Not working during pre-med?

[Scarlett OHara]

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I don't really need to work, I work because I want too, and mostly I save my money. Financially, I have 5 k in case of emergencies. And I have 2k more or less worth of gold, which is my survival funds in case I really need to get out of a bind.

I have financial aid coming in, and my college is already paid for.

I suffer a lot last semester with work/life balance (Have a 4.0 GPA, but 1 W), and I realize college is my only goal. But if I drop my job, I'll feel like a loser... like, "what the heck you don't work for a living?"

Well I don't need too. I don't come from wealth either, so it's not like my family is giving me money. I have my rent cover. No vehicle, no assets, so what would you do if you were me?

 

[Neurocentric]

I don't really need to work, I work because I want too, and mostly I save my money. Financially, I have 5 k in case of emergencies. And I have 2k more or less worth of gold, which is my survival funds in case I really need to get out of a bind.

I suffer a lot last semester, and I realize college is my only goal. But if I drop my job, I'll feel like a loser... like, "what the heck you don't work for a living?"

Well I don't need too. I don't come from wealth either, so it's not like my family is giving me money. I have my rent cover. No vehicle, no assets, so what would you do if you were me?

If you don't have to work, don't. This will probably be my last semester working myself. If you can afford to give yourself time to work on things regarding pre-med, like ECs, volunteering/shadowing, and the like, I say go for it. That's just me, though. I'm non-trad at 26, and have been working for a while, so I'm happy to give all that up for a bit!

If only I had told my 13 year old self that just going to school was cake.. all I wanted at 13 was a job and no school

 

[Scarlett OHara]

If it wasn't the financial aid, I wouldn't be so eager to drop my job lol. Maybe things will change when I transfer from community college to a university. But I have financial aid coming for the next 2 yrs hopefully.

 

[Stumpyman]

I wouldn't work unless I had to. I don't think anyone becomes a "loser" for being a student and not working (at least in my school, barely anybody works).

 

[Scarlett OHara]

I wouldn't work unless I had to. I don't think anyone becomes a "loser" for being a student and not working (at least in my school, barely anybody works).

I still have the philosophies of my family, who thinks anyone who is an adult who doesn't work is a loser. It's probably stupid ideas I need to disregard because I live on my own.

 

[Neurocentric]

I still have the philosophies of my family, who thinks anyone who is an adult who doesn't work is a loser. It's probably stupid ideas I need to disregard because I live on my own.

Yeah, once you get out of the house, you kinda have to think for yourself. As long as you can do it without putting yourself in a tough monetary situation, then go ahead. You'll have more time to experience college while getting all your actual schoolwork done.

 

[LupaCupcake]

if you are taking care of yourself then you are being an adult

you can have an excellent job and still be an immature, childish a** lol. having a job does not make you an adult

 

[theseeker4]

if you are taking care of yourself then you are being an adult

you can have an excellent job and still be an immature, childish a** lol. having a job does not make you an adult

Exactly. There is no need to work if you don't need to, especially if you are working toward another goal (i.e. school) that your work is getting in the way of. Forget any biases anyone might have against your not working and do what is best for you.

 

[johnisles2011]

You have a 4.0 and you're worried about work? I mean, the W is a shame, but do you really think work was the only reason you had the W? If you have an all over 4.0 and just have a W in one class, I feel like that class just really didn't resonate with you more than you ran out of time due to work. If the time thing was the issue, I'd expect to see you slip off the 4.0 in some other classes too.

Or, why not just try to work less?

By the way, I generally think Adcoms are impressed at least a little bit when someone puts together an all together great app (great gpa mcat and ECs) while also maintaining a job (or varsity sports). It's pretty impressive to be able to maintain that many commitments at one time.

 

[writingmedicine]

Yeah, I'd quit working so much, and start reading more, so your grammar isn't as terrible when you write your personal statement/fill out your amcas.

 

[circulus vitios]

Yeah, I'd quit working so much, and start reading more, so your grammar isn't as terrible when you write your personal statement/fill out your amcas.

Was that necessary?

