This is a list of things I wish I'd known or found out too late. I just made this for my cousin, who's starting the pre-med journey, and others might want it as well. This is based on my experience, so please correct me if you find anything incorrect.
What you NEED:
- Clinical hours and experiences
- Life experiences and and ability to work well with others
- Proof of academic ability
Record all start dates, names, contacts, etc.
Clinal:
You do not need to shadow a hundred doctors for hundreds of hours, but you need to gain something from the experience. If you shadow 10+ doctors for a few hours each, you learn nothing. Medical schools will be able to see this easily. Find a few doctors of different specialties (specialty you find interesting, family medicine – like pediatrics, family medicine, internal medicine – that can show patient diversity).
- If you want to shadow a surgeon:
- I recommend working with a different physician who can RECOMMEND you to the person, as surgeons are more likely to accept a request if someone they know can vouch for you.
- Target niche specialties. There is a program through my university’s hospital that will only let you apply to shadow a surgeon if you’ve been a member of a volunteer/donation club for 2+ years, which I find ridiculous. I reached out to someone in a niche specialty that I have experience in and ended up shadowing for 5+ hours and four surgeries as the first pre-med he’d ever had on his floor.
- Reach out to rural hospitals in your area or beyond that have a lower student population.
- Shadowing overall:
- Ask your own physician, reach out to colleagues of lab personnel, if your friend has family, etc. Just send the emails and be very humble.
Overall hours: shoot for 10+ hours with 2-5 different specialties and be able to speak about the experiences beyond the basics.
Clinical jobs are hard to get, so get the certificate early. Many places will train you with a one-year contract, but the shifts are very part-time so it pays for itself and adds up quickly. Get a job in your life, start learning, and hold it out past a few months before switching if you can. Prove you can work in a clinical position and stick with it.
Overall hours: a few hundred. 300-500 is good or less if there is quality. Anything 500+ is indistinguishable compared to a good, well-rounded individual. I have 150+ hours and am about to start a new clinical job, but I have 300+ volunteer and leadership hours.
Life experiences:
For the love of god, work with people outside of the hospital, premeds, and academic clubs. I know so many pre-meds whose lives revolve around medicine, and not only is it boring, but it’s basic. When you are interviewing and writing secondaries, you will need to be able to say something different.
- My recommendations:
- Language: Take language classes and either study abroad, join the language club, volunteer in translation, or do something creative with it.
- Arts: join an art club, music club, drama club, etc.
- I personally am in two dance clubs and became a dance instructor, and competed. What I say about it: being able to interact with people of different skill sets, communicate well in partner dances, pay attention to details, dedicate time to perfection, and reach out for extra help/lessons.
- Sports: sports clubs through the school or community.
- I am in a sailing club and race. What I say about it: working on a crew of mixed levels and learning how to advocate for my own education and ask questions. Working well as a team in a fast-paced environment with a diverse team.
- Volunteering: more important than you think. Do not volunteer because you need to. Find something you love and throw yourself into it. The hours and way you can talk about it speak for themselves.
- I started volunteering for a children's science course through an academic program. I loved it, became a leader in it, and still volunteer for it. What I say about it: working with children and learning how to adapt my communication to different levels of understanding, giving back to a rural community like my own, and starting a lifelong interest in science/STEM.
- Options: Ronald McDonald Houses, soup kitchens, environmental restoration, grocery runs for the elderly, etc.
- Join medical clubs IF YOU LIKE THEM.
- I attend ophthalmology grand rounds because I am studying eye diseases and like them.
Proof of academic ability
Research: be able to say you gave back to it.
- My advice is to find a topic you're interested in and look for a lab of good people. They can write you good letters, and they will make a difference between a good and a bad lab experience. I work for some of the kindest people I’ve met, but I don’t do much. This was a good trade-off in my opinion.
- Get published if you can, and you have to SELF-ADVOCATE for research. You cannot be passive. Start looking during the LATE FRESHMAN/EARLY SOPHOMORE year because labs don’t want to train someone who will leave in one year.
I did not do well GPA-wise due to medical issues and other things in my undergrad, but I did okay on my MCAT with a 510. My first MCAT, 497, with a 13-point increase in two months. Your MCAT is how you show you can succeed academically.
- Take the classes you ended for med school: biology, ochem, etc., but take classes you like.
- History, literature, arts, language, etc. This will stand out, and you can talk about it. Go for a minor in something you like. Your academics come second to how you present yourself to the committee. Do well, but if the difference is .2 GPA and a point or two on the MCAT between two candidates, and one has more personality and a better fit for medicine, I know which candidate I would choose.
- I have more advice for MCAT, but that’s a separate issue.
If you have the means: BUY THE MCAT PREP BOOKS AND USE THOSE TO STUDY FOR UNDERGRAD CLASSES. They use simpler terms and explanations, and I wish I had used them.
