Importance of Volunteering

[foreverLaur]

How important is it to have volunteer hours? I honestly don't have the extra time and money to spare to hold a job I do not get paid for.

I have had two paid summer internships in accounting/finance/auditing.

By the time I apply:
I will have worked in a genetics lab doing accounts receivable, web design, and dna sequencing for two years. I will get paid for this, except for the dna sequencing which I get research credit hours for.

I will have also worked at a hospital at OSU Med Center hanging out with patients. I basically help the nurses and hang out with a wide variety of patients... everything from a bed ridden patient to a patient with a brain injury who needs to be active to someone who is suidical/homicidal to someone who keeps trying to rip out their IV. I also get paid for this position, but felt that it was valuable to medical school as I am a nursing assistance, have a ton of patient interaction, and see a lot of clinical type stuff.

I have also spent 100+ hours shadowing doctors.


Will it hurt me significantly to not have any volunteering hours or will it greatly be worth it to try and fit it in? My MCAT will be strong (i consistently get 12-13 on my practice tests), my science GPA is ~3.85+ and my cumulative GPA will be low (~3.2) due to two years of hating my old school and major (accounting). I have a massive upward trend after switching schools and majors.

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[drizzt3117]

What you're doing at the hospital sounds a lot like what a volunteer would do, except you're getting paid. The key is clinical experience, however, as I mentioned in another thread, an adcom once told me straight up that applications w/o any volunteer experience were thrown in the trash. That's one adcom and at one school, but I think most people consider volunteer experience to be less optional than mandatory. That said, your GPA will be a much larger issue than lack of volunteer experience since the rest of your ECs sound pretty good.

 

[foreverLaur]

What you're doing at the hospital sounds a lot like what a volunteer would do, except you're getting paid. The key is clinical experience, however, as I mentioned in another thread, an adcom once told me straight up that applications w/o any volunteer experience were thrown in the trash. That's one adcom and at one school, but I think most people consider volunteer experience to be less optional than mandatory. That said, your GPA will be a much larger issue than lack of volunteer experience since the rest of your ECs sound pretty good.

where would you recommend i volunteer? all the hospitals around here are part of the OSU Med Center and I am already employed as a paid staff member so that eliminates that. i'd still like to do something medically related as volunteer work.

i wonder if all the filing i did at my mom's allergy office in high school would count haha 😀

 

[Jolie South]

where would you recommend i volunteer? all the hospitals around here are part of the OSU Med Center and I am already employed as a paid staff member so that eliminates that. i'd still like to do something medically related as volunteer work.

i wonder if all the filing i did at my mom's allergy office in high school would count haha 😀

i say find something non medical for volunteering. go to a homeless shelter, soup kitchen, or habitat for humanity build.

 

[deleted103730]

volunteer for bingo night at a nursing home

 

[Easy E]

You'll be fine. You are lucky that you were able to collect a paycheck for those ECs. Adcoms want to make sure that you know what you are getting into. I think you have that covered. Good luck!

 

[Jolie South]

You'll be fine. You are lucky that you were able to collect a paycheck for those ECs. Adcoms want to make sure that you know what you are getting into. I think you have that covered. Good luck!

it is great, but you need to show that you're willing to serve others as well.

 

[drizzt3117]

where would you recommend i volunteer? all the hospitals around here are part of the OSU Med Center and I am already employed as a paid staff member so that eliminates that. i'd still like to do something medically related as volunteer work.

i wonder if all the filing i did at my mom's allergy office in high school would count haha 😀

As Jolie mentioned, free clinics are good, and there's always international volunteering if you're in to that sort of thing. Although people here insist that domestic volunteering is just as good, everyone I know that has done international volunteering has gotten into great schools that exceeded their expectations.

 

[154465]

As long as you are getting exposure to patients and the hospital setting you should be ok, IMO. I don't think they want you to volunteer to save the world, they want you to do it go get exposure, to say that "yes I have been around doctors and patients and I am making an informed decision to attend medical school." I don't think it matters if you get paid or not. But thats just what I think, who knows right?

