Summer schedule and Junior year schedule

[Thego2guy]

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Hey guys, need input on how realistic this is:

I'm a rising Junior.

I'll be doing research this summer at a really great hospital. I have no clinical volunteering so I need to fit that in. I also want to try and take the MCAT as soon as possible since junior year appears to be clogged up with tough classes.

I made this schedule, please let me know if it looks like it will be enough for me to 1) keep myself sane, and relaxed this summer. I haven't had a summer break last year, and I'm really burnt out going nonstop with my academics and work. 2) give me enough prep for the MCAT.

I did not take organic chemistry yet. I took physics, and got a B+ in physics 1 and a C in physics 2, so I need to dedicate a lot of time to that. All my other grades are A's in the sciences.

I want to follow this schedule three days a week:

9:30AM to 12:30PM - Arrive and work at the lab
12:30PM to 12:55PM - Eat lunch/browse SDN
1:00PM to 2:00PM - Volunteer at the hospital across the street
2:00PM to 5:30 PM - Back to the lab for more work.

5:35PM to 7:15PM - commute home

7:30PM to 10:30PM - Study for MCAT
10:30PM to 1:00AM - Relax and enjoy myself

I want to adhere to this three times a week, so that the other two work days I can spend time with my girlfriend, family, and friends and actually have a small part of the summer to myself.

This would translate into roughly ~35 hours of volunteer work and 90-100hours of MCAT study time. Please give me feedback on this, whether this is doable, enough, etc....

I DO NOT want to take a year off, and I've been lurking on SDN for 4 years, so I know enough to take my MCAT by the end of my junior year, around April or May. I want all my apps submitted in early June and I want to have all of my grades and exam results at hand.

Alternatives to the above schedule are not ideal either...

Fall Semester:
Orgo 1
Orgo lab
Microbio
Mcrobio lab
Calculus
Philosophy course.

Spring semester:
Orgo 2
Orgo 2 lab
Virology
Bio-stats
And some other course. I might have another lab class. So as you can see ill be burnt out and taking on a pretty decent course load that won't be conducive for me to study for the MCAT.

Advice and suggestions are really welcome! Thanks SDNers

 

[leon sandcastle]

what are you doing for your ECs OP?

 

[Thego2guy]

what are you doing for your ECs OP?

Shadowing is done. I have some non clinical volunteering done at a day care. Junior year I plan on starting a chapter for a science society. It's going to be a challenging thing to tackle from a leadership perspective but I really want to do it. Through that I want to organize science outreach programs, and visit local NYC public schools and promote/do cool science experiments with kids in under served populations. It will effectively take up a lot of my time especially in the Fall semester.

Last summer I did research at the same place I plan to go back to this summer.

 

[Long Way to Go]

What hospital is this that will let you volunteer for an hour at a time?

 

[Lamel]

When are you planning to take your MCAT. You should try to be done with Orgo 1 at least, so you will HAVE to study during the semester.

Maybe take the minimum load in the spring (12 credits) and devote a lot to MCAT. By then you will be done with Orgo 1 and can self study the little Orgo 2 there is on the MCAT.

 

[Josh7]

Hey guys, need input on how realistic this is:

I'm a rising Junior.

I'll be doing research this summer at a really great hospital. I have no clinical volunteering so I need to fit that in. I also want to try and take the MCAT as soon as possible since junior year appears to be clogged up with tough classes.

I made this schedule, please let me know if it looks like it will be enough for me to 1) keep myself sane, and relaxed this summer. I haven't had a summer break last year, and I'm really burnt out going nonstop with my academics and work. 2) give me enough prep for the MCAT.

I did not take organic chemistry yet. I took physics, and got a B+ in physics 1 and a C in physics 2, so I need to dedicate a lot of time to that. All my other grades are A's in the sciences.

