put down video games in my app and talk about it during interview?

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audigq said:
well then i must be the only one in this thread who sit around, eat, and go on the internet in my free time cuz eveyone else is doing tae kwon do tournaments or drawing a canvas to submit to the art gallery🙄
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These sorts of comments make you seem incredibly immature and lacking in self-awareness. You might want to work on that prior to applying. 😉
 
This thread makes me giggle

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music2doc said:
I probably wouldn't. Think about the function of these things in the context of medical school. Board games and cards have some advantage over video games (less stereotyping, more social interaction) but still they seem to lack something. Activities involving exercise are good for you and are good for relieving stress. (I wouldn't put reading either. It's passive.) I would suggest looking at the list I posted above. Those are some of the sorts of things they like to see (volunteer activities, clinical activities, productive hobbies, exercise/sports, academic activities, leadership, teaching/tutoring, jobs/employment, accomplishments/achievements, research, unique activities, etc.)

Also, don't do a "hobby list." That defeats the purpose of listing an activity. Who cares what your "hobbies" are. These aren't personal ads.
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Don't worry, I wasn't asking for myself, or anybody else for that matter -- it was truly a hypothetical question. I agree with you, although some of the opinions from adcom members here contradict that and actually advocate for a hobby list. I guess I'd say go for it if you have space, but I certainly will not and that is fine by me. My personal extracurricular list is rather similar to yours, actually, but thanks for the advice! 🙂
 
Doctor Strange said:
I would say only put it if you've gamed competitively on a professional level. Otherwise, ain't nobody currrrr.
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I would agree with this maybe. I played Halo competitively (and still do, though to a much more limited extent) through mlgpro since it went live. I didn't go pro but played on GB and stuff. It requires a lot of dedication and teamwork.

I still didn't put it down though because it seemed too risky. I had plenty more things I could put down that weren't so risky; you should to.
 
Maybe if you're like one of the best in the world in fruit ninja I'd list it. Top 10 at least
 
I wouldn't mention it even if I played competitively. People look down on playing video games. Even those who don't look down on it won't be impressed by it. There is nothing to gain by putting down video games and something to lose. Personally, I think people should stop being so judgmental of other people's hobbies and lifestyles but don't expect that attitude from the people reading your application.
 
I would never date a guy that played video games too often. I believe video games are a waste of time and it's an excuse to avoid interacting with with real people or the real world.

I listed cooking under my hobbies, but related it to my knowledge on healthy eating.
 
Timewinders said:
I wouldn't mention it even if I played competitively. People look down on playing video games. Even those who don't look down on it won't be impressed by it. There is nothing to gain by putting down video games and something to lose. Personally, I think people should stop being so judgmental of other people's hobbies and lifestyles but don't expect that attitude from the people reading your application.
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You do you realize that's literally the job of the Admissions office, right? Their entire office has two main goals:

  1. To recruit talented, desirable medical students who are likely to effectively serve the healthcare needs of the community, first at the local and state and second at the national and international levels, as competent physicians
  2. To evaluate applicants through a combination of their personal history, experiences, attitudes, academic record, character, and related criteria in order to meet the first goal
 
bollywoodlover said:
I would never date a guy that played video games too often. I believe video games are a waste of time and it's an excuse to avoid interacting with with real people or the real world.

I listed cooking under my hobbies, but related it to my knowledge on healthy eating.
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I would never date a girl who was so quick to be judgemental.
 
Lol who is anyone to judge anyone else on a personal level for what they do in their free time? What you choose to do is your own business.

That being said, it is your choice to list it on your application and make it the business of others as well. They're trying to paint a picture of what you're all about based only on your application, so it's up to you what information you want to include/omit.
 
bollywoodlover said:
I would never date a guy that played video games too often. I believe video games are a waste of time and it's an excuse to avoid interacting with with real people or the real world.

