Taking a year off before applying. When is it necessary or recommended?

[BrainBuff]

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I have seen this issue come up often, and I would like to see what you guys think. The reason I am asking is because someone in a thread posted that the premed advisor was recommending everyone to do this. I believe, a year off should be taken to compensate for a lack of strong academic credentials or lack clinical shadowing, good ECs, etc. Comments, please?

 

[Steeler7588]

A year off for below average applicants can help solidify your chances of getting into a medical school. Improving your grades, volunteering, ECs, etc can boost you from a rejection to an admit at some school.

But for very well-qualified applicants, a year off can help increase your chances at the top medical schools. For such applicants, the chance they can get something impressive accomplished in that year would be a big boost not getting in to medical school, but for getting in to certain schools.

The advisor's recommendation may not be a good fit for everyone, depending on their personal goals in medicine. That recommendation is not going to hurt anyone, though.

 

[Catalystik]

BrainBuff, in general I agree with you. Another way in which a year off might be useful, would be to avaoid academic burnout. Hopping from intense premed competitiveness to intense med school expectations can be draining for some people (not all, though). I think you have to know yourself to appreciate whether "down time' is right for you.

 

[bobsmith]

👍 to the responses by Steeler and Catalystik

I also think that often times when an advisor says something like "I think everyone should take some time off before school," they don't mean that advice to be taken literally, but rather are saying it to emphasize just how nice it is to have a year that's a "break" from what will otherwise be something like 24 years of straight schooling (K+12+premed+med+residency). It's a good opportunity to experience the real world and get some perspective on things

And as a bonus, applying after graduation allows you to include all your activities from senior year and also talk about whatever awesome new thing(s) you decide to do in your year off. http://forums.studentdoctor.net/member.php?u=113536

 

[BrainBuff]

I appreciate your input guys. For a while, i entertained the idea of taking a year off and doing research or getting involved in some other interesting project. However, I have done very well academically (GPA and MCAT), i am involved in research, have plenty of shadowing and have some fairly unique ECs. My senior year is going to be "fun" (classes wise) because I will be taking stuff that I enjoy (now that i am done with all my premed reqs) so I am not really "burned out" now..

I think the premed advisors want to get as many of their students admitted to med school as possible, and recommending a year of extra stuff makes it a safer bet. It is just that with a 4.0 and a 39 MCAT, it made me kind of nervous...

Thanks for the feedback!

 

[bobsmith]

I appreciate your input guys. For a while, i entertained the idea of taking a year off and doing research or getting involved in some other interesting project. However, I have done very well academically (GPA and MCAT), i am involved in research, have plenty of shadowing and have some fairly unique ECs. My senior year is going to be "fun" (classes wise) because I will be taking stuff that I enjoy (now that i am done with all my premed reqs) so I am not really "burned out" now..

I think the premed advisors want to get as many of their students admitted to med school as possible, and recommending a year of extra stuff makes it a safer bet. It is just that with a 4.0 and a 39 MCAT, it made me kind of nervous...

Thanks for the feedback!

Yeah, it sounds like in your situation, taking a year off wouldn't be to improve your chances of getting into medical school, but for personal reasons because you just feel like trying something different or want a break. But if you've got an opportunity to do something cool that interests you, it certainly won't be frowned upon (and would actually be received quite well). Sounds like you're in good shape either way, though.

 

[45408]

Taking ONE year off to do research to boost your application is probably not that good of an idea. You graduate in May. You submit your AMCAS in June or July. You finish secondaries by August. How much meaningful research will you have gotten on your application by then? None. If you're hoping the research will get you interviews, you'll hardly have any of it under your belt by the time you apply.

If you want to take a year off for a breather, that's up to you, but if you're trying to boost a mediocre application, you'll probably need 2 years off.

 

[BrainBuff]

You are right theprowler. It makes sense. However, I still see people taking just 1 year off....

 

[45408]

You are right theprowler. It makes sense. However, I still see people taking just 1 year off....

It might be because they didn't have a good enough application by the end of their junior year, so they did a bunch of ECs/research/clinical experience as a senior and applied right after graduation. That's perfectly reasonable.

 

[lovedocta07]

I am a junior and i have all my EC's such as research, community service, leadership, and several awards with a 3.8 science and 3.85 overall gpa at a UC.i also have amazing letters of rec....but my MCAT was a 22M in march..


should i study and retake as soon as possible and try to get my app in now since i have everything else done...(probably mid july test...and have appl complete by august)

or

...is it worth to study this summer and apply for the next cycle just because of that score..


thnx..really conflicted on what to do🙁 my aamc average (30)

 

[deleted191570]

I think your advisor was being honest by advising everyone to take a year off. There seems to be a maturity difference between those that've experienced life outside school and those that've not... I think you need to not only be academically prepared for med school, but emotionally and socially prepared as well. Even only three years out of college, I often have trouble relating to college students. One physician told me he sometimes has to kick med students out of rooms because they have inappropriate bedside manner... And he said meeting and interacting with people outside of school would only help (this is when I was contemplating time off). His point was that people with no gap time tend to treat the first two years of med school like an extension of college which they should not be, then when clinical years hit, they are clueless.

Maybe you are at a high level of maturity straight from college too, depending on your life experiences... As for me, I took two years off and they turned out to be the best two years of my life. I grew so much unexpectedly and think I approach life with a completely different mindset than I did while I was a college student.

So to be fair, it's not always just to improve your application, but it change you as a person too, as time tends to do

 

[deleted191570]

Not to mention, you're only young once, so why not take some time in your 20s to do something you won't be able to do in the future while you still have the chance?

(sorry for double post, I'm using an iPod...)

 

[loveoforganic]

^^My personal reasons for wanting to take a gap year or two, exactly.