I have decided to delay my application until next year, what should I be doing right now?

[BASBaseball15]

Well, as the title states, I'll be applying next year. I'm a non-traditional applicant and I was going to take my MCAT late June/early July, but life happens and I will have to put it off until next year. What should I be doing right now? I have all prerequisites done, I can get LORs from 4 ER physicians (2 DO, 2 MD) that I work with. I think I should maybe look for some shadowing opportunities because I only have ER scribing hours (around 1000 hours) and possibly some volunteering as well. I will be taking the MCAT this year (probably on one of the last dates, definitely in the month of September) still so I don't waste the money I've spent on MCAT prep materials. I still have not written a personal statement. That's about all I can think of at this time, thanks for all of your advice.

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[Magus5454]

You will need letters from people who actually taught you . Non clinical volunteering

 

[SergeantBuzzKill]

Well, as the title states, I'll be applying next year. I'm a non-traditional applicant and I was going to take my MCAT late June/early July, but life happens and I will have to put it off until next year. What should I be doing right now? I have all prerequisites done, I can get LORs from 4 ER physicians (2 DO, 2 MD) that I work with. I think I should maybe look for some shadowing opportunities because I only have ER scribing hours (around 1000 hours) and possibly some volunteering as well. I will be taking the MCAT this year (probably on one of the last dates, definitely in the month of September) still so I don't waste the money I've spent on MCAT prep materials. I still have not written a personal statement. That's about all I can think of at this time, thanks for all of your advice.

Get at least 2 letters from science professors. A minority of schools require a letter from a non-science professor who taught you, but I would focus on the science letters first. Non-clinical volunteering never hurts, and it seems like you have the clinical hours covered. Shadow some physicians in fields you are interested in, that can always be a good talking point in interviews/ secondary essays to support your exposure to the field you hope to be in one day.

 

[BASBaseball15]

Get at least 2 letters from science professors. A minority of schools require a letter from a non-science professor who taught you, but I would focus on the science letters first. Non-clinical volunteering never hurts, and it seems like you have the clinical hours covered. Shadow some physicians in fields you are interested in, that can always be a good talking point in interviews/ secondary essays to support your exposure to the field you hope to be in one day.

My problem is that I want to pursue emergency medicine but I am already being exposed to that. I like the idea of not knowing what's coming through the door today. I want to the be person to fix the worst day of your life. In the ER that I work in, we see pediatrics and aspects of family practice too. I think I can get a family physician to shadow and I'm pretty sure I can shadow a ophthalmologist as well, but neither are fields that I want to pursue at this point. I guess shadowing may change my mind, though.

 

[SergeantBuzzKill]

My problem is that I want to pursue emergency medicine but I am already being exposed to that. I like the idea of not knowing what's coming through the door today. I want to the be person to fix the worst day of your life. In the ER that I work in, we see pediatrics and aspects of family practice too. I think I can get a family physician to shadow and I'm pretty sure I can shadow a ophthalmologist as well, but neither are fields that I want to pursue at this point. I guess shadowing may change my mind, though.

I see your predicament.. however, I don’t see shadowing hours working against you even if it’s not something you’re interested in. The opposite may be a very different story. At the very least you can talk about how you are fairly certain you do/don’t want to go into that field because you have shadowing experience in it (even though you get enough of that as a scribe, at least for EM). But I do see why that would deter you. Sometimes you just have to play their game though

 

[IndieKush]

Well, as the title states, I'll be applying next year. I'm a non-traditional applicant and I was going to take my MCAT late June/early July, but life happens and I will have to put it off until next year. What should I be doing right now? I have all prerequisites done, I can get LORs from 4 ER physicians (2 DO, 2 MD) that I work with. I think I should maybe look for some shadowing opportunities because I only have ER scribing hours (around 1000 hours) and possibly some volunteering as well. I will be taking the MCAT this year (probably on one of the last dates, definitely in the month of September) still so I don't waste the money I've spent on MCAT prep materials. I still have not written a personal statement. That's about all I can think of at this time, thanks for all of your advice.

You need more diverse EC’s than just scribing. Do some volunteering - both clinical and non clinical. Ie. hospice/work with underserved. You need clinical exposure to other specialities, primary care would be good. 4 LORs from the same ER is definitely overkill. One is ideal, 2 max if you want both a MD or DO. At least 2-4 LORs should be from professors, including science and non-science. Diversify your app, maybe pursue research this year and get a LOR from a PI. You have more than enough scribing hours already. Most importantly kill the MCAT. It’s ok to be interested in emergency medicine, but don’t give off the vibe emergency medicine or bust in your app.

 

[BASBaseball15]

You need more diverse EC’s than just scribing. Do some volunteering - both clinical and non clinical. Ie. hospice/work with underserved. You need clinical exposure to other specialities, primary care would be good. 4 LORs from the same ER is definitley overkill. One is ideal, 2 max if you want both a MD or DO. At least 2-4 LORs should be from professors, including science and non-science. Diversify your app, maybe pursue research this year and get a LOR from a PI. You have more than enough scribing hours already. Most importantly kill the MCAT. It’s ok to be interested in emergency medicine, but don’t give off the vibe emergency medicine or bust in your app.

Thank you. I did not even think about giving off that kind of vibe, but I can see where you are coming from. Most people change their minds once they're in medical school anyways. The main reason I am holding off my application is to kill the MCAT.