Volunteer hours as a non-trad

[brittat]

I searched but didn't find anything similar to this...

Anyone know how volunteer hours are viewed for non-trads? I work full-time (40+ hrs a week in a professional office setting) plus go to school full-time on evenings and weekends. I'm attempting to squeeze in 4 hours/wk of hospital volunteering on Sunday afternoons.

Compared to a full-time student applying, that probably isn't a lot of volunteer hours but does anyone know if adcom's weigh how little "free" time non-trads have and the effort of still putting in volunteer hours?

I'm just a little worried because I'm pretty scarce in my extracurricular areas.

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[FrkyBgStok]

honestly, i have thought about this many times. i work 4 nights a week with a rotating day off at 52 hours. I also have a job as a patient transport for 20 hours at the hospital on the weekends. I attend class during the days and am also taking a few online classes (gen ed requirements) and have been told that I need volunteer experience. How much? I have no friggin clue. So I have decided to get active in my daughter's school. she goes to a private school so they are in need of volunteers and whatnot. It will probably add up to about 4-8 hours a month, but i really can't commit more than that.

i really do think adcoms will look at your situation in favor depending on many credits you are taking. it takes a lot to work during school. if you have little hospital experience i would definitely recommend volunteering on sunday afternoon. maybe get involved sparatically on something that you are interested in. not necessarilly medical related, but just something. it can't look bad and will be worth it.

and if the 4 hours is all you can do, depending how long it is, if you can sell yourself, it may be enough. but i haven't applied and am not applying until next summer, so i could have no idea.

 

[Helen Wheels]

I was kind of lucky in that my full time jobs for my entire career so far have been 90% involving direct patient contact. My only volunteer work was some minimal volunteer work with the humane society (1 hour a week for the past couple years).

I don't know how feasible it is for you (if it's a pay cut, etc.) but possibly taking a job involving patient contact built in would help. A lot of pre meds have worked as EMTs, phlebotomists, medical assistants, etc. Of course, these jobs require some extra training which I could totally understand you might not want to embark on with taking pre-reqs. The phlebot certificate in my area is only a 12 week course.

Other than that, I am sure they don't expect to see a nontrad doing as much volunteer work as a 21 year old undergrad who has no responsibilities other than school. You will definitely have to have some patient contact experience and volunteering of some kind is pretty much expected.

 

[Woland]

I hope that someone more experienced will answer, but based on very unscientific results of interviews with admission staffers (directors/asst.directors) of 5 med schools I was able to get a "pre-view interview" I can surmise it is dependant on the school.
I live in ORE, US so my closest and the only in-state school is OHSU. They told me, that they "prefer people with life experience, older applicants. And we have a 36% re-applicant acceptance rate" (2009 cycle, as 2010 cycle was still in progress when I managed to get the interview).
Another NW school told me I was SOL, and I just had to live up to the expectation regardless of the fact that I held down 2 jobs etc. I faced more or less similar advice with 2 schools on the other side of the Rockies.
Lastly, an adcom member in one of the private schools down South told me that "life experience is definately taken into consideration and we apreciete the extra effort students life you put into finding time for extracurriculr activities, but we absolutely must see dedication to public service and occasional volunteering just does not cut it" (point of their advice was to prove dedication, persistance and regularity).

 

[familyaerospace]

We are for the most part expected to do the volunteer hours the same as anyone else. Seems on average, NTs have more but that is likely because we are older.

I'm sure you can look back in your life and come up with volunteer hours that you've already done and then you can look for more if you need to.

Or I could sell you some of my "excess", LOL!

 

[ruraldocmom]

Personally, I do think it is just as important, if not more important for non-trads to have volunteer hours.

As non-trads, we've had more years of time (though certainly less free time) to accumulate volunteer hours than your average college grad. And, even if you didn't know you wanted to be a doctor until later in life--I think it is important to be the kind of person that volunteers and gives back to the community--because its the right thing to do, not just to get you into med school.

I've always been able to find something--ER, Free Clinic, etc. In my current 55-hr a week job, I still volunteer at a Domestic Violence Shelter one night a week.

With all that said, I think the most important thing is to show that you are committed to service over the long haul. Personally, I don't think that a variety of one-time volunteer work is worth s***. What counts is that you are commited to a project/a purpose/a call more than a one-time deal.

With all that said... when I was studying for the MCAT & taking night classes, I took a break from volunteering. Also, I have a just-good-enough GPA and only barely above average MCAT. So, I've always been counting my volunteer work to carry me through.

But most of all, I volunteered because I freaking loved the volunteer work and the day job was just to pay the bills until the volunteer work could be my life-work. Those 4 hours on Sundays should be fine if it stretches over a long time period, you really get to know some good people, and you get to make difference & learn something. Good luck!

 

[aurora001]

Does the long-term volunteer experience need to be in a hospital? I plan to apply in Spring 2011. I've only had several months of volunteer experience in a hospital ~4 years ago. Have been on the board of a non-profit org that builds schools in remote Asian regions (unpaid) since 2 years ago. Is that relevant?

 

[dmonee]

Hi, I have a question about direct patient contact.
I currently intern at a physical therapy clinic (with a DPT) in which I will probably accumulate around 300+ hours. Will this suffice for some patient contact? I do expect to do some shadowing, but in terms of direct patient care... I'm not sure if this would be okay, as it is in the health care field but not with a physician. Also, would this DPT's LOR be worth while?

 

[J ROD]

I would recommend doing the 4hr/wk over a yr to two yrs....it is really not about the sheer number as it is the commitment.

Patient contact is anything where you get to interact with patients and get a feel for what it is like being a healthcare professional. Ideally, it would be somewhere with docs since that is what you want to be.

I think the ER is the best place. I also did some work at a free clinic.

Nursing and hospice are other good places....