*~*~*~* Official AMCAS "Work/Activities" Tips Thread 2019-2020 *~*~*~*

[deleted843384]

I volunteered as a participant for two years, then a leader for two years in the same organization. I don't want to split them up because I don't have enough space left. If it's a significant activity, can I just mark it as non-clinical volunteering and explain I was a leader?

Also, I work in a clinical research lab. If I already have a ton of research, can I put this as paid clinical experience even if I put down presentations and such?

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[Catalystik]

1) I volunteered as a participant for two years, then a leader for two years in the same organization. I don't want to split them up because I don't have enough space left. If it's a significant activity, can I just mark it as non-clinical volunteering and explain I was a leader?

2) Also, I work in a clinical research lab. If I already have a ton of research, can I put this as paid clinical experience even if I put down presentations and such?

1) Yes, but maybe add the title (or a descriptor) of your leadership role to the name you give the space.

2) It can certainly be listed as Employment. Whether it qualifies as "Clinical," or not, in the eyes of adcomm readers depends. Some have more restrictive personal definitions than others. And yes, regardless, you can list related Presentations, etc.

-Can you describe your role?
-Are you working with "participants," subjects, healthy folks being screened for certain conditions, or persons with a known diagnosis already identified?
-Will study participation benefit them in some way?
-Will the results be entered into their patient charts where there doctors have access to them?

 

[fi3451]

In need of opinions, is 30 hours of EEG research worth listing on my application? I have no other research other than that.

 

[deleted928969]

Hi all -- I’m having difficulties reducing my W/A into 15. With that in mind:

1. I have 3 post-grad teaching experiences (paid)— tutor, substitute teacher, newspaper adviser. Should I list together under work or teaching? I have other teaching experience and if I put these under teaching, then non-clinical work would be blank.
2. I was a peer health educator at my undergrad. It was a competitive application process and I devoted 500+ hours to it; we’re seen as leaders on campus and are not paid. Would leadership or community service be most appropriate? (I have other entries in either category)
3. I bake bread at a local cafe weekly and would love to put this as I feel it helps me stand out but I’ve maxed out my 15 entries without it. Should I try to clump others together to make room? (I’ve put in 80+ hours to this endeavor)

Thanks in advance!

 

[Beyonce2.0]

In college, I was a member of a choir and an a capella group, and I held board member positions for both. I am grouping these into one category -- would this best be listed as an Extracurricular Activity or an Artistic Endeavor?

 

[Catalystik]

In need of opinions, is 30 hours of EEG research worth listing on my application? I have no other research other than that.

What was your role? How many weeks of involvement?

 

[Catalystik]

Hi all -- I’m having difficulties reducing my W/A into 15. With that in mind:

1. I have 3 post-grad teaching experiences (paid)— tutor, substitute teacher, newspaper adviser. Should I list together under work or teaching? I have other teaching experience and if I put these under teaching, then non-clinical work would be blank.
2. I was a peer health educator at my undergrad. It was a competitive application process and I devoted 500+ hours to it; we’re seen as leaders on campus and are not paid. Would leadership or community service be most appropriate? (I have other entries in either category)
3. I bake bread at a local cafe weekly and would love to put this as I feel it helps me stand out but I’ve maxed out my 15 entries without it. Should I try to clump others together to make room? (I’ve put in 80+ hours to this endeavor)

Thanks in advance!

1) Use Employment-Not Medical/Clinical.

2) I think Community Service fits better, unless you directed the activities of multiple other peer advisors.

3) Can you add it to an existing Hobbies, Employment, or Extracurricular entry? Can you remove an Awards/Honors entry that just has, say, Deans List in it? What could you clump to make room for it?

 

[Catalystik]

In college, I was a member of a choir and an a capella group, and I held board member positions for both. I am grouping these into one category -- would this best be listed as an Extracurricular Activity or an Artistic Endeavor?

Artistic Endeavor.

 

[Catalystik]

I want to add projected hours on AMCAS for work that I will continue until matriculation. I want schools to know how much hours I have prior to my application submission so they know how many hours for certain I have completed instead of projected hours. Anyway to do this?

