What to do if you dont have 15 ec's?

[Dr.Forssmann]

What to do if you dont have 15 ec's?

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[lnvictus]

settle with 14

 

[Leoz M Jiliums]

Don't need 15. I had 10, got into multiple top 25.

Average is about 9, I think.


Edit: Forgot to say, good luck!

 

[Admissions to Medicine]

What to do if you dont have 15 ec's?

You have more than enough time to add a few more over the next few months. -Admissionstomedicine

 

[Redpancreas]

You're not supposed to fill up all 15. Just be honest and show what you did. You should at least have like 6. Quality over quantity.

 

[Goro]

You don't need to be a Nobel Prize winner. Find several things you love and do them well. SDN posts tend to select for over-achievement, if not hyperbole.

What to do if you dont have 15 ec's?

 

[NontradCA]

You have more than enough time to add a few more over the next few months. -Admissionstomedicine

What few things can you do in a few months that's actually significant? What's the point in half-assing something?

 

[Dr.Forssmann]

Don't need 15. I had 10, got into multiple top 25.

Average is about 9, I think.


Edit: Forgot to say, good luck!

Wow really congrats. I mean i have like 10 and like 5 that i'm passionate about. So do you think i would be looked upon unfavorably if i have 10?

 

[Espadaleader]

Its always best to have 15 things that are substantive but if you have 10 thats ok. Its better to have 10 great things than 10 + 5 half assed ones.

 

[tmn]

 

[lnvictus]

Ok two questions:

When people say x ECs, such as in this thread, what activities are they referring to? I thought ECs/research/volunteering/shadowing/employment each had their own section - are they all filled out in one section?

And I might as well ask while I'm at it: is it bad if you have a leadership position for a club for one year but not the next? And are semester-long leadership programs generally worth putting on an app?

 

[Admissions to Medicine]

What few things can you do in a few months that's actually significant? What's the point in half-assing something?

Do you stop engaging in EC's because you have applied? Applicants should be involved in EC's continuously. The poster said that they do not have as many EC's, not that they had none. So starting something at this stage, something that is meaningful to him/her will not be a cause for alarm and will show continuing engagement.

 

[Davida]

Ok two questions:

When people say x ECs, such as in this thread, what activities are they referring to? I thought ECs/research/volunteering/shadowing/employment each had their own section - are they all filled out in one section?

And I might as well ask while I'm at it: is it bad if you have a leadership position for a club for one year but not the next? And are semester-long leadership programs generally worth putting on an app?

It's all one section - you get to label each EC as a "type."

I chose to sort of tell a consistent story with ECs, so I would put down shorter experiences related to my story, but I didn't put down any one-off leadership positions that were unrelated to the general picture I was presenting. For example, I mostly put down ECs that focused on service to underserved communities and participation in Jewish activities, since those were two big parts of my life and I've been involved in both pretty consistently throughout my adult life. So I put down a summer job at a Jewish camp, but I didn't put down a one-semester job at a gallery. (I was a non-traditional applicant, so there were a ton of things I could have put down. This strategy might not work as well for a traditional applicant.)

This strategy at the very least didn't hurt my app (looking at the results I got). Someone else can chime in if this was in fact a bad idea and I just got lucky.

 

[tmn]

Ok two questions:

When people say x ECs, such as in this thread, what activities are they referring to? I thought ECs/research/volunteering/shadowing/employment each had their own section - are they all filled out in one section?

There is one Work/Activities section with a maximum of 15 entries.

 

[Dr.Forssmann]

It's all one section - you get to label each EC as a "type."...

This strategy at the very least didn't hurt my app (looking at the results I got). Someone else can chime in if this was in fact a bad idea and I just got lucky.

What were your results if you dont mind me asking?
Did you put 15 ec's?

 

[GemelloMD]

I put 9 EC's. I could have spread out things but decided the adcoms wanted the condensed version. I also used bullet points except for my most meaningful activities. 16 apps. 7 interviews. 3 acceptances. You don't need 15 unique EC's.

 

[Davida]

What were your results if you dont mind me asking?
Did you put 15 ec's?

I did not put 15 ECs.

And context is everything - I had very average stats (33/3.7). I applied to 15 schools and got interview invites from seven. Four of those interviews were top 30 schools, and I will be matriculating at my first choice school (unless scholarship money changes things), which is a top 10 school. So from my point of view, my cycle went VERY well.

