*~*~*~*Official AMCAS "Work/Activities" Tips Thread 2012-2013*~*~*~*

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If I talked briefly about an experience in my personal statement, is it necessary (or a good idea) to list it in the work/activities section? Perhaps as a reference?
It's not necessary if you feel the added details won't make your application stronger, if you don't have enough space, or if you don't have enough extra to say that an entry would be sufficiently substantive.
 
On my physician shadowing activity I have all of the physicians listed and was able to keep it just under 700 characters (694 to be exact). Every time I go back to look at it, the last few lines have been deleted to 672 characters.. what is going on!? Any advice?
 
On my physician shadowing activity I have all of the physicians listed and was able to keep it just under 700 characters (694 to be exact). Every time I go back to look at it, the last few lines have been deleted to 672 characters.. what is going on!? Any advice?
This issue was discussed in the last two pages among several members. No clear reason was identified, but it was theorized to be due to which browser was being used.
 
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Thank you! I also have one other question: for the "Experience Name:" line, should it be "Volunteer, Blah Emergency Department" "File Clerk, Blah Law Firm" or do you just put the name of the place "Blah Emergency Department" and describe your position in the description portion?
 
for the "Experience Name:" line, should it be "Volunteer, Blah Emergency Department" "File Clerk, Blah Law Firm" or do you just put the name of the place "Blah Emergency Department" and describe your position in the description portion?
The name of the place is evident from the Organization Name in the header. The name you give the activity should include the title you had, or be decriptive enough that there's a clue about what your role or roles were. So you could say Emergency Room Volunteer & Legal Secretary, at the minimum, vs Volunteer Aide to Emergency Room Support Staff & Law Brief Organizer and Billing Clerk. Or whatever.
 
Just finished my AMCAS activities, finally! Have a few questions to wrap it up:

1) Phi Beta Kappa... I have been deemed eligible for admission, but my school only inaugurates members at the time of graduation (next April). I was deemed eligible by PBK's president in April 2012. Can I put it or no, and how should I make this clear if I do add it? The president is one of my LOR writers, and he told me that he stated that I should qualify 'comfortably.'

2) National Society of Collegiate Scholars / Alpha Epsilon Delta... If the answer to #1 is yes, my original strategy was to make a catch-all "Honorary Societies" section and put these two in the description as well. NSCS requires top 20% of your first year class; AED requires a 3.2, certain amount of coursework, and active membership. Keep in or just make AED the only honor society?

3) Title: "Community Service & Experience with Underserved Populations" ... This is my current title for the catch-all activity for non-clinical com serv. & outreach with underserved areas-- is it sufficient or too long?

4) This one is a bit petty... I used bullets to describe activities. Should I put periods at the end of each bullet (not complete sentences)?

5) Does everything need both hours per week and total hours? Some things that I just started this May - Present, I only put hours per week; other things such as hobbies I didn't put any hours at all.

6) For hobbies, is it best to just put a knowledgable friend as the contact? Or myself?

7) Similar to the PBK question... as an artistic endeavor, I have written an essay for a prize competition; my professor recommended my submission, but the competition doesn't start reviewing until October 2012. Should I mention it?

Thanks for the help!
 
Hi, thanks for the thread this has been really helpful over the past month. I just have a quick question that I'm not sure was answered previously, so I apologize for any redundancy:

I've served as a Sunday School teacher at my local church over the past 5-6 years and I was wondering whether to list this experience under the category Extracurricular/Hobbies/Advocations or as a Teaching/Tutoring activity. Likewise, I'm concerned about whether to list this activity at all, given that it is religious in nature and could be polarizing to some adcomm members.

Thanks for the help, and again I apologize if I may have repeated any other posts.
 
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It isn't a future event if you title the activity as President Elect of XXX Club and discuss the leadership activites you've already undertaken. Use the date of the election for onset.

I too have been elected to a leadership position in my pre-medical society this past April, after being a member for 2 years. However, I have not partaken in any leadership tasks since the election due to it being summer. Should I list the activity under "Other" with the title of Pre-Medical Society Membership, then go onto explain under the description that I have been recently elected and what duties I will have during my time as officer?
 