If you are pretty sure you'll complete the projected hours, you can use the Repeated feature. Then both the completed hours and the projected hours will appear in the header of the space. Use the current month as both the end month for the first date span and the beginning month for the second date span. (If you enter June while it's still May, the AMCAS program won't allow you to save the entry).

Alternatively, enter just the one span of completed dates and completed Total Hours in the header blanks, then in the narrative, add a note at the end stating, "Will continue this job to summer 2020 for xx hours per week." Or, "Planned end date July 2020" to be more succinct and vague, as you might decide on a vacation or travel at the end.

 

[fi3451]

What was your role? How many weeks of involvement?

It was over summer for a period of about 4 months. Usually 1-2 hours a week. I was one of the EEG techs who put the EEG net on the participants and ran them through the trials.

 

[Catalystik]

It was over summer for a period of about 4 months. Usually 1-2 hours a week. I was one of the EEG techs who put the EEG net on the participants and ran them through the trials.

If this 30 hours was your sole involvement in the research study being done, you could omit the experience.

If you really, really want to include it, just to have something under the Research tab, you might describe yourself as a research tech, unless you have an in-depth understanding of the hypothesis, methods, data, analysis, conclusions, etc. that you can explain during interviews.

 

[babykarat]

Really struggling to decide what my last 2 MM activities should be. 1 of my MM will be my leadership of a student club. In my PS I heavily discussed my clinical volunteering and touched on my previous research in "Lab A." In my MD/PhD essay I touched on my current research in "Lab B" and lightly discussed my clinical volunteering.

Since I have already discussed my volunteer work in my PS, would it be redundant to mention it again, or would it seem strange that I did not indicate that my primary medical experience was not "most meaningful" in my decision to apply MD/PhD?

I spent almost twice as much time in Lab B than Lab A (1700 vs 900 hours), but my work in Lab A really defined my future scientific interests, was more independent, and I'll be working there for my gap year. Would it be a red flag to indicate that the bulk of my undergraduate research (Lab B) was less meaningful than my work in Lab A?

In short, I can't decide how I should choose between my Lab A, Lab B, and volunteer experience for my last two MM. Any advice? I am applying to MSTPs only.

 

[deleted843384]

1) Yes, but maybe add the title (or a descriptor) of your leadership role to the name you give the space.

2) It can certainly be listed as Employment. Whether it qualifies as "Clinical," or not, in the eyes of adcomm readers depends. Some have more restrictive personal definitions than others. And yes, regardless, you can list related Presentations, etc.

-Can you describe your role?
-Are you working with "participants," subjects, healthy folks being screened for certain conditions, or persons with a known diagnosis already identified?
-Will study participation benefit them in some way?
-Will the results be entered into their patient charts where there doctors have access to them?

I work directly with people who have diagnosed issues. Current study participation doesn't benefit but in the next few years it should. The results will not be entered except for their physicals.

 

[Catalystik]

I work directly with people who have diagnosed issues. Current study participation doesn't benefit but in the next few years it should. The results will not be entered except for their physicals.

With the sparse patient-interaction information you've given, I'd like to think it could qualify as "Clinical," particularly if you spin your description more toward the patient interaction/how you are helping. Are the patients conscious? Do you go over a questionnaire with them? Do you perform tests? re you interacting on the phone or in person?

 

[Catalystik]

Really struggling to decide what my last 2 MM activities should be. 1 of my MM will be my leadership of a student club. In my PS I heavily discussed my clinical volunteering and touched on my previous research in "Lab A." In my MD/PhD essay I touched on my current research in "Lab B" and lightly discussed my clinical volunteering.

1) Since I have already discussed my volunteer work in my PS, would it be redundant to mention it again, or would it seem strange that I did not indicate that my primary medical experience was not "most meaningful" in my decision to apply MD/PhD?

2) I spent almost twice as much time in Lab B than Lab A (1700 vs 900 hours), but my work in Lab A really defined my future scientific interests, was more independent, and I'll be working there for my gap year. Would it be a red flag to indicate that the bulk of my undergraduate research (Lab B) was less meaningful than my work in Lab A?

In short, I can't decide how I should choose between my Lab A, Lab B, and volunteer experience for my last two MM. Any advice? I am applying to MSTPs only.

