Summer internship in another field?

[vivax]

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I'm a current junior and applying to med school this cycle. I've spent almost every summer doing research/other pre-med related internships. My major is not a typical "premed" major (it's math). I am considering applying to an applied math internship this coming summer (along with research internships) because it looked interesting and I've never been exposed to math industry type work before. I just want to see what else is out there and broaden my expertise (despite the fact that I won't be using math directly as a doctor). This seems like it might be a conflict of interest but I'm not sure.

What do you guys think? Is this a good idea for an internship the summer I'm applying to medical school? It's pretty competitive so my chances of getting it are slim, and I may just do research again. But I wanted to know if this would be bad for my med school applications or not.

 

[anon198]

@vivax do you mind sharing what type of pre-med related internships you were involved with over your summers? I'm a freshman student looking for something to get involved with this summer.

 

[Chromium Surfer]

@vivax do you mind sharing what type of pre-med related internships you were involved with over your summers? I'm a freshman student looking for something to get involved with this summer.

I would recommend changing your profile picture to preserve your anonymity! Most summer program application deadlines have probably passed now. However since you are only a freshman it is not a big deal that you didn't get into a premed related internship for this summer. Look for local places to volunteer at in terms of clinical and nonclinical volunteering and or research. Build those connections and start investing time now and carry it through until you apply. Longevity is always better than isolated experiences. With that being said summer internships are a nice way to complement work that you do during an academic year. For next year I would peruse this list: https://people.rit.edu/~gtfsbi/Symp/premed.htm

It is pretty extensive and there are a lot of great programs on there! Best of luck for the rest of your semester and during your premed journey. 🙂

 

[Doggeronie]

I'm a current junior and applying to med school this cycle. I've spent almost every summer doing research/other pre-med related internships. My major is not a typical "premed" major (it's math). I am considering applying to an applied math internship this coming summer (along with research internships) because it looked interesting and I've never been exposed to math industry type work before. I just want to see what else is out there and broaden my expertise (despite the fact that I won't be using math directly as a doctor). This seems like it might be a conflict of interest but I'm not sure.

What do you guys think? Is this a good idea for an internship the summer I'm applying to medical school? It's pretty competitive so my chances of getting it are slim, and I may just do research again. But I wanted to know if this would be bad for my med school applications or not.

Maybe you should try to get some service related extracurriculars.
N=1 but my interviews have revolved around my service related activities rather than my research experience.
Then again, I'm largely a service oriented applicant and that's what drove me to enter medicine.

 

[aldol16]

Non-graduate-level students don't really have a "field." But in any case, I think as long as you have a compelling narrative, research in this area would be an interesting interview discussion. I think you should follow your passions and the rest of it will work itself out. Makes you seem more genuine too.

 

[Chromium Surfer]

@vivax do you mind sharing what type of pre-med related internships you were involved with over your summers? I'm a freshman student looking for something to get involved with this summer.

I like the avi change!🤣