*~*~*~* Official AMCAS "Work/Activities" Tips Thread 2020-2021 *~*~*~*

[Serenity2]

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I suggest splitting out the leadership for its own space. The nonclinical volunteering (24 hours) could be grouped with the 47 hour activity so the hourly total is more impactful. The future hours could be mentioned in the narrative instead of using the Repeated feature.

Make the Leadership space the MM unless the added comments for the grouped nonclinical volunteering (24+47) would apply to both the experiences in the space and you have a lot more to say about nonleadership aspects aspect of the experience.

Regarding the 24+ 47 experience, should I just include an hourly total of 71, and list a time span encompassing both activities (the timeframes for the activities overlap in actuality)? Then would I have to specify how many hours corresponded to which activities and timeframes in the narrative? Also, why should I mention the future hours in the Narrative instead of the Repeated feature, since I'd like to reserve as much space as possible to describe the activity?

 

[Catalystik]

Is it ok to combine 2 class projects under "Research/lab" category (if not how should I handle this)? If I did combine, the title would be something like "Experiential class projects"(I am open to other suggestions).

Let me explain - 1 class is all about creating a review of research paper; mine ended up being 42 pgs, about implementing art workshops as CME, and accepted to present at National Conference on Undergraduate Research (which I didn't attend). I'm pretty sure I want to label this as research since I'm weak in Research category. The other was a service learning class where we helped a local organization to create an interdisciplinary solution/project - we ended up partnering with a free clinic to create a board game to reinforce healthy habits in diabetic homeless patients. We consulted many sources to prepare it, but not any scholarly research articles. I also observed the clinic's Health Education Specialist visits for around 10 hours. However I think it would be great to include these as it reinforces an innovative theme. The research class would be 100 hours, the other class around 80.

An activity considered "Research" for AMCAS purposes uses the scientific method in a scholarly investigation to discover new human knowledge. A literature review or term paper or class report or an innovative group project does not fall into that category. These activities were Projects. They could be listed under Other, or Teaching, or for the latter Non-Medical Community Service. Please don't use the Research category inappropriately.

Further, they were curricular activities, so including all the class time is redundant, considering they appear on your transcript. You should list only the actual time spent on each project.

 

[Catalystik]

Regarding the 24+ 47 experience, should I just include an hourly total of 71, and list a time span encompassing both activities (the timeframes for the activities overlap in actuality)? Then would I have to specify how many hours corresponded to which activities and timeframes in the narrative? Also, why should I mention the future hours in the Narrative instead of the Repeated feature, since I'd like to reserve as much space as possible to describe the activity?

Yes, the Total Hours in the header would be 71. It's OK to list an all inclusive timespan for the two activities in the header, but keep in mind that your two Contacts will not know about the other activity and can attest to the timeframe and hours for only one of them. Their information should match what you have entered.

You shouldn't use the Repeated feature in a grouped entry as it will not be clear which one (or possibly both) those hours apply to.

 

[soppy]

I'm trying to figure out the best way to group things. For my research, I'm on a publication that is in revision, presented two posters, won a grant, travel award to a conference, and an additional award at that conference. Since the publication hasn't been accepted yet I don't feel like I should make it a separate entry (plus I'm low on space already). Does this grouping make sense?

Research position
-Mention publication in revision here

Posters section
-The two I presented
-List ones I was second author on but didn't present

Awards (all together)
-Phi beta kappa/summa cum laude/deans list
-Research grant
-Travel award to conference
-Research excellence award at conference



Also, I'd like to list playing bass guitar but not sure whether it should be a hobby or artistic endeavor. I've played for 10 years but haven't played for an audience (besides friends) since high school, though I do upload cover videos online now.

 

[Catalystik]

I'm trying to figure out the best way to group things. For my research, I'm on a publication that is in revision, presented two posters, won a grant, travel award to a conference, and an additional award at that conference. Since the publication hasn't been accepted yet I don't feel like I should make it a separate entry (plus I'm low on space already). Does this grouping make sense?