 

[drizzt3117]

I don't think it matters if you get paid or not. But thats just what I think, who knows right?

And you'd be wrong, at least at one school. No volunteer experience = no acceptance, in some cases.

 

[154465]

And you'd be wrong, at least at one school. No volunteer experience = no acceptance, in some cases.

Right, well one school is not all of them. I also know of one school that just wants you to gain exposure. We can use anecdotes but the bottom line is volunteer if you want to, don't if you cant, but make sure you get that valuable clinical exposure. Some schools might reject you for it, others won't care, but if you can't because of circumstance then don't put yourself in the poor house.

 

[neuro1617]

I think you have great clinical exposure so I wouldn't worry about hospital volunteering.But I would get a few volunteering experiences in like w/ a soup kitchen or the red cross to show you're willing to serve others & get nothing ($ wise, anyway) in turn since being a doctor is about devoting your time to others, sometimes ignoring the needs of your family, friends & yourself.

 

[drizzt3117]

Right, well one school is not all of them. I also know of one school that just wants you to gain exposure. We can use anecdotes but the bottom line is volunteer if you want to, don't if you cant, but make sure you get that valuable clinical exposure. Some schools might reject you for it, others won't care, but if you can't because of circumstance then don't put yourself in the poor house.

The point is volunteering experience is not considered an optional EC. While clinical experience is certainly a positive, there are schools that ask on their secondaries "Describe a volunteer activity you participated in and explain how it will make you a better physician." If you can't say anything there, do you really think you're going to get accepted? Other schools have questions saying "Describe an altruistic experience in which you participated and explain what you learned from the experience." The OP asked whether not having volunteer experience would hurt his chances. The answer is absolutely YES.

 

[TexasTriathlete]

I am a non-traditional applicant. I have a solid (33) MCAT score going for me, and a very upward GPA trend, but my cumulative GPA is still pretty weak (2.62), so I am hardly a slam-dunk to get in a lot of places. But I am a TX resident, and when I applied, something like 35% of in-state applicants were accepted to an in-state institution.

I didn't even get an in-state interview. Got a few OOS though.

I talked to the Dean of Admissions at UT-Houston, who told me that it was probably because I lacked volunteer experience. Now I've got a ton, so I am optimistic.

 

[154465]

The point is volunteering experience is not considered an optional EC. While clinical experience is certainly a positive, there are schools that ask on their secondaries "Describe a volunteer activity you participated in and explain how it will make you a better physician." If you can't say anything there, do you really think you're going to get accepted? Other schools have questions saying "Describe an altruistic experience in which you participated and explain what you learned from the experience." The OP asked whether not having volunteer experience would hurt his chances. The answer is absolutely YES.

The OP also has an excellent reason for not being able to. Some secondaries do ask, but the majority don't. If the OP has good MCAT and GPA with good clinical experience you think he will get rejected automatically? Last time I checked med schools go out of their way to let you explain yourself. My point still stands, if you can't volunteer then don't. How can you argue with that?

 

[drizzt3117]

The OP also has an excellent reason for not being able to. Some secondaries do ask, but the majority don't. If the OP has good MCAT and GPA with good clinical experience you think he will get rejected automatically? Last time I checked med schools go out of their way to let you explain yourself. My point still stands, if you can't volunteer then don't. How can you argue with that?

The point is that having no volunteer experience will hurt your application. If he had no way of volunteering, then it's likely he wouldn't have asked:

Will it hurt me significantly to not have any volunteering hours or will it greatly be worth it to try and fit it in?

The answer to whether it will hurt his application significantly is yes. Some schools will reject you outright no matter how good your profile is if you don't have volunteer experience, and yes it will be greatly worth it to try to fit it in.

 

[TheRealMD]

Volunteering at a hospital is a checkbox. It really just is. The general idea is that if you are getting paid to do something in a hospital, you aren't really taking a seat back and seeing the big picture. It's something that you shouldn't see if you are being paid to work because it's slacking (and they assume you don't slack!)

Sad, but true.

