Suggestions for pre-med

[att821]

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Hi everyone,

I am currently in my second semester of my sophomore year as a pre-med student and am interested to hear anyone's suggestions about extracurricular activities. My GPA is slightly lower than I would like, but it has been gradually improving. During my freshman year, I was not involved in much, but I now am involved in a few things. I currently have an internship (unpaid) in a neuroscience research lab, I volunteer at two hospitals, and am starting to volunteer as a tutor at the library near by (anyone from ages 5-18). I have about 6 hours of shadowing experience as well. My questions are:
Should I look for something more in the research area, such as a paid position? Or maybe apply for research grants?
Does anyone have any suggestions for leadership positions?
Should I be concerned that I am not affiliated with any clubs through my university? (besides intramural tennis)
Is tutoring sufficient for community volunteer hours? Or should I look elsewhere as well?

Thank you!

 

[DrDorianTurkleton]

1) Increase the shadowing hours and try to get in some time with a primary care physician, maybe ~25-30 hours or until you really feel like you've seen enough to be able to make the educated choice of becoming a physician.
2) Research is research, whether its paid, unpaid, or for credit. The big thing is staying committed to a lab if you enjoy it and being able to intelligently discuss your work/contributions to the lab. However, if you need to make money to support yourself through college, I would recommend applying for grants, looking for paid positions, or paid summer research internships.
3) The best way to get leadership is to join a club and then work your way through the rankings to an executive board position. Personally, I joined my school's student chapter of a professional society and attended their meetings/events for the first year, got to know the executive board and faculty liaisons, and then applied the following year for a position as the secretary of the club. This can be applied to almost any other club or organization. Also try looking for organizations that you are genuinely interested in; a leadership position does not always have to be for a professional or humanitarian society (although those do look good). For example, you could be the captain of the sailing team, or president of your school's tutoring organization, but just find something you will actually like.
4) Number of clubs you are in does not matter. If you dedicate yourself to one or two organization/clubs and are able to hold leadership positions, that will look a lot better than being a member of 5 different clubs with no leadership. I would not consider intramural sports alone as being part of a club or anything unless you play that sport every semester or something. You can still definitely talk about it, but if you are able to get a position in organizing your school's intramural sports programs and also playing in them, then I would consider it being affiliated with a club at your university.
5) It looks like you have a good amount of clinical community service from your two hospital positions and the tutoring will add to your non-clinical volunteering hours. Between those three positions, I think you have your volunteering covered.

Tl;dr: Continue volunteering, doing research, and playing tennis. Try to get more shadowing hours, involved in clubs/leadership, and possibly paid research.

 

[att821]

1) Increase the shadowing hours and try to get in some time with a primary care physician, maybe ~25-30 hours or until you really feel like you've seen enough to be able to make the educated choice of becoming a physician.
2) Research is research, whether its paid, unpaid, or for credit. The big thing is staying committed to a lab if you enjoy it and being able to intelligently discuss your work/contributions to the lab. However, if you need to make money to support yourself through college, I would recommend applying for grants, looking for paid positions, or paid summer research internships.
3) The best way to get leadership is to join a club and then work your way through the rankings to an executive board position. Personally, I joined my school's student chapter of a professional society and attended their meetings/events for the first year, got to know the executive board and faculty liaisons, and then applied the following year for a position as the secretary of the club. This can be applied to almost any other club or organization. Also try looking for organizations that you are genuinely interested in; a leadership position does not always have to be for a professional or humanitarian society (although those do look good). For example, you could be the captain of the sailing team, or president of your school's tutoring organization, but just find something you will actually like.
4) Number of clubs you are in does not matter. If you dedicate yourself to one or two organization/clubs and are able to hold leadership positions, that will look a lot better than being a member of 5 different clubs with no leadership. I would not consider intramural sports alone as being part of a club or anything unless you play that sport every semester or something. You can still definitely talk about it, but if you are able to get a position in organizing your school's intramural sports programs and also playing in them, then I would consider it being affiliated with a club at your university.
5) It looks like you have a good amount of clinical community service from your two hospital positions and the tutoring will add to your non-clinical volunteering hours. Between those three positions, I think you have your volunteering covered.

Tl;dr: Continue volunteering, doing research, and playing tennis. Try to get more shadowing hours, involved in clubs/leadership, and possibly paid research.

This is all very helpful, thank you so much!