Stuck Between Two Experience Options

[Brain_Bugs]

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Hello everyone,

So long story short I ended up in a position where I have to choose between being a Medical Scribe for one of the hospitals that I previously volunteered at, or doing a Summer Internship at the Medical School where I would like to go one day. I asked the Scribe company if I could start a little late, after the internship ends, and they said that they need to fill positions as soon as possible.

Before I ran into the dilemma I spoke with an admissions counselor at a medical school and she told me that the only part of my application that was lacking was some kind of work experience (and she said being a Scribe would be excellent).

• Personally, the internship seems appealing because I get to shadow the doctors, network within the medical school, and they even offer help with your completing your application and mock interviews once you get there. It wouldn't seem as appealing if this was at a random place, but considering that it's at the medical school where I would like to go...it seems to hold more weight.

• On the flip side, I could get quite a bit of experience being a scribe, probably a good letter of recommendation, and if it really is the only part of my application that's lacking...I would rather not leave it that way.

Any advice? Thank you!

 

[butchmfjones]

I don't think you can go wrong here. I'm assuming the scribe job is in the ER. If so, you really cannot beat that experience. You are in the trenches of medicine. You will see everything from benign tummy aches to AAAs and aortic dissections. You'll see awesome procedures like LPs, central lines, and intubations. You'll also get to see how the ER physician is the network between patients and their PCPs. You'll also get to see the physician work in life-or-death situations like STEMIs and cardiac arrests. Lastly, you'll find yourself being able to connect the dots between radiology, labs, hpi, physical and a diagnosis. Maybe I'm a little biased since I was a scribe, but it's up to you.

I wouldn't look at the scribe job as just a good way to get a recommendation. You'll get to really see how the hospital works. It's a little bit different than volunteering.

 

[Brain_Bugs]

Thank you for your input! I definitely didn't think of the scribe opportunity as just a way to get a letter of recommendation, I've seen what scribes do and I think it's one of the best opportunities to get to see what doctors do, how they do it, and whether you would like to do that for the rest of your life.

I guess what's really getting me is the networking aspect of the internship position. I don't want to brush that off like it's nothing because it seems like it could be a great way to get my foot in the door. Plus having the individuals at the medical school there to work with you on developing your application...that seems really enticing. I'm sure they could give me some good guidance.

 

[butchmfjones]

No doubt about that! Good luck with your pursuits.