 

[154465]

The point is that having no volunteer experience will hurt your application. If he had no way of volunteering, then it's likely he wouldn't have asked:



The answer to whether it will hurt his application significantly is yes. Some schools will reject you outright no matter how good your profile is if you don't have volunteer experience, and yes it will be greatly worth it to try to fit it in.

As to your first point, he asked because he was worried. Why do people ask about their C's when they can't do anything about them? to put their minds at ease.

Secondly, what proof do you have of this? You are saying with absolute certainty that this person will NOT get into medical school. You have no qualification to say something like this, and circumstantial evidence does not count.

 

[TheRealMD]

As to your first point, he asked because he was worried. Why do people ask about their C's when they can't do anything about them? to put their minds at ease.

Secondly, what proof do you have of this? You are saying with absolute certainty that this person will NOT get into medical school. You have no qualification to say something like this, and circumstantial evidence does not count.

Eh.. 99.9% is good enough when most interviews will ask you how you've been exposed to medicine. Most just expect you to volunteer at a hospital. May be cliche but it has to be done sometime....

 

[154465]

Eh.. 99.9% is good enough when most interviews will ask you how you've been exposed to medicine. Most just expect you to volunteer at a hospital. May be cliche but it has to be done sometime....

This guy working at a hospital is not exposure to medicine? I don't understand that. How do you know that most expect you to say volunteering? Because I'm positive thats not true.

 

[drlisa0318]

Medical schools want to SEE that you're willing to give back to the community and put "feet" to the ubiquitous phrase, "I want to help people." It doesn't say much for your altruistic motives if you're not willing to give of yourself to others with no monetary compensation. If you can COMBINE volunteering and clinical exposure/experience into one EC (ie. volunteering in a hospice), then fantastic! This method, while preferred by most, is by no means the required method. There are PLENTY of non-medical volunteer opportunities to be found in every city: soup kitchens, meals-on-wheels, mentoring, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, literacy programs, teachers aides in elementary schools, churches to name just a few. Whatever you choose, PLEASE do it with a willing heart and a big smile. Don't be someone who just sits there and "gathers dust". Make a positive impact in someone else's life. You'll go home feeling like you received far more blessings than the ones you helped.

 

[MattD]

How important is it to have volunteer hours? I honestly don't have the extra time and money to spare to hold a job I do not get paid for.

I have had two paid summer internships in accounting/finance/auditing.

By the time I apply:
I will have worked in a genetics lab doing accounts receivable, web design, and dna sequencing for two years. I will get paid for this, except for the dna sequencing which I get research credit hours for.

I will have also worked at a hospital at OSU Med Center hanging out with patients. I basically help the nurses and hang out with a wide variety of patients... everything from a bed ridden patient to a patient with a brain injury who needs to be active to someone who is suidical/homicidal to someone who keeps trying to rip out their IV. I also get paid for this position, but felt that it was valuable to medical school as I am a nursing assistance, have a ton of patient interaction, and see a lot of clinical type stuff.

I have also spent 100+ hours shadowing doctors.


Will it hurt me significantly to not have any volunteering hours or will it greatly be worth it to try and fit it in? My MCAT will be strong (i consistently get 12-13 on my practice tests), my science GPA is ~3.85+ and my cumulative GPA will be low (~3.2) due to two years of hating my old school and major (accounting). I have a massive upward trend after switching schools and majors.

There's a fair bit of misinformation in this thread from premeds, in my opinion. Clinical experience is the biggest concern, and it sounds like your nursing assistant and physician shadowing have that well covered. Many schools do appreciate an applicant having 'volunteer' time, as well, as it shows a willingness to sacrifice for others. Now, many schools are understanding about there only being so many hours in the day, and if you're holding down a fulltime job to support yourself through school, that's going to be taken into consideration. However, I think the majority of people can fit SOME sort of volunteering into their schedules. You don't have to work a full time job, but for free, to be considered volunteering. Pick an activity you find interesting or fulfilling and put some time into it. That could include spending a few hours on a few saturdays per month working with the local habitat for humanity chapter, or working at a soup kitchen one day a week for a while, or whatnot. I think that if you want to check this particular box (and I think it's in most peoples best interest if they can help it) then that's the best method to do so. Just pick one and dedicate all your volunteer time to that one, it does you no good to hop from activity to activity.