 

[Neurocentric]

Was that necessary?

Eh, I've seen worse things said on this forum. And it's not like he's completely wrong, however, we don't know the reason for it. OP could be an international student, just have crappy grammar, or just types way too fast and doesn't make sure to check his/her grammar. Tons of reasons.

However, if it is a specific issue that isn't just a flying of fingers across the keyboard, it should be addressed. So, no, might not have been necessary for this topic, but should be something to look into.

 

[akszp4]

Don't work unless you have to. You'll spend the majority of your life working... if you have the opportunity to take time off then do it. 🙂

Oh... and ignore the haters up top.

 

[Neurocentric]

Don't work unless you have to. You'll spend the majority of your life working... if you have the opportunity to take time off then do it. 🙂

Oh... and ignore the haters up top.

Quoting for two things..

One. Where are the haters? I've just seen some great advice.
Two. I LOVE your avatar. Just sayin'.

 

[varsityblue]

I wouldn't work unless it was necessary for tuition purposes. Doing well in school is a demanding enough job as it is, no?

 

[xBODOMx]

.

 

[Neurocentric]

Getting everything handed to you makes you soft. Having a job gives you real life experince. I've worked all four years of undergrad at least full time and I'm a traditional student. I couldn't imagine not working and if I was an adcom, I would reject any student that hasn't worked.

I feel that's an unrealistic expectation. You don't know the reasons in which the student is not working. It's good that you worked full-time and went to school full time. Did you get into medical school? Were your grades still good? I'm honestly curious.

Not everyone can do that; it becomes exhausting. Also, students do not work while in medical school, so it's probable that adcoms don't care if you don't work while in undergrad.

 

[RavishingB]

Do whatever floats your boat! If you don't want to work, or if its affecting your grades, don't do it.

I personally like knowing I have a steady flow of income, so I probably always will, even if its just 10 hours a week.

 

[xXIDaShizIXx]

I still have the philosophies of my family, who thinks anyone who is an adult who doesn't work is a loser. It's probably stupid ideas I need to disregard because I live on my own.

I come from a family that thinks college is useless unless you get a doctorate in divinity (if you catch my drift). But from my experience if it allows to succeed, have better ECs, and whatever else you may need to do, then drop the job and work hard as a student.🙂

 

[gettheleadout]

Getting everything handed to you makes you soft. Having a job gives you real life experince. I've worked all four years of undergrad at least full time and I'm a traditional student. I couldn't imagine not working and if I was an adcom, I would reject any student that hasn't worked.

Because if I work hard prior to college and get scholarships that fund my education I'm having everything handed to me? What about students who worked multiple years in high school so they wouldn't have to work during college?

 

[xBODOMx]

.

 

[gettheleadout]

I'd still work even with scholarships.It's finacially smart for med school. And really you can only work 1-2years in HS due having to be 16, which I did as well and does help, but at least at my school tuition has been increasing every semester at least a few hundred dollars. Being white and going to a high school in a terrible area, I had no real options for scholarships.

In my state you can get a waiver to work at 14, though this may not be the case everywhere. Maybe if you work full time for all four years of college you can save enough to make a sizable dent in your eventual med school debt, but the idea that choosing to focus on school and other activities instead of working puts an applicant on equal grounds with someone who did have everything handed to them (familial wealth, whatever) and even that either of those situations constitutes a justifiable reason to reject an applicant seems judgmental to me.

 

[Neurocentric]

In my state you can get a waiver to work at 14, though this may not be the case everywhere. Maybe if you work full time for all four years of college you can save enough to make a sizable dent in your eventual med school debt, but the idea that choosing to focus on school and other activities instead of working puts an applicant on equal grounds with someone who did have everything handed to them (familial wealth, whatever) and even that either of those situations constitutes a justifiable reason to reject an applicant seems judgmental to me.

I agree. Also, I know in NH (when I lived there) there were students under the age of 16 who worked at a Dunkin' Donuts I worked at, but they could only work on weekends. It was a labor law that they could only work 15 hours a week or something like that.

