Need advice on AMCAS application

[jinx520]

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I have an unusual situation that I need advice from. In a nutshell, I got waitlisted but didn't get accepted, then my husband left me when I decided to reapply. He also left me stranded financially during the separation/pending divorce, and so I've decided the best thing for me to do right now is to wait until next cycle to reapply so that I can get my financial situation straightened out and also to bolster my volunteer work, which I didn't have time to do during the divorce. I was unemployed (stay-at-home mom) while the divorce was pending, and I represented myself during the divorce. I have a big gap in my CV/employment history/educational history/volunteer activity because I was attending to both the divorce and to taking my kids and myself to various counselors.

My question: when I reapply next cycle, should I put down "represented myself in divorce" as an activity on my AMCAS app? I don't exactly want to call attention to the fact that I am now a single mother, but I do want to explain the big gap in my activity (or non-activity, as it were). On paper it looks like I was sitting around watching soap operas and eating Twinkies.

Thanks for any thoughts and advice!

 

[catswym]

I have an unusual situation that I need advice from. In a nutshell, I got waitlisted but didn't get accepted, then my husband left me when I decided to reapply. He also left me stranded financially during the separation/pending divorce, and so I've decided the best thing for me to do right now is to wait until next cycle to reapply so that I can get my financial situation straightened out and also to bolster my volunteer work, which I didn't have time to do during the divorce. I was unemployed (stay-at-home mom) while the divorce was pending, and I represented myself during the divorce. I have a big gap in my CV/employment history/educational history/volunteer activity because I was attending to both the divorce and to taking my kids and myself to various counselors.

My question: when I reapply next cycle, should I put down "represented myself in divorce" as an activity on my AMCAS app? I don't exactly want to call attention to the fact that I am now a single mother, but I do want to explain the big gap in my activity (or non-activity, as it were). On paper it looks like I was sitting around watching soap operas and eating Twinkies.

Thanks for any thoughts and advice!

I would say no.

It could be something that comes up in your PS if relevant to the story you are telling. Or it could be something that comes up in secondaries which often ask "explain any gaps in employment/ school that are not explained elsewhere".

 

[QofQuimica]

No, don't do it, jinx. What benefit is there to dredging up your not so pleasant personal affairs for scrutiny by interviewers and adcoms? Do you really want to primarily be remembered by your interviewers as the applicant who went through a divorce?

On your app, it's fine to say that you stayed home with your kids, and that's why you weren't employed during the time in question. You're a mother. Some mothers stay home with their kids. No further explanation necessary.

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

I agree with the above. Do not put this down on the application. If you were applying to law school, or even a JD/MD program, I'd say do it, but for MD, no, it's in no way applicable, and it does call attention to something you may not want to talk about... Also, if you were waitlisted, contact the school and ask them specifically what to improve before you reapply, it is worth your time, if you haven't already done so...

 

[jinx520]

Thanks, guys. That's what I was thinking in the first place, but then I started worrying that people would ask and I didn't want to lie. But I don't want to air all my dirty laundry, either. I guess a big part of my worry was that for the last part of the marriage The Man was really emotionally abusive and part of my counseling work was to let go of the shame I felt and finally admit openly to the abuse. However, this is not something I want to talk about during a med school interview. There's a fine line between not being ashamed/having nothing to hide and TMI, I guess.

I did already talk to the dean of admissions; he told me that I needed more clinical experience. I've already shadowed a couple of docs and I'm starting a medical assistant certificate program in the spring, so I should be working as a MA when I interview next cycle. In the meantime, I plan on continuing with my volunteer work. I already had over 300 hours volunteering in an OR, but it wasn't recent so I need to supplement that. Thanks again for the input, especially you, Q. The bit about staying at home with my kids being a good enough explanation really set my mind at ease.