 

[154241]

Volunteering at a hospital is a checkbox. It really just is. The general idea is that if you are getting paid to do something in a hospital, you aren't really taking a seat back and seeing the big picture. It's something that you shouldn't see if you are being paid to work because it's slacking (and they assume you don't slack!)

Sad, but true.

I'm not so sure about this... I worked at a hospital for 1.5 years, so I feel like I got the "insider" perspective that I would not have gotten as a volunteer. This is probably not true for every situation, but it was for mine, and I certainly don't think being paid precludes it being a valuable experience in the eyes of adcoms. And I agree with everyone who says volunteering helps demonstrate to adcoms that you are sincere about helping people, so it doesn't really matter if it's medical or not. I have seen elsewhere in this forum that clinical exposure and volunteerism by no means have to come from the same EC.

 

[etf]

from what i understand, the sort of unstated requirement is that premeds have clinical experience, not necessarily volunteer clinical experience. they want to know that you've experienced life inside a hospital, and have some idea of what you're getting yourself into. however, i remember seeing on a secondary somewhere that schools realize that work/family/other committments means that there will be students who are not able to do things on a "volunteer" basis. i'm sure a med school would be willing to forgive the lack of volunteer experience, but not a lack of clinical experience.

 

[MossPoh]

Big brother big sister is a great volunteer thing too. You can do a mentor program where you just go into the school for an hour a week or so and talk with your kid, help with homework etc. Very fulfilling.

 

[Easy E]

it is great, but you need to show that you're willing to serve others as well.

I think that is a bit over rated but I see your point. I have three years + of volunteering so I guess I shouldn't talk.

 

[littlealex]

The consensus is that while volunteering won't overcome a weak GPA, the lack of clinical exposure can break one's application. However, I don't think volunteering is the key here, clinical exposure is more important. Take a job where you work to serve patients? Or do small bits of volunteering (3 hours a week?) at a hospital/clinic.

 

[drizzt3117]

I agree that clinical exposure is the more important aspect. However, when an adcom tells me directly that zero volunteer experience = no acceptance under any circumstances, that tends to give credence to the volunteering requirement.

As other posters have said, giving a few hours a week isn't something that most people aren't going to be able to accomplish, at least IMO. Volunteer an hour a week at a soup kitchen, free clinic, etc. I'm sure they need all the help they can get, and would be flexible with your schedule. Will it make or break your application at every school? Perhaps not. Will it hurt your chances at certain schools if you don't have volunteer experience? Definitely.

 

[foreverLaur]

well first off my name is Lauren (hence the screen name) thus making me female.

secondly, i have 4 hours of volunteer work which probably means nothing as it isn't nearly enough. i volunteered with Jeff Hope (volunteer program of med students at Jefferson - my roommate for the summer was a student so that is how I got in).

if i could volunteer, i would in a heartbeat. i just am struggling to find the time. since my cumulative GPA is low, i basically need a 4.0 for he next two years to bring it up close to a competitive level.

in addition, i am cramming a microbiology major into two years thus taking 20-21 credit hours at a quarter school of upper division science classes + labs. school alone is taking up a ton of my time.

i also work 20-30 hours a week in the genetics lab between doing all the billing and accounts receivable as well as keeping up the website and doing the DNA Sequencing for over 300 clients.

my job at the hospital helping nurses and hanging out with patients is a minimum of two 8 hour shifts a week which will have to be weekends because i am in class from 930-630 every day (random 1-2 hour gaps in there) and i have to work a specific shift and cannot work overnight during the week as I have classes in the morning.

and somewhere in there i need to study to get A's in my classes.

i did apply and get accepted to the big brothers big sisters program but it was for the after school program and i am in class too late and they couldn't work out anything with my current schedule.