1) It would be redundant if you said the exact same things about the experience in both locations, but if it's MM, you undoubtedly have more to say, so go ahead and say it. If you've said all you need to say, then it's fine to NOT designate the volunteer activity as MM. Don't overthink it.

2) One lab experience can be more meaningful than another due to factors unrelated to whether you're drawn to research or the raw hours involved, like the quality of the mentorship you received, the success of the project, the enjoyment of a harmonious teamwork effort, interpersonal relationships, how much you learned, and the amount of creative input you're allowed to have. So, no, it doesn't matter that Lab B was the less meaningful for some reason. There is no "Red Flag." Lab A seems the obvious choice for a Most Meaningful entry.

 

[Zen Arcade]

I'm planning on listing zero hours for the publications, poster presentation, awards, and hobbies section as I really dont know the number of hours and really am just trying to list that I did them. Is this okay as long as I make it consistent, or will it be too confusing?

 

[deleted843384]

With the sparse patient-interaction information you've given, I'd like to think it could qualify as "Clinical," particularly if you spin your description more toward the patient interaction/how you are helping. Are the patients conscious? Do you go over a questionnaire with them? Do you perform tests? re you interacting on the phone or in person?

Sorry haha. They are conscious and I help ambulate them and perform things like MRI/MEG/TMS. I do screenings with them and am also sort of their guide when they come in, i.e. get lunch with them, bring them different places. I also work with healthy volunteers and do similar procedures on them with less assistance. I also obtain medical records.

 

[babykarat]

I am grouping together my thesis research and relevant poster presentation in one entry. I already have a research entry for the lab I did this thesis in, and I have a separate entry for a publication in actual journal. Would you list he thesis/poster as Research, Other, Publication, or Poster?

(I tried searching for a relevant thread but came up short, so I apologize if I missed the answer somewhere)

 

[Catalystik]

I'm planning on listing zero hours for the publications, poster presentation, awards, and hobbies section as I really dont know the number of hours and really am just trying to list that I did them. Is this okay as long as I make it consistent, or will it be too confusing?

Zero is fine, or you can list the hours spent at the side of a poster or sitting at an award ceremony.

For Hobbies, you might enter a 99, 999, or 9999 (whichever might be closest), which suggests the number is unknown. Or a zero is fine, too.

 

[Catalystik]

Sorry haha. They are conscious and I help ambulate them and perform things like MRI/MEG/TMS. I do screenings with them and am also sort of their guide when they come in, i.e. get lunch with them, bring them different places. I also work with healthy volunteers and do similar procedures on them with less assistance. I also obtain medical records.

Great! Definitely clinical.

 

[deleted928969]

1) Use Employment-Not Medical/Clinical.

2) I think Community Service fits better, unless you directed the activities of multiple other peer advisors.

3) Can you add it to an existing Hobbies, Employment, or Extracurricular entry? Can you remove an Awards/Honors entry that just has, say, Deans List in it? What could you clump to make room for it?

Thank you @Catalystik!

1&2) Resolved
3) I suppose I'll lump it into hobbies though I was paid to bake (another hobby is farm to table cooking so I can somehow relate the two)

Another question:
Would it be appropriate to designate my thesis as a MM? It was an original research project whereby I collected/analyzed qualitative and quantitative data on a subject area important to me. I suppose I just feel it odd not to have a clinical W/A as a MM (other 2 are TA & peer educator).

 

[Catalystik]

I am grouping together my thesis research and relevant poster presentation in one entry. I already have a research entry for the lab I did this thesis in, and I have a separate entry for a publication in actual journal. Would you list he thesis/poster as Research, Other, Publication, or Poster?

(I tried searching for a relevant thread but came up short, so I apologize if I missed the answer somewhere)

So the thesis project was another original, hypothesis-driven research project that took place in the same lab as the already-tagged Research description? Or did the "research" consist of a lit review of others' work?

Was the affiliated poster presented on campus, or at a regional or national conference?

 

[Catalystik]

Thank you @Catalystik!
Another question:
Would it be appropriate to designate my thesis as a MM? It was an original research project whereby I collected/analyzed qualitative and quantitative data on a subject area important to me. I suppose I just feel it odd not to have a clinical W/A as a MM (other 2 are TA & peer educator).

