Guest swk21 Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 Hi~ Here's my situation, my first 3 semesters I bombed it... due to some family problems. However, I was able to pull my GPA up in the next 3 semesters. Right now I have a cGPA of 3.1 and 2 more semesters to go. I was able to score a 32 in MCAT. As for EC... I work 25 hr/week.. so no time for any volunteering. Do I stand a chance?? also is working consider EC?? Thanks~ Do I need to work that much? the answer is yes... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest leviathan Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 Hi swk21, Your GPA, MCAT, amount of EC activities is EXACTLY the same as me (except my 25 hours/week is mostly volunteer with 8 hours of paid work). I don't think I have much chance, but they do let in 10-15 students every year at UBC with my GPA. I have really solid ECs and a lot of exposure to medicine and a decent MCAT, so I might be able to pull something off. If I was you, I'd make sure you can prove to ADCOMs that you have researched into medicine and have come to a very informed decision to enter the profession. If not, there's always US/Intl schools or doing graduate work to boost your GPA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest muchdutch Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 No, working is not considered an extracurricular. I think you will have a hard time expanding on your extracurricular activities when you work that much. There's not spot on the application (that I know of) that asks you how much you work, or where you devote your time to. There is however room to put how many volunteer hours you devote to each volunteer cause. Not fair? I know. I work about the same amount just to pay the bills (someone has to do it and unfortch, unlike many others I know, mommy and daddy just don't make enough money to help me!) so I don't have much room for extracurrics either. I think in all fairness that there should be a section where you can explain that you don't do much extracurriculars b/c you have to work so much - or have kids!. If only...:\ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DancingDoc Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 I think (if i remember correctly) there is a place on the MUN application to explain situations such as 'need to work to pay bills thus no time for more ECs'. On the Dal application you can write down the amount of time you spend per week on an activity/job/etc. I forget about the others applications but those two stand out as making room for that. There is not much room on the ontario applications for that sort of explanation for sure though. You could always put in your essays, not even necessarily as an excuse but even to show the positive things about working that much while doing other things (school) and what you have gotten out of the experience (that would make you a better doctor). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest coastalslacker Posted April 28, 2006 Report Share Posted April 28, 2006 One thing that jumped out at me when I was quickly reading the OMSAS sheets of candidates I was interviewing this year were the one's who HADN'T worked, or, who had paltry work experience. Forget about which section of the application you put it in-it is definitely taken into consideration. Working 25 hours a week in school is impressive, however, more impressive would be doing it and getting grades competitive for medical school. If you can prove that you can get the grades you need while working that much, it will stand you in extremely good stead come application time. Be sure to quantify how much you worked per week on your applications, don't just say you worked for x number of years at the job. Bobby joe who volunteers for an hour a week in the gift shop is better off putting Dec 2003-Dec 2006, but you should try to draw attention to your workload. Also, if you can, try to fit in some volunteering, even if it is just in the summer-it tends to be an important hoop to jump through. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ComplacentTragedy Posted April 29, 2006 Report Share Posted April 29, 2006 UofA has a little spot that asks about your work experience. Same size for your extra curricular. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TheChosenOneDDS Posted April 29, 2006 Report Share Posted April 29, 2006 worse come to worse, apply to the US as there are schools that will accept you since you did get over 30 on MCAT. Assuming you got a pretty balanced score. It's better than to waste time and opportunity costs by doing a master's or something if meds is what you want to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lurkergonepublic Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 I work about the same amount just to pay the bills (someone has to do it and unfortch, unlike many others I know, mommy and daddy just don't make enough money to help me!) so I don't have much room for extracurrics either. I think in all fairness that there should be a section where you can explain that you don't do much extracurriculars b/c you have to work so much - or have kids!. If only. Yeah, that's totally bothered me too. I know OMSAS doesn't give you much chance to explain yourself, but many other schools have a "is there anything else we should be aware of" section. As I filled out my apps last year I was feeling rather ticked at just what you mentioned above. I wrote lengthy comments to the effect that I volunteer perodically when I can, but I am working to support my family, and also spend some evenings at home looking after my son to allow my wife to get out and volunteer too. I also made the point that by taking some time to raise a child myself, rather than always pawn them off on daycare and babysitters I am doing a service to the community of raising a child who will be a help rather than a burden to society. Well, maybe I didn't say it quite that way, but you get the idea. I was waving my arms and stomping my feet saying "hey, over here, I'm a real person, not a premed zombie!" Not sure how it was received, but I got interviews at those places... I've always wondered at how expensive med school is, yet how they seem to try and cultivate people who have spent so much time volunteering, that they've never earned any money, nor learned much about life in the real world. Maybe they just want the rich people's kids, I don't know... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lilninjastardoc Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 i hope this doesnt come out the wrong way...but if you have the money...why not go to Carribean or UK? Next year you can partipate in the first round of carms - so really, there is no point studying in canada (unless you have family and so forth).... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MrNeuroscience Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Going to overseas for school with the intention of coming back here for the first iteration of Carms (next year) will not work out so well for those students (in my opinion). Staying in Canada for school, or at the very least being able to complete your clerkship in the hospitals that offer the residency programs to which you wish to match. That allows you to make the connections necessary and get to know the facutly members to hopefully have a successful interview and a first choice match. I highly doubt that during the first couple of years allowing overseas graduates to enter into the first round of matching the majority of those students will match into the more competitive spots (It's a perfect idea if you want to match into family... but maybe not if you want to match into a more competitive specialty) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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