How many non-clinical volunteering hours is enough?

[Medical Bear]

Hi guys I was wondering how many non-clinical volunteering hours are needed to have a solid chance at getting an acceptance. I know there is no "perfect number" but would appreciate some insight. Thanks in advance!

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[El-Rami]

I don't think it's hours that are important but rather your dedication and consistency in your volunteer work. Find an organization and stick with it. Try to get some sort of position within the org if possible. Also, don't be like the special snowflakes that will volunteer thousands of hours by doing something pointless. I remember reading somewhere about a guy that volunteered like 7,000 hours by snoozing inside a volunteer fire department and not actually doing anything the whole time. You need to do something that you feel is fulfilling and gives you a sense of making the community a better place. For example, you may enjoy volunteering for a charity that helps children cope with bullying and/or social issues. It's the substance of what you do that is important, not the hours.

One final thing: do not forget you have a life outside of pre-med related activities. Do not feel a need to neglect socializing with friends and other students in favor of volunteering hundreds or thousands of hours. Volunteering should be one of many aspects of your life you keep in balance.

 

[Goro]

Cuttie cutter candidates have ~100, the good candidates have > 200.

Hi guys I was wondering how many non-clinical volunteering hours are needed to have a solid chance at getting an acceptance. I know there is no "perfect number" but would appreciate some insight. Thanks in advance!

 

[Petrichor1]

Cuttie cutter candidates have ~100, the good candidates have > 200.

would research come under that? Just wondering

 

[WedgeDawg]

I can't give you a number. It depends on what you do during those hours. Some applicants have fewer hours but are very productive during those hours.

 

[El-Rami]

would research come under that? Just wondering

No, but research definitely is something that will make you a more well-rounded applicant. I believe as long as you are consistent with your volunteering and narrow your activities to one or two orgs, you should be fine. Some people can rack up hundreds of hours of meaningful volunteer experience while others may struggle to get 100. Life circumstances can affect what you're able to do with your time, so just be sure to make an honest effort. We all do what we can.

 

[LizzyM]

Its not the number of hours, although AMCAS asks that you report that, but the duration in weeks or months. Volunteer until the need is no longer there in your community or until your own life circumstances dictate that you move on.

 

[Goro]

Nope. Research is research. It's not a display of your altruism.

would research come under that? Just wondering

 

[bootsandspooky]

Regarding longevity vs. number of hours - I'm a 5th year student graduating Spring 2016 who decided last spring that I wanted to pursue medical school and become a doctor. Because of this recent decision, most of my activities only started this past summer (I was industry-focused before that - engineering honors society and 2800 hours as an engineering co-op). I'm currently planning on applying next cycle - will it hurt me that I will only have had 1 year of volunteering and research (~150h non-clinical, ~200h clinical, ~300h research, ~40h shadowing)? I've been considering taking a second gap year to show my commitment to these activities (which I really enjoy doing), but I know that I could also put my projected future hours on my application, as I plan on continuing volunteering through my gap year. Do you think I would be able to apply next cycle with the above hours + projected hours, or should I do a second gap year to ensure that I am more competitive?

 

[WedgeDawg]

Regarding longevity vs. number of hours - I'm a 5th year student graduating Spring 2016 who decided last spring that I wanted to pursue medical school and become a doctor. Because of this recent decision, most of my activities only started this past summer (I was industry-focused before that - engineering honors society and 2800 hours as an engineering co-op). I'm currently planning on applying next cycle - will it hurt me that I will only have had 1 year of volunteering and research (~150h non-clinical, ~200h clinical, ~300h research, ~40h shadowing)? I've been considering taking a second gap year to show my commitment to these activities (which I really enjoy doing), but I know that I could also put my projected future hours on my application, as I plan on continuing volunteering through my gap year. Do you think I would be able to apply next cycle with the above hours + projected hours, or should I do a second gap year to ensure that I am more competitive?

You already have more volunteering hours (both clinical and nonclinical) than I did, but you have far fewer research hours. 300 hours of research is less than a summer's worth. The potential issue I see here is not that you haven't done enough all-around, but that you haven't really demonstrated commitment to any particular thing. Regardless of whether this is accurate in reality, the impressive these hours and commitments give is that you are merely a box checker.