the money i am making right now is covering my rent and food. i have loans to cover all the tuition & fees for the university. plus, i went to a university my first two years that was $34,000 a year so that added up for loans too. i failed at getting any scholarships anywhere despite graduating top 10% from the #1 ranked HS in NE Ohio, having a 3.95 GPA with honors and AP classes, a 34 ACT score, 2 sport varsity athlete, national honors society, and student council.

blah - any ideas? 😱

 

[154241]

I think not having volunteering will look a lot less suspect on your profile than a lot of other people's, because you genuinely do not seem to have the time. That being said, since there are apparently schools that see 0 volunteering and think automatic rejection, it might be a good idea to do something that's an hour a week. Maybe even an hour every two weeks? If you start now and are applying next year, then at least you'll have that long-term commitment without taking a huge bite of your time. You could also look for short term opportunities over holidays, spring break, or the summer like alternative spring break trips or Habitat blitz days. I sympathize with not wanting to add to an already overfull plate, but if what drizzt says is true, it will hurt you at some places, so it's up to you decide if that possibility is worth finding the time for volunteering.

 

[154241]

oh, and good luck.

 

[medguy83]

How important is it to have volunteer hours? I honestly don't have the extra time and money to spare to hold a job I do not get paid for.

I have had two paid summer internships in accounting/finance/auditing.

By the time I apply:
I will have worked in a genetics lab doing accounts receivable, web design, and dna sequencing for two years. I will get paid for this, except for the dna sequencing which I get research credit hours for.

I will have also worked at a hospital at OSU Med Center hanging out with patients. I basically help the nurses and hang out with a wide variety of patients... everything from a bed ridden patient to a patient with a brain injury who needs to be active to someone who is suidical/homicidal to someone who keeps trying to rip out their IV. I also get paid for this position, but felt that it was valuable to medical school as I am a nursing assistance, have a ton of patient interaction, and see a lot of clinical type stuff.

I have also spent 100+ hours shadowing doctors.


Will it hurt me significantly to not have any volunteering hours or will it greatly be worth it to try and fit it in? My MCAT will be strong (i consistently get 12-13 on my practice tests), my science GPA is ~3.85+ and my cumulative GPA will be low (~3.2) due to two years of hating my old school and major (accounting). I have a massive upward trend after switching schools and majors.

You've actually got a lot under your belt; albeit paid experiences. I think the point is that you've had significant clinical exposure. It would be nice if you could add a charity or something to the mix, but I guess we all could add something. If you pull off an mcat in the range of your practice tests you should be fine.

 

[TheRealMD]

I'm not so sure about this... I worked at a hospital for 1.5 years, so I feel like I got the "insider" perspective that I would not have gotten as a volunteer. This is probably not true for every situation, but it was for mine, and I certainly don't think being paid precludes it being a valuable experience in the eyes of adcoms. And I agree with everyone who says volunteering helps demonstrate to adcoms that you are sincere about helping people, so it doesn't really matter if it's medical or not. I have seen elsewhere in this forum that clinical exposure and volunteerism by no means have to come from the same EC.

Eh, it's because anybody can be happy if they are being paid to do something. Honestly, its true. And because you're getting double your time's worth in that it's in a hospital, that's why it's important to "volunteer" there, so you are giving altrusticly.

There's little point in saying bravo to a nurse for working 1000+ hours in a hospital because they kinda get paid for it.

 

[foreverLaur]

Eh, it's because anybody can be happy if they are being paid to do something. Honestly, its true. And because you're getting double your time's worth in that it's in a hospital, that's why it's important to "volunteer" there, so you are giving altrusticly.

There's little point in saying bravo to a nurse for working 1000+ hours in a hospital because they kinda get paid for it.

Not true. I had a great internship that paid $18/hr as a freshman in college. After the first month in, I hated the work I was doing. The people and the company and the money was great, but I HATED being at work and I would do anything to go home. I quit and worked a minimum wage job at a clothing store and I was SO much happier. At least for me, the money is never worth it if you hate the job. I'd work for free doing clinical work over getting paid to do accounting in a heartbeat!

Luckily, I am getting paid to do jobs I enjoy right now which is good because I need the money to survive...