All of my activities in college have been related to science (I can't help it--I'm legitimately just more interested in those types of things!)

I did spend my freshman year as editor of a literary magazine and went to meetings every week (they let me be on the editing team right away because I had extensive experience with lit mag and newspaper in HS), but I'm debating whether or not to add this to my activities list.

On one hand, it was only one year, but on the other hand, I think it shows that I at least wholeheartedly tried something non-science-related before deciding that I wanted to spend my time on other endeavors. Thoughts, please? Thank you!
 
1) Phi Beta Kappa... I have been deemed eligible for admission, but my school only inaugurates members at the time of graduation (next April). I was deemed eligible by PBK's president in April 2012. Can I put it or no, and how should I make this clear if I do add it? The president is one of my LOR writers, and he told me that he stated that I should qualify 'comfortably.'

2) National Society of Collegiate Scholars / Alpha Epsilon Delta... If the answer to #1 is yes, my original strategy was to make a catch-all "Honorary Societies" section and put these two in the description as well. NSCS requires top 20% of your first year class; AED requires a 3.2, certain amount of coursework, and active membership. Keep in or just make AED the only honor society?

3) Title: "Community Service & Experience with Underserved Populations" ... This is my current title for the catch-all activity for non-clinical com serv. & outreach with underserved areas-- is it sufficient or too long?

4) This one is a bit petty... I used bullets to describe activities. Should I put periods at the end of each bullet (not complete sentences)?

5) Does everything need both hours per week and total hours? Some things that I just started this May - Present, I only put hours per week; other things such as hobbies I didn't put any hours at all.

6) For hobbies, is it best to just put a knowledgable friend as the contact? Or myself?

7) Similar to the PBK question... as an artistic endeavor, I have written an essay for a prize competition; my professor recommended my submission, but the competition doesn't start reviewing until October 2012. Should I mention it?
1) Unless you receive a letter saying you are in, I'd say no, don't include it. The college registrar, who would be your contact, cannot attest to something that didn't happen yet.

2) I'd include AED as an organization you belong to under Other, and enumerate the ways in which you've been active.

3) That title is fine. I think there is a 70 character limit for length. Be sure your catch-all doesn't include stuff like tutoring co-students, who are hardly under-served.

4) My Writer's Guide says no periods should be used when the sentence isn't complete. I tend to put them in out of reflex anyway.

5) No. But with entries that involve thousands of hours, it seems silly to give a total. For shadowing, I'd say it's important to give subtotals and a grand total. JMO.

6) Either, or a parent is fine, too. Or if you have a contact for just one hobby, like at a gym where you work out, or a teacher who taught you the flute, then list that hobby first and use that contact.

7) If writing is one of your pastimes, and you have shared your writing in a public venue before, then with your other writing triumphs under Artisitic Endeavor, you might mention the recent submission. If writing is really just a hobby, then you could mention the submission after describing your other scribblings for fun. But if you don't consider writing to be a hobby or past artistic endeavor (maybe doing it mainly for classes), then I wouldn't mention it. If you end up winning anything, it can be included in a future update letter.
 
I've served as a Sunday School teacher at my local church over the past 5-6 years and I was wondering whether to list this experience under the category Extracurricular/Hobbies/Advocations or as a Teaching/Tutoring activity. Likewise, I'm concerned about whether to list this activity at all, given that it is religious in nature and could be polarizing to some adcomm members.
Teaching activities strengthen the application. Long involvement shows dedication and patience. I would include it. You needn't be specific about the denomination of the religious organization, if you prefer to be vague. The organization could be Religious Education Department, or somesuch.
 
I too have been elected to a leadership position in my pre-medical society this past April, after being a member for 2 years. However, I have not partaken in any leadership tasks since the election due to it being summer. Should I list the activity under "Other" with the title of Pre-Medical Society Membership, then go onto explain under the description that I have been recently elected and what duties I will have during my time as officer?
Yes.
 
All of my activities in college have been related to science (I can't help it--I'm legitimately just more interested in those types of things!)

I did spend my freshman year as editor of a literary magazine and went to meetings every week (they let me be on the editing team right away because I had extensive experience with lit mag and newspaper in HS), but I'm debating whether or not to add this to my activities list.

