<p>I'm a freshman at USC majoring in International Relations and hoping to attend med school. There's no pre-med major here and I've actually just truly decided to committ myself to a future in medicine, something I've been thinking about for a long time. Can anyone tell me what would be the best volunteer positions/ jobs that would help build my med school app. I've just applied to work for the USC health center because I have work-study and need a job but I'd like to do something in a hospital to gain some experience. But do I need prior skills and work experience to get these sort of jobs? Also should I get certified as an EMT-B or otherwise? One more question, I'm really afraid of taking chemistry; i never took it in high school and I'm not sure how I'll do.. would you advise taking it over the summer at a community college for practice? Any other suggestions? </p>
<p>Volunteering/jobs:
If you can get in at the USC health center as a freshman on work study, that seems like a good idea. You should be able to work with patients in some way there; that will count. The EMT route is not supposed to be that helpful in med school applications.</p>
<p>Try finding some kind of volunteer work that you can continue with, perhaps at a nursing home, Planned Parenthood, or something like that, maybe once a week. My D (applying to med school this cycle) volunteers at a day care program for the elderly one afternoon per week.</p>
<p>Chemistry:
My D also did not take any chemistry in high school. She started in college with Introduction to Chemistry, designed for those with no background.The one semester course covered the same work as a year of high school chemistry. This was a good choice as she was then more prepared to start college chemistry work. Try to take this spring semester so you don't get behind in your chem coursework. Then regular chem. soph. year, organic chem junior year, one semester biochemistry senior year (recommended by many medical schools).</p>
<p>You just have to be really determined about chemistry. My D hasn't liked it, but she got through it. Go to see professors and TAs at their office hours, attend study sessions, get help at tutoring center. Try not to take too many lab sciences at once.</p>
<p>As for chemistry, you will probably be fine. However, you can certainly audit a class at a community college/local university over the summer (I'm guessing that's what you mean by practice).</p>
<p>this spring i have to take writing along with a social issues class, which is a freshman requirement, and then an international relations class for my major, and i was planning on taking bio. so far i feel behind because i have no pre-med requirements completed. Do you mean that if i dont start taking chem this spring i won't be able to get in everything i need to know before the MCATs? Would summer school here at 'SC be a good idea? Or could I possibly take bio or chem this summer at San Jose State (im from SJ) and have it count for pre-med? The last thing I want is to be behind and not adequately prepared for the MCAT</p>
<p>Remember, you don't have to apply to medical school right after you finish college if time becomes an issue. As far as bio vs chem, you want to start chem first, because you need to take 2 years of it (including organic), whereas you only need a year of bio. Yes, you could probably take one or the other at san jose, but you would need to work that out beforehand with the registrar to make sure you get credit.</p>
<p>1.) Actually you wouldn't need to transfer the credits to SC in order for them to count as premed requirements.</p>
<p>2.) I generally don't like summer courses because you have all year to take courses; summers are for research and clinical exposure.</p>
<p>3.) If you must take a summer course, it's better to do so at your home institution, because then it's evaluated in the same way as the rest of your transcript. There's no concern that you're "running away" to do your tough coursework.</p>
<p>4.) Remember, the MCAT is not a content-centered test. Sure, you have to know the stuff, but that's not the most important part of the test. If you haven't totally finished all your courses, then that's not necessarily something you need to worry about yet.</p>
<p>5.) Sometimes being a pre-med means taking heavy courseloads. Four classes at once would hardly be unheard of.</p>