Shadowing, volunteering, or research

[stat3113]

I am looking to apply to med school next summer, and am weak on medical/clinical ECs (i.e. non-existent.)

Assume here are three possibilities: shadowing, volunteering, and research.

Which of these is most important? I.e. with limited time from now until next June (~30/35 weeks), what would be the best way to invest my time?

Should I try to squeeze in a little of each (say 4hrs/wk research, 4 hrs/wk volunteer, and 4 hrs/wk shadowing)? Or should I give more importance to one over the other?

Thanks.

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[MahSpoon]

#1 on your priority list should be getting clinical experience since you say yourself that you lack it and med schools practically require it (how do yo know you want to be a doctor without ever seeing one work?
Do the volunteering, and stick to it, expose yourself to diverse experiences

If you do this, shadowing will be a moot point.

Do research if you are really interested in it and have the spare time. Top med schools do research so they tend to like people who have some experience but you aren't likely to have a significant publication by the time you apply.

Conclusion
Volunter (a must)
shadow (sparingly, not required if you volunteer enough)
research (if you want)

 

[brianmartin]

I would start volunteering at a hospital, wherever you can get the most patient experience. Then start asking around about shadowing. Unless you are working directly with doctors in your volunteering (which is unlikely), you are going to want to do some shadowing to find out about the profession.

Research is cool if you have the connections, time, and interest...but is not necessary. Focus on getting some experiences under your belt.

 

[Haemulon]

I agree with the above posts. You really need to do some volunteering. Volunteering in health care is ideal because you get knock out both exposure to medicine and community service at the same time. But it is also worth while to do a few hours here and there of non-medical community service volunteering as well. It will be rewarding for you, and the adcomms love that stuff. But definitely shadow at least one physician if you have the chance, even if it is only for a day or two, so that you can at least mention it and reflect on how it impacted your expectations about physician practice. Research experience is a nice gold star on your app, but I would not stress yourself out over it.

The biggies are volunteering and shadowing. You might be surprised how easy it is to get a 100 hours or so of hospital volunteering in just by putting in 4-8 hours a week. Check with your local hospital volunteer coordinator.

 

[Made For Scrubs]

yeah man you definitely still have time to volunteer and to do research too. You should volunteer this summer and rack up hours and see if you could do research during the semester, as you'll be around school anyways. I'm not sure if you can shadow that long anyways, I've heard from people that they've shadowed one day or maybe 2-3 hours a week for a few weeks.

Hey I was wondering if working in my dad's medical office constitutes clinical exposure? I'm applying this year, and I'm really worried about that part of my app... Does anyone think it's possible for me to squeeze in some volunteer hours at a hospital? And if I do, will it be good enough?

 

[Haemulon]

yeah man you definitely still have time to volunteer and to do research too. You should volunteer this summer and rack up hours and see if you could do research during the semester, as you'll be around school anyways. I'm not sure if you can shadow that long anyways, I've heard from people that they've shadowed one day or maybe 2-3 hours a week for a few weeks.

Hey I was wondering if working in my dad's medical office constitutes clinical exposure? I'm applying this year, and I'm really worried about that part of my app... Does anyone think it's possible for me to squeeze in some volunteer hours at a hospital? And if I do, will it be good enough?

Sure you can. The hospital near me had volunteer shifts for 4 hours on the weekends or evenings. But they wanted a committment for 100 hours total, and a minimum of at least 8 per week. That sounded good to me, but i'm sure other places may be even more flexible.