Pre-Med Community Service

kristin5792
Wed, 10 Oct 2012 01:53:47 +0000

If you’re doing something just (or primarily) to impress med school adcoms, you’re probably doing it for the wrong reasons.

You like volunteering with the kids in the program you’re already working with. As someone who has always enjoyed service for others (during hs, undergrad, and med school), I can’t imagine anything more upsetting than quitting a position you like in favor of one you think you need. I think you should stay!

Med schools want you to prove that you care about people and have a genuine interest in helping them improve their lives. A great way to demonstrate this is through a dedication to service. You seem to enjoy working with children, and even though it isn’t a medical thing per se, that certainly does not mean it has little/no value.

Do you think you could incorporate something health-oriented into your program with them? I brought a group of med students to an after school program once and we had a great time teaching kids about doctors and their health. We did fun stuff, like show them where to take their pulse and then have them take it again after racing the med students across the basketball court–boy did their eyes light up when they saw how much it changed. I’ve also worked with teen parents and their toddlers; in a few weeks, our guest speaker is a dental hygienist talking about proper oral care for toddlers.

There’s a ton you can do. The most important thing for you to do is to find what you’re passionate about and continue to develop it! You will create a much stronger application and have a much easier time communicating your motivations if you’re working with people you care about through agencies you support.

And for people who say you have to volunteer in a hospital or your application is sunk–I can think of quite a few classmates in addition to myself who have never once formally volunteered in a hospital :)