what to do for the next 8 months?

[KiwiTeawi]

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okay, i need some advice from you premeds...

i'm a 2001 college grad... spent the last two years doing post-bac premed working finishing up premed requirements and taking some additional bio courses. during this time, i didn't do any volunteer work in a hospital or work in a doctor's office or anything like that. just concentrated on my studies.

now my plan is to take the mcats in april 2004... but i'm wondering... what else can i be doing in the meantime to supplement my application? i'd like to volunteer at the nearby hospital, but it seems they have all the volunteers they need right now, especially in the areas i would've been interested in working in. should i try to get a job in a doctor's office?

any advice on how to use this time wisely?

thanks!

 

[edfig99]

do something that has meaning to you, not something to just "supplement" your application. "supplemental" activities show up as exactly that when an adcom member screens your application. the sense is "yeah, OF COURSE he volunteered - he just HAD to volunteer...."

If you want to travel around the world, do that - it will make for some great interview stories. You may want to just find a job to help pay down some student loans...that's okay too. You can try to work in a doctor's office - but it will likely be something clerical (unless you have some other special skills) and so the experience may not be that meaningful from a clinical perspective. Volunteering is nice, and believe me, no hospital turns away volunteers - there's always kids to read to, or geriatric patients to provide company for...they just don't like premed volunteers because most of the time, they're getting someone who really isn't committed to volunteering, it's just someone trying to supplement their application...

have fun, seriously...life's too short 🙂

my 2 cents....

 

[Dr. Xavier]

Become an EMT.

 

[skypilot]

Could also try Certified Nurses Aide for some real hands on patient care. It takes only a few weeks to get certified.

 

[DAL]

EMT is a great option. You'll get excellent exposure and experience.

 

[tictac]

KiwiTeawi,

edfig99 has a point. It might seem pretty fishy to adcoms to be starting volunteer work now. However, there's no time like the present to start volunteering. If you've never volunteered and truly have an interest in finding out----GO FOR IT! There's no harm in trying. Perhaps you will get hooked (as I have to SDN! 😳 ) and develop a passion for it!! You will never know unless you try it.

That is basically what happened to me. In high school, I was really passionate about my extracurricular activities and worked hard at doing well in my classes. Volunteering was always there, but I never really did it until college. I joined a service organization and found that my interest in volunteering parallels a lot of the reasons why I love medicine. In fact, this year, I am doing a program through Americorps that will combine my two passions: medicine and volunteering. Visit www.americorps.org
Now, Americorps may not be for you, but it's an option you should check out. Whatever you decide, good luck and have fun!!🙂

Cheers,
tictac

 

[Winston Smith]

Originally posted by skypilot
Could also try Certified Nurses Aide for some real hands on patient care. It takes only a few weeks to get certified.

really? Is that at a community college...do you know how long the classes are? I hope it's not an 8-5 class each day!

 

[AttemptDOnowDPM]

The CNA program in my home town is 120 hours. Four weeks of 30 hours.

 

[coldchemist]

Originally posted by DAL
EMT is a great option. You'll get excellent exposure and experience.

Don't forget that EMT training usually requires at least three months to complete--sometimes six if you're with a volunteer squad. That doesn't leave too much time for her to go on calls.