On one hand, it was only one year, but on the other hand, I think it shows that I at least wholeheartedly tried something non-science-related before deciding that I wanted to spend my time on other endeavors. Thoughts, please?
One year is a decent length of time. I would include it for just the reason you suggest. And it gives you an excuse to refer to the related HS background information.
 
Hey cat, i organized a bicycle drive for the residents of Joplin over the summer. Basically it involved putting out notices, picking up bikes, cleaning them and replacing any necessary items, and then finally delivery of the bikes to Joplin. This was over a period of a few months. I was wondering whether this should be filed under short-term volunteering or something else
 
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Would placing 'URL' or links to webpages be a good idea in the Work/Activities section? Especially if these webpages could serve as a reference?
 
Hey cat, i organized a bicycle drive for the residents of Joplin over the summer. Basically it involved putting out notices, picking up bikes, cleaning them and replacing any necessary items, and then finally delivery of the bikes to Joplin. This was over a period of a few months. I was wondering whether this should be filed under short-term volunteering or something else
Either that, or leadership if you organized a crew of people to help you. Or if you're into biking, you could mention it in the same Hobbies entry, since they're related.
 
One of my "most meaningful" activities is research. I don't know what to say for the "impact" part. I mean, it had an impact on me, it made me realize that I love research and want to pursue it in the future. But I don't feel like I had an impact on others, since it was basic science research. What should I be thinking about when I am writing this?
 
One of my "most meaningful" activities is research. I don't know what to say for the "impact" part. I mean, it had an impact on me, it made me realize that I love research and want to pursue it in the future. But I don't feel like I had an impact on others, since it was basic science research. What should I be thinking about when I am writing this?
It's understandable that you would not feel you had much impact on others (other than providing free manpower 🙂), so stick to its transformative elements as related to yourself. Just because it's "Most Meaningful" doesn't mean you have to fill the entire extra space with insightful comments. Maybe let the essay sit a bit and some other thoughts will pop into your head.
 
I took an EMT training class at a local college and then took the (separate) test to become nationally certified. I took the class to investigate medicine (albeit at a basic level), and was obviously hoping to work as one. However, I ended up actually working in a different hospital position instead.

So my question now is this: should I list this under my W&A as a national certification type thing? I don't have any experience to speak of, outside of training itself. The classes are already listed in the courses section, and I mention it in other places (with regard to its impact on my choice to pursue medicine, etc...). Is it worth making an individual section for? I doubt it, but don't want to cut myself short, either....I have about nine activities currently.
 
I took an EMT training class at a local college and then took the (separate) test to become nationally certified. I took the class to investigate medicine (albeit at a basic level), and was obviously hoping to work as one. However, I ended up actually working in a different hospital position instead.

So my question now is this: should I list this under my W&A as a national certification type thing? I don't have any experience to speak of, outside of training itself. The classes are already listed in the courses section, and I mention it in other places (with regard to its impact on my choice to pursue medicine, etc...). Is it worth making an individual section for? I doubt it, but don't want to cut myself short, either....I have about nine activities currently.
A certification obtained but never used isn't going to help you. If you wanted to enter the experience of taking the EMT class because you have loads more to say about it, you may, though. I'd suggest you use the "Other "category.
 
I have 2 questions

1) I'm having trouble debating how to break up my research experience. I was admitted into the inaugural summer research session for the UW-Madison Food Research Institute (FRI), which was a paid microbiology position. After that summer, I stayed on the same lab working for credit. At the end of this year, I presented a poster of my research at the Annual FRI Conference, for which I was award the Nelson Undergraduate Researcher Award. Currently I am planning on combining all of this into one nice activity under research, but I was wondering if I should split it up. For example, if I had an awards section should I could also list the Nelson Award there?

2) I am planning on studying Abroad in Spain my final semester of Undergrad to improve my Spanish. I feel that this is something important to list on my application, but on these forums its been said that listing future activities is a big no-no. Should I just omit it, is there a way to put it in the activities section, or is there a better spot in the application to include it.

Thanks for any input!
 