1) Research position
-Mention publication in revision here

2) Posters section
-The two I presented
-List ones I was second author on but didn't present

3) Awards (all together)
-Phi beta kappa/summa cum laude/deans list
-Research grant
-Travel award to conference
-Research excellence award at conference



4) Also, I'd like to list playing bass guitar but not sure whether it should be a hobby or artistic endeavor. I've played for 10 years but haven't played for an audience (besides friends) since high school, though I do upload cover videos online now.

1) Call it a manuscript in preparation or a paper pending submission, please. Not a publication. Yet.

2) It's fine to include posters you didn't present, but make it clear that someone else did. If you have space, you might even refer to their authorship spot. EG: "Presented by 1st author at [conference name and date]"

3) The latter 2-3 items could all go in the affiliated research or poster space, which keeps them in context. If you can fit them in. Otherwise, you'll have to explain them, again.

4) Since you have an online presence, Artistic Endeavor would be justified (let's assume more than 25 have accessed them), but Hobbies doesn't need a Contact, so might be easier.

 

[Serenity2]

An activity considered "Research" for AMCAS purposes uses the scientific method in a scholarly investigation to discover new human knowledge. A literature review or term paper or class report or an innovative group project does not fall into that category. These activities were Projects. They could be listed under Other, or Teaching, or for the latter Non-Medical Community Service. Please don't use the Research category inappropriately.

Further, they were curricular activities, so including all the class time is redundant, considering they appear on your transcript. You should list only the actual time spent on each project.

Is it worth highlighting the board game project in my activities then? One of my LOR is from the professor for this class, and he'll be mentioning the project there. The option to replace this activity would be an online volunteering opportunity I just started this March in light of social isolation (similar to crisis/counseling text line). Or, I could include both the board game as a separate activity and add the online counseling to another online activity I just started in light of COVID (more of a leadership type activity, but I might list it under nonclinical service).

 

[Catalystik]

Is it worth highlighting the board game project in my activities then? One of my LOR is from the professor for this class, and he'll be mentioning the project there. The option to replace this activity would be an online volunteering opportunity I just started this March in light of social isolation (similar to crisis/counseling text line). Or, I could include both the board game as a separate activity and add the online counseling to another online activity I just started in light of COVID (more of a leadership type activity, but I might list it under nonclinical service).

If the prof's LOR is going to mention the game, it's suitable to discuss it somewhere. Any of your options is fine, but I think it would "go over" better in its own space if the game is currently being used as an educational tool (which shows you "made a difference").

Side Comment: Are you actually filling is an AMCAS application? Just a note that the 2020 application is for the current season, and whatever you enter there will not repopulate to the 2021 application when it opens May 4.

 

[Serenity2]

If the prof's LOR is going to mention the game, it's suitable to discuss it somewhere. Any of your options is fine, but I think it would "go over" better in its own space if the game is currently being used as an educational tool (which shows you "made a difference").

Side Comment: Are you actually filling is an AMCAS application? Just a note that the 2020 application is for the current season, and whatever you enter there will not repopulate to the 2021 application when it opens May 3.

Would it be redundant to discuss the course project as an activity if the professor discusses it in the LOR? (As a note, the project was not just a final project, but the objective for the entire course).

And I'm not filling out the actual application form yet.

 

[soppy]

1) Call it a manuscript in preparation or a paper pending submission, please. Not a publication. Yet.

2) It's fine to include posters you didn't present, but make it clear that someone else did. If you have space, you might even refer to their authorship spot. EG: "Presented by 1st author at [conference name and date]"

3) The latter 2-3 items could all go in the affiliated research or poster space, which keeps them in context. If you can fit them in. Otherwise, you'll have to explain them, again.

4) Since you have an online presence, Artistic Endeavor would be justified (let's assume more than 25 have accessed them), but Hobbies doesn't need a Contact, so might be easier.

I’ll call it a manuscript, my bad. For the awards would it be best to have it all in some sort of narrative, along the lines of “I was awarded funding from x for this project, [explain project], then I presented results at this conference and won this award”?

 

[Catalystik]

1) Would it be redundant to discuss the course project as an activity if the professor discusses it in the LOR? (As a note, the project was not just a final project, but the objective for the entire course).

