Taking One Year Off (After Undergrad) Before Applying To Med School?

[abovewoods]

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[Haruba]

Taking one year off to gain some life experience sounds like a great plan! You are right--most of us have been studying or in school most of our lives, so taking a year off can be valuable in that sense. By the time you apply, you will be more mature and most likely in a better place to start medical school. I would not worry about it hurting you, as most schools will not care. I know certain schools that have traditional interviews may ask you about it however (my friend who took a year off was asked about it in their interview for Queen's), but as long as you can explain yourself it should be fine! As you said, you will not "just be sitting around", you will taking time to gain more experience in other areas. In fact, taking the time to work on your personal development and ECs may even make your application stronger!

That said, one thing to consider is that applying after your year off will not guarantee you entrance to med school (obviously). I would have a plan just in case you do not immediately get in, so you are not in limbo for another year than you wanted. As the average med student applies 2.7 times to get in, submitting an application this year can be to your advantage (plus you get to gain experience with the admissions process). One possibility is to look into schools that let you defer for a year! I know UCalgary lets its student defer (eg. they can start med school the year after they are offered admissions). 

From the sounds of things, you seem like a very mature individual! If you believe this one year off will help prevent future burn-out I would strongly recommend it!

[B A T M A N]

I've really been thinking about this and taking one year off after undergrad is starting to appeal to me, but I'm not really sure how this would look on applications or if I'm hurting myself in the long run.. I would really appreciate some feedback on this. 

 

I'm sure about my decision to go into medicine, I've got extracurriculars going and everything, and my gpa (thus far) has been going pretty well and meets cutoffs and all (I'll be writing the MCAT this year, so I'm not sure how that would change this).. I always felt on track to just apply traditionally, but now I've been thinking of not even applying until I'm done 4th year.

 

I just really want to experience different things and get my life a little more together because all I've really been doing is studying - I'm ready to study as much as it takes in medical school, but I feel like I'd be more successful if I took a year off to really just experience more things and prevent a burnout.

 

I'd want to spend the year volunteering, working, and trying to get a position in a research lab as well. I definitely wouldn't just be sitting around. Anyways, sorry about the long, detailed post, just wanted to put some background out there. Does anyone have any experience with a similar situation, or any advice? I haven't really been able to find more information about this for Canadian med schools.

From what I hear, med school is a grind.. and once you're in, you'll be doing the same studying, but maybe even more intensely (volume of info is much greater). If you need the time off, take it. It won't affect your application at all! Heck, it might boost it depending on what you do during the year. You don't need to follow what everyone else does, just do you!

[Bambi]

I agree entirely with paperbox. For sure, waiting a year will not adversely affect your chances. As there is no guarantee, you will make it immediately after graduation, why not apply (as a practice run giving you useful experience) and if you don't make it, you won't be disappointed. However, should you be accepted, you will still be fine. When I was in medical school (and the summer before entering medical school immediately after graduating from university), I took full advantage of my summers for R & R - as I realized these were the last summers I could travel, relax and enjoy family. Yes, medical school is not easy but these breaks made all the difference in the world. Good luck!

[abovewoods]

Thank you for the responses, I really appreciate the advice.

 

Edit: Just as a side note, does anyone know of anything like Interfolio that Canadian schools accept? I'm not sure how to hang on to my references if I end up taking the gap year.

 

Taking one year off to gain some life experience sounds like a great plan! You are right--most of us have been studying or in school most of our lives, so taking a year off can be valuable in that sense. By the time you apply, you will be more mature and most likely in a better place to start medical school. I would not worry about it hurting you, as most schools will not care. I know certain schools that have traditional interviews may ask you about it however (my friend who took a year off was asked about it in their interview for Queen's), but as long as you can explain yourself it should be fine! As you said, you will not "just be sitting around", you will taking time to gain more experience in other areas. In fact, taking the time to work on your personal development and ECs may even make your application stronger!

That said, one thing to consider is that applying after your year off will not guarantee you entrance to med school (obviously). I would have a plan just in case you do not immediately get in, so you are not in limbo for another year than you wanted. As the average med student applies 2.7 times to get in, submitting an application this year can be to your advantage (plus you get to gain experience with the admissions process). One possibility is to look into schools that let you defer for a year! I know UCalgary lets its student defer (eg. they can start med school the year after they are offered admissions). 

From the sounds of things, you seem like a very mature individual! If you believe this one year off will help prevent future burn-out I would strongly recommend it!

I've actually been thinking a lot about submitting the application this year because of the point you mentioned (usually takes 2+ times to get in) and for the experience. But in the chance that I do get an acceptance (not that I can be confident in that), I'd most likely have no choice but to attend straight after university, since I'd have to be insane to reject my offer, and I know I'd regret not trying for the gap year. Of course, I'd also regret not trying to apply earlier if I do end up getting rejected after the gap year, so I guess I'm just going to have to choose which regret would be worse for me haha.

 

I looked into deferrals and it seems like I'd need an extenuating circumstance for it to be granted, so I'm not sure if I'd be able to do that. I was considering perhaps applying to both Canadian and US med schools at the same time, just to increase my chances after the gap year.. although I'd prefer Canadian tuitions 

[Bambi]

No interfolio. Each time you apply, you will need a current LOR from your referees, no shortcuts. Of the 2 terrible choices you have, I would go for applying earlier, gaining the experience of the application process, perhaps also the interview and hope lol that you do not make it. I agree that deferral will not be an option in your circumstances, however, as I said earlier, enjoying your summers during medical school without doing work or research is an excellent way to decompress and enjoy life.

[Artier]

I definitely suggest applying this cycle as well. There is zero downside apart from financial considerations. Some universities will allow you to defer the acceptance for a year as well. If you get interviews this time, it will be solid experience next year. Even if you don't, you'll probably know what to adjust and have a more competitive application for next year.

There is also no shame in declining an acceptance and reapplying (I don't see why this wouldn't be allowed...but definitely contact OMSAS or whatever other schools you were considering and confirm), although it's an option very few would consider. Either way, having that option to decide is definitely not a downside, even if it may be a tough decision.  

 

Also keep in mind a year is a long time and you don't want to be in a situation where you change your mind 6 months in and wished you had applied. There's really no reason to unnecessarily close doors in this process (unless finances are a concern, then you will have to evaluate the situation for yourself).