You can choose to be strategic or you can pick activities that had the most impact/transformative qualities for you to describe. Your choice. But statistically, you're right. Most designate a clinical activity as MM.

 

[babykarat]

The thesis was a 100+ pg doc detailing the background, rationale, hypothesis, methods, and results of my research from two years in one lab. I have a distinct entry for the same project describing my wet lab research responsibilities.The poster was based on the thesis and presented on my university campus. Both the thesis and poster were for credit towards my honors BS degree if that is relevant
.

So the thesis project was another original, hypothesis-driven research project that took place in the same lab as the already-tagged Research description? Or did the "research" consist of a lit review of others' work?

Was the affiliated poster presented on campus, or at a regional or national conference?

 

[Catalystik]

The thesis was a 100+ pg doc detailing the background, rationale, hypothesis, methods, and results of my research from two years in one lab. I have a distinct entry for the same project describing my wet lab research responsibilities.The poster was based on the thesis and presented on my university campus. Both the thesis and poster were for credit towards my honors BS degree if that is relevant
.

I suggest tagging it with the "Other" category.

 

[2019App]

I'm planning to have just one honors/awards entry that will have PBK, scholarship (earned on campus for my SR year), another honor society, and maybe Dean's List. Should I just title this "Honors and Awards"?

 

[Catalystik]

I'm planning to have just one honors/awards entry that will have PBK, scholarship (earned on campus for my SR year), another honor society, and maybe Dean's List. Should I just title this "Honors and Awards"?

"Collegiate Recognitions"? (Less repetitive)

 

[goblinxoxo]

I was an independent volunteer private tutor, so I'm not sure what to list as the organization? For contact, I planned on listing the parent of three students that I tutored instead of listing myself. Is this reasonable?

Also for a lab job where you actually did only maintain glassware and media preparation, how should I list this?

 

[Catalystik]

1) I was an independent volunteer private tutor, so I'm not sure what to list as the organization?
2) For contact, I planned on listing the parent of three students that I tutored instead of listing myself. Is this reasonable?

3) Also for a lab job where you actually did only maintain glassware and media preparation, how should I list this?

1) You are not required to fill in the Organization blank.

2) Yes. It's the best choice available, if your advisor or a faculty member can't vouch for you. Be sure they know they might be contacted about timeframe and hours. They will not be asked for a reference, just confirmation of involvement.

3) Employment-Not Medical/Clinical.

 

[Droseraceae]

Hey guys,

On the work/activities section, I want to list an oral presentation of a project my name is on (5th author) from a major national conference. I was not the one who actually delivered the presentation - the lead author was. Nevertheless, this was pretty cool and capped off the research I contributed to this project, so obviously want to list it.

What should I name it on AMCAS? Right now I have it in the "Presentation/Poster" category and have it called "Oral Presentation of Clinical Research." This doesn't really seem... right to me. How should I list it/what should I call it, given that it wasn't actually ME who did the presenting? (don't want to be misleading, but also want to flex this on my app of course!!)

 

[starlover44]

I was a part of an academic fraternity for a year, which I ended up leaving for various reasons (not a priority with all my other commitments, didn't like the atmosphere, etc.). I'm planning on talking about it in secondaries/interviews to address a bad semester I had, as it was a significant time commitment that affected my performance in school. Is this still something I should list in my W/A so that adcoms knows about my involvement? personally, I don't think it needs its own entry as I have a lot of other activities I'm more passionate about.

 

[TravelingMedicine]

For future end dates how should we list them? Should we estimate when we will end even if we do not know when exactly we will stop ie starting a full-time job

For awards can I or should I list my 1st-3rd place finishes for cycling? and overall club placing on a national and regional conference level?

 

[Catalystik]

On the work/activities section, I want to list an oral presentation of a project my name is on (5th author) from a major national conference. I was not the one who actually delivered the presentation - the lead author was. Nevertheless, this was pretty cool and capped off the research I contributed to this project, so obviously want to list it.

What should I name it on AMCAS? Right now I have it in the "Presentation/Poster" category and have it called "Oral Presentation of Clinical Research." This doesn't really seem... right to me. How should I list it/what should I call it, given that it wasn't actually ME who did the presenting? (don't want to be misleading, but also want to flex this on my app of course!!)