2) And I'm not filling out the actual application form yet.

1) Possibly, unless you want to add underlying motivation, a personal connection, your exact contributions to the group effort, and as mentioned, the current or future use of your successful product, in other words, areas the prof will not touch on. If you really have no additional commentary, you can omit it and use the space for something else.

2) 👍

 

[Catalystik]

I’ll call it a manuscript, my bad. For the awards would it be best to have it all in some sort of narrative, along the lines of “I was awarded funding from x for this project, [explain project], then I presented results at this conference and won this award”?

It might be easier for the reader to see what they want to know if it's in bullet format, and will use fewer characters.

By "bullet" I don't mean actual enlarged dots, as the formatting won't carry through, but rather a star "*" or a dash "-" or a numbered list. So:

[Brief project description]
* wrote grant application and was awarded $3000 by [whomever].
* won [award] for my poster presentation

 

[secretsquishy]

To help me answer the question:

-Could you mention the thesis' existence in the affiliated Research entry? Or add it to Awards/Recognitions? Or include it with your Pubs (as presumably it exists in print format somewhere citable)?

-How many hours would be listed with the mentoring? Do you have other teaching, TA, tutoring, or coaching experience that you've listed already?

Right now I don't have room for the thesis as a research entry (but I have two other research sections, one for clinical research and one for lab). I could add it with my publications, but it'll only be published through Digital Commons and I'm not sure when it'll actually be available there.

I would have about 30 hours mentoring. I don't have any other entries in the teaching/TA/tutoring category, but I have significant teaching experience that I've classified under the "non-clinical volunteering" section.

 

[gorunwild2]

Hi! I had a couple of quick questions:
1) Is there any current advice on how to order your experiences that are grouped together? Is it by most impactful or based on how recent they were started/ended?

2) If an entry just lists one experience, I have tend to write in paragraph form, while entries with more than one experience is more of a list. Would that be seen as inconsistent?

 

[Catalystik]

1) Right now I don't have room for the thesis as a research entry (but I have two other research sections, one for clinical research and one for lab). I could add it with my publications, but it'll only be published through Digital Commons and I'm not sure when it'll actually be available there.

2) I would have about 30 hours mentoring. I don't have any other entries in the teaching/TA/tutoring category, but I have significant teaching experience that I've classified under the "non-clinical volunteering" section.

1) Include it in the Publications space with a comment about "Digital Commons citation pending." When it becomes available, adcomms can look it up given your name and its title, presumably.

2) Though you could give it its own slot, listing 30 hours on their own is kinda sparse. I suggest there would be more impact if you add it to the teaching-related community-service space.

 

[Catalystik]

1) Is there any current advice on how to order your experiences that are grouped together? Is it by most impactful or based on how recent they were started/ended?

2) If an entry just lists one experience, I have tend to write in paragraph form, while entries with more than one experience is more of a list. Would that be seen as inconsistent?

1) I suggest putting the activity with the most reliable Contact, the greatest number of subtotaled hours, or the most recent timeframe first. In other words, it doesn't matter how you order them. Reverse chronological order is the logical fallback position if you find it hard to make a decision.

2) It's fine to vary the writing style from space to space, or even within one slot. Just use the style that best gets the information across that you want to convey.

 

[gorunwild2]

1) I suggest putting the activity with the most reliable Contact, the greatest number of subtotaled hours, or the most recent timeframe first. In other words, it doesn't matter how you order them. Reverse chronological order is the logical fallback position if you find it hard to make a decision.

2) It's fine to vary the writing style from space to space, or even within one slot. Just use the style that best gets the information across that you want to convey.

Sounds good- thank you for your time!

 

[willsb22]

So I'm at that point of 15 full W&As and trying to decide what to cut or combine.

1) In my research tab, I crammed my senior thesis in at the end in one sentence, plus contact info/title. Is it better to just cut it out entirely? Several proofreaders have commented that they don't understand what the sentence means because I didn't elaborate.