 

[154241]

Eh, it's because anybody can be happy if they are being paid to do something. Honestly, its true. And because you're getting double your time's worth in that it's in a hospital, that's why it's important to "volunteer" there, so you are giving altrusticly.

There's little point in saying bravo to a nurse for working 1000+ hours in a hospital because they kinda get paid for it.

Are you saying my experience was only valuable for me because I got paid for it, not because of the exposure to medicine? I was happy to be paid, but I'm saying I learned a lot because I was on a fairly equal level with my coworkers, so they confided in me about the inner workings of the system. Premed volunteers were not as popular, because rightly or not, they were seen as snobby kids padding their resume. And I'm not looking for congratulations from adcoms on my job, just acknowledgment that I do know what I'm getting myself into. You can get that as a paid employee or a volunteer. I do agree that if you are pressed for time and have the opportunity, volunteering medically can kill two birds with one stone (if you want to look at it that way--I followed my interests volunteering and found it very satisfying).

 

[foreverLaur]

i'm sure i could change my job at the OSU med center into volunteer work, but then i'd have to find the time to pick up another paid job to make up the lost salary in order to continue to pay rent - and well finding time for that is seemingly impossible unless i give up studying and GPA and MCAT is #1.

 

[154241]

i'm sure i could change my job at the OSU med center into volunteer work, but then i'd have to find the time to pick up another paid job to make up the lost salary in order to continue to pay rent - and well finding time for that is seemingly impossible unless i give up studying and GPA and MCAT is #1.

I was just replying to TheRealMD; you seem to be doing all you can. Like I said, if it bothers you that there are apparently schools that screen based on volunteer experiences, you could look at holidays or maybe take a year off after graduation. But you clearly have demands on your time, and hopefully adcoms will recognize that. I had the luxury of time and cash flow, so I could do community service and enjoyed it a lot.

 

[DrMattOglesby]

does volunteering as a youth soccer coach fit the bill?
later i coached a women's intramural soccer team to a championship...does this count and is it worth mentioning???

 

[MossPoh]

does volunteering as a youth soccer coach fit the bill?
later i coached a women's intramural soccer team to a championship...does this count and is it worth mentioning???

If it started in college, everything is worth mentioning. Unless it is the bondage organization like the one guy a while back....that is best left unsaid.

 

[Nasem]

Every medical school I contacted and asked "what can I do to make my application best as possible"

every single one of them said:
GPA and MCATS are all good, but one VERY VERY important factor is the ECs, one lady specifically told me "we get 4000+ applications every year and the adcoms are VERY selective and they pay very close attention to your ECs"..

The secretary of one of my state schools said "the ECs are sometimes weighted in just as much as a strong GPA"

So, I started to take what she told me to the heart and, as of last week, I started doing some work for Habitate for Humanity (very exciting line of work, and about 3 hrs per day and you do it on sundays or saturdays)

I am in a similar situation as you, I work a fulltime job (software engineer), and attend MSU as a post-bacc (currently taking Orgo and Biology together), so as you know, my schedule is FILLED up and I still find time for ECs, Im sure you can too 🙂

 

[gujuDoc]

How important is it to have volunteer hours? I honestly don't have the extra time and money to spare to hold a job I do not get paid for.

I have had two paid summer internships in accounting/finance/auditing.

By the time I apply:
I will have worked in a genetics lab doing accounts receivable, web design, and dna sequencing for two years. I will get paid for this, except for the dna sequencing which I get research credit hours for.

I will have also worked at a hospital at OSU Med Center hanging out with patients. I basically help the nurses and hang out with a wide variety of patients... everything from a bed ridden patient to a patient with a brain injury who needs to be active to someone who is suidical/homicidal to someone who keeps trying to rip out their IV. I also get paid for this position, but felt that it was valuable to medical school as I am a nursing assistance, have a ton of patient interaction, and see a lot of clinical type stuff.

I have also spent 100+ hours shadowing doctors.


