Is it very bad to not have a job during gap year?

[qwertysdn]

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Hello,
Just graduated from college, did not get in anywhere this round, and looking to reapply a year from now (2015 cycle).
I think one weakness on my application was too little clinical volunteering and community service (non-clinical). I plan to volunteer a lot over the next year to show my commitment to medicine and to serving others.
I had planned to get a FT job and volunteer on the side, but I have not had luck with my job search yet. I am wondering if on an application it would look really bad if I did not work for a whole year and just volunteered.

Also any advice on good/attainable jobs for gap year that will help for reapplying?
Jobs I know of:
Research: How is clinical research coordinator vs. wet lab position viewed?
Scribe - con is that it pays minimum wage
EMT - seems to have mixed reviews on SDN

 

[QofQuimica]

How do you intend to support yourself this year? If you're going to live at home and just volunteer on your parents' dime, then yes, it is a bad thing.

Part of the maturing process of the gap year is for you to start being self-sufficient and learning to live/think like an adult. That includes paying your own bills and making decisions like whether you would rather have a night out partying versus cable television this month when you don't have enough money to do both. Most people can't afford to not work so that they can volunteer or do whatever else they feel like doing full time. Most people work jobs that aren't intellectually stimulating and that they don't particularly enjoy. Most people live paycheck to paycheck. If you've never done any of these things, you now have an unexpected life lesson opportunity that you should take advantage of. It will help you grow both as a person and as a future physician.

For the purpose we're talking about here, *any* job will do. So start broadening your job search and take the best job you can find. If it's a low-paying job with no relation to science or medicine, that's totally fine. In fact, it would be great if you got an entry-level job where you were involved in customer service. I guarantee you that a grocery checker, waitress, barista, department store salesman, customer support rep, or telemarketer learns loads about how to deal with difficult, obnoxious, unreasonable, and demanding people. That is an absolutely essential skill for a physician to have, and one of the most useful skills you will hopefully pick up during your gap year.

 

[Stagg737]

If you can find any medically related job, that's great. If not, it's not the end of the world, just make sure you still keep in touch with the medical world. During the last year I worked as a delivery driver. While I would have obviously rather gotten a job in a medical field, but like Q said, there are positives that can out of any situation. For me, I got experience interacting with people I've never met on a regular basis. Additionally, having a flexible schedule allowed me to volunteer in my local ER on a regular basis, do some part-time work as a tutor, and not have to worry about missing work to go to interviews/check out med schools. So while I didn't gain as much medical/research experience as I would have liked, I did learn something and I did continue to do significant amounts of medically related volunteering. Just make sure that you accomplish and learn SOMETHING during your gap year that will help make you a better physician.

 

[EMDO2018]

Honestly, with the economy the way it is, adcoms should understand. But most of them are older people who graduated in a time when just having a bachelors was enough to guarantee you a job and a comfortable life .

 

[familyaerospace]

Have you considered starting your own business? If you cannot find a normal job, try to create your own work based on your skills.

I cannot find much of anything work wise even minimum wage, but I can get bits of work here and there because I have skills are in demand.