2) How frowned upon is it to combine activities into one W&A entry, specifically for a Most Meaningful? I haven't found any instances on here of someone using a MM for more than one activity, so I assume it's no bueno. I would be combining two clinical volunteering experiences OR splitting them up and cutting out one significant non-clinical volunteering (in terms of hours).

Thanks.

 

[Catalystik]

So I'm at that point of 15 full W&As and trying to decide what to cut or combine.

1) In my research tab, I crammed my senior thesis in at the end in one sentence, plus contact info/title. Is it better to just cut it out entirely? Several proofreaders have commented that they don't understand what the sentence means because I didn't elaborate.

2) How frowned upon is it to combine activities into one W&A entry, specifically for a Most Meaningful? I haven't found any instances on here of someone using a MM for more than one activity, so I assume it's no bueno. I would be combining two clinical volunteering experiences OR splitting them up and cutting out one significant non-clinical volunteering (in terms of hours).

1) The sentence related to your senior thesis could be simply, "This research was the subject of my senior thesis, indexed at {site}." But, Yes, you can cut it out completely.

2) If you combine two activities in one MM space then the MM comments need to be applicable to both of them. I agree that it isn't usually done as applicants like to make specific commentary, but it's doable if the activities are similar enough, one inspired the other, or you are willing to make generalizations.

 

[Serenity2]

I just received a $5k scholarship that I applied for, from my college, for commitment to/outstanding service on campus and in community. I'm not sure if I should carve out an Honors section to include it (I've filled 15 slots but could rework things if really necessary), since this would be the only honor/award I'd include (assuming I will exclude dean's list, full 4yr scholarship because of HS merit, and HS valedictorian completely).

 

[Catalystik]

I just received a $5k scholarship that I applied for, from my college, for commitment to/outstanding service on campus and in community. I'm not sure if I should carve out an Honors section to include it (I've filled 15 slots but could rework things if really necessary), since this would be the only honor/award I'd include (assuming I will exclude dean's list, full 4yr scholarship because of HS merit, and HS valedictorian completely).

I think that listing a scholarship that validates your service will benefit your application far more than grade-related recognitions that are already substantiated by your easily-viewable transcript grades and GPAs.

 

[Serenity2]

I think that listing a scholarship that validates your service will benefit your application far more than grade-related recognitions that are already substantiated by your easily-viewable transcript grades and GPAs.

So would you say it's worth it to rework my completed 15 slots to include it as a separate Honors experience? Especially since this scholarship would be the only one worth mentioning in the box?

 

[Hzreio]

For activities that are paused by COVID-19, but will very likely resume as normal at some point, how would you recommending reflecting this on activity dates? Originally it was going to be "start date - date of anticipated matriculation". Do I keep it like this?

 

[Catalystik]

So would you say it's worth it to rework my completed 15 slots to include it as a separate Honors experience? Especially since this scholarship would be the only one worth mentioning in the box?

Yes.

 

[Catalystik]

For activities that are paused by COVID-19, but will very likely resume as normal at some point, how would you recommending reflecting this on activity dates? Originally it was going to be "start date - date of anticipated matriculation". Do I keep it like this?

At this time I can't recommend using that method of entry, as resumption dates are so uncertain, and estimating future hours is impossible. Rather, I suggest a note in the narrative stating that as soon as [the site is reopened for . . .] you plan to continue through [date] for X hours/week.

 

[Serenity2]

Yes.

I'm realizing I don't have space to delete something and add a separate Honors box (I've explored combinations already, and if I had to absolutely delete something, it would have to be hobbies or the board game project).

Would it be really disadvantageous to tack this Scholarship award into a description of one of my volunteer activities? Instead of having its own box?

 

[Hzreio]

At this time I can't recommend using that method of entry, as resumption dates are so uncertain, and estimating future hours is impossible. Rather, I suggest a note in the narrative stating that as soon as [the site is reopened for . . .] you plan to continue through [date] for X hours/week.

So just mark the activity as over for now?

 

[Catalystik]

I'm realizing I don't have space to delete something and add a separate Honors box (I've explored combinations already, and if I had to absolutely delete something, it would have to be hobbies or the board game project).

