half_jack Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 I see people with a crazy amount of ECs here, who have committed several years to them ..and I haven't forgotten about those who have research publications, and who've traveled to places like Nepal solely to volunteer, and...you get the point. To be honest, this is.. concerning to me. I probably won't be able to travel abroad nor completely immerse myself in ECs throughout my undergraduate years. I did plan on tackling a few research opportunities with a couple of volunteer positions that may not be as important (e.g. giving out cookies to blood donors, helping around the community, etc). Would this, coupled with a high GPA/MCAT score, be considered competitive? And out of curiosity, does it also help to show you're involved in artsy/sporty clubs? PLEASE.. someone inform me. I feel like a lost puppy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatonekid Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 It's good to read these forums and see what other people are doing, but you should not use other people's experience to judge what you personally should or should not be doing. I, for one, have not traveled outside of North America for volunteering, nor am I doing groundbreaking research. However, I have some smaller scale ECs that I truly enjoy. I think the important think is to do ECs that you enjoy and that you feel may give you opportunities/experiences that other pre-meds may not have. Everyone's just trying to do something that sets them apart. I did plan on tackling a few research opportunities with a couple of volunteer positions that may not be as important (e.g. giving out cookies to blood donors, helping around the community, etc). Would this, coupled with a high GPA/MCAT score, be considered competitive? And out of curiosity, does it also help to show you're involved in artsy/sporty clubs? This is the part of your post that I would focus the most on. Volunteer positions are only as important as you make them. Besides, I think helping in the community is an excellent EC. High GPA/MCAT obviously help. Being involved in arts/sports also helps because it shows you're well rounded. There's tons more I could say about this, but I have to go. I'm sure others will respond. Bottom line is do thinks you enjoy so you're not miserable when you have to go and do your ECs. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
future_doc Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 I feel like a lost puppy. thatonekid got it right. And every bit of volunteering is important, especially to the person(s) being helped and hopefully to you too in feeling a sense of compassion toward others. Volunteeering and ECs are not a competition, they are something you do b/c you want to, you are interested in doing. We each are different, have different schedules and some of us are better at time kmanagement than others. Remember, nobody has an advantage, even if you or they think they have advantages. Once we get to the MMI, we are essentially equal. This is a lottery where luck is the critical factor. Even lost puppies can be found. I had a wonderful dog who was angry at me and so, ran away. I could not find jer despite a diligent search. The next day, she showed up miles and miles away at grandma's apartment building and barked to get her attention. When I came to pick her up, she ignored me. I got her point and showed more compassion. Lost puppy, you will be found, just do what you do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renin Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 I LOVE PUPPIES. .... In response to your post... I also felt that because I did not go overseas and save 30,000 orphans from a mudslide using ONLY an elastic band and a paperclip, that I would be at a disadvantage during my interviews, or to get my ECs counted - (I had also not saved an Ethiopian village dying of thirst from digging them a well in the middle of the desert with my bare hands) - I think people from a certain background get more time/resources to devote to spending time volunteering ... it does get expensive (google "VOLUNTOURISM" if you want to find out more about that). This being said, I think that all volunteer opportunities CAN count in your MMI/interview only if you know how to present them. You can go overseas and build an orphanage out of straw and mudbricks using only your feet, but if you cannot use your experiences to support the question/point that your interviewer is asking you to make, it is useless. Also, look around your own community. There are usually a lot of "hidden" volunteer opportunities that are really spiffy to talk about - and are different from your typical "pre-med" type of volunteering = more interesting to the interviewer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
half_jack Posted July 5, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 Thanks everyone for the amazing support! I'm definitely involved in ECs that I actually enjoy. I hate that feeling of doing something because you have to. But I heard that they give you 48 slots to fill in your ECs. Is this true? To be honest I was VERY lazy in high school. I had no job and I faked my mandatory community hours to graduate. I even loafed a bit in first year university, but I did get a good GPA (3.85). ANYWAYS, during the summer after my first year I finally made the decision to become a doctor (no need to explain how I got this epiphany). So now I've been working my ass off just to make up for all those wasted years. I'm genuinely trying really hard because I never give up, but I don't think I'll even come close to filling out all those slots! I also dread the thought that I'll be asked why I was so unproductive because.. well, I was just a lazy idiot, there's no good reason. Wow that turned into a life story but in short: Is it necessary to fill most of those 48 slots? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatonekid Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 Wow that turned into a life story but in short: Is it necessary to fill most of those 48 slots?Short answer: No. Slightly longer answer: I personally think it's more important to show commitment to your ECs. I think, if I was an AdCom person, that I would rather see someone with 10 (random number) long term (i.e. like 1 year) ECs than see someone with 35 activities that they only did for 1 month. Of coarse, I have no connections with AdCom people so this is just all my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
future_doc Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 NO, it is not necessary to fill in those 48 slots. It is quality not quantity, Follow your instincts and stop worrying about the others who are also applying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waterluv Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 just to get you out of the lost puppy stage, no you don't NEED to go overseas to volunteer. I didn't have overseas volunteer experience and I haven't published anything. Only research I did was 4th year thesis and you cannot even entre that to the OMSAS research section. and I got pretty good (in my opinion) application/interview/acceptance ratio. Can to try to fit in some sort of EC during school year? I'm guessing you volunteer with the CBS? That's a good place b/c you don't have to make serious time commitment and you can work as your schedule permits. (but don't expect them to write you a reference letter for medicine unless you get to know the nurse or coordinator personally.) If I were you (with high MCAT/GPA) I would go for clinic/or healthcare related volunteering during summer and try to fit in at least 1 EC (something you can do on campus to reduce transit time perhaps?) during the school year. But if you CANNOT do any EC during school year for valid reason, what the heck, just bust your ass during summer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamer87 Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 just to get you out of the lost puppy stage, no you don't NEED to go overseas to volunteer. I didn't have overseas volunteer experience and I haven't published anything. Only research I did was 4th year thesis and you cannot even entre that to the OMSAS research section. and I got pretty good (in my opinion) application/interview/acceptance ratio. Can to try to fit in some sort of EC during school year? I'm guessing you volunteer with the CBS? That's a good place b/c you don't have to make serious time commitment and you can work as your schedule permits. (but don't expect them to write you a reference letter for medicine unless you get to know the nurse or coordinator personally.) If I were you (with high MCAT/GPA) I would go for clinic/or healthcare related volunteering during summer and try to fit in at least 1 EC (something you can do on campus to reduce transit time perhaps?) during the school year. But if you CANNOT do any EC during school year for valid reason, what the heck, just bust your ass during summer. is this true?! correct me if i'm wrong, but a 4th year thesis, is this a mandatory course everyone at certain universities has to do? and they don't really consider it because basically everyone does it? because at my university, they have courses called independent research projects in which you have a supervisor (a professor) and you basically do a bunch of research, mostly you're expected to work on your own and you get limited guidance from your professor - at the end of the course you're supposed to write a paper/do a presentation and you get a credit for the course on your transcript - so i wouldn't be able to enter this into OMSAS if i did this? because at my uni not everyone can do these projects, you need a certain GPA etc wow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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