I listed cooking under my hobbies, but related it to my knowledge on healthy eating.
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Video games are as much of a "waste of time" as watching TV, surfing the internet, reading a novel, or watching movies

I know where you're coming from, but not everyone who enjoys that hobby avoids interacting with the real world. That's insane stereotyping. That's like if I heard a girl likes cooking, then I assume she stays home all day and cooks and clean the house.
 
I guess I can't help being judgmental. I'm looking for a future husband and can't help picturing a lazy guy pigging out on soda and chips all night when I think of gamer.
 
bollywoodlover said:
I would never date a guy that played video games too often. I believe video games are a waste of time and it's an excuse to avoid interacting with with real people or the real world.

I listed cooking under my hobbies, but related it to my knowledge on healthy eating.
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tumblr_m8yghhu8UA1ql6elho1_500.jpg


i think this sums it up perfectly.female logic at work
 
audigq said:
tumblr_m8yghhu8UA1ql6elho1_500.jpg


i think this sums it up perfectly.female logic at work
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👍

I play video games, and I'm not a lazy fat guy who hates to be social. A lot of fit, social males in my med school class play video games too...and I doubt you would pin them as worthless people 😉
 
bollywoodlover said:
I guess I can't help being judgmental. I'm looking for a future husband and can't help picturing a lazy guy pigging out on soda and chips all night when I think of gamer.
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Yeesh. Wouldn't touch this with a 20 foot pole lol.
 
OP I wouldn't put Video Games down either. From what I'm getting, it's a big portion of your life and all that, but I don't think it would sit well with adcom members. Like previously mentioned, video games, regardless of their rating, are perceived to be infantile ways of amusing one's self. Yeah, I know there are games like COD and GTA out there; they're games geared towards teens and adults looking to blow off some steam. Just because you play them, doesn't make you some loser. However, your medical school application is not the place to put such hobbies down. Analyzing the beauty and artistic aspect of the game won't make Adcom members perceive you as some educated individual with the capacity to see past the game itself.

I suggest taking up another hobby? You seem passionate about this topic, transferring that passion to another goal better geared for a medical school app couldn't hurt you. 👍
 
I guess if you REALLY want to stretch and BS it, you could say video games builds upon & improves your spatial awareness/abilities and that you can easily adapt & become proficient to using new cutting edge technology & tools in surgery and whatnot. :laugh: But I wouldn't recommend you putting it down.

Interestingly, my cousin who is now a practicing plastic surgeon said that she used to play the Atari a lot and it "helped" her pick up the skills in surgery quicker back when she first started residency lolol
 
The bottom line is that it doesn't matter what the OP or anyone else here thinks about it. Adcoms will not see it as a positive. So go ahead and list it if you want to make it harder to get in.

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SpecterGT260 said:
The bottom line is that it doesn't matter what the OP or anyone else here thinks about it. Adcoms will not see it as a positive. So go ahead and list it if you want to make it harder to get in.

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This. Although I am an avid gamer myself, I can't see putting it on an app. I was even offered a spot to play on a competitive (paying) Halo team and declined. ADCOM's are pretty old school and think gamers are lazy and wasting time.
 
bollywoodlover said:
I guess I can't help being judgmental. I'm looking for a future husband and can't help picturing a lazy guy pigging out on soda and chips all night when I think of gamer.
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Except the guy you picture wouldn't be somebody you meet out. He'd be inside being lazy and pigging out on soda and chips.

Taking a step back, we are all laying it on thick so take this: we're not one-dimensional and confined to a typical lifestyle if we play vidya games. I play games but hell, they bore me sometimes so I find other stuff to do. Sometimes it's social stuff, sometimes it's not.

Also, holy hell this went off-topic. OP, good luck either way with what you choose to do. I'm in agreement that those who look at your application are conservative enough that making video games represent a major part of your development/involvement will not go over well. There's just a stigma attached to it (read, the majority of kids on XBox Live..) that makes me wary of putting it on an application. I think bollywoodlover showed it well - most video gamers are thought of as antisocial, lazy, etc. and it's a hard sell to a professional school when there are so, so many other applicants who avoid this wall entirely by not mentioning it, while also highlighting other skills through activities that aren't typically viewed as critically as gaming.
 
