Hi everyone,
Im currently a junior in high school and I got rejected from a few summer programs and I doubt professors are still accepting students to intern/volunteer in their labs. So I was wondering, how important is having research experience when applying for college? Do I still have a chance of getting into top schools without it?
Outside of research, I am President of CSF and Officer for NHS, am involved in leadership and music and have a 4.0 uw GPA having taken 8 AP classes so far.
Research certainly looks good, but it’s still just another extracurricular, and there’s no checklist of extracurriculars colleges are looking for.
Try pursuing internships, or independent projects on your own. Anything works, really, as long as you’ve deeply devoted yourself to it and made some sort of impact.
That’s reassuring! I want to pursue a career in medicine so I’d probably major in bio/chem or pre-med in colle. What sort of independent projects could I pursue related to that?
Also could I get in with an independent project that’s not biochem related?
If you want to have a career in medicine, you should prioritize patient facing experience over research. I am certain you can find volunteer work in a hospital or long term care facility working with patients in some capacity. You could also become an assistant CNA.
I wouldn’t say it is too late to find a professor to work with. I emailed and got a mentor about this time last year. Just send out a lot of emails to professors in your local area (or further out if you have family/friends you could stay with) based on your interest (bonus tip: mention the name of an article they wrote). Alternatively, you could reach out to department chairs.
pre-med is not a major. It is just a label you give yourself meaning you plan on taking the dozen or so lower-division classes required to apply to med school. People do this with any major from Archaeology to Zoology.
The real question to address at this point is why an M.D? When a lot of HS kids think of a career in medicine it becomes “I’m pre-med!” and happily embark on a track that will take 11+ years of school/training plus enormous debt. Doctors are far from the only ones in the health field that help people. Physical therapists, radiology techs, nurses, speech pathologists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, to name but just a few. as you can see on http://explorehealthcareers.org Unless you’ve considered the alternatives and spent time actually working in a health care setting (which is an unwritten requirement to get into med school, BTW) its better to think of yourself as interested in exploring a career as a doctor rather than someone who has already made the decision.
It is probably not too late to line up a volunteer position for this summer that is at least part-time, hopefully one you can continue during school next year.
@cram545 Wow that makes me feel better. Most of the universities in my area have research programs, and high school students can’t do research outside of those programs (for legal issues) so I will probably email professors out of state and get a research position at another university then.
If you’re interested in clinical medicine then getting some firsthand experience working face to face with patients woud be a great use of your summer. Doing a medical internship, summer program, or community service project in high school can help you decide if medicine is the right track for you. Hospitals, the American Red Cross, assisted living centers, etc. all great options.
Another possibility might be to shadow a doctor in your area. You could reach out to any friends or family who work in the medical field or who might know any doctors whom you could shadow.Your own pediatrician might be a resource! Also, ask your school’s academic advisor if they know other students who shadowed a doctor and could give you more information. If your school can’t help you, get in touch with your hospital directly to see if they can help you set up a job shadowing opportunity.