Would it be really disadvantageous to tack this Scholarship award into a description of one of my volunteer activities? Instead of having its own box?

Considering your space limitations, I think that's a good solution.

 

[Catalystik]

So just mark the activity as over for now?

Yes, unless it opens up again before your application submission date. Could happen. 🙂

 

[strawberryskies]

If I was a Child Life volunteer at a hospital the summer before I started college and then became a Child Life volunteer at the hospital where my college is, can I include the volunteering at the other hospital in the same entry? I'm not sure how inputting the location works so would I be able to put 2 different locations?

 

[Catalystik]

If I was a Child Life volunteer at a hospital the summer before I started college and then became a Child Life volunteer at the hospital where my college is, can I include the volunteering at the other hospital in the same entry? I'm not sure how inputting the location works so would I be able to put 2 different locations?

Yes, you can group them. The second location and Contact goes in the narrative, rather than in the header.

 

[gorunwild2]

Hello again! Another couple of questions as I work through this section.
1) I am finding it very tough to fit four experience's titles, dates, hours, contact, and description in 700 characters with spaces. I have resorted to cutting out names of contacts and just putting emails/phone numbers, as well as naming the experience and putting my title in the description. Is that a wise solution? It does seem quite bare bones since many of my characters are caught up in defining each experience.

2) I also had a question about publications. Should I just link to my Google Scholar profile? Or do I have to list my PMIDs? Also, are abstracts that are published or F1000 reviews considered publications?

Thanks!

 

[Hzreio]

In a clinical experience, I assist with surgery by passing instruments and placing eye-drops/contact lenses under the supervision of a physician. Though I have been trained to do so by my employer, I have no formal qualifications. Do you think there would be issues with legality/scope of practice in including this in the activities section?

 

[Catalystik]

1) I am finding it very tough to fit four experience's titles, dates, hours, contact, and description in 700 characters with spaces. I have resorted to cutting out names of contacts and just putting emails/phone numbers, as well as naming the experience and putting my title in the description. Is that a wise solution? It does seem quite bare bones since many of my characters are caught up in defining each experience.

2) I also had a question about publications. Should I just link to my Google Scholar profile? Or do I have to list my PMIDs? Also, are abstracts that are published or F1000 reviews considered publications?

1) Do what you have to do to make it fit. Or cut out one of the experiences completely if it's a minor contribution to your candidacy.

2) Don't link to your Google profile. Instead list your PMID#s. Abstract in Pubmed can be considered "Publications." Abstracts in Conference Booklets are not. F1000 Reviews: Not original research publications, as I understand them, but if you can mention them in a space somewhere, it's an interesting experience (assuming you mean that you're a faculty reviewer).

 

[Catalystik]

In a clinical experience, I assist with surgery by passing instruments and placing eye-drops/contact lenses under the supervision of a physician. Though I have been trained to do so by my employer, I have no formal qualifications. Do you think there would be issues with legality/scope of practice in including this in the activities section?

No, as you are directly supervised.

 

[strawberryskies]

Yes, you can group them. The second location and Contact goes in the narrative, rather than in the header.

Thanks! I actually have a follow up to that question if you don't mind. I also volunteered at the first hospital when I was a junior in high school; are those hours considered too old? I was also only doing Child Life for half of those hours each summer because I had 2 different assignments, so should I only put down half the hours? I know some people say not to include anything from high school, even if it was the summer before college, so I don't know what to do. I'm just concerned because I currently have 212 hours at the hospital where my college is and I was going to continue volunteering there this summer but now I'm not sure if that is possible.

 

[Catalystik]

I actually have a follow up to that question if you don't mind.
1) I also volunteered at the first hospital when I was a junior in high school; are those hours considered too old?
2) I was also only doing Child Life for half of those hours each summer because I had 2 different assignments, so should I only put down half the hours?
3) I know some people say not to include anything from high school, even if it was the summer before college, so I don't know what to do.
4) I'm just concerned because I currently have 212 hours at the hospital where my college is and I was going to continue volunteering there this summer but now I'm not sure if that is possible.

