Medical Advice on how to improve my application during a gap year?

[Goro]

I'm planning on graduating this school year, then taking the MCAT and applying during my gap year. I was wondering what extracurriculars/jobs to pursue over the 1.5 years I have before applying?

Stats: CA ORM, 4th year, 3.65 GPA with upward trend (can end with 3.7)

My ECs so far:

• Clinical Volunteering[350 hrs in 1.5 yrs, ended]
  • lots of patient interaction at a hospital
• Nonclinical Volunteering[ongoing, projected ~100 hrs in 1.5 yrs]
  • started at a food bank for 2-3 hours/week
• Research[50 hrs in 3 months, plus 2 hours/week?]
  • about physiology. I was only able to do a little, then COVID happened, now it's only remote data analysis and reading papers
• Leadership [250 hrs in 1 yr, ended]
  • managing hospital volunteers and training new ones
• Teaching [projected 150 hrs over 2 yrs]
  • with underserved high schoolers in various subjects
• Teaching [projected 300 hrs over 1 yr]
  • university job for tutoring college students in science courses
• Shadowing [10 hours]
  • cancelled due to COVID, will try to find more later
• Work [500+ hrs in 1 yr, ended]
  • fast food

My clinical volunteering and leadership experience are strong, but I just finished doing them. My weaknesses are definitely in nonclinical volunteering and research. I don't really know how teaching is valued, but I love doing it. Here are some options I'm thinking of doing during my gap year:

1. Scribe job + nonclinical volunteering
   1. I'd get more clinical/shadowing experience, but I'd still have really low research hours)
2. Lab assistant job + clinical/nonclinical volunteering
   1. lab job would probably be more grunt work instead of contributing to research, so idk if it would be valuable
3. Americorps position + clinical volunteering
   1. I'd love to do Americorps but I think it'd be hard to study for the MCAT if I had to live somewhere else

What would you recommend I do? Any other options or suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!

Your plans are sound. Do what you love and love what you do. Service to others less fortunate than yourself is always good.

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[TheBoneDoctah]

Make sure whatever you do gives you the flexibility to study for the MCAT. If you bomb the MCAT it's not gonna matter what you chose for your gap year.

 

[GoSpursGo]

Make sure whatever you do gives you the flexibility to study for the MCAT. If you bomb the MCAT it's not gonna matter what you chose for your gap year.

Agree with this. The MCAT score is much more important than what you're doing as your day job.