How should I improve my application?

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pokemoniscool

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3rd year Bioengineering at a UC
-science GPA and cumulative are both 3.82
-research for 2 years so far but no pubs/posters
-i've been doing a sports medicine program for the the last year with our athletics program where i work with the athletic trainers and doctors and help treat the athletes
-officer positions in clubs and other student organizations
-summer internships at a DNA seqencing lab and a large biotech/biological instrument company the last two summers
-volunteered very part time for a summer at an alzheimers center
-organic chemistry study group leader for a semester so far
-intramural basketball every year so far but we suck haha

so from reading this forum for a while I think I'm missing some (a lot) of shadowing. In addition, i'm curious if the sports med program is enough to be considered "clinical." there's plenty of patient interaction but it's not exactly in a "clinical" setting. I'd be very open to any suggestions you guys have. I'm planning on taking the mcats in april and apply this cycle.

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I would consider working directly with injured athletes to be clinical experience. If the Alzheimer's unit was an in-patient facility (not a day-care program), I'd consider it to be a clinical environment. Regardless, I think it would be a good idea to also have experience with some medically sick people. This may or may not have occurred in the Alzheimers unit depending on the other medical conditions of the patients. If there is any doubt in your mind, then perhaps you could volunteer in a clinic, hospice, or hospital this last semester before you apply.

I expect you've shadowed sport med docs. I suggest you also shadow an office-based primary care doc and maybe one other unrelated specialty (with a total of 50 hours being about average).
 
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