Hey All,
I'm looking for suggestions on strengthening my application to either an MD or DO program. I'm in my mid 30s and have been a paramedic/flight paramedic for over 10 years. I hold a bachelor's degree in EMS, but I have a somewhat checkered/weaker academic history (especially right out of high school). I'm working on completing the outstanding pre-reqs for an application (Orgo, Biochem, etc.) while working full time.
Specifically, I had the following questions:
1) Does volunteer experience that is all medical or medical adjacent (i.e. volunteer FD, Red Cross disaster response, peer support organizations) weaken my application (i.e. do I need to branch out with volunteer work)?
2) Given my extensive exposure to the healthcare system, should I still attempt to shadow a physician outside EM or critical care?
3) How much effort should I expend attempting to get involved in research? For example, would serving as a peer reviewer for a prehospital journal be effective or should I attempt to get a position in a traditional lab in a university setting?
4) If my grades are just mediocre (cumulative and science right around 3.1 but a bunch of failures/withdrawals in the remote past), will I need to pursue a Master's Degree or would strong performance for two years in nearly full time academics for pre-reqs keep me competitive?
5) If I need to strengthen my academic record to improve my application, would a Master's in some human factors discipline (i.e. human factors engineering, etc.) be more or less helpful than a special master's program (as my backup plan/other professional interests are centered on HFACS).
Thanks in advance for all your input and assistance!!!
(also, I posted this in the MD and DO threads, sorry for the duplication!)
I'm looking for suggestions on strengthening my application to either an MD or DO program. I'm in my mid 30s and have been a paramedic/flight paramedic for over 10 years. I hold a bachelor's degree in EMS, but I have a somewhat checkered/weaker academic history (especially right out of high school). I'm working on completing the outstanding pre-reqs for an application (Orgo, Biochem, etc.) while working full time.
Specifically, I had the following questions:
1) Does volunteer experience that is all medical or medical adjacent (i.e. volunteer FD, Red Cross disaster response, peer support organizations) weaken my application (i.e. do I need to branch out with volunteer work)?
2) Given my extensive exposure to the healthcare system, should I still attempt to shadow a physician outside EM or critical care?
3) How much effort should I expend attempting to get involved in research? For example, would serving as a peer reviewer for a prehospital journal be effective or should I attempt to get a position in a traditional lab in a university setting?
4) If my grades are just mediocre (cumulative and science right around 3.1 but a bunch of failures/withdrawals in the remote past), will I need to pursue a Master's Degree or would strong performance for two years in nearly full time academics for pre-reqs keep me competitive?
5) If I need to strengthen my academic record to improve my application, would a Master's in some human factors discipline (i.e. human factors engineering, etc.) be more or less helpful than a special master's program (as my backup plan/other professional interests are centered on HFACS).
Thanks in advance for all your input and assistance!!!
(also, I posted this in the MD and DO threads, sorry for the duplication!)
