Guest mesoderm Posted October 18, 2003 Report Share Posted October 18, 2003 This website is great. I just have a few questions. Is volunteering that important?? I only had one volunteer exp. and it was back in high school, but it wasn't all that great, i only did filing basically. I want to volunteer again this summer (I'm in 3rd year now, and that'd fill up the hole in my application, my academics is fine) but I'm thinking of getting an NSERC research job instead. Which one is more worth it? I honestly prefer the research job b/c i'd be paid. DOH! But still, I want to be a doc too. (There are a few reasons why I can't do both that I won't get into) Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 007 Posted October 18, 2003 Report Share Posted October 18, 2003 Both experiences are great, but my personal standpoint is to do what you want to do with your life, not what you think med schools expect of you. That being said, most medical schools want to see that you have some health-related experience, whether it be volunteer work or a paid job. The NSERC that I did, as great as it was, was purely lab work. Could you not volunteer someplace between now and the summer? There are lots of organizations out there who are just dying for people and they often only expect a minimal commitment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest aneliz Posted October 18, 2003 Report Share Posted October 18, 2003 Most medical schools want to see that you have at least *some* volunteer work - preferably where you worked with people (helping kids read, working with seniors, feeding the homeless, etc). The point of looking for volunteer work is that you have: 1. Shown some commitment to an activity that was not motivated by $$$ 2. Given your time to the benefit of your community rather than just yourself (ie are not totally self-centred) 3. Learned something about yourself/society in the process (awareness of poverty, ability to communicate with troubled teens, shortage of social support resources in community, etc) While an NSERC research position gives you more $$, I would say that volunteering would get you farther ahead in terms of your application. You will be asked about your volunteer work if not on your essays/autobiographical sketches than definitely at your interview....this is a guarantee. There are many more people in my class that didn't do an NSERC lab job than there are that didn't do any volunteer work. I would say that some good quality volunteer work (health related or not) is an essential part of a strong application. You don't have to wait until summer to do some volunteering though! Even if you could give 2 hours a week to an organisation (doing something OTHER than filing) that would be beneficial to your app. The key to a good volunteer experience is to find something that interests you and that will allow you to *learn* something (ie better communication skills, awareness of an issue, etc) by doing it. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mirrille Posted October 18, 2003 Report Share Posted October 18, 2003 I don't really see why you can't do both, if you are a student. If you can get an NSERC, take it. Unless you hate research to the core of your being, in which case it would have been a bad idea to begin with. Any kind of scholarship is worth mentioning for med schools and also for grad schools and future scholarship applications and it's nice to have some cash to sponsor you volunteering (Transportation etc). A job over the summer shouldn't stop you from volunteering for a couple hours on the weekends or evenings. Alot of volunteer positions are set up so that people only do a shift a week anyways. It would be really nice if you could find some regular volunteering that would be a few hours a week that you could continue into the school year. It might show more commitment than a blitz of volunteering for a month or two that just stopped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest strider2004 Posted October 18, 2003 Report Share Posted October 18, 2003 I didn't do any volunteering in university. Instead, I did research jobs and held a part-time job during school. Club involvement (council positions are key) is another indicator of extracurricular activity. You really don't have to do volunteering as long as you've shown that you have an understanding of the healthcare system and that you're larger in life than just your marks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest monksters Posted October 18, 2003 Report Share Posted October 18, 2003 I think that volunteering is a good no matter what profession you choose. And if you have time for both then, even better. I agree with merrille, in that many places of volunteer give you an opportunity to do your shift outside normal working and school hours. If you want to be a doc why not find volunteer things to do where you will do some of the things doc's do aside from diagnosis and treatment. Interacting with people, education, administration to name a few. Volunteering is also part of physician's life even after med school, whether it be mentoring students, volunteering in underserved areas, committees, fundraising, lobbying for better health care, serving developing countries...etc..etc. So if you really want to be a doc, then volunteering will already give you parts of that job. Hope this helps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mesoderm Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Thanks to all moderators who have replied. I was saying that I couldn't do both b/c a friend of mine told me she volunteered at a hospital near my parent's home and it was a great experience. She told me I should go too, but they want you to be able to work many hours, like 10-20 hrs or something, but I'd like to do that anyway. I go to school in another city, so I can't volunteer there if I take the NSERC job, and I asked the hospitals near my school and they said that they don't have too many positions on weekends or weeknights. I guess I could volunteer at a non-health related organization for like 2 hrs a week, but I don't know, 2 hrs a week for 16 weeks? 32 hrs?? I'm not too sure how much I can learn. It might look good on an application, but I'm not the type of person who can really exaggerate and make all their experiences sound really good at an interview, so I don't know. Anyway, thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peachy Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Volunteering in a hospital is most definitely NOT the only worthwhile volunteer experience out there! You could help someone with a disability, answer the phone at a distress centre, help out at a shelter, mentor a child or teenager, etc. There are a million things you can do that will make a difference in someone's life in a few hours a week. Your city should have a Volunteer Centre (and your school may have its own volunteer centre, or a branch of the city volunteer centre) with literally thousands of listings that you can search through to find something that you like. Personally, I've volunteered at a number of different organizations, and only once did the 20-hours-a-week-hospital-volunteering. For me, it was the least useful and most boring of all the volunteer things I did. I certainly felt that I was making a more meaningful contribution in some of the activities that I did only a few hours a week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest notold Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 Hi mesoderm, I have been a member of and volunteered with Amnesty since 1989. You can be an urgent letter writer or just a letter writer and do it as it fits your schedule. It has worked for me being a single parent, working and raising 2 "exceptional" boys. I am also a Red Cross Disaster team member (since 1999.) Apart from training there are not a lot of 'calls". It's excellent training in team work with a lot of social skills related to disasters/victims etc.. There are all kinds of volunteer things you can do via the net now where you do not have to leave your home. Students for a Free Tibet is another one I informally participate in. check out http://www.idealist.org notold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mying Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 I never did the volunteer-in-a-hospital thing. Sure it would have been a great experience, but I was having great experiences elsewhere. I did a bit of community volunteering, roughly 2-10 hrs a week, and had a blast. I learned way more Real Life Stuff than I would have in a hospital. Like how to balance a cheque book, resolve conflict, buy insurance, and change fuses in an ambulance. I also did a bit of online volunteering. That might be a very viable option to get started if you're finding it hard to find time! There are tonnes of online volunteering opportunities out there. For example, online chatting with kids with special needs and chronic illnesses -- it gives them a great feeling of having friends and being connected to the world, and you'll learn about a side and perspective of health care you won't see much of elsewhere. There are a bazillion different ways to volunteer. Just keep in mind your goals with volunteering. If you're doing it just for the "points" on your application, it will show, and you'll hate it. If you're doing it because you truly want to help (and I'm sure you do) and because you want to learn something from it... then you'll love it! So my advice: Identify the things that will make you feel like you're making a difference and really helping, and go for those! You can use your local Volunteer Centre, the National Volunteer Opportunities Exchange (www.voe-reb.org), or visit a volunteer fair. And have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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