Is a true year off a bad idea?

[britiini]

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Would it be an awful idea to take a true year off to work on myself, travel, shadow, and volunteer? I kind of just want to breathe for the year. Is this a bad thing to say in an interview?

I went to college out of state, and decided to move back to my state to reestablish residency. I am three months in, and have had no luck finding a meaningful job (currently in a temp position for a utility company to make some extra cash). The job and volunteer experiences I was going to do this year fell through last month, and I have no idea where to go from here. I have applied to SOOO many clinical and research jobs but im always either over/underqualified.

I have a ton of travel experiences on my application, and want to continue traveling, so I was thinking about seeing parts of the US I haven't seen, seeing family out of state, etc. since I wont be able to do this once medical school starts. Would this idea seem worse to an adcom than a candidate who does the traditional research, scribing, MA, etc. job during their gap year? PLS LMK

 

[mdphd_applicant]

Seems worse to basically just take a long vacation than actually....you know...working.

Is it really that hard to find a volunteer position? The places near me in NYC are basically falling over themselves to recruit volunteers.

 

[LizzyM]

I know someone who just started med school in TX and it doesn't seem to have hurt to have taken the application year "off". YMMV

 

[bluepeony]

Seems worse to basically just take a long vacation than actually....you know...working.

Is it really that hard to find a volunteer position? The places near me in NYC are basically falling over themselves to recruit volunteers.

Opportunities are more plentiful in metropolis > suburban >>>rural areas.

 

[907914]

If your degree was in biology or chemistry and there is a medical reference laboratory (LabCorp, PAML, Quest Diiagnostics etc.) then they will hire you as a medical lab assistant for between $15 and $21 an hour depending on your state and relative region salaries.

 

[bluepeony]

If your degree was in biology or chemistry and there is a medical reference laboratory (LabCorp, PAML, Quest Diiagnostics etc.) then they will hire you as a medical lab assistant for between $15 and $21 an depending on your state and relative region salaries.

Or at a pharmaceutical company (ie: Merck) as a biotechnician.

 

[britiini]

I live in a suburban area of california. The opportunities are not plentiful, contrary to popular belief. I am almost considering going back to the state I attended college and continuing the volunteering and research I was doing there, but not sure how that would affect my residency.

 

[907914]

I live in a suburban area of california. The opportunities are not plentiful, contrary to popular belief. I am almost considering going back to the state I attended college and continuing the volunteering and research I was doing there, but not sure how that would affect my residency.

Wait, you WANT to be a California resident for the application cycle?

 

[mmchick]

I live in a suburban area of california. The opportunities are not plentiful, contrary to popular belief. I am almost considering going back to the state I attended college and continuing the volunteering and research I was doing there, but not sure how that would affect my residency.

Would not recommend it if you can help it. I moved OOS after graduation as research/job opportunities were a lot more plentiful there as compared to my rather rural-ish state while intending to retain my residency through maintained licenses, registrations, property, etc. and my entire family lives in that state + I would like to eventually live in that state via school/career.. but despite communicating all of this intent, I'm dealing with a real headache now with establishing legal residency to my IS schools given I've been in the out-of-state state for 1.5 years now. It's truly a headache and frustrating to be told you're OOS when you've lived somewhere for your whole life minus a couple of temporary years. There're plenty of large cities in CA.. would seriously recommend starting there.

 

[NickNaylor]

No one cares about your travel experiences. Other than being a somewhat interesting talking point they are not meaningful.

I would try and find something productive to do. Surely there is something in your area.

 

[britiini]

Wait, you WANT to be a California resident for the application cycle?

Not really, but I am not able to establish residency in the state I went to undergrad because I only had residency for tuition purposes, so I would have to stay an extended amount of time. Also, I am not considered independent for tax purposes, which means I have to go based on my parents who live in california.

 

[britiini]

No one cares about your travel experiences. Other than being a somewhat interesting talking point they are not meaningful.

I would try and find something productive to do. Surely there is something in your area.

I have no doubt that I can get volunteer experience, which is why in my OP I stated I would still volunteer and shadow. It's the job thing that is killing me, I am an invoice analyst right now and am having a hard time being hired for anything remotely helpful for medicine.

 

[em3761]

If your scores and grades are pretty good, I wouldn't worry too much about whether the job is relevant to medicine. A lot of my classmates had jobs doing other/non-medical things before starting med school, and if anything I think these were an asset because it shows that you have knowledge and experience outside of the medical world. I'd look at this as an opportunity to get some extracurriculars/experiences that are interesting talking points. Volunteer in a medical setting (anything that appeals to you...if you want to travel you could volunteer abroad and combine two different things.) Or do community service in some other setting that is interesting to you. The goal is to do something you can talk about in an enthusiastic way. (also FYI the big hospitals are usually the only ones that make it hard/competitive to volunteer there. Smaller clinical settings like free clinics, nursing homes, subacute rehab, etc. usually need volunteers and you have the opportunity to really help an underserved population.) Obviously you do need to have some kind of clinical experience on your transcript but that doesn't mean you need to have a medical job for your gap year. (Of course, if you hate your job, it might be worth looking into alternatives...but they don't have to be in medicine.) Good luck!