Will it hurt me significantly to not have any volunteering hours or will it greatly be worth it to try and fit it in? My MCAT will be strong (i consistently get 12-13 on my practice tests), my science GPA is ~3.85+ and my cumulative GPA will be low (~3.2) due to two years of hating my old school and major (accounting). I have a massive upward trend after switching schools and majors.

Take the MCAT first before saying your score will be this or that.

That said, some schools prefer volunteerism but it would all depend on what school you are applying to and what adcom members think. I don't think that they will throw your app out for not volunteering if you've shown clinical experience and the ability to work with others as you have done so.

 

[UCDavisISokay]

does volunteering as a youth soccer coach fit the bill?
later i coached a women's intramural soccer team to a championship...does this count and is it worth mentioning???

dude, you need to grow ur hair. It is way too short - looks more like gangster haircut

 

[foreverLaur]

Take the MCAT first before saying your score will be this or that.

That said, some schools prefer volunteerism but it would all depend on what school you are applying to and what adcom members think. I don't think that they will throw your app out for not volunteering if you've shown clinical experience and the ability to work with others as you have done so.

i never said my MCAT score will be anything. i stated what I have been consistently getting on my practice tests. i've done well on standardized tests before and my practice scores have been good so i'd be rather surprised if i bombed it.

 

[mmcnam]

What about brief volunteer work? I worked for my state's Women and AIDS Network as an unpaid intern for the first semester of my freshman year. I gave them one full day for the entire semester. I had to stop because their office moved. I put it on my app and I know it won't weigh better than someone who did much more, but is it sufficient to stop my app from getting thrown out? Also, I'll be volunteering throughout my gap year. Trouble is - can't really tell admissions people that until I get the interview, right?

Plus, the money thing is a huge issue. If you have to support yourself, why should you be volunteering all the time to help others? Shouldn't they be helping you? I never got around to volunteering much because, as the oldest of eight kids, I couldn't find the time. I was always needed at home, especially in college because we had three babies in four years. I know that I'm not a single parent or anything, but I have to give my time to my family before school and ECs. I felt like this was the unspoken volunteer experience that I couldn't enter in AMCAS - changing diapers, doing laundry, cooking dinner, helping with homework, cleaning up after seven kids... I'm definitely different from the applicant who is unattached and can basically do whatever they want. So, Lauren, I totally see where you're coming from. If volunteering really does matter that much, then it's not fair.

 

[foreverLaur]

my 4 hours of volunteering with Jefferson Med Students is so going on my app!! I saw a lot of really neat stuff though. We were set up next to a needle exchange program and people utilizing that service could come see us. We saw a lot of crazy crazy stuff...

 

[HumidBeing]

ForeverLaur, bottom line is that what you want to do is make your application as competitive as possible at as many schools as possible. The weakness in your post is that it sounded like volunteering is something that you want to avoid. When it comes down to it, volunteering and clinical experience are two different things; they may overlap, but they each says something about the applicant. Volunteerism shows that you are an involved member of the community who is willing to share time and talent for the benefit of those in need. It says something about the spirit of the person who is willing to give of themselves.

You want to convey that you have that spirit, that caring, that community involvement. Since you have done little of that throughout the previous years of college time, you have just the one year or so before you apply to shine up this possibly weak area. You're a determined person, and I'm sure if you put your mind to thinking of volunteering being an important part of your application, you can do it. You will have a strong application. Volunteering will make it stronger.

Start thinking out of the box. There are things you can do in bits and pieces here and there, or even through the places you work or attend school without taking time away from those activities. Do you knit, crochet, or sew at all? You can make hats, blankets, layettes for NICU or other organizations. You could set up food drives where you work, or blanket, toiletry, sock, winter clothing, or whatever drives to send to homeless shelters. You could put your computer, accounting, bookkeeping skills to work for one or more volunteer organizations by offering to design web pages or doing something specific along the bookkeeping/accounting line. I'll bet you can think of even more innovative ideas that could be just right for you. If you get those creative juices flowing, you can come up with your own projects that could be more than standard clinical volunteering; they could show initiative, leadership, and volunteerism all in one package. You've got the skills to change this from a meager 4 hrs to something that will make you really standout. It can be down w/o harming your GPA or infringing on your work hours.

