Would a gap year help me? If so, what would you recommend?

BU Medical Sciences
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
N

Nitronium

New Member
Joined
Feb 12, 2019
Messages
4
Reaction score
1
Members do not see this ad.
I'm a traditional undergraduate junior considering applying to med school this spring. I am aiming to get into a top 5 med school and was wondering if a gap year would help me improve my chances. Below are my specs.

GPA: 4.00
MCAT: Receiving in a week, but averaged 526 on AAMC FLs. Let's say like mid-520s
ORM @ Ivy

Research:
  • 2 labs (one main one since HS and one for past 2 summers)
  • several thousands of hours
  • 4 papers (1 first author); 7 posters (3 national)
Clinical Volunteering/Experience:
  • Volunteered at local hospital with elderly patients: 220 hours
  • Part of student committee focused on improving quality assurance in the same hospital: 70 hours
Non-clinical Volunteering:
  • Habitat for Humanity chapter (mid-level leadership position): 200 hours
Shadowing:
  • 120 hours: 2 types of surgeons and a 1 primary care
Extra-curriculars/Awards:
  • Co-founded startup for substance abuse with friends that got press from our school along with $30,000 in funding. Total $50,000 raised.
  • Editor-in-chief (top-level leadership) for campus science publication
  • Selected as one of 12 best research students out of incoming freshman
  • Deputy editor (mid-level leadership) for nationwide undergraduate research journal
  • Student executive for school board in charge of all volunteering groups on campus
  • Vice president (top-level leadership) for intramural sports group
  • Race coordinator (mid-level leadership) for intramural running club
  • Department TA
  • Nominated for Goldwater, waiting to hear back in March
Thoughts:
Overall, I think my stats should be strong (AAMC please deliver next week...) along with my research. My in-school extra-curriculars should also be adequate. Shadowing is okay, but isn't terrible. While, I technically have sufficient volunteering hours for both clinical and non-clinical, I could always boost those. Would a gap year help me? If so, what would you guys recommend if I were aim for a top med school?
  • More clinical volunteering, but at a hospice that serves more underserved patients?
  • More research and go ham into the publications?
  • Go abroad and do service? (I heard that voluntourism could be frowned upon
Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks.
 
I need a cold, hard analysis from a 3rd party to help me determine where I can improve. Apologies if this sounded like flaunting.
 
Goro said:
You don't need a gap year !!!!
Click to expand...

Thank you for your reply.

Does 200 hours of only one type of either clinical and non-clinical volunteering suffice? I've seen lots of applicants here with upwards of 400-500 for each with multiple, distinct volunteering experiences.

IF I were to do a gap year to boost my experiences in volunteering, for instance, is that completely useless? Or does it still improve my chances?
 
Chill out and enjoy your last few semesters before med school. Keep up the good work.

With your scores and ECs, even if your volunteering is "only" above average, it more than makes up for it.
 
Doktor_dud3 said:
Chill out and enjoy your last few semesters before med school. Keep up the good work.

With your scores and ECs, even if your volunteering is "only" above average, it more than makes up for it.
Click to expand...
eaglebaseball4 said:
No way, you do not need a gap year
Click to expand...

Thanks for your input. I guess a better question would be: Is a gap year with clinical volunteering a waste of time for me? Or does it still help my odds?
 
Nitronium said:
Thanks for your input. I guess a better question would be: Is a gap year with clinical volunteering a waste of time for me? Or does it still help my odds?
Click to expand...
I’m only a premed (MS1 in the fall), but honestly I doubt a top medical school will read your app and say “this dude needs more clinical volunteering”. What you have is a phenomenal app. Also keep in mind the application process is kinda a crap shoot, but nothing in your control will hold you back. Apply 2019-2020.
 
If you feel some kind of burning need to take a gap year, you might do something like Americorps. Otherwise, apply this year; you're not golden but platinum as long as your MCAT's north of 520. Get a 526, and you'll have stupid high stats and great ECs. You're already Harvard tier for sure.
 
Nitronium said:
I'm a traditional undergraduate junior considering applying to med school this spring. I am aiming to get into a top 5 med school and was wondering if a gap year would help me improve my chances. Below are my specs.

