verification of extra curricular activities

[gildude86]

Hello everyone,
I was wondering if medical schools really call up to verify all extra curriculars? If so, does anyone know what they are allowed to ask by law? I heard it was only if a person was there from a start date to a finish date. My problem is that I was volunteering at a Hospital in so cal, but then my gf was accepted to a nursing program in nevada..so I started canceling some shifts and moving others around to help her move, the volunteer program gave me a lot of **** for it so I ended up being "rude and unprofessional", after having a confrontation with them and was "released" from the program where I had close to 220 clinical volunteer hours. Will they inform this to medical schools?

Thanks,

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[Catalystik]

Hello everyone,
I was wondering if medical schools really call up to verify all extra curriculars? If so, does anyone know what they are allowed to ask by law? I heard it was only if a person was there from a start date to a finish date. My problem is that I was volunteering at a Hospital in so cal, but then my gf was accepted to a nursing program in nevada..so I started canceling some shifts and moving others around to help her move, the volunteer program gave me a lot of **** for it so I ended up being "rude and unprofessional", after having a confrontation with them and was "released" from the program where I had close to 220 clinical volunteer hours. Will they inform this to medical schools?

Thanks,

Med schools may call to verify your activities. Some med schools are more aggressive about this than others. Many med schools might call only rarely. The purpose is not to get a reference, but to verify start and end dates and approximate weekly involvement. Of course, I suppose if a Volunteer Office person answers the phone who was involved in your difficulties, additional information might be volunteered that you would prefer not be said.

Rather than using the volunteer office as a contact, is it possible you might use a nurse or clerk you came to know in the department where you volunteered?

 

[gildude86]

No I dont thinks thats possible, because they rotated us monthly through different departments. So, I never got the chance to really get to know a nurse on a personal level, and there's no way they'd know when I started volunteering there and my hours. Shouldn't Human Resources also keep record of their volunteers?

 

[Catalystik]

Shouldn't Human Resources also keep record of their volunteers?

I doubt it, but you could call them and ask.

 

[gildude86]

Got it thanks! So, if you said some schools rarely call, what is there to stop people from lying about their EC's?

 

[minerva3121]

Got it thanks! So, if you said some schools rarely call, what is there to stop people from lying about their EC's?

The awkwardness of having to answer an interview question about something they didn't do.

 

[ash914]

Got it thanks! So, if you said some schools rarely call, what is there to stop people from lying about their EC's?

In the off chance they do call, and you put down a lie that couldn't be considered an honest mistake, there's no way you're getting in at the school. If it's serious enough for them to communicate it to other schools, you aren't getting an acceptance anywhere.

 

[FattySlug]

I wonder about this as well. Some activities are in the distant past and the coordinators might not remember who you are, have bad memory or they have changed jobs ...etc... I don't even stay in touch w some friends let alone some coordinator. They might call and that person might say "who is that?"

 

[music2doc]

I wonder about this as well. Some activities are in the distant past and the coordinators might not remember who you are, have bad memory or they have changed jobs ...etc... I don't even stay in touch w some friends let alone some coordinator. They might call and that person might say "who is that?"

Most organizations keep some sort of record of these things. Of course, some are more diligent about this than others.

 

[Thoughtfulness]

It's very possible to lie, however, it's not worth the risk AT ALL.

 

[paul411]

Got it thanks! So, if you said some schools rarely call, what is there to stop people from lying about their EC's?

Morals.

Of course, there are people who choose to lie on their app anyways.

 

[Illinois2012]

Yeah I was wondering this too. I'm only worried about one activity really, because it was 3 years ago, and I believe the coordinator at the time has retired. I hope they can still verify my information, or at the very least they say that the person retired and they don't know.

 

[music2doc]

Yeah I was wondering this too. I'm only worried about one activity really, because it was 3 years ago, and I believe the coordinator at the time has retired. I hope they can still verify my information, or at the very least they say that the person retired and they don't know.

I would suggest contacting your EC contacts and making sure they are aware of possible calls. I contacted (via email, phone, or in person) each of my EC contact people to verify they were still at the organization and to ensure that they wouldn't sound "surprised" if they were to get a call. I'd suggest others do this as well. I simply told my contacts that it was fairly unlikely they'd get a call with 5,000 applicants at most schools and 15 contact people per school (plus LORs), but that just in case they did get a call, I wanted them to be aware of the possibility. Nobody had a problem with it.

 

[tonguetalker]

Im in ministry so my pastor would likely be the contact person, is it okay to just use his email? He really doesnt want a lot of people calling him and it's not very likely that they would be able to speak to him anyway