How much research?

[shoopshoop]

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Is two summers and three academic semesters worth of research good enough for top schools? I want to take a break from my research to focus more on volunteering and getting my clinical experience in but I don't want to shut myself out of great schools.

 

[Solaire]

Enough for you to show passion for it! There's no such thing as 'good enough'. Do the research if you want to, not because it makes your app look good. Everyone does some kind of 'research', but the ones who say " yeah I did 300 hours of research, I work well in teams therefore doctor" versus "this project was really cool because..." don't really stand out in comparison to the latter.

Now for your volunteering/clinical experience, find something that inspires you if you can and remember there is no magical ratio of volunteering, research, and clinical experience that gets you an admission.

 

[CollegeGirl94]

If you don't like it, don't do it. A premed advisor told me a summer of it is good enough if you don't have passion for it. I would do more clinical experience if research is not for you.​