GPA: 4.00
MCAT: Receiving in a week, but averaged 526 on AAMC FLs. Let's say like mid-520s
ORM @ Ivy

Research:
  • 2 labs (one main one since HS and one for past 2 summers)
  • several thousands of hours
  • 4 papers (1 first author); 7 posters (3 national)
Clinical Volunteering/Experience:
  • Volunteered at local hospital with elderly patients: 220 hours
  • Part of student committee focused on improving quality assurance in the same hospital: 70 hours
Non-clinical Volunteering:
  • Habitat for Humanity chapter (mid-level leadership position): 200 hours
Shadowing:
  • 120 hours: 2 types of surgeons and a 1 primary care
Extra-curriculars/Awards:
  • Co-founded startup for substance abuse with friends that got press from our school along with $30,000 in funding. Total $50,000 raised.
  • Editor-in-chief (top-level leadership) for campus science publication
  • Selected as one of 12 best research students out of incoming freshman
  • Deputy editor (mid-level leadership) for nationwide undergraduate research journal
  • Student executive for school board in charge of all volunteering groups on campus
  • Vice president (top-level leadership) for intramural sports group
  • Race coordinator (mid-level leadership) for intramural running club
  • Department TA
  • Nominated for Goldwater, waiting to hear back in March
Thoughts:
Overall, I think my stats should be strong (AAMC please deliver next week...) along with my research. My in-school extra-curriculars should also be adequate. Shadowing is okay, but isn't terrible. While, I technically have sufficient volunteering hours for both clinical and non-clinical, I could always boost those. Would a gap year help me? If so, what would you guys recommend if I were aim for a top med school?
  • More clinical volunteering, but at a hospice that serves more underserved patients?
  • More research and go ham into the publications?
  • Go abroad and do service? (I heard that voluntourism could be frowned upon
Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks.
Click to expand...
You do not need a gap year, based on your amazing stats, "to improve your chances" to get into a "T5" med school. However, there are other reasons to do a gap year. And that is to mature a bit, get real life experience. And also to smell the roses, as you have obviously been VERY busy putting together the perfect application. I work at a school that is a top medical school and note that those who take a year to marinate seem to do better, especially in the clinical realm with patients (and tbh, many of the best of them have several gap years!) And ultimately, that is how you do exceptionally well in med school and get the more competitive residencies- by doing great in your clinical rotations, and based on my experiences, maturity is a big factor.

And do not set your sights too much on "Top 5". No one, even someone with your stats, can count on getting into a T5. Expand your scope to at least T20. More importantly, there is no reason to limit to Top 5 as there are many schools in the T20 that might be a better fit for you than some of those in the T5. It may very well be that School x, ranked #7 or 8 is a better fit for you than school y, ranked #3 or 4. You can do anything, in any specialty, including ultimately becoming a DEAN at a T5, if you do well at a T20 med school. Sounds like you (or your parents?) just want to say you attended a T5 school (vs a T20 school). Not to offend you, but to me, focusing on T5 at this point seems premature and short-sighted.
 
@gorowannabe: how would his chances be at a Top 5 school if he'd been a military officer? If he had earned a MacArthur Genius Grant? If he had a first-author Nature paper? Would Yale be calling him if he won the Nobel Peace Prize?
 
Walter Raleigh said:
@gorowannabe: how would his chances be at a Top 5 school if he'd been a military officer? If he had earned a MacArthur Genius Grant? If he had a first-author Nature paper? Would Yale be calling him if he won the Nobel Peace Prize?
Click to expand...
I have rarely seen better apps than the OP - though I am a sucker for hard life stories, like family having to live in their car, etc. And certainly military always adds a lot of points in my book - for so many reasons. Regardless, OP may very well get into a T5 school with current stats. But it is not just about getting in. I was merely pointing out some of the LONGER term benefits of taking a gap year in terms of maturing, enjoying life, etc, which may, from my POV, have benefits on clinical rotations and beyond. And getting OP to realize that as a junior in college, just thinking about embarking on this process, "T5" is particularly akin to running with blinders on. It is not uncommon for SDN posters to focus on T20 (or occasionally T10), but T5 is unnecessarily restrictive and non-sensical. Keep in mind that interviews will factor in as well.

Read my earlier post. There is absolutely no reason for a student to even think in terms of "T5", as there is little evidence that students who do great at a top 20 have fewer opportunities than a student from top 5 school. And for students like OP, who will most certainly have lots of choices, they will get the benefit of choosing a school using "fit" as a major decision tool, and not just have to go to the only school they get into. Assume school #1 does not choose him. Whatever school that is ranked #2 or #4 that year may be a poorer fit for the student than a school ranked #7 or 8 that year, and the student should be every bit willing to go to school #7 in USNWR that year if it is a better fit. Schools differ in location/support systems, COA, curriculum style/support, etc and those are much more important than if a school is ranked #3 vs #7. Especially bc what is used to rank schools might not be paramount to OP and that rankings do sometimes change a bit year to year. I have been doing this a long time, and this focus on "T5" was a red flag, even among a student with tippy top stats.
 
Nitronium said:
I'm a traditional undergraduate junior considering applying to med school this spring. I am aiming to get into a top 5 med school and was wondering if a gap year would help me improve my chances. Below are my specs.

