Weird question about AMSA...

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kat3iseret

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Alright, so I was still considering going to medical school a little bit ago and during that time I joined Pre-med AMSA (American Medical Student Association) and I paid my dues for a couple years in advance. Now that I have shadowed I am fully committed to dentistry- my question is will it look odd that I am a member of schools AMSA's? I feel it would be a waste, to waste the money I have paid and to not participate, but on the other hand will dental schools look down upon me if I put it on my resume (or should I just omit it?) Thanks
 
IMO, I think dental schools value any type of health care experience. Better to have AMSA activity than sitting around and doing nothing. I don't think you should omit it just because you don't want adcoms to know that you were once pre-med. In fact, I think it shows your commitment to dentistry (since you were pre-med then realized that dentistry is a better fit, it shows that you have thoroughly explored your options).
 
Hey kat3iseret, I am in the exact same situation as you. I am going to continue doing stuff with AMSA though, because I really enjoyed it. Last year I did a ton of volunteering and fundraisers through them, and got pretty involved, and I can't imagine leaving it because of a change in future career choice.

I think it's the stuff you're doing with the organization that counts, not the title of the club.
 
i wouldn't leave it out of you app as you are actually active with them. if you'd like, try joining ASDA and you can do the same things as AMSA but they are dental related. ASDA is $95 a yr i think...not sure what AMSA is but might be worth looking into.
 
I would add it in your app.

You can say that you know dentistry is right for you due to the fact that you have seen the pre-med side and that you like the side of dentistry better. Support that by saying youve been in AMSA. Im planning on shadowing a couple surgeons (not omfs), because 1) I really have seen outside of dentistry, and 2) its awesome watching any type of healthcare procedure!!
 
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