 

[Promethean]

Regarding longevity vs. number of hours - I'm a 5th year student graduating Spring 2016 who decided last spring that I wanted to pursue medical school and become a doctor. Because of this recent decision, most of my activities only started this past summer (I was industry-focused before that - engineering honors society and 2800 hours as an engineering co-op). I'm currently planning on applying next cycle - will it hurt me that I will only have had 1 year of volunteering and research (~150h non-clinical, ~200h clinical, ~300h research, ~40h shadowing)? I've been considering taking a second gap year to show my commitment to these activities (which I really enjoy doing), but I know that I could also put my projected future hours on my application, as I plan on continuing volunteering through my gap year. Do you think I would be able to apply next cycle with the above hours + projected hours, or should I do a second gap year to ensure that I am more competitive?

You should apply!

If you are only doing things because you have to do them in order to get a seat, that isn't going to be terribly impressive, even if you spend another year or two racking up hours. If you have been following sincere interests and doing work that is meaningful to you, then that is going to shine through and you will be a great applicant.

 

[bootsandspooky]

You already have more volunteering hours (both clinical and nonclinical) than I did, but you have far fewer research hours. 300 hours of research is less than a summer's worth. The potential issue I see here is not that you haven't done enough all-around, but that you haven't really demonstrated commitment to any particular thing. Regardless of whether this is accurate in reality, the impressive these hours and commitments give is that you are merely a box checker.

Thanks for your response - I definitely understand the feeling that I am checking boxes, and while that is partly the case because these seem to be some of the important things to get into medical school, I also started doing research and more volunteering because I felt like I finally had the motivation to do so. Research is low because I have only been doing it part-time. And BTW, the hours I gave are estimates of what they will be as of next June. Anyway, do you have any recommendations for how I could come off as less of a box-checker? Should I take the second gap year to commit further to something? And do you think it would help me at all that I was an R&D co-op engineer for 1.5 years?

You should apply!

If you are only doing things because you have to do them in order to get a seat, that isn't going to be terribly impressive, even if you spend another year or two racking up hours. If you have been following sincere interests and doing work that is meaningful to you, then that is going to shine through and you will be a great applicant.

Thank you for your response as well - I have been involved in these areas because I knew they were the huge weaknesses in my application, but as I mentioned above, I really became much more motivated to become involved in these activities once I realized I wanted to pursue medicine (particularly beginning research and doing more non-clinical volunteering). I've definitely been doing things that are meaningful to me, but I hope that I won't get dismissed due to appearing like a box-checker - will admissions committees understand that I only recently decided on med school and that this led to me having fewer hours at the time of application?

Thank you both again 🙂 I really do appreciate the feedback and criticism, as I want to be the best applicant I can be.

 

[Promethean]

Anyway, do you have any recommendations for how I could come off as less of a box-checker? Should I take the second gap year to commit further to something? And do you think it would help me at all that I was an R&D co-op engineer for 1.5 years?
Will admissions committees understand that I only recently decided on med school and that this led to me having fewer hours at the time of application?

Thank you both again 🙂 I really do appreciate the feedback and criticism, as I want to be the best applicant I can be.

Even box checkers get seats, if they are good enough applicants. I would go so far as to say that the majority of successful applicants have done some degree of box checking. There are things that are required in order to be a successful medical school applicant. What matters is that when you did them, that they meant something, that you learned something, that you contributed in some real way. You have to go through the motions, but you can't ONLY be going through the motions, right?

I had zero hours of research... well, like a tiny handful, from helping with a clinical research project, but I don't even recall if I reported those because they were so insignificant. Instead, I had some interesting non-medical life experiences to discuss, like how I ran a not-just-for-profit coffee shop / self-supporting community center for a couple of years. And all that clinical experience as an OR nurse. Your engineering experiences sound cool... especially to someone who just heard 20 other people talk about their medical mission trip (vacation) and other cookie cutter stories. Being able to discuss something that required you to think through problems, work with a team, make complicated plans and see them through... that is at least as informative about the kind of physician you will be as how many hours you spent cleaning glassware and trying not to be underfoot in a lab. (Don't get me wrong, many people actually do research... but a lot of what are reported as research hours is really more like shadowing scientists.)

So, if you don't want to be a box checker, but still want to be a competitive applicant, go ahead and check those boxes. Have those experiences. Just be sure that you are really invested in them, that you put yourself into them and get more out of them than just a high number of hours. The interviewers will be able to hear the difference when you can speak about your experiences with confidence and passion.

 

[Planes2Doc]

Non-clinical volunteering is usually the one you can get creative with and actually enjoy. Even if you're not the volunteering type, you can find some really cool things to do. So if anything, you want to do minimal clinical volunteering to get by, and then do more non-clinical volunteering. It's something you can enjoy, and can help you connect with ADCOMs beyond the same old clinical crap they see over and over again.

 

[Petrichor1]

Nope. Research is research. It's not a display of your altruism.

OK cool