1) Not if you also volunteered at the same site (not necessarily the same department) during the college years, too.
2) What was the other assignment?
3) My opinion is that is is good to show longevity at a single site. That they let you keep coming back speaks well. Be sure to break down the years into timeframes that show what hours were from the HS years (up til graduation) and what hours were from the college years (after HS graduation).
4) Your current hours sound fine to me. Longevity is more important than the number of hours.

 

[strawberryskies]

1) Not if you also volunteered at the same site (not necessarily the same department) during the college years, too.
2) What was the other assignment?
3) My opinion is that is is good to show longevity at a single site. That they let you keep coming back speaks well. Be sure to break down the years into timeframes that show what hours were from the HS years (up til graduation) and what hours were from the college years (after HS graduation).
4) Your current hours sound fine to me. Longevity is more important than the number of hours.

It wasn’t at the same hospital because my school isn’t in the same state where I live (permanently). The other assignment was reading to babies in the NICU, which I don’t think counts as clinical volunteering because I was only allowed to hold a few babies. It sounds like it might be better to just leave it off my application then since it wasn’t at the same hospital I’ve been volunteering at throughout college?

 

[Catalystik]

It wasn’t at the same hospital because my school isn’t in the same state where I live (permanently). The other assignment was reading to babies in the NICU, which I don’t think counts as clinical volunteering because I was only allowed to hold a few babies. It sounds like it might be better to just leave it off my application then since it wasn’t at the same hospital I’ve been volunteering at throughout college?

Then leave it off if you think it best.

Reading to neonates sounds so cool though. I, as a pediatrician, give you the Cat Seal of Approval! 👍

 

[Serenity2]

1) I will be dedicating a slot to the scholarship I was just awarded for community service. However, I'm not sure if having just one honor in there would be selling myself short. Should I add any of these more irrelevant honors, to make more use of this space?

Dean's List, full tuition/room/board scholarship based off HS merit, HS valedictorian.

2) Should I repeat the honors/achievements I'll be mentioning in my other activities (awarded due to achievement in that activity)?

These include abstract accepted to present at national conference, travel+housing grants/funding for attending that conference, winning a national competition for seed funding for my nonprofit, receiving a university award for my nonprofit, accepted to attend international conference for my nonprofit, accepted to a national conference to present poster of my review of research from a class, company sponsorship of one of the clubs I founded.

I would also appreciate help knowing which ones, if any, would be worth adding into the Honors slot.

 

[Catalystik]

1) I will be dedicating a slot to the scholarship I was just awarded for community service. However, I'm not sure if having just one honor in there would be selling myself short. Should I add any of these more irrelevant honors, to make more use of this space?

Dean's List, full tuition/room/board scholarship based off HS merit, HS valedictorian.

2) Should I repeat the honors/achievements I'll be mentioning in my other activities (awarded due to achievement in that activity)?

These include
a) abstract accepted to present at national conference,
b) travel+housing grants/funding for attending that conference,
c) winning a national competition for seed funding for my nonprofit,
d) receiving a university award for my nonprofit,
e) accepted to attend international conference for my nonprofit,
f) accepted to a national conference to present poster of my review of research from a class,
g) company sponsorship of one of the clubs I founded.

I would also appreciate help knowing which ones, if any, would be worth adding into the Honors slot.

1) The choices offered don't add to your candidacy.

2) Don't be repetitive. But maybe extract 1-2 other related recognitions from this list and include it with the community service scholarship (perhaps c or d?).

 

[Catalystik]

I've done an array of clinical volunteering tasks at the same clinic since I was a junior in high school; I've actually been with the clinic since they were a tiny, three-room project (they are now a flourishing and widely-recognized clinic in the area). So I've certainly watched the clinic grow and develop, and have gained a lot of meaningful experiences and insights from my work here. I've worked reception, greeted patients, escorted patients to different rooms, helped patients register, helped patients fill out forms, translated for patients, organized and filed charts, and more.

Freshman year of college, I went out of town, but I transferred to my hometown university sophomore year and resumed my work at the clinic the second I stepped foot back in my hometown.
-Could I include my high school hours for the clinic on my application, explaining that I took a year-long break in the middle because I was out of town?

