How many spots for ECs on AMCAS? Did you use all of them?

[metalgearHMN]

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Title is pretty self-explanatory. I think I read somewhere that there are 12 spots.

Did you guys fill up all of them? I think it would be hard to write in 12, w/o going into clubs and some meaningless fluff.

 

[TheRealMD]

There are 15 spots. I used 11. Just try to group stuff together unless it is absolutely worth putting it by itself.

 

[wizenedone]

Here is a similar thread that might help you:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=281807

 

[ghostfoot]

There are 15 spots. I used 11. Just try to group stuff together unless it is absolutely worth putting it by itself.

Do you think only using 5 or 6 would seem like too few? I can't imagine being able to use many more than that.

 

[TheRealMD]

Do you think only using 5 or 6 would seem like too few? I can't imagine being able to use many more than that.

Stick to 9-11.

 

[BigRedPremed]

Some people put 15, some people put 10, some people put 6. I honestly think though, that each person has only 2-3 REALLY good EC's that define them. Ultimately we all have a few hours of soup kitchen work and we all need a few hours of hospital volunteering and we've probably all worked for a semester or two as a lab assistant. But, I think it is only the quality of the top 2-4 EC's of each applicant that the adcom pays attention to.

 

[wizenedone]

Some people put 15, some people put 10, some people put 6. I honestly think though, that each person has only 2-3 REALLY good EC's that define them. Ultimately we all have a few hours of soup kitchen work and we all need a few hours of hospital volunteering and we've probably all worked for a semester or two as a lab assistant. But, I think it is only the quality of the top 2-4 EC's of each applicant that the adcom pays attention to.

I agree. Good response. 👍

 

[bodonid]

The SDN accepted answers aren't always the correct ones. LizzyM might disagree with me, but I think putting less than 10 is a bad idea. Almost anyone can come up with 12-15 easily, and some AdComs might be turned off by seeing 5 or 6. I think for every AdCom that reads all of your ECs and is annoyed by a weak one, there will be several that don't even read them and only look at the numbers/titles.

 

[DreamyKid]

Did you guys group all volunteering into one? For example I volunteer with a lot of campus organizations (e.g soup kitchen, tutoring at a HS, volunteer at diabetic clinics, etc). How should I note these volunteering activities?

 

[wizenedone]

Did you guys group all volunteering into one? For example I volunteer with a lot of campus organizations (e.g soup kitchen, tutoring at a HS, volunteer at diabetic clinics, etc). How should I note these volunteering activities?

Personally, I wouldn't group different volunteer activities with major time commitments into one. Usually, you can group SAME volunteer activities that you've done in different stints. I think you can group all of the shadowing experiences. Otherwise, I wouldn't group DIFFERENT volunteer activities as they are unique in their own way.

 

[bodonid]

Did you guys group all volunteering into one? For example I volunteer with a lot of campus organizations (e.g soup kitchen, tutoring at a HS, volunteer at diabetic clinics, etc). How should I note these volunteering activities?

You can use a few spots for volunteering if you want. Habitat, tutoring, and humane society all got a spot on mine. Especially for state schools.

 

[MossPoh]

I think time commitment and devotion are more critical than quantity. I was president of a club. It took a lot more time than some of the other stuff. I"m sure I could string together 40 things if I wanted, but who cares about 5 hours one day?

 

[bozz]

Did any of you list hobbies o.0
like playing a sport for fun?

Also would research you did at a University while in high school count?

 

[tealovr]

Did any of you list hobbies o.0
like playing a sport for fun?

Sure, I listed camping/hiking as a hobby and wrote about a trip I took over the summer trekking around national parks.

 

[bodonid]

Did any of you list hobbies o.0
like playing a sport for fun?

Also would research you did at a University while in high school count?

sure, if you think it counts, then it does, just don't say that you were president of some club in HS

Sports and hobbies is a good place to combine. you can title it intermural sports or something like that, and mention soccer, raquetball, and hiking all in the same section.

 

[bozz]

Only asking b/c it asks for "post-secondary" activities doesn't it?

When I was a senior in highschool, I did a research project with someone at the university I currently attend. Although I continued research in college, it was not with the same person. It was in the same department but not related to my older project.

 

[pride4jc727]

I had to complete an application for a letter of recommendation from undergrad's pre-health committee. It was modeled on the AMCAS. So yes, there are 15 spots for ECs.

 

[167649]

You can use up to 15 entries. It is wise, however, to be "efficient" when you enter things. Example, if you have 5 shadowing experiences, list them all under one entry, not 5 seperate ones.

Quality is usually better than quantity here. If you really have 15 good entries, that's fine, but don't spread out redundancy all over your application for the sake of taking up space.

 

[apricotattack]

DON'T only put 5 or 6. I would even say don't put less than 15 unless you have to make stuff up or pad too much. You don't want to fluff too much, but adcoms typically look over your stuff so quickly that if you only have 6 slots filled out and the next guy has 15, guess who looks better.

You should be imaginative and realize that not all 15 need to be show-stoppers. I wouldn't put each and every interest-related club you're in in its own if you just went to meetings on a weekly basis, but if you are in one activity where you volunteer AND hold leadership, they fall under different categories so feel free to put it in 2 different headings. Your roles are different in each case.

I started keeping tabs on my "experiences" when I was about a soph. in college, I'd recommend that. It helps you keep stuff straight, remember experiences you may forget, and see if you need work. 👍

 

[TheRealMD]

Only asking b/c it asks for "post-secondary" activities doesn't it?

When I was a senior in highschool, I did a research project with someone at the university I currently attend. Although I continued research in college, it was not with the same person. It was in the same department but not related to my older project.

Activities done in high school that continued into college can be put on your AMCAS without worry.

 

[MilkmanAl]

Some people put 15, some people put 10, some people put 6. I honestly think though, that each person has only 2-3 REALLY good EC's that define them. Ultimately we all have a few hours of soup kitchen work and we all need a few hours of hospital volunteering and we've probably all worked for a semester or two as a lab assistant. But, I think it is only the quality of the top 2-4 EC's of each applicant that the adcom pays attention to.

I totally agree with this sentiment. I know that my opinions don't matter when it comes to getting into med school, but if I was on an adcom, including things like a several-hour stint at a homeless shelter would have no effect at best and would be extra garbage to sort through at worst. If you have 15 EC's that you participated in regularly over an extended period of time, by all means, include them. I personally wouldn't (and didn't) slap activities on just to fill space.

 

[LabRat86]

Sorry to hijack your thread 😎 but my major requires me to have clinical rotations in hospital lab learning from them (it's a course and I get graded for it). Can I put it under EC, it's really good clinical experience. Thank You