Peace Corps before med school?

[kenykj49]

I'm a graduating undergraduate student seriously considering Peace Corps service before applying to medical schools. If there are any RPCV's here I have a few questions:

1. Was your service worth it?
2. What did you learn (technical skills and personally)?
3. Feasibility of MCAT/applying while serving?
4. OR return --> MPH/MCAT/apply
5. Did PC help your application? (ya ya this is not why I'm joining, just curious)

Thanks, hope everyone is staying healthy.

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[vrazzles]

I am an RPCV (2017-2019, Tanzania)

1. My service was 100% worth it. It was also at times, the most isolating and frustrating experience of my life. I guess I would describe it as the highs being the highest and the lows being the lowest. A lot of this will depend on where you serve though. If you go "Posh Corps" in countries such as Ukraine, your experience will be very different than if you do something like Sierra Leone, Liberia, or Vanuatu.

2. I learned that I can endure a lot more than I previously thought possible. I now know that I can find the strength to drag myself 10 miles along a dirt road while hallucinating from malaria fever. I know that I can find ways to productively address what I consider to be human rights abuses while remaining respectful to my coworkers' culture and not blowing my top. I know that I can learn a completely new language to a high level and use it to teach advanced chemistry. I can slaughter a cow, chicken, goat, or pig and prepare it for consumption in both standard and halal(not the pig) ways. I got a lot better at soccer. I learned how to design and organize community public health outreach projects. Most of all, I learned how beautiful it is to be challenged to your furthest boundaries.

3. I took the MCAT right before beginning service i.e took MCAT in June 2017, left in July of 2017. If you take your MCAT much longer than that before leaving, it will expire at many schools by application time. I know one person who took the MCAT during service but they had to take a bunch of money to travel to South Africa to take it. Ease of doing this will vary on personal finances and where you are serving.

4. You can do this, but you will lose time.

5. Yeah, PC definitely helped my application in terms of essay material and a lot of talking points for interviews. Pretty much every person who interviewed me seemed impressed by it.

 

[Paralegalities]

I just invited a peace corps guest speaker for a club I'm in a few days ago, and he seemed extremely satisfied with his time in Senegal as a community health worker.

Two common themes I've noticed among peace corps people though, is that they all seem to get life-threateningly sick at some point, and half of them don't make it to the end of their 2 year commitment for either medical reasons, emergencies (they all got evacuated for coronavirus), or leaving by request.

His biggest criticism of it was that he was not at all competently trained to do his job, which made him feel useless and isolated a lot because the locals were better at what he was supposed to be helping with than he was. He's also gay, and mentioned that living in a country where being gay is illegal and having to hide that from everyone with the constant fear of being found out was very damaging to his mental health.

It certainly helps an application to grad school and jobs, since it looks pretty cool on a resume, but I get the impression it's pretty much seen the same as being in the military, just a cool EC and not something that'll push you over the top unless you already would've gotten in.

 

[LizzyM]

All the Peace Corps Volunteers were called home a few weeks ago in light of the pandemic and the future of the organization is up in the air.

 

[vrazzles]

All the Peace Corps Volunteers were called home a few weeks ago in light of the pandemic and the future of the organization is up in the air.

Yes, it is likely that Peace Corps will likely be out of commission for a year or two. I highly doubt that its long-term future is in jeopardy, but that may be contingent on whether we get a Covid vaccine and how badly Covid goes through Peace Corps host countries. Traditionally, PC has pretty strong bipartisan support and their ability to mobilize lobbyists is impressive.

 

[kenykj49]

Yes, it is likely that Peace Corps will likely be out of commission for a year or two. I highly doubt that its long-term future is in jeopardy, but that may be contingent on whether we get a Covid vaccine and how badly Covid goes through Peace Corps host countries. Traditionally, PC has pretty strong bipartisan support and their ability to mobilize lobbyists is impressive.

Yeah, I’ve been peripherally aware of this. I wouldn’t want to depart until Jan-April of 2021. I guess at this point it’s pure speculation whether PC will be operational at this time.

 

[Talldoctor96]

Peace corps like many things is very hit or miss. It has a very high ceiling and a very low floor. I have 1 friend who had the time of his life and one friend who straight up found himself in the middle of a civil war and had to be "Extracted" by a ****ing military contractor.

 

[LizzyM]

Despite the bipartisan support, I would not expect the current occupant of the White House to keep the Peace Corps alive if he is reelected.

 

[LeaveNoTrace]

While I wouldn't wish the experience of finding yourself in the middle of a civil war on anyone, that guy definitely had some interesting stories to tell and essays to write!

 

[star-lily]

Yeah, I’ve been peripherally aware of this. I wouldn’t want to depart until Jan-April of 2021. I guess at this point it’s pure speculation whether PC will be operational at this time.

I noticed that for current postings, the earliest departure date is January 2021, anyway!

