Language for Work/Activities on AMCAS--want something conclusive

[zogoto]

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I've heard different things from different people regarding this, so I was looking for some kind of consensus. I read through the giant work/activities thread, but it mainly reflects the opinion of one poster, although a great one!

My question is this: should the language be personal or resume-like? So if you had a great shadowing experience, should you say something like "As I shadowed Dr. B, I was struck by his compassion and willingness to stay hours past his shift to make sure each and every one of his patients was comfortable." Or should you say "I shadowed Dr. B, a nephrologist, for 12 hours on MM/DD/YYYY and saw dialysis patients and patients on the wards."

Thanks in advance.

 

[shemarty]

I vote resume-like, but some people argue for paragraph style.

This is all I wrote for my extensive shadowing experience (names have been changed, obviously):

Observed in the operating room, during rounds, and in clinic. Attended Grand Rounds and tumor boards.

Andy Smith, M.D., Department 1, 290 hours.
Bob Smith, M.D., Department 2, 50 hours.
Chris Smith, M.D. and Dan Smith, M.D., Department 3, 40 hours.
Ed Smith, M.D., Department 4, 25 hours.
Frank Smith, M.D., Department 5, 20 hours.
George Smith, M.D., Department 6, 15 hours.

 

[Stratego]

I'd pick your second option.

 

[235009]

My question is this: should the language be personal or resume-like? So if you had a great shadowing experience, should you say something like "As I shadowed Dr. B, I was struck by his compassion and willingness to stay hours past his shift to make sure each and every one of his patients was comfortable." Or should you say "I shadowed Dr. B, a nephrologist, for 12 hours on MM/DD/YYYY and saw dialysis patients and patients on the wards."

Thanks in advance.

absolutely go for the second one

 

[Ari1584]

I guess I am the only one that votes for the first one. I think it is more personal, and gives a little more insight as to who you are. But then again...if you did not really have a certain amazing moment during that experience, then go for the 2nd option. anyone else agree with the 1st, more personal option?

 

[witness23]

the first one is a bit too much. I also don't get why people put down the exact amount of hours for shadowing and volunteering. are people suppose to? i don't think I did that for any of my activities. I feel like its a SDN thing.

 

[schizosquirrel]

Mine are a mix of both ideas 1 and 2. It's in paragraph form but written more like a resume, just summarizing what I did in a simple A, B, C sort of way. However, I always end each paragraphwith a sentence describing why the experience was meaningful and possibly how it relates to being a doctor, which end up being a little more gushy.

 

[student1799]

I vote for resume-style. This makes it a lot easier for the people reading your app to quickly get the important points, and it saves a lot of characters as well, which is useful if you have a really meaty EC to describe.