Volunteer work not dealing with pharmacy

[Kaxa2000]

Do you think it would be helpful to have volunteer work not related to pharmacy? There's this volunteer section in my local newspaper I just found out about. There's a few things I could sign up for like helping kids with their homework, a summer nutrition program, yard work, helping children through grief due to death in family, etc. Just wondering if any of this is worth signing up for if it could help me into pharmacy school.

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[cschellh]

Do you think it would be helpful to have volunteer work not related to pharmacy? There's this volunteer section in my local newspaper I just found out about. There's a few things I could sign up for like helping kids with their homework, a summer nutrition program, yard work, helping children through grief due to death in family, etc. Just wondering if any of this is worth signing up for if it could help me into pharmacy school.

Of course! I think that most of us would agree that pharm exp is one of the most vital components to applications, but showing that you a community service oriented person always looks great.

=)

 

[NaOH]

I believe the general consensus is that with volunteer work, the important thing is just that it's something that you are/can become/can fake being passionate about - since it's probably the sort of thing that'll come up in an interview. You need to be able to communicate that no, you're not doing this just to have something to put on an app but that you really care about making the world a better place through being a volunteer state park interpreter, dog groomer, etc.

 

[trailrider400]

Definitely. Do you already have pharmacy experience though? I tell people that if they don't have any pharmacy experience I think its good to try to volunteer in a hospital pharmacy. But if its everything pharmacy it can be a little redundant. When I was thinking about getting involved in pharmacy club at school I thought it really wasn't a good use of my spare time because I was already volunteering at a pharmacy and working as a tech in retail. Anyways if you already have pharmacy experience I think its a good idea to add a little depth and diversity to your application. Make sure you are volunteering with people though. For instance, I think helping kids would look a little stronger than something like a highway cleanup. Just my take...

 

[russ36]

Volunteer to do something you feel passionate about and genuinely enjoy. I volunteer coached a youth hockey team for 3 seasons in the community where I grew up and it was an amazing experience.

 

[busyizzy]

Do you think it would be helpful to have volunteer work not related to pharmacy? There's this volunteer section in my local newspaper I just found out about. There's a few things I could sign up for like helping kids with their homework, a summer nutrition program, yard work, helping children through grief due to death in family, etc. Just wondering if any of this is worth signing up for if it could help me into pharmacy school.

Stick with one thing. Don't help a child deal with death for 2 weeks, then go help another kid with hw for another 2 weeks and jump around. Pick something you like/interested in, and keep doing it at least for a couple months. Better if it's a year or two.

 

[aboveliquidice]

Stick with one thing. Don't help a child deal with death for 2 weeks, then go help another kid with hw for another 2 weeks and jump around. Pick something you like/interested in, and keep doing it at least for a couple months. Better if it's a year or two.

Generally speaking - 2 or 3 quality volunteer projects that you are involved with on the long term are greater than 5 or 6 one off or short term projects.

 

[Determined27]

If you cant do anything that is related to pharmacy, definitely do something that is related to healthcare, such as a hospital which has so many different parts of the hospital where you can volunteer. My hospital has a cancer center, infectious disease clinic, primary care, surgery care and lots more. Try your nearest hospital for volunteer options! Plus it looks really good on your pharmacy application!

 

[Kaxa2000]

Definitely. Do you already have pharmacy experience though? I tell people that if they don't have any pharmacy experience I think its good to try to volunteer in a hospital pharmacy. But if its everything pharmacy it can be a little redundant. When I was thinking about getting involved in pharmacy club at school I thought it really wasn't a good use of my spare time because I was already volunteering at a pharmacy and working as a tech in retail. Anyways if you already have pharmacy experience I think its a good idea to add a little depth and diversity to your application. Make sure you are volunteering with people though. For instance, I think helping kids would look a little stronger than something like a highway cleanup. Just my take...

Yes, I have already volunteered in a hospital pharmacy. I'm planning on getting certified so I can work as a pharmacy tech soon. I was just wondering if it would help to do something non-pharmacy related as well.

 

[diastole]

Yes, I have already volunteered in a hospital pharmacy. I'm planning on getting certified so I can work as a pharmacy tech soon. I was just wondering if it would help to do something non-pharmacy related as well.

