Work & Activities

[mlm84]

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I have two questions pertaining to this section:

1) Is there a recommended order to list activities? i.e. chronological, jobs then academics then medical experience, etc. Any recommended or proven ways to list, or is it just random?

2) How/Should I include a personal experience. During my time off from school I spent about a year helping take care of family after someone passed. It was important, one of my most meaningful, and obviously accounts for some of the gap in my timeline. Is this appropriate to put in this section? And if so, how?

 

[theseeker4]

I have two questions pertaining to this section:

1) Is there a recommended order to list activities? i.e. chronological, jobs then academics then medical experience, etc. Any recommended or proven ways to list, or is it just random?

2) How/Should I include a personal experience. During my time off from school I spent about a year helping take care of family after someone passed. It was important, one of my most meaningful, and obviously accounts for some of the gap in my timeline. Is this appropriate to put in this section? And if so, how?

For number one, it doesn't really matter. They certainly won't rank them by your order.

For number two, did you already address it in your PS? If you talked about it at length in your PS, I wouldn't include it myself. However, if you didn't discuss the period in your PS, or mentioned it in passing, I would include it mostly to address the gap. If it is a most meaningful activity, indicate it as such and explain why it is. Simply filling in the information requested should be fine, categorize it as 'other' and you should be set.

 

[mauberley]

For number one, it doesn't really matter. They certainly won't rank them by your order.

For number two, did you already address it in your PS? If you talked about it at length in your PS, I wouldn't include it myself. However, if you didn't discuss the period in your PS, or mentioned it in passing, I would include it mostly to address the gap. If it is a most meaningful activity, indicate it as such and explain why it is. Simply filling in the information requested should be fine, categorize it as 'other' and you should be set.

I concur with this. Also, with respect to the first question, I think AMCAS orders everything in reverse chronological order, so the order in which you input activities is irrelevant.

You may also wish to seek out Catalystik's advice in the Tips for Entering Work and Activities thread in pre-allo. (I would link to it here except I'm posting from my phone.)

 

[mlm84]

Thanks for the replies and advice.

I certainly touched on it in the PS, but right now my PS is a mess. I had too much to touch on and so I wrote it out and now need to trim it down by about 3000 characters. So if I can cut down the details on the experiences in the PS, I figured I could put those details in the extra 1300 characters for the meaningful ECs. Kinda unsure how to manage all my info, cut down the PS, but still explain myself as best I can to make the app as personal as I can.

 

[mauberley]

You may also wish to seek out Catalystik's advice in the Tips for Entering Work and Activities thread in pre-allo. (I would link to it here except I'm posting from my phone.)

Here's the link: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=813591

With respect to your PS, as far as trimming it, absolutely make sure that you're not just rehashing details of your resume/work/activities. I've seen many a PS that consisted of just that. You may find it greatly reduced if you do this. 🙂

 

[mlm84]

Here's the link: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=813591

With respect to your PS, as far as trimming it, absolutely make sure that you're not just rehashing details of your resume/work/activities. I've seen many a PS that consisted of just that. You may find it greatly reduced if you do this. 🙂

Well I've been conflicted on this, because I do touch on a few of my experiences, but I'm expanding on their meaning or a particular anecdote of significance. Unsure what to do there.