I have a few questions for activities:

1) If you were selected as a nominee for your school for a fellowship (ie. Rhodes) but were not selected for the fellowship, is it still worth mentioning you were a nominee for your district as an honor?
2) If you had a lot of physician shadowing but through multiple clinical work experiences, is it okay to just mention the shadowing under those clinical experiences, rather than making a separate umbrella entry for it?
3) I needed to pay for everything during college, so I held multiple paid internships in hospitals, received lab funding, and worked as a paid tutor. Should I still just list these as activities like "research", "clinical experience", and "teaching/tutoring" and just mention the paid component in the description for each? I didn't continue my restaurant work in college because I was able to find so many opportunities that combined the money I needed with my academic interests.
4) Is it a bad idea to just list publications/presentations under the overall lab research entry? I volunteered with multiple organizations so that will unfortunately take up a lot of my entries since you can only list one supervisor per entry and I therefore can't really have a single Volunteering entry.

Thanks for the help!
 
Teaching activities strengthen the application. Long involvement shows dedication and patience. I would include it. You needn't be specific about the denomination of the religious organization, if you prefer to be vague. The organization could be Religious Education Department, or somesuch.

Thanks so much for your input and your expedient response! I'll certainly keep this in mind. 🙂
 
I am currently doing a summer SURF (started last week, ends in August), and am currently applying. I am planning on submitting my primary in a few weeks, so that I will be able to put this activity down with a decent enough description. I would also like to note this as most significant, since it is much more intense and significant than the research i do at my school.

Is putting an unfinished research project as most significant( for which I would not be able to provide too much detail on) be ok?
 
I had two tennis coaching jobs that I combined into one experience. I already wrote a description describing the two jobs, which came to a total of 594 characters (before I looked at this thread showing how to put the dates in within the description). Instead of describing them separately, can I just put:

Tennis clinic: June 2005 – August 2007; UCLA Recreation: August 2010 – June 2011

before my paragraph description of the two? Do you think that would suffice?
 
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1) I'm having trouble debating how to break up my research experience. I was admitted into the inaugural summer research session for the UW-Madison Food Research Institute (FRI), which was a paid microbiology position. After that summer, I stayed on the same lab working for credit. At the end of this year, I presented a poster of my research at the Annual FRI Conference, for which I was award the Nelson Undergraduate Researcher Award. Currently I am planning on combining all of this into one nice activity under research, but I was wondering if I should split it up. For example, if I had an awards section should I could also list the Nelson Award there?

2) I am planning on studying Abroad in Spain my final semester of Undergrad to improve my Spanish. I feel that this is something important to list on my application, but on these forums its been said that listing future activities is a big no-no. Should I just omit it, is there a way to put it in the activities section, or is there a better spot in the application to include it.

Thanks for any input!
1) While you could list the award separately with other recognitions, it makes more sense to keep them together to maintain the context/background for why you got the award, and you don't want to explain twice.

2) If you listed Spanish as a Hobby or volunteered as a Spanish translator, and you have been accepted to the study Abroad program of your choice, you could mention it with the associated activity. But studying abroad is still just a plan, I would not mention it anywhere in the Primary, but would save it for a future update letter. Side Comment: What are you going to do about Spring term interviews? What if your three top schools failed to offer interviews until then? Would you not cancel the Study Abroad opportunity? Other unplanned trip interruptions have occurred besides this, related to health or family issues. That's why listing a future plan is unwise.
 
Oh cool, Cat, you're on. From my WAMC topic, Here are my finalized list of activities:

I was wondering if you could help me with clarification. I think having 15 will be viewed as "fluff", so I'd like to cut it down to 14 or 13.
 
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1) If you were selected as a nominee for your school for a fellowship (ie. Rhodes) but were not selected for the fellowship, is it still worth mentioning you were a nominee for your district as an honor?
2) If you had a lot of physician shadowing but through multiple clinical work experiences, is it okay to just mention the shadowing under those clinical experiences, rather than making a separate umbrella entry for it?
3) I needed to pay for everything during college, so I held multiple paid internships in hospitals, received lab funding, and worked as a paid tutor. Should I still just list these as activities like "research", "clinical experience", and "teaching/tutoring" and just mention the paid component in the description for each? I didn't continue my restaurant work in college because I was able to find so many opportunities that combined the money I needed with my academic interests.
4) a) Is it a bad idea to just list publications/presentations under the overall lab research entry?
b) I volunteered with multiple organizations so that will unfortunately take up a lot of my entries since you can only list one supervisor per entry and I therefore can't really have a single Volunteering entry.
1) Yes.