How about Contributor to [Cognition Project (or whatever)] Podium Presentation? Or, Co-Author of [Cognition Project (or whatever)] Podium Presentation? Then in the narrative, after citing it, give credit to the actual presenter.

 

[Catalystik]

1) For future end dates how should we list them? Should we estimate when we will end even if we do not know when exactly we will stop ie starting a full-time job

2) For awards can I or should I list my 1st-3rd place finishes for cycling? and overall club placing on a national and regional conference level?

1) If an end date is unsure, I suggest putting only the completed dates and Total Hours in the header, and then at the end of the narrative state, "Will continue until xx/xx/xx or until I find a full-time job. Leaving it vague is sometimes better.

2) Yes, you may list them or summarize them in narrative form (depending on how it will fit best). Alternatively put them in the same space where you describe our sport, to maintain the context.

 

[Catalystik]

I was a part of an academic fraternity for a year, which I ended up leaving for various reasons (not a priority with all my other commitments, didn't like the atmosphere, etc.). I'm planning on talking about it in secondaries/interviews to address a bad semester I had, as it was a significant time commitment that affected my performance in school. Is this still something I should list in my W/A so that adcoms knows about my involvement? personally, I don't think it needs its own entry as I have a lot of other activities I'm more passionate about.

I agree that you don't need to list it in the Activities section. Whatever you write about it in the Secondary essays has to be all-inclusive of related details anyway, as readers won't necessarily have access to the entire application.

 

[TravelingMedicine]

1) If an end date is unsure, I suggest putting only the completed dates and Total Hours in the header, and then at the end of the narrative state, "Will continue until xx/xx/xx or until I find a full-time job. Leaving it vague is sometimes better.

2) Yes, you may list them or summarize them in narrative form (depending on how it will fit best). Alternatively put them in the same space where you describe our sport, to maintain the context.

For the cycling question. I am writing it as a separate meaningful experience as I was in a leadership position. I was wondering if I should list that under awards or list them within the meaningful experience or both. However, I would only include the club placing on a national/conference level in the meaningful experience as the personal placement does not exactly fit with what I am going to write.

Another question -- for my EMT certification I had to go through clinical rotations at different hospitals can I put that as shadowing experience as I am working with a doctor/nurse the whole time. Who would I list as the point of contact in this situation because I do not have the doctor's or nurse's emails. Would the program coordinators contact information work since we had to report our hours (signed off by the doctor/nurse) to him?

So many questions. Should I list TA positions even though they are for cycling/rock climbing/ultimate frisbee

 

[Droseraceae]

How about Contributor to [Cognition Project (or whatever)] Podium Presentation? Or, Co-Author of [Cognition Project (or whatever)] Podium Presentation? Then in the narrative, after citing it, give credit to the actual presenter.

This is a great idea, thanks!

 

[Catalystik]

1) For the cycling question. I am writing it as a separate meaningful experience as I was in a leadership position. I was wondering if I should list that under awards or list them within the meaningful experience or both. However, I would only include the club placing on a national/conference level in the meaningful experience as the personal placement does not exactly fit with what I am going to write.

2) Another question -- for my EMT certification I had to go through clinical rotations at different hospitals can I put that as shadowing experience as I am working with a doctor/nurse the whole time. Who would I list as the point of contact in this situation because I do not have the doctor's or nurse's emails. Would the program coordinators contact information work since we had to report our hours (signed off by the doctor/nurse) to him?

3) Should I list TA positions even though they are for cycling/rock climbing/ultimate frisbee

1)Don't list the cycling recognitions in two places, pick one or the other, perhaps based on the characters you need to use.

2) I would not list it under Shadowing. As the clinical rotations were a curricular requirement, I suggest using the "Other" tag for the space.

Using the Program Coordinator as a Contact is ideal.

3) Would the title "Coach" be better and more descriptive, or were the participants actually taking college classes in those sports, in which case TA is fine? Any of these fit under a Teaching tag.