I want to follow this schedule three days a week:

9:30AM to 12:30PM - Arrive and work at the lab
12:30PM to 12:55PM - Eat lunch/browse SDN
1:00PM to 2:00PM - Volunteer at the hospital across the street
2:00PM to 5:30 PM - Back to the lab for more work.

5:35PM to 7:15PM - commute home

7:30PM to 10:30PM - Study for MCAT
10:30PM to 1:00AM - Relax and enjoy myself

I want to adhere to this three times a week, so that the other two work days I can spend time with my girlfriend, family, and friends and actually have a small part of the summer to myself.

This would translate into roughly ~35 hours of volunteer work and 90-100hours of MCAT study time. Please give me feedback on this, whether this is doable, enough, etc....

I DO NOT want to take a year off, and I've been lurking on SDN for 4 years, so I know enough to take my MCAT by the end of my junior year, around April or May. I want all my apps submitted in early June and I want to have all of my grades and exam results at hand.

Alternatives to the above schedule are not ideal either...

Fall Semester:
Orgo 1
Orgo lab
Microbio
Mcrobio lab
Calculus
Philosophy course.

Spring semester:
Orgo 2
Orgo 2 lab
Virology
Bio-stats
And some other course. I might have another lab class. So as you can see ill be burnt out and taking on a pretty decent course load that won't be conducive for me to study for the MCAT.

Advice and suggestions are really welcome! Thanks SDNers

You're only studying for the MCAT 9 hours a week it appears?

The norm around here is at least 20 hours a week, often times more... Those days look pretty busy but definitely doable.

 

[RCPreMD]

What hospital is this that will let you volunteer for an hour at a time?

wondering the same

 

[Mr Avante]

What hospital is this that will let you volunteer for an hour at a time?

wondering the same

Same

 

[Thego2guy]

What hospital is this that will let you volunteer for an hour at a time?

wondering the same

Same

I won't disclose hospital name for obvious reasons. It's a large one in NYC.

I'm a part time employee there. Work in a research department that is affiliated with pediatric cancer. Know people that wont have a problem letting me come in for an hour a day, three times a week during my "lunch break" and volunteer. I'm not a "stranger" to the hospital, so they are a lot more open to me hanging out there than if I was an outsider. Having the hospital email also makes it easy to internally email the right people and say "hi I'm a summer intern at such and such department in such and such lab. I was wondering if I can shadow/volunteer etc....." They are usually very welcoming.

 

[Thego2guy]

When are you planning to take your MCAT. You should try to be done with Orgo 1 at least, so you will HAVE to study during the semester.

Maybe take the minimum load in the spring (12 credits) and devote a lot to MCAT. By then you will be done with Orgo 1 and can self study the little Orgo 2 there is on the MCAT.

You're only studying for the MCAT 9 hours a week it appears?

The norm around here is at least 20 hours a week, often times more... Those days look pretty busy but definitely doable.

Thanks for the feedback guys. 9 hours is definitely less than the typical 20 ....hmm. Do I really need orgo 1 to take the MCAT? I feel like if its such a small part of a test that it would be sufficient for me to self study some of it. If orgo 1 is necessary as you say, then isn't orgo 2 also vital?

Should I just trash that plan and just try to study from January - April and take it in May? Again bear in mind ill have Orgo 2, virology, biostats, lab, and some other class to potentially worry about. Commute takes two hours out of my day.

 

[Josh7]

Thanks for the feedback guys. 9 hours is definitely less than the typical 20 ....hmm. Do I really need orgo 1 to take the MCAT? I feel like if its such a small part of a test that it would be sufficient for me to self study some of it. If orgo 1 is necessary as you say, then isn't orgo 2 also vital?

Should I just trash that plan and just try to study from January - April and take it in May? Again bear in mind ill have Orgo 2, virology, biostats, lab, and some other class to potentially worry about. Commute takes two hours out of my day.

You don't need Orgo 1 before you take the MCAT but I think you do if you plan on only studying 9 hours a week. 9 Hours a week for the whole summer is probably the time it would take to perfect orgo by itself...