 

[unsung]

I find it hard to believe that it's impossible to find an hour a week to spend volunteering.

A woman I know has 6 children, studies, uses food stamps and still find hours each week to volunteer at a hospital. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say her life was not easy and is not easy, yet she has chosen to squeeze time out of her life to do this. It just depends on whether or not you want to do this.

I used to be reluctant to volunteer because all the volunteer experiences I came across seemed to consist of things that I wasn't good at or things that didn't require much skill. For example, I'm just not good at building things, etc. so Habitat for Humanity just didn't appeal. Other volunteering opportunities I saw mostly consisted of standing around or sitting around somewhere doing something not requiring much thought & making small talk with people... again, I suppose if I were a really social, perky person, maybe I'd have a great time with this. But I'm more results oriented and prone to problem solving... so something like that would just kill me via boredom. For example, I'd much rather be the person helping a food shelf establish a website, rather than the person handing out the food.

So yeah, once I figured that out about myself... I realized that in order to find a suitable volunteering opportunity, I have to think outside the box! I found the perfect volunteer experience at a crisis hotline and it's been so great. Training to become a counselor was extensive (50 hrs worth) so I feel like I'm doing skilled, challenging work. I get bored doing physical work that doesn't require a lot of thinking so it was important to me that the volunteering I do be something that pushed me. I also mentor a refugee, which again, has been a really great experience. I have learned so much and that really adds to the experience.

If I weren't already volunteering with these organizations, I'd look into: volunteering at the library to help ESL learners, being a math tutor for immigrants, helping out with inner city tennis classes.

And... here's a REALLY cool site:

http://www.nabuur.com/

You can help an Indian village start a sports club... and much more. It's remarkable what people have been able to accomplish from so far away.

The point is, there are a lot of different volunteering opportunities out there... pick something you're truly interested in and you won't mind committing the hours to do it!

 

[MattD]

Eh, it's because anybody can be happy if they are being paid to do something. Honestly, its true. And because you're getting double your time's worth in that it's in a hospital, that's why it's important to "volunteer" there, so you are giving altrusticly.

There's little point in saying bravo to a nurse for working 1000+ hours in a hospital because they kinda get paid for it.

This really isn't intended as an attack or anything, but your advice on this thread has been really bad. I'm not saying this to be mean, but to point out inaccuracies in your own beliefs. Clinical experience is clinical experience, paid or not. If you have time to volunteer you absolutely should, if you want that box checked off (I'm not on a committee so won't claim to know how 'necessary' it is). If you don't have time, well, you just don't have time, and they'll see that from all the jobs you list on your AMCAS. And it'll be ok.

 

[psipsina]

I was accepted at three schools and I didn't have a bit of volunteering on my app. . . I know multiple people in my class who were in the same boat too. I don't have parents to support me so I couldn't afford to not be paid for my time throughout college. I was actually really frustrated by this because I didn't get to do alot of cool things like EMS at my college which was volunteer, but such is life. I too thought it was essential and took a year off in-between when I was planning to volunteer at the childrens hospital playing with the kiddies, but Katrina came and shut down my city the day after my orientation at the hospital and there went that plan. I did have PLENTY of clinical experience, it was just paid clinical experience, I'm in no way saying that you can get away with not having clinical experience. . . but adcomms understand that some people don't have the luxury of not working to support themselves and therefore don't have the time to volunteer.

 

[deleted36260]

I don't want to sound like I'm on my throne, but I'm going to be blunt....

YOU COULD VOLUNTEER IF YOU NEEDED TO.

I work two jobs and do school full time. It's taking everything I have, but I still spend 4 hours a week in the ER.

And unfortunately, some med schools are going to feel the same way I do, so if at all possible, volunteer! It's good for you, the community, and your med school process 🙂


P.S you don't need a LOT of hours, just something little by little. 2 hours once a week is fine. Go to a nursing home, go to a homeless shelter, find an elderly neighbor. You don't need an official program to give your time to someone else