 

[ahembearr]

I’m not sure how to list this activity. I volunteered at the same organization in 2 different cities. The first city I volunteered at was during my freshman year, and the second city I volunteered at was during my gap year. Do I put them together and just list the most recent one’s information? Or do I separate them?

 

[Catalystik]

I’m not sure how to list this activity. I volunteered at the same organization in 2 different cities. The first city I volunteered at was during my freshman year, and the second city I volunteered at was during my gap year. Do I put them together and just list the most recent one’s information? Or do I separate them?

Was your role the same at both locations? Was there any leadership component to what you did? How many hours did you accumulate at each location? Would the first city's organization still have a record of you?

 

[ahembearr]

Was your role the same at both locations? Was there any leadership component to what you did? How many hours did you accumulate at each location? Would the first city's organization still have a record of you?

I did different tasks but all relating to sorting food at each location.
No leadership.
20 hrs at the first location, and 20 and counting at the second location.
I completed volunteering under a group name at the first city, so they probably don’t have my name:/

 

[Catalystik]

I did different tasks but all relating to sorting food at each location.
No leadership.
20 hrs at the first location, and 20 and counting at the second location.
I completed volunteering under a group name at the first city, so they probably don’t have my name:/

My suggestions:

Put them in the same space, using the Repeated feature to separate the dates and hours out into two timeframes at least. Add a third for your future hours if you care to project them (alternatively, entering your plan for the future in the narrative if its dates aren't certain). Use the contact information for the most recent experience in the header, and put a note about the first location in the narrative, but without Contact information.

 

[deleted983688]

1) I do not really understand "Leadership -- Not Listed Elsewhere." If I am Editor-in-Chief of my university's undergraduate research journal, then that is a form of leadership, but I would list it under extracurricular activities, because it is an extracurricular. Correct?

Is "Leadership -- Not Listed Elsewhere" basically when you're a leader in something that is very unique that does not fit under any other categories?

2) I have been a TA for two courses and will be a TA for a third course in fall 2019. Can I throw my fall 2019 TA position in the description of my TA experiences? Like "I will also be a TA for BIOL-L 311 in fall 2019 (Contact: Prof. XXXX, [email protected])."

 

[vinefeather]

I have a few questions:

1) What is the best way to list a long-term extracurricular in which I held leadership?
I was involved in a religious/social organization throughout college, but am not sure if a leadership label might look better than an extracurricular label. This will be a most significant activity, with the essay focusing on my leadership experiences.

2) Do research lab courses count for research/presentation experience?
I already have research experience in a basic science lab, but I was also involved in several research lab courses including biology and organic chemistry research labs. Would any of these be valuable enough to list in AMCAS activities? More info for context: One was part of a crowd-sourcing initiative and involved a poster presentation for the biology department. Another involved independent research (limited professor guidance), though there was no poster presentation at the end, only a class presentation. I am getting a recommendation from that professor emphasizing the independent nature of that lab. Two other labs involved a lot of molecular biology techniques (i.e. site-directed mutagenesis, gels/PCR etc.) and were offshoots from another professor's research within the department. We made posters at the end of those courses, though they were presented as class presentations.

3) Should I separate honors/awards to fill up activity space?
I am at 13 activities and currently have 2 tuition scholarships lumped together as a scholarship entry, and Dean's List/PBK lumped as an honors/awards entry. Should I separate either/both of these groups for the sake of reaching 15 activities?

 

[TravelingMedicine]

Should I list my ED research experience (could be clinical experience as well since I was working with patients) separately even if I only had 30 total hours? (would have continued but could not afford the time to drive down 3 hours round trip during school days/ hitting traffic hour either in the morning or afternoon going through a major city. Could I somehow combine this into another position ie Research within a lab or intern at the ED (one of my meaningful experience)?

 

[hopefulv3]

Hi I was in a club and fraternity where I did regular and consistent volunteer works. couple of hundred hours at the veterans home and a reading program. should I list these as separate activities even though the supervisor would be the same?

Thanks

 

[Catalystik]

1) I do not really understand "Leadership -- Not Listed Elsewhere." If I am Editor-in-Chief of my university's undergraduate research journal, then that is a form of leadership, but I would list it under extracurricular activities, because it is an extracurricular. Correct?

