volunteering vs. research

[rogersce]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I recently decided this summer that i'd like to go to medical school. i'm a rising junior so i dont have ANY hospital volunteering experience or medical related experience and i only have 1 year before i apply to med school. i have done a small amount of non-medical volunteering, though. my question is this: i have a summer research job that i'm planning on keeping during the school year. i really enjoy it, but i'm worried that between school, extra-curriculars, my job, and a social life, i won't have any time to do any medical volunteer work. would it be more beneficial for me to volunteer instead of keeping my job (which is in my university's medical school biophysics dept.). or would doing some volunteer work over the summer between my junior and senior year be enough?

 

[28129]

I don't think I've ever heard of anyone with zero clinical experience getting in. If all you know about medicine is what you've seen on Scrubs and ER, then it's going to show during your interview.

I find it hard to believe, though, that in the next year you won't have any time to squeeze in a few hours each week to volunteer at a hospital or shadow a doctor. The med schools are going to call BS on that too.

 

[brats800]

yeah i've heard that having at least SOME (even if not much) clinical experience is really important. just try and do like a couple hours a week or on the weekend...or till school starts again...or the summer before your interviews and applications and stuff. whatever but you gotta get some clinical stuff so you can say you've been there and seen what you'd be dealing with and still want to. (life won't be like you see it on ER) heh 😉

 

[JennyGirl]

Hey Rogersce,

My situation was a lot like yours - I had tons of non-medically related research experience b/c I thought I wanted MD/PhD, but I later decided I just wanted my MD.

So, my junior year (and for only 1 semester of it b/c 2nd semester I was taking a Kaplan course an hour away from my school and lost so much free time to driving & class) I volunteered in a hospital for 3 hrs/week. Not a lot of clinical research at all....and to be honest, my interviews at med schools were really more interested in my research b/c I had continued it for so many years and was so involved and got so much out of it.

I do think you need some experience, and most people get waaay more than I did and our situations are exceptions rather than the rule, but if you are so busy, just try to fit SOMETHING in, even if it is just a couple of hours a week.

Jen 🙂

 

[rogersce]

under any circumstances, i at least figured i'd do some volunteering next summer, maybe even full time if it's really that important (although i'd like to do some research and volunteer part time). so what would show medical schools that i truly am interested in the medical profession:

a)keeping a research job this next school year and having volunteering experience in the summer after my junior year

b) volunteering during my junior year and in the summer after my junior year

i've had 2 summers of research experience so far, so i'm wondering if i keep the job that adcom's will think i'm more interested in research than i am becoming a doctor since i would have alot more research exp. than clinical exp.

 

[Yogi Bear]

it's not hard to volunteer. 3 hrs/wk during the school year is like night out on the weekends. 10 hrs/wk during summers isn't hard either. just like 5 hrs/day on sat/sunday.

 

[NYCgurl1181]

I also agree that you should try to fit in some volunteer work. Not only b/c it'll "look good" but the interviewer or the schools will know that you have been exposed to the field and know tha this is what you want to do (and the only way to be sure is to have worked in that environment).
There's always volunteer opportunity for a couple hours a week, I started my vol. work on my junior year while doing research for almost everyday of the week.

-Good Luck