GPA: 4.00
MCAT: Receiving in a week, but averaged 526 on AAMC FLs. Let's say like mid-520s
ORM @ Ivy

Research:
  • 2 labs (one main one since HS and one for past 2 summers)
  • several thousands of hours
  • 4 papers (1 first author); 7 posters (3 national)
Clinical Volunteering/Experience:
  • Volunteered at local hospital with elderly patients: 220 hours
  • Part of student committee focused on improving quality assurance in the same hospital: 70 hours
Non-clinical Volunteering:
  • Habitat for Humanity chapter (mid-level leadership position): 200 hours
Shadowing:
  • 120 hours: 2 types of surgeons and a 1 primary care
Extra-curriculars/Awards:
  • Co-founded startup for substance abuse with friends that got press from our school along with $30,000 in funding. Total $50,000 raised.
  • Editor-in-chief (top-level leadership) for campus science publication
  • Selected as one of 12 best research students out of incoming freshman
  • Deputy editor (mid-level leadership) for nationwide undergraduate research journal
  • Student executive for school board in charge of all volunteering groups on campus
  • Vice president (top-level leadership) for intramural sports group
  • Race coordinator (mid-level leadership) for intramural running club
  • Department TA
  • Nominated for Goldwater, waiting to hear back in March
Thoughts:
Overall, I think my stats should be strong (AAMC please deliver next week...) along with my research. My in-school extra-curriculars should also be adequate. Shadowing is okay, but isn't terrible. While, I technically have sufficient volunteering hours for both clinical and non-clinical, I could always boost those. Would a gap year help me? If so, what would you guys recommend if I were aim for a top med school?
  • More clinical volunteering, but at a hospice that serves more underserved patients?
  • More research and go ham into the publications?
  • Go abroad and do service? (I heard that voluntourism could be frowned upon
Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks.
Click to expand...
No you do not need a gap year. With an app like yours (assuming it is all accurate) you will get in somewhere with a >95% T20, >50% T5. You cannot bank on a T5 institution as they will get 50 applications just like yours (If you are part of the 99.8th percentile out of 50,000 people, then 100 people are like you or better). But I don't think any adviser would bat an eye if your school list was just the T20 schools and your state schools.
 
I agree that you don't need a gap year if you don't want to take one. BUT I also agree that a gap year can do more than just fill in parts of your app that are lacking. There's plenty of personal and professional growth to be had in a gap year, and it's an opportunity to maybe see a new part of the country, meet new people, relax a bit so you don't get burnt out immediately in med school. Gap years aren't for everyone, but I'm so so glad I took one.

This is what I'm doing in mine and it's been awesome: Gap Year Opportunity - National Health Corps, AMA!
 
You seem to want to take a gap year. Is that the case? If so continue your activities, travel( but don’t volunteer abroad). Do it for enjoyment and the experiences. You are good to go now-barring a disaster next week. Good luck.
 
Will you be heartbroken if you get multiple top 20 offers but no top 5 offers? If so, you do need 2 gap years as it may take that long to get your priorities straight and determine what you really value. If you want to be a licensed physician in 2025 (4 years of med school, 1 year of residency to qualify for licensure), you don't need a gap year.
 
Thank you everyone for the feedback. As others have said, the gap year isn’t just to bulk up my application. I have a few things I want to learn (programming, fluency in a language), that I feel like I won’t have the chance to work on in med school. So that is more of a personal motivation for considering a gap year.

But as for everyone’s comments on my application strength, does the gap year then absolutely no difference for my attractiveness as an applicant? Like if one says that I can slightly help my chances at a top med school, then I would probably go for it. But if it’s completely useless for me other than personal growth, then I would think more.
 
NapoleonBonaparte said:
Thank you everyone for the feedback. As others have said, the gap year isn’t just to bulk up my application. I have a few things I want to learn (programming, fluency in a language), that I feel like I won’t have the chance to work on in med school. So that is more of a personal motivation for considering a gap year.

But as for everyone’s comments on my application strength, does the gap year then absolutely no difference for my attractiveness as an applicant? Like if one says that I can slightly help my chances at a top med school, then I would probably go for it. But if it’s completely useless for me other than personal growth, then I would think more.
Click to expand...
Lol so is OP your burner account? :laugh:
 
The gap year would mean a slight improvement. Very, very slight. I'd suggest it for personal-growth reasons. If you'd just like to go to a top-20 school, go for it now. You seem to have an unhealthy desire to attend a top-5 school specifically. The gap year might help you gain some perspective; another hundred hours of clinical and nonclinical volunteering WOULD help you a little.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

C
Would you recommend for lower income pre-meds to still apply?
Replies
12
Views
2K
engenir
E
hopeful4medschool
Help me decide what I should be doing in my gap year. Research vs Clinical hour
Replies
1
Views
467
Hollow Knight
Hollow Knight
B
Would a gap year be better because of my age?
Replies
4
Views
752
Goro
Goro
Topizungochico
Would you do a postbacc in my situation?
Replies
2
Views
647
Topizungochico
Topizungochico
E
What would adcoms think about me switching jobs semi-frequently?
Replies
2
Views
723
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Top