 

[DokterMom]

Take the year to learn and grow as a person. Approach it as a "mission trip" only with a humanitarian angle versus a religious angle. Travel with a bike and a backpack, see the U.S., perform small acts of service as you go. (Can you tend bar? Wait tables? Cater-waiter?)

 

[907914]

Take the year to learn and grow as a person. Approach it as a "mission trip" only with a humanitarian angle versus a religious angle. Travel with a bike and a backpack, see the U.S., perform small acts of service as you go. (Can you tend bar? Wait tables? Cater-waiter?)

Alternatively, start in southern Appalachia in late May and do the Appalachian trail. Make money along the way by following the blueberry harvest as a picker. Late May in the Deep South, mid July in Virginia, all the way up to mid September in Vermont/New Hampshire

 

[LizzyM]

If you currently work in an office setting and have the opportunity to interact with workers who have made this their career, treat the year like a field study. Someday, if things work out as you hope, office workers like these will be your patients and understanding their environment, the challenges they face, their habits and so forth may help you provide them with the best possible care.

 

[907914]

If you currently work in an office setting and have the opportunity to interact with workers who have made this their career, treat the year like a field study. Someday, if things work out as you hope, office workers like these will be your patients and understanding their environment, the challenges they face, their habits and so forth may help you provide them with the best possible care.

"Wow, Dr. Britiini, you are so caring and compassionate towards us working class folk!"

"Well, I did do a year long internship in which I studied the social behaviors of the proletariat."

 

[britiini]

If you currently work in an office setting and have the opportunity to interact with workers who have made this their career, treat the year like a field study. Someday, if things work out as you hope, office workers like these will be your patients and understanding their environment, the challenges they face, their habits and so forth may help you provide them with the best possible care.

I kinda like this approach actually, thank you for the idea

 

[Medic741]

Would it be an awful idea to take a true year off to work on myself, travel, shadow, and volunteer? I kind of just want to breathe for the year. Is this a bad thing to say in an interview?

I went to college out of state, and decided to move back to my state to reestablish residency. I am three months in, and have had no luck finding a meaningful job (currently in a temp position for a utility company to make some extra cash). The job and volunteer experiences I was going to do this year fell through last month, and I have no idea where to go from here. I have applied to SOOO many clinical and research jobs but im always either over/underqualified.

I have a ton of travel experiences on my application, and want to continue traveling, so I was thinking about seeing parts of the US I haven't seen, seeing family out of state, etc. since I wont be able to do this once medical school starts. Would this idea seem worse to an adcom than a candidate who does the traditional research, scribing, MA, etc. job during their gap year? PLS LMK

Nope. Took a full year off to rock climb in South America. Meant starting school I was a year older and a lot more mature than peers who went straight through Ed system. BecUse of that had a number of unique opportunities that compounded quite nicely into a decent resume/app. Plus you get to not be a boring premed with no hobbies, there are enough of those.

But for the love of god don’t just go be a bum, chase some passion with your time instead of meaninglessly wandering from place to place with no goals in mind for that time

 

[Select All That Apply]

I have no doubt that I can get volunteer experience, which is why in my OP I stated I would still volunteer and shadow. It's the job thing that is killing me, I am an invoice analyst right now and am having a hard time being hired for anything remotely helpful for medicine.

Can you go over your job hunting process. I talk to a lot of new grads who have trouble overcoming this barrier in the beginning and a lot of it has to do with them failing in some part of the preparation process. What jobs did you apply for, how did you apply, when did you apply, where did you apply, and how many applications did you send out? What is a meaningful job to you?

Normally, I would like to give you the benefit of the doubt. However, you mentioned previously that you have a lot of travel experience that you were planning on putting on your application and I wanted to know if that carried over on to your resume. There is a possibility that emphasizing things like that would make HR think that you're a flight risk and may leave the company. I'm curious if this is purely an environmental issue of being in California as a lot of people tend to externalize when they feel like they are cornered instead of thinking what they can improve internally to give them a little bit of an edge in the job hunting process.

 

[deleted804295]

If your degree was in biology or chemistry and there is a medical reference laboratory (LabCorp, PAML, Quest Diiagnostics etc.) then they will hire you as a medical lab assistant for between $15 and $21 an hour depending on your state and relative region salaries.

I have a bio degree so when I see starting wages for jobs I feel like hitting myself over the head for not staying in my engineering major.

 

[Engrailed]

Would it be an awful idea to take a true year off to work on myself, travel, shadow, and volunteer? I kind of just want to breathe for the year. Is this a bad thing to say in an interview?