2) This is not ideal, as I've seen embedded shadowing missed when listed that way (and an ER scribe applicant criticized for having none, which is ridiculous). To counter that possibility, I'd suggest using the word Shadowing in the title you give each of those entries, as well as maybe giving an estimated total shadowing time at the end of each narrative or an estimated % of time that you were in the physician's presence).

3) a) Research should always be listed under Research, IMO. Mention the funding.
b) Teaching/Tutoring gives you three choices, including Employment or Volunteer, depending, and you can pick the designation that best balances your application. Mention the paid aspect if you choose Teaching/Tutoring.
c) But since you were paid, you will have to list your clinical experience under Employment, as the only other good choice requires it to have been a volunteer position. So it is important that the Name you give the activiy make it clear it was patient-related experience.

4) a)If it were a campus poster or publication, it is preferred to list it with the associated Research description. If you presented your data at a national/regional meeting or published in a national journal, you'd want to put this accomplishment in the proper designated space (especially if you are applying to research-oriented schools). If the same data was both presented and published, you'd pick the more prestigious format to list, then mention the other venues in that same description.

b) Actually, you can group them, but you'd need to provide the other header information in the activity description. Some will break out the briefer experiences and list them under "Short-Term Community Service" or somesuch. Maybe you can free up some space that way. If they are all substantive, and you are aiming to get into a school with a humanistic orientation, you'd maybe leave them the way you've already done it.
 
I am currently doing a summer SURF (started last week, ends in August), and am currently applying. I am planning on submitting my primary in a few weeks, so that I will be able to put this activity down with a decent enough description. I would also like to note this as most significant, since it is much more intense and significant than the research i do at my school.

Is putting an unfinished research project as most significant( for which I would not be able to provide too much detail on) be ok?
If it is indeed meaningful to you, and not just a strategic consideration, then it's perfectly fine.
 
Should I put going to rock concerts as a hobby?
If you've only gone to two of them, probably not. If you also collect music and music has an effect on other leisuretime choices, it could be part of a substantial entry. If you are involved in music in other ways, perform, create, etc., it could stand on its own in its own space, and maybe even be called an Artistic Endeavor.
 
I had two tennis coaching jobs that I combined into one experience. I already wrote a description describing the two jobs, which came to a total of 594 characters (before I looked at this thread showing how to put the dates in within the description). Instead of describing them separately, can I just put:

Tennis clinic: June 2005 – August 2007; UCLA Recreation: August 2010 – June 2011

before my paragraph description of the two? Do you think that would suffice?
Since everything is substantially similar for both gigs, then yes, you can have just one description.

But, since there is a three year gap between the two experiences, you should not enter the header dates as 2005-2011, which is misleading. I'd pick the most recent one and use those dates for the header and then in the narrative, above the description, say Also, Tennis Clinic 6/05-8/07 at xxx, 35 hour/week, contact: xxx.
 
if i was involved in cheerleading freshman year but quit afterwards should i include it in my amcas?
without it, it looks like i did nothing other than school my first year because cheer consumed my life frosh year, and we competed nationally. i had no time to be involved in clubs or anything and it affected my academics. it was a rewarding experience because i've been cheering competitively since high school, but didnt see it being in my future as a doctor, and i wanted to focus on my grades, which is why i quit. thoughts? does it look bad?
 
Very minor question...

