Random (Non-clinical) Volunteering Hours

[CHCOOH]

I've done a bunch of random non-clinical volunteering (i.e. beach cleanups, charity walk events, homeless shelters, etc.) Most events are completely different and with various student organizations, as I'm still in my first year and looking around for which clubs to join.

I was wondering how I'd put these volunteer hours on the AMCAS. Do they ask you for a total amount of volunteer hours? Or do they ask for a consistent, "hours per week" kind of thing? If so, how should I document these hours?

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[ciestar]

They ask for total hours. If you plan on continuing the activity, you can also estimate future commitment

 

[Catalystik]

I've done a bunch of random non-clinical volunteering (i.e. beach cleanups, charity walk events, homeless shelters, etc.) Most events are completely different and with various student organizations, as I'm still in my first year and looking around for which clubs to join.

I was wondering how I'd put these volunteer hours on the AMCAS. Do they ask you for a total amount of volunteer hours? Or do they ask for a consistent, "hours per week" kind of thing? If so, how should I document these hours?

When you have lots of short-term volunteering, it's probably best to list them under the sponsoring student organization so you have a "contact" to use for all of them. It is best if you document your own hours and the location each time you participate. Eventually, hopefully, you'll be drawn to the mission of a particular local organization and give it some time each week. The latter could be listed on its own, as the involvement would be more substantive.

 

[CHCOOH]

When you have lots of short-term volunteering, it's probably best to list them under the sponsoring student organization so you have a "contact" to use for all of them. It is best if you document your own hours and the location each time you participate. Eventually, hopefully, you'll be drawn to the mission of a particular local organization and give it some time each week. The latter could be listed on its own, as the involvement would be more substantive.

Is it worth listing all these organizations if the events were, say, only 2-3 hours each?

 

[Catalystik]

Is it worth listing all these organizations if the events were, say, only 2-3 hours each?

It would depend on the total number of hours you'd list with each organization. If the answer is, "Not much," then grouping is preferred.

 

[Vans42]

I didn't list any short-term volunteering activities. I had two big ones, one that lasted 3 years and another that lasted 6. I would recommend finding one thing you enjoy and stick with that for a few years. Adcoms want to see a commitment to a certain cause/activities compared with doing a bunch of little things that are unrelated.