(edit to clarify language)

 

[Dr.Forssmann]

I did not put 15 ECs.

And context is everything - I had very average stats (33/3.7). I applied to 15 schools and got interview invites from seven. Four of those interviews were top 30 schools, and I will be matriculating at my first choice school (unless scholarship money changes things), which is a top 10 school. So from my point of view, my cycle went VERY well.

(edit to clarify language)

Wow! congrats! What do you mean by context?

 

[MrTaco92]

Fill the rest of the blanks with funny smiley faces

 

[hmockingbird]

I filled out all 15, but I just went back to look at my app and some of them were the same experience that I split up into two categories... like I did a summer program that had research and shadowing, and I entered them separately so I had more room to talk about each part. But now I'm wondering if that made me look like I was trying to pad my app, lol.
Oh well, I still got in, and I think you'd be fine if you don't have all 15 filled out.

 

[studentp0x]

Would a day long volunteering experience be good enough to list?

 

[Boolean]

Would a day long volunteering experience be good enough to list?

Unless you managed to cure cancer/poverty/AIDS/homelessness in that day, I couldn't imagine it would be.

 

[jturkel]

What to do if you dont have 15 ec's?

pray

 

[bakedbeans18]

Its always best to have 15 things that are substantive but if you have 10 thats ok. Its better to have 10 great things than 10 + 5 half assed ones.

I strongly disagree.

Even if the additional 5 are 'half-assed' it still provides more information about who you are, what you stand for, what you do in your free time, in addition to the 10 really meaningful things. You already have a limited amount of space on your AMCAS for the personal statment - you should use as many text fields as you possibly can to provide insight about the applicant you are and the strength of your candidacy for medical school.

I had 4 or 5 shadowing experiences - instead of lumping them all into one EC, I wrote about each of them individually and why they were unique/what I learned from each individually.

 

[studentp0x]

Unless you managed to cure cancer/poverty/AIDS/homelessness in that day, I couldn't imagine it would be.

I've done volunteering at my school for 3 one day events, perhaps putting them together is an idea?

 

[bakedbeans18]

I've done volunteering at my school for 3 one day events, perhaps putting them together is an idea?

If it's student-club involvement potpourri, probably not. If its "coordinated University of (State) annual pediatric cancer 10K for 3 years", I'd say it's kosher. And I'm a jew who eats ham!

 

[studentp0x]

If it's student-club involvement potpourri, probably not. If its "coordinated University of (State) annual pediatric cancer 10K for 3 years", I'd say it's kosher. And I'm a jew who eats ham!

What about something like an open house volunteer? giving tours of the campus, etc.

 

[bakedbeans18]

What about something like an open house volunteer? giving tours of the campus, etc.

It's better than nothing, I suppose, but don't expect it to make a particularly big splash with ADCOMS.
If you're really fishing for volunteer experiences on your app, I'd go out and seek a legitimate one - legitimate meaning long term, frequent, and perhaps clinically relevant or non-clinical but related to underserved or disadvantaged people.

 

[Leoz M Jiliums]

Wow really congrats. I mean i have like 10 and like 5 that i'm passionate about. So do you think i would be looked upon unfavorably if i have 10?

I was about the same. The big thing is to be able to talk about them during interviews.

 

[studentp0x]

It's better than nothing, I suppose, but don't expect it to make a particularly big splash with ADCOMS.
If you're really fishing for volunteer experiences on your app, I'd go out and seek a legitimate one - legitimate meaning long term, frequent, and perhaps clinically relevant or non-clinical but related to underserved or disadvantaged people.

I have ~12000 hours of EC involvement in 2 different sports (record/championships/etc.) and 200 hours clinical and 150 hours non clinical volunteering.
I have a few other average ECs too. So would there be a point in putting a couple "fillers" to get to 15? Fillers being the small stuff.

 

[ponyo]

I have ~12000 hours of EC involvement in 2 different sports (record/championships/etc.) and 200 hours clinical and 150 hours non clinical volunteering.
I have a few other average ECs too. So would there be a point in putting a couple "fillers" to get to 15? Fillers being the small stuff.