My mom works for a pharmaceutical company (she has her Ph.D. in science and does the writing phase summarizing the results for FDA approval). Her actual title is "Lead Author, Worldwide Safety and Regulatory Operations" Which of the following titles is best of the choices I'm allowed:

Pharmacist
Other Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupation
Life Scientist (e.g. Animal, Food, Soil, or Biological Scientist)
Other Professional Occupation

Thanks!
Presumably, you are using her as a contact for an activity. What is the activity and how is she related to it?
 
if i was involved in cheerleading freshman year but quit afterwards should i include it in my amcas?
without it, it looks like i did nothing other than school my first year because cheer consumed my life frosh year, and we competed nationally. i had no time to be involved in clubs or anything and it affected my academics. it was a rewarding experience because i've been cheering competitively since high school, but didnt see it being in my future as a doctor, and i wanted to focus on my grades, which is why i quit. thoughts? does it look bad?
Of course it doesn't look bad. List it.
 
Very minor question...

My mom works for a pharmaceutical company (she has her Ph.D. in science and does the writing phase summarizing the results for FDA approval). Her actual title is "Lead Author, Worldwide Safety and Regulatory Operations" Which of the following titles is best of the choices I'm allowed:

Pharmacist
Other Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupation
Life Scientist (e.g. Animal, Food, Soil, or Biological Scientist)
Other Professional Occupation

Thanks!

If she's not an RPh or PharmD, do not say Pharmacist. At least in my eyes, a Pharmacist does not do any classical industrial work; it's more on the clinical side (unless they are PharmD/PhD).
 
Presumably, you are using her as a contact for an activity. What is the activity and how is she related to it?

Sorry! Just realized that this is the work/activities thread and not the amcas questions thread. So I'm listing her as my mom in the parental information asking for parents' jobs. Wrong thread, but if you have answer I'd still appreciate it!
 
Sorry! Just realized that this is the work/activities thread and not the amcas questions thread. So I'm listing her as my mom in the parental information asking for parents' jobs. Wrong thread, but if you have answer I'd still appreciate it!
I think that "Other Office and Administrative Support Occupation" could be considered. Or, because she's a science writer, "Other Professional Occupation".
 
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I was wondering if I should include hobbies such as playing the piano on my application. I still do practice several hours a week. I was pretty involved with it in high school but not in college (I practiced an hour or two a week) due to the competitive nature of my college (not enough positions for pianists).

However, one of my volunteer activities is playing the piano for hospice patients, so would it be redundant if I listed it as a separate activity? I'm guessing adcoms could extrapolate from that activity that piano is pretty important to me.
 
I was wondering if I should include hobbies such as playing the piano on my application. I still do practice several hours a week. I was pretty involved with it in high school but not in college (I practiced an hour or two a week) due to the competitive nature of my college (not enough positions for pianists).

However, one of my volunteer activities is playing the piano for hospice patients, so would it be redundant if I listed it as a separate activity? I'm guessing adcoms could extrapolate from that activity that piano is pretty important to me.

similarly, i never played tennis in high school but i wanted to learn so as a hobby i took lessons throughout college and played with any friends at any chance. i got to a pretty good level, but didnt want to be on any teams...i really enjoy playing but should i include this? who would i even put down as my contact?
 
If applying to research-intensive schools, does it make sense to put two of my research experiences as "most meaningful," or should I try to balance that out with, say, a community outreach project, hobby, or clinical experience?

And, do I have to list a separate contact for every award/honor I list? Or, who should I list for my awards/honors?
 
I was wondering if I should include hobbies such as playing the piano on my application. I still do practice several hours a week. I was pretty involved with it in high school but not in college (I practiced an hour or two a week) due to the competitive nature of my college (not enough positions for pianists).

However, one of my volunteer activities is playing the piano for hospice patients, so would it be redundant if I listed it as a separate activity? I'm guessing adcoms could extrapolate from that activity that piano is pretty important to me.
When one shares ones's art publically, it is an Artistic Endeavor and you could list it on its own under that designation (trying not to duplicate much information from the other music-related listing). Or you could group it with other Hobbies. Or you could give the backstory in the same space as the Community Service listing, putting the long-ago onset date in the narrative.
 
i never played tennis in high school but i wanted to learn so as a hobby i took lessons throughout college and played with any friends at any chance. i got to a pretty good level, but didnt want to be on any teams...i really enjoy playing but should i include this? who would i even put down as my contact?
Of course you should list it, either with other Hobbies, or on its own if you have enough to say. Contact could be someone who gave you lessons, a friend you play with regularly, or yourself.
 
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