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

Despite the bipartisan support, I would not expect the current occupant of the White House to keep the Peace Corps alive if he is reelected.

he doesn't have the line item veto though.

 

[Engrailed]

OP, if at any level you are considering PC with the slightest hopes of aiding your application, I would say the risks far outweigh the costs. I know someone who did it (not a premed), and while it was a memorable/once in a lifetime experience-thing, it can really be a hit or miss like others have noted here.

Especially if you are planning on taking the MCAT after returning etc, you also have no idea on your readiness post-PC. From what I've heard, it is truly an intense experience - many suffer mental health issues by the end from extended social isolation, feelings of helplessness, etc and are just not in the same place as they were before service.

Funding/travel restrictions will also complicate things given the COVID situation.

People domestically need more help than ever- those in poverty are deeply struggling. There may be lots to do even on our home front

 

[vrazzles]

Yeah, I do wanna chime in to say that Peace Corps is not something that should be done for your application. In general, the people that I trained/served with did much better when they were there because of a genuine desire to serve and not to aid their future career plans (not that they're mutually exclusive)

For the people commenting about not doing PC because it can have a low floor, yeah that's what it's about. You're going to some of the poorest areas in the world and living alone in a radically different culture. It's not a luxury trip. I went with the full expectation that I would get sick, see violence, and be at a generally higher risk.

If you don't accept that and want all the benefits with no risk, then you aren't doing Peace Corps for the purpose it's (supposedly) intended for (look up three goals of PC). We had people during training constantly talking about how this was gonna help them for med school/foreign service/ivy league grad schools. Everybody else avoided those people.

Don't be that person plz

 

[kenykj49]

Yeah, I do wanna chime in to say that Peace Corps is not something that should be done for your application. In general, the people that I trained/served with did much better when they were there because of a genuine desire to serve and not to aid their future career plans (not that they're mutually exclusive)

For the people commenting about not doing PC because it can have a low floor, yeah that's what it's about. You're going to some of the poorest areas in the world and living alone in a radically different culture. It's not a luxury trip. I went with the full expectation that I would get sick, see violence, and be at a generally higher risk.

If you don't accept that and want all the benefits with no risk, then you aren't doing Peace Corps for the purpose it's (supposedly) intended for (look up three goals of PC). We had people during training constantly talking about how this was gonna help them for med school/foreign service/ivy league grad schools. Everybody else avoided those people.

Don't be that person plz

See #5 in parentheses

 

[vrazzles]

See #5 in parentheses

Don't worry, it's not directed at you specifically.

 

[pcocas1]

I'm a graduating undergraduate student seriously considering Peace Corps service before applying to medical schools. If there are any RPCV's here I have a few questions:

1. Was your service worth it?
2. What did you learn (technical skills and personally)?
3. Feasibility of MCAT/applying while serving?
4. OR return --> MPH/MCAT/apply
5. Did PC help your application? (ya ya this is not why I'm joining, just curious)

Thanks, hope everyone is staying healthy.

Hey! Returned (Covid evac crew 2020) PCV, currently in the process of applying.

1. My service was 100% worth it. Despite my doubts going in, I wouldn't trade it for anything. Other posters on here covered it well, but service is definitely what you make of it. I had a rough time in undergrad (and not the best academic performance), and I was super ready to commit myself to something non-school related for a while.

2. Technical skills - I got super into Computer and Data Science during service (which I know, is really weird) and I would download instructional videos when I had WiFi and attempted to learn at site (mixed success). But I was able to apply some of those skills to my work at the village health clinic! Everyone learns a local language, or sometimes 2-3 languages (at least in my host country). I also learned how to start and organize community projects, which is a skill I didn't have before.

Personally - I perform the best when my work lines up with my interests (sounds obvious but tell that to my undergrad self). I also learned my tolerance for unwanted attention, harassment, kids, etc. (some higher than others lol) and how to respond positively. Oh, and I learned that I am less interested in working in the development sector than I thought I was (but gained interests in global and public health!).

3. I was originally planning on applying during service, and I think it's feasible. You'll have to be strategic about your vacation time and ask professors to be your recommenders before you leave (this is critical or they may forget who you are, depending on your relationship to them). If your school has a premed committee (mine didn't), clear that with them.

As for the MCAT, I took it before departing, not intentionally (May 2018 test date, applied to PC in June 2018 for a Feb 2019 departure - didn't even think about PC until after my MCAT). I know someone who studied during service and flew back to the states from West Africa to take it, but tbh I think Peace Corps service should be enjoyed. Studying for the MCAT is gonna make it hard to fully commit to your community, and you should take that time as a full break from academics. That's just my opinion though.

4. Also not a bad option, especially if you're not bothered by the extra time needed.

5. Can't say yet (I'm fighting an uphill battle due to my GPA lol). But I will say my Peace Corps experience made secondary apps a relatively smooth ride! Lots to write about and reflect on!

Best of luck! Super excited for you, I hope PC works out if you do it