I think that's fine. That's pretty much what I did. I had maybe 4 really meaningful and significant ones, and then pretty much fillers for all the rest. I tried to mix up the fillers a bit so that some of them are more hobbies, so that altogether the activities are as different as possible. E.g. I prioritized playing an instrument poorly over half-assed volunteering activity #8

 

[alpinism]

You're not supposed to fill up all 15. Just be honest and show what you did. You should at least have like 6. Quality over quantity.

This. A few high quality long term ECs are far more impressive than a bunch of cookie cutter short term ECs.

At the same time, I would aim to have >7 if you're a traditional applicant and >10 if you're a non-trad.

 

[ponyo]

I have ~12000 hours of EC involvement in 2 different sports (record/championships/etc.) and 200 hours clinical and 150 hours non clinical volunteering.
I have a few other average ECs too. So would there be a point in putting a couple "fillers" to get to 15? Fillers being the small stuff.

I think that's fine. That's pretty much what I did. I had maybe 4 really meaningful and significant ones, and then pretty much fillers for all the rest. I tried to mix up the fillers a bit so that some of them are more hobbies, so that altogether the activities are as different as possible. E.g. I prioritized playing an instrument poorly over half-assed volunteering activity #8

 

[alpinism]

What about something like an open house volunteer? giving tours of the campus, etc.

Yes, that's a solid EC. As long as you did it more than once or twice I'd definitely put in down.

You can say you volunteered as a college ambassador and did open houses and campus tours. It shows school pride and involvement.

The thing is, while you don't need to have 15 activities and can do just fine with 10, it almost never hurts to add more if you can. No one is going to read your app and think "oh the 1st 10 activities were great but the last 2 are fillers so we won't give him an interview." Most of the time it won't matter either way, but you might have done something that connects with the reader or shows a personal attribute that the reader is looking for in an applicant (even if its just a couple afternoons of volunteering at a non-profit). In that case you might grab an extra interview somewhere along the line.

Im not saying to put down that you gave blood a few times during ugrad or helped a friend out at his bake-sale fundraiser, but if its something that's unique/interesting or shows leadership/teamwork, it won't hurt to put it down rather than leave the space blank.

 

[sunshine02]

I strongly disagree.

Even if the additional 5 are 'half-assed' it still provides more information about who you are, what you stand for, what you do in your free time, in addition to the 10 really meaningful things. You already have a limited amount of space on your AMCAS for the personal statment - you should use as many text fields as you possibly can to provide insight about the applicant you are and the strength of your candidacy for medical school.

I had 4 or 5 shadowing experiences - instead of lumping them all into one EC, I wrote about each of them individually and why they were unique/what I learned from each individually.

That's interesting--shadowing counts as an EC?

 

[sunshine02]

Also, if you volunteered with different departments in a hospital, is it okay to split them up as two different activities so you can talk about each? Or is it better to lump them together as one "hospital volunteering"?

 

[bakedbeans18]

That's interesting--shadowing counts as an EC?

Yes it does.

Keep in mind, however, if you've spent 2 days shadowing a physician for a total of 15 hours, you probably can't get away with listing it as an EC.

For example, I was able to list multiple shadowing experiences as EC's because....
#1) 2 weeks (through a college sponsored program, full time every day for a total of 80 hours) - first shadowing experience at a major medical center - travelled for the experience.

#2) 6 hours a day, once a week, for 3 months. - Pulmonary specialist at my university's medical school (shadowing, assisted with procedures, attended conference

#3) 3 times a month for ~half a day, for 9 months. - Neurooncologist at an academic medical center (I attended rounds, morning conferences, tumor pathology)

#4) 5 hours a day, once a week, for a summer. - Cardiologist in a community hospital - shadowed, rounded with fellows, completed a few small research projects)

So for each of these, not only were they extensive experiences, but I did some very different things in them and they werent just shadowing in the sense that I was a fly in the wall. I was able to get involved with things you don't typically do in 'shadowing'. So I had some stories to tell for each, and I was able to get away with listing them seperately without seeming like I was trying to use them as 'filler'

 

[Frostbite22]

I have a question about this. I didn't entirely know I wanted to be a physician from the get go I went Vet>>Lab Scientist>>Physician plus was driven by money most of my career by having 2-3 jobs.

