Work Experience over Clinical Experience??

[rugger4]

I was wondering if anyone could help me with particular situation. I am a first generation college student and as a part of that I have had to work every semester of undergrad. Usually 25 hours during school and anywhere from 40 to 80 hours during the summer and winter. Along with that I play intercollegiate rugby, do organic synthesis research, have a 3.8 gpa as a chem major, and have a few leadership roles on campus. My major concern is that working has severely limited my clinical experiences. I have about 50 hours of hospital volunteer hours along with 40 hours of shadowing... mainly primary care. I was wondering if any of you would have insight on how an Adcom would view having to work compared to limited clinical experience. It's not that I was sitting on my butt instead of doing patient interactions, but just had other obligations. Let me know what you think. Thanks!

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[Planes2Doc]

Hospital volunteering is without any doubt clinical experience. If I were you, I would keep doing clinical volunteering at the hospital until you apply to medical school. You should definitely have over 150 hours by then. I would probably shadow one more type of specialty, and maybe get shadowing to 50 hours. You don't need more than that. Then focus the rest of your application on how you're a first generation college student and how you worked through college. ADCOMs will appreciate it no doubt. As long as you continue hospital volunteering, it should be more than enough to get you into medical school assuming you have good grades and a high MCAT score. Best of luck to you!

 

[lmn]

The average shadowing time is about 50hrs, clinical volunteering more. Your hours are definitely on the lower end, but those are the average, so obviously many have less than that and are still able to get in. Your job is to really convince adcoms through your PS, secondaries, and interviews that you know what the career is like and why you want to do it/why you know what you are getting into.

 

[rugger4]

Thanks guys. 2nd thing I'd like to throw in. I recently suffered a major rugby injury earlier this year (broken tib, fib, dislocated ankle.... yada yada) so I have spent quite a bit of time in the hospital this year between surgery, check ups, physical therapy, and so on. Don't know if this is dumb or not, but could this possibly be counted as clinical experience? I was going to talk about on my experience section on rugby.

 

[Catalystik]

I was wondering if anyone could help me with particular situation. I am a first generation college student and as a part of that I have had to work every semester of undergrad. Usually 25 hours during school and anywhere from 40 to 80 hours during the summer and winter. Along with that I play intercollegiate rugby, do organic synthesis research, have a 3.8 gpa as a chem major, and have a few leadership roles on campus. My major concern is that working has severely limited my clinical experiences. I have about 50 hours of hospital volunteer hours along with 40 hours of shadowing... mainly primary care. I was wondering if any of you would have insight on how an Adcom would view having to work compared to limited clinical experience. It's not that I was sitting on my butt instead of doing patient interactions, but just had other obligations. Let me know what you think. Thanks!

If your research is strong and your MCAT is high, you would appear to be a better MD/PhD candidate. For MD-only, applying with only 50 active clinical experience hours looks very skimpy (though the shadowing is at the low end of reasonable). Keep in mind that a) there's no rush to apply and it's fine to wait until you have the best application you can develop, even it it takes a few decades more. b) Active clinical experience can be gained through the workplace, so a volunteer position isn't obligatory. c) Nonmedical community service is also valued by many med schools, and adcomms will wonder why you couldn't give just one hour a week to those in need (though perhaps you didn't mention this component of your application).

I recently suffered a major rugby injury earlier this year (broken tib, fib, dislocated ankle.... yada yada) so I have spent quite a bit of time in the hospital this year between surgery, check ups, physical therapy, and so on. Don't know if this is dumb or not, but could this possibly be counted as clinical experience? I was going to talk about on my experience section on rugby.

No. But you might incorporate some aspects in your PS if it influenced your interest in medicine.

 

[mvenus929]

The reason why clinical experience is necessary is so that you can justify why you want to enter medicine, knowing what it is that physicians do, particularly working with different types of patients. Personally, I feel hospital volunteering is one of the worst ways to do that, but it tends to be a default for many pre-meds. If you feel you can meet those objectives with the amount of clinical experience you've had so far, then you don't have much to worry about.

For your second question, while being a patient is a good experience and can help you be a good physician, it's not the same as clinical experience. Talk about it, sure, but don't expect it to be considered clinical experience.

 

[lmn]

Thanks guys. 2nd thing I'd like to throw in. I recently suffered a major rugby injury earlier this year (broken tib, fib, dislocated ankle.... yada yada) so I have spent quite a bit of time in the hospital this year between surgery, check ups, physical therapy, and so on. Don't know if this is dumb or not, but could this possibly be counted as clinical experience? I was going to talk about on my experience section on rugby.

No. Or else some applicants that have had health issues since they were children would have clinical experience hours in the tens of thousands. I would probably briefly mention how going through those injuries helped form your desire to do medicine in your rugby activities explanation, if at all. Some may say you could talk about it in your PS, but since it is so recent and not so massively "life" impactful, I would probably leave it out of there.

 

[rugger4]

It's not that I am limited on volunteering, just clinical experience. I have probably an extra 150 hours of volunteering through a campus philanthropy I started and at a organization where I play games with those who are mentally disabled and need social interaction. I am mainly just concerned with my numbers in clinical experience. Is there any suggestions on where to get more clinical hours besides volunteering in a hospital?

 

[lmn]

It's not that I am limited on volunteering, just clinical experience. I have probably an extra 150 hours of volunteering through a campus philanthropy I started and at a organization where I play games with those who are mentally disabled and need social interaction. I am mainly just concerned with my numbers in clinical experience. Is there any suggestions on where to get more clinical hours besides volunteering in a hospital?

Hospice care/nursing homes are usually much less overrun with premeds, and from the views of adcom members on here, may be also seen as more altruistic and sincere clinical experience.

 

[Catalystik]

Hospice care/nursing homes are usually much less overrun with premeds . . . .

Also consider rehab centers and various types of clinics, like free-, low-income, VA, family planning, surgicenter, and even private practice.

I have probably an extra 150 hours of volunteering through a campus philanthropy I started and at a organization where I play games with those who are mentally disabled and need social interaction.

Sounds good.