Do you want to volunteer because you want to help or do you want to volunteer because you think it will look good on an application? If it is because you genuinely want to help, then do it. It's fun and will make you feel good. If you just want to look good on an application, then the time might be better spent elsewhere by getting better grades, more pharmacy experience, or higher PCAT scores. There was an admissions guy who posted here about this topic and I believe he said that the effect of non-pharmacy volunteer experience wasn't that much. Of course, he isn't familiar with all programs so other schools could have a different take on it.

I find volunteering valuable for reasons that have nothing to do with a pharmacy application. If you aren't feeling that, I personally would advise you to spend the extra time in a pharmacy or studying to get better stats.

 

[sungieality]

Do you want to volunteer because you want to help or do you want to volunteer because you think it will look good on an application? If it is because you genuinely want to help, then do it. It's fun and will make you feel good. If you just want to look good on an application, then the time might be better spent elsewhere by getting better grades, more pharmacy experience, or higher PCAT scores. There was an admissions guy who posted here about this topic and I believe he said that the effect of non-pharmacy volunteer experience wasn't that much. Of course, he isn't familiar with all programs so other schools could have a different take on it.

I find volunteering valuable for reasons that have nothing to do with a pharmacy application. If you aren't feeling that, I personally would advise you to spend the extra time in a pharmacy or studying to get better stats.

I agree. I think if you try to do something for the sole reason for putting it on your apps, you'll resent it and dread it, and the people you're helping during your volunteer experience will be able to get that vibe from you. I had some pretty lousy experiences volunteering when I wasn't really interested in the kind of help I was providing and felt like I wasn't making much of a difference (ie: making copies for random people in the hospital... yeah, that's real useful and fulfilling).

In short, do what you'll be able to be passionate about and hopefully can see yourself continue doing even if there weren't any benefit in it for you except that fuzzy feeling that you made a difference.

 

[EDLKim]

Volunteer because you want to, not because you have to.
Pick something you are passionate about and do it.

 

[trailrider400]

Volunteer because you want to, not because you have to.
Pick something you are passionate about and do it.

Not to start another off topic controversy but I think that's a little hypocritical. A big reason that many of us have so much volunteer, work experience, and extracurriculars is because it looks good on an application. And I really don't see anything wrong with that. Would you really rather spend your time volunteering than hanging out with your friends or working on your hobby? I do think you should volunteer doing something you enjoy but if volunteering didn't help your application I doubt you'd see as many full time students/parents/part time employees packing their already full schedules with volunteer work. And anyone who says they didn't think of improving their application as a reason for volunteering needs to be a little more honest with themselves

 

[Passion4Sci]

Volunteer because you want to, not because you have to.
Pick something you are passionate about and do it.

I agree that you should choose something you're passionate it, but like Trailrider said, volunteering is more of a "must-do" for many of us than a "want-to-do." Many of us make extra time for ECs like volunteering that otherwise, we'd LIKE to do, but simply do not have the opportunity to do.

For example, I wouldn't be volunteering at this clinical pharmacy if I wasn't interested in pharmacy or using it on my application... It'd be pointless.

I gave a volunteer presentation at an orientation class for a new batch of 115 volunteers last week, and when I asked how many folks were there volunteering just to volunteer with no other motivation, hardly any hands went up. And I don't think that is necessarily a bad thing.

 

[diastole]

Lots of people volunteer just because they want to do so. Just because some of you can't imagine that there are people out there like that doesn't mean that there aren't and that they aren't being honest with themselves. When I worked for a food bank, we got lots of adults who weren't applying to anything who would volunteer because they wanted to help out. I spent two years of my life volunteering in the middle of South America because I wanted to make a difference. The thought that it might look good on some application never entered the equation. I get that people volunteer just to look good but it is insulting to suggest that everybody is doing so for the same reason. The fact is that I would rather spend my time volunteering than hanging out with friends or doing a hobby at least some of the time. I don't understand why anyone would even question that.

 

[trailrider400]

Hey and thats fine. I've enjoyed all the volunteer work I've done too and many people DO volunteer because they truly want to make a difference. The point I was trying to make was that if it didn't look good on the application I think that a ton less people would volunteer. They aren't bad people its just that so many of us really don't have that much free time with school and work. Many people do volunteer to improve their app and I really don't see a problem with that. The only bad reason I can think of to volunteer is doing so to get your name it the newspaper and gain recognition.