1. Stay away from college counselors and pre-med advisors. They are idiots. Period. Unless you have managed to find one that you love (??? although I've never heard of this??), just stay away. It's damaging to your psyche, and they generally don't know what the f$%^ they are talking about anyways. You're much better off to use the AAMC resources (get an MSAR for the current year.. that's a book with every requirement for every med school in the US (and Canada I think))... it has all the information you'll need... and you can start making lists of the places you'd like to go. Then you can target the schools that have comparable stats to yours.
2. When you finally start filling out the AMCAS, use every space possible and put as much information as you can. You get 15 spots to put "extra-curricular activities". I don't care if you've never done an extracurricular activity in your life (which hopefully isn't the case), but you better fill up EVERY SINGLE one of those spots. It doesn't have to be a traditional activity either (like you were an RA, played a sport, did research whatever). When I got to spot 11 I was pretty much done with my research and my "real" stuff... but I used those remaining spots to give a little "extra" about myself. I used one to describe my language skills, one to describe my interest in photography, etc. Use the space to give information that there's no way the AC would know about you otherwise. In fact on one of my interviews I was asked quite a bit about my photography interest in a casual way. Now, use this with caution... there are some things that you have to do correctly First, do NOT misrepresent your level of involvement or expertise in ANYTHING. That could be really hairy in an interview. I have a great camera, and I love taking photos... but I really don't know crap about photography. And I said as much in my blurb.... basically that I was an amateur photographer who had been blogging my own photos of my international travels for several years. Period. I did not say anything that would lead someone to think that I was a professional photographer, etc. Just be genuine and use the spot to express some of your interests. If you're a mom, use a space to describe your experiences and your kiddos. What's it going to hurt? As long as you're not taking space away from a slot that could have described your efforts to cure cancer, you've clearly described what you DID do, and you're not misrepresenting any facts... use the space wisely!!!
Remember your important, relevant stuff goes FIRST... then fill the rest with whatever you can come up with:
Other things pre-meds might forget to put in the spaces:
- international travels, missions, study abroad, language learning
- scientific papers (if you've published an article, list and describe it)
- unrelated business endeavors
- Certifications (EMT, lifeguard, swimming instruction, etc.)
- musical talent, sports interests, (did you ever do a race for a cure?)
3. This is for those of you struggling with deciding on your undergrad major. I was told to "do something you like"... but I didn't really understand it at the time. I chose political science because at my school it was a well respected major with lots of faculty involvement, I had some interest in politics, the coursework was pretty easy, and I thought it opened up a lot of doors even if I never made it to med school. Ok, great... maybe it was all those things, but really I didn't enjoy it. Not for one second. I knew I didn't want to major in bio or chem... too technical and boring (I didn't want to be a lab rat)... but the thought of actually getting a degree in something I LOVED didn't even occur to me because I thought they were "fluff" degrees. I loved travel, photography, art, and languages. My passion for medicine is of no doubt... and my science classes that I took for pre-med would help me make it to med school (where you REALLY learn the fusion of science and humanity)... but what the hell did political science do for me? NOTHING. I have never, I repeat NEVER, used any of my skills from my degree. If I could do it all over, I would either major in a language or photography... because those are two things outside of medicine that I desperately want to develop. I could have been taking photos all these years and getting paid while waiting for med school... or while IN med school. Or I could be completely fluent in a 2nd or 3rd language that would really help me to be a great physician. So my (much drawn out) point is to pick something you LOVE as an undergraduate... you'll never regret it as a physician.
And for those of you saying that you want a strong science background to be a great physician... that's fine. But do it only if you love it. Because the required pre-med classes are what gives you the strong foundation. Just those basic classes have given me a strong base from which to learn all the medicine I'll ever want to learn. If you want to learn more in-depth science by majoring in chem, bio, whatever.. (which is really only going to be useful for synthesizing new plastics, classifying cellular receptors, and mathematically proving the 5th dimension)... then go for it. But that won't make you one drop of a better doctor unless you really LOVE it.