Basically my question is how do you split experience apart if you've worked for different companies or volunteered at different hospitals?
-I was a CNA in one state for a year then have been a CNA in this state for 2 years with a different company. For one of them I was working in a nursing home the other at the hospital with more physician interaction
-Secondly I volunteered at three hospitals at different times all a year-two years in length with one still going
-Lastly I have worked in two research labs and in one them I became published first author and had conferences (Do I make the publication separate from the lab?)

I'm a nontrad 25 year old so don't feel like I accomplished all of this by junior year

 

[bakedbeans18]

You can list each of the CNA employment experiences separately - in fact, you will need to because you will be asked for contact information for someone who can verify your experience - such as a supervisor, a department chair, etc.

The nursing home gig can be listed separately.

You can list the hospital volunteering experiences individually as well.

You can list the research labs (was this as a college student? paid employment after college? summer internship?) seperately. You can either include the publication in the description or I believe there is a separate categorization for posters, publications, conferences, honors, etc. You could list it there if you wanted.

It all really depends on if you are trying to maximize a limited # of experiences or if you are trying to condense a plethora of experiences (i.e., you have more than 15 ECs...)

 

[Frostbite22]

You can list each of the CNA employment experiences separately - in fact, you will need to because you will be asked for contact information for someone who can verify your experience - such as a supervisor, a department chair, etc.

The nursing home gig can be listed separately.

You can list the hospital volunteering experiences individually as well.

You can list the research labs (was this as a college student? paid employment after college? summer internship?) seperately. You can either include the publication in the description or I believe there is a separate categorization for posters, publications, conferences, honors, etc. You could list it there if you wanted.

It all really depends on if you are trying to maximize a limited # of experiences or if you are trying to condense a plethora of experiences (i.e., you have more than 15 ECs...)

It was research during undergraduate. If I list it as meaningful I get more space right? I could use that to talk about the publications/conferences, I suppose its unique to each individual on what they decide to do. I have do have a lot of volunteering/work experience that will be 15 so I have been thinking condensing rather than maximizing.

Thank you for your help!

 

[AticusHolmes]

I actually thought of leaving one minor one off so that it didn't look like I was just trying to fill up the 15. Quality over quantity...as they say in marketing...don't dilute your brand.

 

[bakedbeans18]

It was research during undergraduate. If I list it as meaningful I get more space right? I could use that to talk about the publications/conferences, I suppose its unique to each individual on what they decide to do. I have do have a lot of volunteering/work experience that will be 15 so I have been thinking condensing rather than maximizing.

Thank you for your help!

The "most meaningful" will give you additional space, however I don't think it is wise to use that space to add details of a paper. When the ADCOMS see "most meaningful" they may look to those for more insight to why you were involved in that particular EC, how you grew through/from that experience, how it helped strengthen your interest in becoming a physician or applying to medical school, etc.

 

[are102]

I had like..mayyyyyybe 10. I also then included some things that werent straight up constant EC's, like having run in the st. Jude run. I also included all work experiences I have had. Then, in applications instead of going the route of saying "look at me and all the stuff I've done!!", I focused on highlighting the EC's I had that worked specifically with the particular school's mission statement. I have been accepted to my top school, so this proves you don't have to have 15.

 

[chocolatethunder]

What to do if you dont have 15 ec's?

Caribbean

 

[Dr. Bob Doe]

I think people put almost whatever they want and count it as an EC. Like babysitting, stamp collecting, etc. No wonder its 15.

 

[bakedbeans18]

Caribbean

 

[tmn]

At the same time, I would aim to have >7 if you're a traditional applicant and >10 if you're a non-trad.

Just curious why you think that non-trads need more than trads. It was my experience as a non-trad that I got away with having less EC's because I had real-world/life experience to back up my app. It was almost like I had less to prove to adcoms. That was just my experience though.

 

[alpinism]

Just curious why you think that non-trads need more than trads. It was my experience as a non-trad that I got away with having less EC's because I had real-world/life experience to back up my app. It was almost like I had less to prove to adcoms. That was just my experience though.

They don't really need more. Its just sort of expected that if someone has spent a few yrs out of school in the real world that they will have accumulated a few more experiences (having a career/leadership experience/community service).

 

[tmn]

They don't really need more. Its just sort of expected that if someone has spent a few yrs out of school in the real world that they will have accumulated a few more experiences (having a career/leadership experience/community service).

Yeah that makes sense.