Is "Leadership -- Not Listed Elsewhere" basically when you're a leader in something that is very unique that does not fit under any other categories?

2) I have been a TA for two courses and will be a TA for a third course in fall 2019. Can I throw my fall 2019 TA position in the description of my TA experiences? Like "I will also be a TA for BIOL-L 311 in fall 2019 (Contact: Prof. XXXX, [email protected])."

1) Sometimes an activity fits under more than one category. Then you get to make a choice. If you'd like a dedicated Leadership space that doesn't include any pre-leadership dates or hours (like maybe if/when you had a lesser role with the science journal previously), then you'd pick Leadership, provided you had a staff working under you, over whom you had authority, and for whose efforts you had responsibility. If OTOH, you had a year or two with the journal prior to the editorship and you want to include all those hours and dates in one space, or if the editorship means you do all the work and don't delegate tasks to others, then you'd use Extracurricular.

2) Yes.

 

[Catalystik]

I have a few questions:

1) What is the best way to list a long-term extracurricular in which I held leadership?
I was involved in a religious/social organization throughout college, but am not sure if a leadership label might look better than an extracurricular label. This will be a most significant activity, with the essay focusing on my leadership experiences.

2) Do research lab courses count for research/presentation experience?
I already have research experience in a basic science lab, but I was also involved in several research lab courses including biology and organic chemistry research labs. Would any of these be valuable enough to list in AMCAS activities? More info for context: One was part of a crowd-sourcing initiative and involved a poster presentation for the biology department. Another involved independent research (limited professor guidance), though there was no poster presentation at the end, only a class presentation. I am getting a recommendation from that professor emphasizing the independent nature of that lab. Two other labs involved a lot of molecular biology techniques (i.e. site-directed mutagenesis, gels/PCR etc.) and were offshoots from another professor's research within the department. We made posters at the end of those courses, though they were presented as class presentations.

3) Should I separate honors/awards to fill up activity space?
I am at 13 activities and currently have 2 tuition scholarships lumped together as a scholarship entry, and Dean's List/PBK lumped as an honors/awards entry. Should I separate either/both of these groups for the sake of reaching 15 activities?

1) If you'd like a dedicated Leadership space that doesn't include any pre-leadership dates or hours (like when you had a general membership role with the organization earlier), then you'd pick Leadership-Not Listed Elsewhere, provided you delegated tasks to others for whose efforts you had responsibility. You have the option of splitting out the non-leadership time into a second space (tagged Extracurricular), or alternatively, referring to the earlier years as part of a backstory in the narrative of the Leadership space.

If you had a year or two with the organization prior to the leadership and you want to include all those hours and dates in one space, or if the leadership role means you do all the work and don't delegate tasks to others, then you'd use Extracurricular. But you can still call attention to the leadership role through the name you give the space, as well as through your description.

2) Research experiences for which you got class credit can be listed in the Activities section, provided they involved original hypothesis-based research and you feel the experience makes you a more attractive med school candidate. Campus posters and presentations don't add much cachet as they are often required regardless of content and don't undergo a peer-review process. It looks to me like the independent research experience might be worth adding.

3) Don't fluff up your application. Keep it succinct. The average spaces filled are 9-10. If the two scholarships weren't based on merit in college, don't include them on a med school application. You could probably get all four of those recognitions into one space. Is Deans List worth including, when your GPA speaks for itself? You decide.

 

[Catalystik]

Should I list my ED research experience (could be clinical experience as well since I was working with patients) separately even if I only had 30 total hours? (would have continued but could not afford the time to drive down 3 hours round trip during school days/ hitting traffic hour either in the morning or afternoon going through a major city. Could I somehow combine this into another position ie Research within a lab or intern at the ED (one of my meaningful experience)?

Figure out how to combine it with the ED Internship. Perhaps one inspired the other so you can make a link between them.

 

[ahembearr]

My suggestions:

Put them in the same space, using the Repeated feature to separate the dates and hours out into two timeframes at least. Add a third for your future hours if you care to project them (alternatively, entering your plan for the future in the narrative if its dates aren't certain). Use the contact information for the most recent experience in the header, and put a note about the first location in the narrative, but without Contact information.

This makes a lot of sense. Thanks for your help!