leadership experiences

[luciferase]

Hey guys, 

I was wondering - is it frowned upon to not have any leadership experiences as explicitly being in executive positions of clubs/ committees ? Personally, I'm initiating some community projects and was wondering if that would be sufficient to show leadership ability ? 

Has anyone here actually been successful in the med application process without actually holding such positions ? 

I would appreciate any feedback! Thanks in advance

[Meridian]

Much of it has to do with verification and a level of confidence that you were actively involved long term vs just signing up and not really doing anything.    A few quality ECs with 100's of hours is a lot better than being a "participant" in many things.   Quality over quantity.   The keyword in your comments is "initiating some community projects". Be able to expand on what you did as leadership  (vs what the group as a whole did).

[PreMedJen]

I don't know if this will help, but for applications and resumes, I was always told to express what I did, how I did it and what outcome it had on a situation/ team as a whole and/or on me. If you are able to put this into good words and actually show that your leadership made an impact (especially for something you care about), it shows you are a quality leader, much like Meridian has said. 

 

[robclem21]

If it makes you feel better, I was never a member of a single club in undergrad... as a member or exec...