Yes. Use the AMCAS "Repeated" feature to break your involvement into two timeframes with two separate Total Hours, both of which will appear at the top of the entry. Explain the year off in the narrative.

 

[Catalystik]

Is it appropriate to reference another activity in a description. Like "From what I learned in XXX, I applied the same thing here in this way..."? Or would that just confuse adcoms?

Since you don't know in what order each med school will list your activities (there are multiple ways an organization can choose to sort them), I suggest you should not specifically refer to another space with the assumption that it will have been read. It is OK to say, "I found that the customer service skills I learned as a cashier served me well when dealing with difficult parents at the hospital." Or somesuch.

 

[Catalystik]

I've been volunteering with a nonprofit that's been 3D printing and disinfecting face shields and then distributing them to hospitals, doctors, policemen, etc. in the area. I don't know if I should bother listing this on my app when I apply because I don't know if adcoms would view it as irresponsible during this quarantine. For the record, all volunteers are required to wear proper PPE and maintain social distancing during each shift.

I'm not doing this to pad my app so I plan on continuing to volunteer regardless, but any opinions on whether I should bother listing it on my application?

Include it. You're providing an essential service that benefits society. And you're following the distancing and personal protection rules.

 

[Serenity2]

1) The choices offered don't add to your candidacy.

2) Don't be repetitive. But maybe extract 1-2 other related recognitions from this list and include it with the community service scholarship (perhaps c or d?).

Just to clarify, "Extract", meaning it's better to take those nonprofit awards out of my description of the nonprofit and put it into the Honors slot instead? Or repeat them? Thank you!

 

[Catalystik]

Just to clarify, "Extract", meaning it's better to take those nonprofit awards out of my description of the nonprofit and put it into the Honors slot instead? Or repeat them? Thank you!

I didn't say it was "better," just that it is an option, to take 1-2 other recognitions out of their current planned space and move them to the Honors space. Don't repeat them.

 

[username1000]

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[Catalystik]

I began dancing when I was 3 years old and continued this into college at a high level. I am unsure of how to count hours for this activity because I am not going to put the dates that far back but making it look like I started in college doesn't feel right either. What do you think I should do about the dates and hours for this activity?

You want adcomms to know this was a life-long activity, but you're right that long-ago hours don't matter. I suggest breaking it down into multiple timeframes, using the Repeated feature. Perhaps use Childhood, High school years, and College years (plus post-college if relevant to you). While you could enter a good-faith estimate for each span, you might just use a 99 or 999 for the first and second Total Hours blanks (indicating that they are unknowable. Ditto for the third span, if you really don't know.

 

[Chromium Surfer]

Hi Catalystik! I don't know if you remember but you gave me advice on two of these past threads a couple years back. I finally applied last cycle and will be matriculating at one of my top choices and reach schools. At multiple interviews I was commended for the organization of my application and this was due in large part to me incorporating you sage advice! Thank you so much for your help! 🙂 To anyone on this do yourself a favor and really try to incorporate Catalystik's feedback it makes a difference!

 

[gorunwild2]

1) Do what you have to do to make it fit. Or cut out one of the experiences completely if it's a minor contribution to your candidacy.

2) Don't link to your Google profile. Instead list your PMID#s. Abstract in Pubmed can be considered "Publications." Abstracts in Conference Booklets are not. F1000 Reviews: Not original research publications, as I understand them, but if you can mention them in a space somewhere, it's an interesting experience (assuming you mean that you're a faculty reviewer).

Great- thank you again for the advice.

 

[Catalystik]

Hi Catalystik! I don't know if you remember but you gave me advice on two of these past threads a couple years back. I finally applied last cycle and will be matriculating at one of my top choices and reach schools. At multiple interviews I was commended for the organization of my application and this was due in large part to me incorporating you sage advice! Thank you so much for your help! 🙂 To anyone on this do yourself a favor and really try to incorporate Catalystik's feedback it makes a difference!

Of course I recall you! I appreciate the commentary and kind words. Congrats on your acceptance.