

Can almost guarantee that having a gf has kept you fully sane and happy with everything.

Clinical exp is definitely okay for a gap yea, though non-clinical volunteering being done last minute doesn't really make it genuine. I would still advise you to do it though.

 

[dutchie000]

Awee, do you really think people only do ECs to get into school? Maybe it's just who I am, but I've been doing ECs for things I've been passionately involved in since high school like Relay for Life. Someone earlier mentioned Big Brothers, Big Sisters. That would be an awesome thing to do, or anything really to serve underprivileged kids. There is this program around where I live called CASA- Court Appointed Special Advocates for children. I REALLY wanted to do that, but unfortunately my job conflicts with the times necessary for training. There are definitely things that you can to do volunteer that work for introverts. There is something out there for everyone. Maybe check out free clinics in the area you can volunteer at, stuff you can do to be working one-on-one with a patient (once your situation has cleared up).

Check it out http://www.casaforchildren.org/site/c.mtJSJ7MPIsE/b.5301295/k.BE9A/Home.htm

Look for things that fit with your interests. Also, some advice I would give is to keep an open mind. You never know what you might come across that sparks your interest, and some things you try that you think you might be interested in may not be quite what you thought. I did research with a professor and it was an awesome experience to determine that I HATE research. However, it got me exposed to it and I became really close with the professor. I also had to do labor and delivery clinical hours for an EMT course I took, and despite fainting during the "birth video" in high school and being terrified of seeing it all in person it was truly a beautiful (yet disgusting at the same time) thing and I look forward to going back next time I can.

Medical school will *hopefully* continuously expose you to new things. Don't forget, in your rotations you will be forced out of your comfort zone whether being in the operating room or being in a room with a chatty patient even though you're an introvert. I think volunteering will help you with that. Just keep that in mind.

Do what you're interested in. It will make you stand out as a more unique applicant. You never know, you may just like it

 

[polylux]

My hobbies are not very varied: reading sci-fi, playing PC games, and Netflix. More the latter two than the former, lately. I used to lift weights semi-seriously, but I've gone off that a bit (still in shape, though). I don't party, I do homework on Friday nights, that's just who I am. I know introverts make just as good doctors as extroverts.

I suspect that most people who do volunteering and most other ECs before medical school do it because it's seen as basically necessary to get into medical school, not because they actually want to do it (i.e., they would probably not do it if not aiming for med school). But most people wouldn't admit that to ADCOMs/interviewers, would they?

...

I have approximately 1200 hrs of community service... none of them were just for the sake of getting into medical school. A lot of the other premeds at my school actually y'know, enjoy helping others and we do service because we want to be of service. I didn't serve because I want to do medicine, I do medicine because I want to serve. Sorry, I just don't understand what you were trying to say with that statement. There are tons of service opportunities out there - I've done multiple events related to video games because I like video games too. You just have to look a little harder for those opportunities, or make your own.

I don't party either, I work Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon nights because that's just what I do. My hobbies are photography, reading, and PC video games (namely LoL). I'm not super extroverted, but I have some good ECs and leadership positions because I wanted to make a difference before medical school. Other than my boyfriend, I can count on one hand the people I actually talk to regularly as friends and have fingers left over. Socialization tires me out. So I guess we're pretty similar, other than the HOH.

Sorry, I don't mean to compare. I guess I just felt like your post was very flippant of the effort a lot of applicants have put into their last few years, including myself. It seems to me like you just really didn't put in any effort into the last few years, just figured your intelligence alone was enough to get you in. But intelligence alone doesn't make a doctor. You didn't develop your people skills, your empathy, or your compassion. You say you're a natural leader, but you don't have any leadership positions. You say you like kids, but you haven't done anything with kids. What's the use of being smart/compassionate/friendly/whatever if you're not going to do anything with it?

Anyways, I'm no adcom. Just my two cents, whatever they're worth. Good luck this cycle.

 

[Ja mes]

@studentp0x, yup, she absolutely has. She's going to pharmacy school. And that's good to know, thank you.

@dutchie000, that casa thing looks really interesting, I'm looking into that more. You're right that volunteering will help expose me to new things and get me out of this comfort zone. You sound like such an interesting person.

@polylux, I'm sorry if I came off like I was disregarding the more genuine among pre-meds, that wasn't my intention at all. I actually agree with your assessment of me - I haven't really put any effort into anything beyond my university studies. It does look like I'm just another smartass thinking he can get by on intelligence alone. However, I've always had anxiety about not doing enough. The truth? I'd rather stay home and spend any free time I'm lucky to have on myself and what I enjoy. Maybe I'm too selfish to be a good doctor. Do I want the world to be a better place? Yes, of course. And I love that feeling when I give good advice to someone. Maybe I just haven't discovered my altruistic side. You've given me a lot to think about. I pride myself on being genuine in everything; I don't want to go out volunteering for underprivileged kids wishing I was home playing video games instead. I would feel like crap. I'm not sure how to throw myself into altruistic ECs without feeling like a hypocrite.

 

[polylux]

I think maybe you should look into tutoring and mentoring activities - volunteer activities that will allow you to work directly with kids in an "advising" role that you enjoy. I have activities that I've done that I really don't like either - namely activities like food bank services where you just package things, and I agree that it does not feel genuine and it sucks. If you're into video games, maybe look into organizations like Child's Play where you can fundraise with gaming events. I'm actually working with a clinic right now using video games to help treat autism. If you like sci-fi, maybe work with kids through scifi literary groups? You can be altruistic while still working with your interests. Again, it's just a matter of effort. Try looking to DoSomething.org for some easy ideas.

 

[Ja mes]

Wow, a clinic using video games to help treat autism? That's very interesting. Do you actually play the games with them, and if so, what else do you do besides that? I'm just curious.

Anyway, don't worry - I will use your advice. I'm going to find at least one thing that involves me in some "advising" role, perhaps something both my girlfriend and I can do this summer (or not, she's studying for the PCAT). I really like the thought of mentoring.

I'm blown away by the amount of sincere and knowledgeable advice and feedback I've been given in this thread. Thank you, everyone.