But yes, I feel like if you don't have to work, don't. I've been working since I was 16, and I worked full time while making up my GPA at CC before going to an actual university and will be working till the fall, when I can finally stop. It's exhausting to do it all and I bet you that if given the chance, many students who work would take the chance not to.

I don't feel that whether you work or not has, or should have, any solid ground on the application process. We have plenty of time to work when we're physicians.

 

[Chaka27]

Look into work study, not too many hours but enough for some spending money. Plus, if you're lucky enough to work in the science department there's an opportunity to impress the faculty with your work ethic and possibly get some good LOR's down the road.

 

[Koosalagoosagoo]

This may come off as harsh but to me you sound lazy. Sure school is important but having a job can just be as vital. You can create a income for yourself and throw one more thing on your application. Like others in this thread I work full-time while going to school. I would advise working for that worse case scenario, you do not make it into med-school. What are you going to do your final 1 to 2 years in college without a job? How are you going to find a job that pays better then minimum wage or close to it with no work experience. I also believe that people working throughout college, juggling ec's, and a good gpa will be better prepared for the course-load in med-school.

 

[Essee]

This may come off as harsh but to me you sound lazy. Sure school is important but having a job can just be as vital. You can create a income for yourself and throw one more thing on your application. Like others in this thread I work full-time while going to school. I would advise working for that worse case scenario, you do not make it into med-school. What are you going to do your final 1 to 2 years in college without a job? How are you going to find a job that pays better then minimum wage or close to it with no work experience. I also believe that people working throughout college, juggling ec's, and a good gpa will be better prepared for the course-load in med-school.

Why must it be work though? Just playing devil's advocate but why couldn't someone instead substitute the time someone works for more time towards developing some outstanding long-term ECs? Would this not also demonstrate someone well prepared for handling the course load in med school?

I agree about obtaining some experience but if we're talking about working at Starbucks for 2 years in college, I don't know how much weight this would carry over to finding a great job afterwards. IMO some excellent relevant experience in the field (paid or unpaid), in addition to great interviewing skills, excellent academics and reaching out/making connections goes a long way.

 

[akszp4]

Yeah, I'd quit working so much, and start reading more, so your grammar isn't as terrible when you write your personal statement/fill out your amcas.

^Hater Comment.

Quoting for two things..

One. Where are the haters? I've just seen some great advice.
Two. I LOVE your avatar. Just sayin'.

& Thanks. 🙂

 

[akszp4]

This may come off as harsh but to me you sound lazy. Sure school is important but having a job can just be as vital. You can create a income for yourself and throw one more thing on your application. Like others in this thread I work full-time while going to school. I would advise working for that worse case scenario, you do not make it into med-school. What are you going to do your final 1 to 2 years in college without a job? How are you going to find a job that pays better then minimum wage or close to it with no work experience. I also believe that people working throughout college, juggling ec's, and a good gpa will be better prepared for the course-load in med-school.

You're going to be working for the majority of your life, if you have the opportunity to not work during school then IMO you shouldn't.

Not having to work doesn't necessarily imply that you can't manage time effectively or will be ill equipped to handle med school. If you use the extra time to do EC's and develop/be successful in hobbies then it might make you a more rounded candidate. I worked full time during my first two years and it sucked butt. I am not working next semester and am looking forward to it! I do have volunteering/ EC's/ sports lined up though, so I guess it's what you make it.

 

[Drogo]

I honestly wish I could just work part-time and focus a bit more on course work/ec's. Yet I have obligations that require me to work full-time while going to school full-time. Does it suck sometimes? Yes. I'm fortunate enough to have a real early work schedule (5 am shifts) and I can schedule classes early in the week on my 3 days off. Jamming over 35 hrs in 4 days later in the week is a pain though.

I never really have a complete day off from anything, it's either school or work or volunteering at the hospital. I actually end up using my vacation days around mid-terms and finals in order to have some more breathing room for studying and a little time to myself.

Just work part-time, if you have the luxury to choose that option. I'll just be over here grinding out this hectic schedule while envying you.😎