Comments on: Pre-Med Prep: General Overview of Pre-Med Requirements

By: Mandy

Mandy — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 07:06:35 +0000

I don’t agree, I had 0 shadowing and 120hrs of volunteering total and I got into some top schools who never asked me once about my lack of clinical experiences. Besides, seriously volunteering in a hospital as in filing papers and getting snapped around by nurses, I can find waaaaay better use of my time.

By: Amber

Amber — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 05:39:39 +0000

I think teaching a chemistry excel class would definitely be considered a form of leadership if volunteering to tutor is, as mentioned in the article.

Sounds like fun, good luck.

By: Bryan

Bryan — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 16:51:46 +0000

Would teaching a chemistry excel class be considered a leadership position?

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 18:56:47 +0000

I’m a post-bacc doing everything in a year and 1/2 before applying in May. I volunteer, and start shadowing next week, but I also work 20-25 hours a week to pay the bills. Does that factor in?

By: Hello

Hello — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 19:21:52 +0000

also, do you request for like a certificate, to prove that you did shadowing?
and what should you learn or do specifically when shadowing a doctor?

By: Hello

Hello — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:54:44 +0000

hi, i was wondering, how long does students usually shadow a doctor? it says 1 day to 3 days on the list, but how long exactly do the medical schools want you to gain experience? (in terms of hours…)

By: Brandon

Brandon — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 19:25:00 +0000

What exactly is multitasking and what is considered a leadership position is it a position in a school club or something else?

By: another old schooler

another old schooler — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 13:16:13 +0000

Actually, 780 hours is not bad. I did 25 hours per week of clinically, direct patient contact work (in a free clinic) while an undergrad (5 years, two degrees). Now that I am in post-bacc, I’ve cut way back, but I’ve been thinking about going to do some like that. I miss the clinical involvement.

By: Steve

Steve — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 02:00:05 +0000

What is multitasking?

By: Christian Becker

Christian Becker — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 14:18:52 +0000

Just to clarify. These requirements are used by one specific school for admissions, but they serve as a good guide. If you cover them, you’ll be an excellent candidate at most schools. Keep in mind that not everyone has to do everything on the list. However, you cannot go wrong having done all of these. I know some people who didn’t do any research or any shadowing. Others had no leadership experience. The problem arises when you don’t have any of these and your MCAT and GPA are average, too. In my own opinion, I would do everything in my control to position myself to be a more complete and competitive applicant. If you are asking the question “How can I improve my chances of getting in?” then you should do all of these things on the list since each will add something to your application that will help you. Some of my colleagues actually had great GPA and MCAT scores and got interviews at a few places, but didn’t get offers because they were missing some of these activities. They spent an extra year improving their applications and applied again (successfully) the next year, after having completed some more of these activities.