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gettheleadout said:
You can't help being judgmental?
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It must be wired into her brain to not use rational logic if that's the case. That would be a scary world to live in 😱
 
bollywoodlover said:
I guess I can't help being judgmental. I'm looking for a future husband and can't help picturing a lazy guy pigging out on soda and chips all night when I think of gamer.
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audigq said:
tumblr_m8yghhu8UA1ql6elho1_500.jpg


i think this sums it up perfectly.female logic at work
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I think there are similar levels of generalizations going on here: gamers as being a) male, b) lazy, and c) smelling like Cheetos, and females as being a) vapid, b) facebook-obsessed, and c) hypocritical.

I play my fair share of games - and I'm female, I might add - and I definitely agree with the sentiment going around that we should respect each others' hobbies. I also hope that we can not just answer one overgeneralization with another in the opposite direction.

/derailment
 
ilikevegetables said:
I think there are similar levels of generalizations going on here: gamers as being a) male, b) lazy, and c) smelling like Cheetos, and females as being a) vapid, b) facebook-obsessed, and c) hypocritical.

I play my fair share of games - and I'm female, I might add - and I definitely agree with the sentiment going around that we should respect each others' hobbies. I also hope that we can not just answer one overgeneralization with another in the opposite direction.

/derailment
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And sometimes being a lazy sack for a day is well earned and good for you.

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SpecterGT260 said:
And sometimes being a lazy sack for a day is well earned and good for you.

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True facts. I'm being lazy as all get out right now, and enjoying it. And now I'll go back to my games. 😛 Fallen London, anyone?
 
bollywoodlover said:
I would never date a guy that played video games too often. I believe video games are a waste of time and it's an excuse to avoid interacting with with real people or the real world.

I listed cooking under my hobbies, but related it to my knowledge on healthy eating.
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Your basing your knowledge off of a stereotype. I have play videogames a lot and have a social life. I have even developed more friends because of videogames. Before you think these are friends like the excessive ones you put on facebook, I have actually met them in person. We have thrown barbecues at each of our places and have hung out with each other every so often. The world is changing and that stereotype of video games are bad were developed by the older generation who did things differently back in their days.

I also cook but for me it is more of a necessity. However, I understand that there are people who really love cooking will view it differently from myself.
 
ilikevegetables said:
True facts. I'm being lazy as all get out right now, and enjoying it. And now I'll go back to my games. 😛 Fallen London, anyone?[/QUOTE]

nah...games like Halo 4, etc are more my thing.
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audigq said:
okay then why is the hobby section even there? or why do they ask what you like to do in your free time?
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many hobbies can demonstrate a dedication, interest, and ability in something meaningful and productive. your hobby is not one of those. your hobby is what little boys do all day on weekends. video games are sweet, but if you really think it is going to look good on your application, you are dumb. that is a fact, not an insult.
 
Won't Cheetos just mess the controllers up? 😕

That is a generalization I never understood lol
 
Why does OP have the spelling and grammar of the kids on Xbox Live? I'm surprised he hasn't claimed to have sex with anybody's mother yet.
 
bollywoodlover said:
I guess I can't help being judgmental. I'm looking for a future husband and can't help picturing a lazy guy pigging out on soda and chips all night when I think of gamer.
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Noob, everyone knows all people who play video games eat cheetos, not chips. They also have hybrid toilet chairs to minimize bathroom trips. Each and every one of them! And you're right, it is well known that pre-med gamers are more lazy, don't have jobs, and typically live with parents during med school and residency.
 
Playing video games is way more entertaining than sitting through a Bollywood film...
 
bollywoodlover said:
I would never date a guy that played video games too often. I believe video games are a waste of time and it's an excuse to avoid interacting with with real people or the real world.

I listed cooking under my hobbies, but related it to my knowledge on healthy eating.
Click to expand...

I'm not a butthurt video game nerd, but it's funny that you see video games as a waste of time while your username is "bollywoodlover."
 
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