I went to college out of state, and decided to move back to my state to reestablish residency. I am three months in, and have had no luck finding a meaningful job (currently in a temp position for a utility company to make some extra cash). The job and volunteer experiences I was going to do this year fell through last month, and I have no idea where to go from here. I have applied to SOOO many clinical and research jobs but im always either over/underqualified.

I have a ton of travel experiences on my application, and want to continue traveling, so I was thinking about seeing parts of the US I haven't seen, seeing family out of state, etc. since I wont be able to do this once medical school starts. Would this idea seem worse to an adcom than a candidate who does the traditional research, scribing, MA, etc. job during their gap year? PLS LMK

Idk what adcoms would think but personally, I totally support it. You do you! Once you start med school it will be pretty much nonstop..studying then residency etc
If you feel like the time off would help you refresh your mind, go for it!

 

[Cornfed101]

I have a bio degree so when I see starting wages for jobs I feel like hitting myself over the head for not staying in my engineering major.

Don’t feel too bad... I’m not using my engineering degree anymore... boy did companies wine and dine you though. Even with just a bachelors I was flown out to interviews and put in super nice hotels. I have to say I was fairly sad when I learned that won’t happen again until after residency

Edit: But to keep this on topic. OP, you can do unorthodox things during this gap year, but keep in mind that you will have secondary essays and (hopefully) interviews asking how you used your time off. Make sure at least spend some of it is doing worthwhile things. Also, try to pay off consumer debt (compound interest isn’t fun)

 

[Phoebus Apollo]

My n=1, but I didn’t work a “real job” during the app cycle. Like you, i moved home to re-establish residency after OOS college. I decided to spend my time volunteering, and then those places hired me so i worked a bunch of part time jobs, which helped pay the bills #bless

But by the time I was “working” I’d already submitted my primary and secondaries , so that wasn’t stuff I was formally doing for my app, just stuff that interested me.

In my year “off” I shadowed a bunch, wrote a ****ty novel, learned a new language (to a v basic conversational degree), invested time in my family and friends, skied a ton during weekdays, learned how to swim better (lol), worked w an underserved population that expanded the type of work I might be interested in the future, and got pretty good at the guitar! in general, I was trying to invest in things that will take a backseat for the next whoknowshowlong

The key is that if you do your own thing, you’ve also/already done the things med schools expect you to, and you’ve properly investigated medicine and done things to make sure this path is for you

 

[Phoebus Apollo]

Also the most important person for you to impress is you.

It’s crucial that you respect whatever you do this year—paid or unpaid

When an interviewer asks you what you’re doing, are you gonna be proud of yourself and be able to explain the value of your year?

Cus that’s important

 

[britiini]

My n=1, but I didn’t work a “real job” during the app cycle. Like you, i moved home to re-establish residency after OOS college. I decided to spend my time volunteering, and then those places hired me so i worked a bunch of part time jobs, which helped pay the bills #bless

But by the time I was “working” I’d already submitted my primary and secondaries , so that wasn’t stuff I was formally doing for my app, just stuff that interested me.

In my year “off” I shadowed a bunch, wrote a ****ty novel, learned a new language (to a v basic conversational degree), invested time in my family and friends, skied a ton during weekdays, learned how to swim better (lol), worked w an underserved population that expanded the type of work I might be interested in the future, and got pretty good at the guitar! in general, I was trying to invest in things that will take a backseat for the next whoknowshowlong

The key is that if you do your own thing, you’ve also/already done the things med schools expect you to, and you’ve properly investigated medicine and done things to make sure this path is for you

Yes, so I have already submitted all of my secondaries as of last week. Therefore, I feel like as long as I do something that I could talk up in an interview volunteer wise or experience wise it should be fine. Regardless of what job I would have gotten, I would not send an update letter just for that. I don't think I am going to get any interviews to in-state schools, so that is why I have also considered going back to the state I got my degree and living with friends for free (yes this is an option 🙂).

I am very stressed right now due to a lot of personal matters in my life that I did not foresee. I do not want to enter medical school being this overwhelmed, so I feel like I need to take some time to just do things that I enjoy since nothing else has worked out yet anyways.

 

[Medic741]

Yes, so I have already submitted all of my secondaries as of last week. Therefore, I feel like as long as I do something that I could talk up in an interview volunteer wise or experience wise it should be fine. Regardless of what job I would have gotten, I would not send an update letter just for that. I don't think I am going to get any interviews to in-state schools, so that is why I have also considered going back to the state I got my degree and living with friends for free (yes this is an option 🙂).

I am very stressed right now due to a lot of personal matters in my life that I did not foresee. I do not want to enter medical school being this overwhelmed, so I feel like I need to take some time to just do things that I enjoy since nothing else has worked out yet anyways.

Really glad to see you’re focusing on yourself. Walk quickly away from the 911 world if you’re feeling like this and take the time off to do less stressful things.

Make time to find and pursue a hobby!!! You won’t be sorry 🙂