Is volunteering or working at a hospital better pre-med?

<p>My mother's boss (she is an E.R. nurse) said that he wouldn't mind giving me a summer job working in the E.R. but he also said there were things I could do as a volunteer if I prefer.</p>

<p>I want to either work or volunteer 20 hours a week (part-time) for the four months I have off for summer.</p>

<p>My question is would medical schools be more interested in volunteer work at a hospital or work experience?</p>

<p>Clinical experience is clinical experience. It doesn’t matter if it’s paid or volunteer work.</p>

<p>So long as you will have other volunteer service (which doesn’t need to be medical) on your CV by the time you apply, you should choose whichever you prefer to do for this summer.</p>

<p>what you actually are doing is far, far, far more important than whether or not you’re paid for it.</p>

<p>I just wanted to know if there was a preference. I think I would like volunteering more because the hours would be more flexible but if I did get paid I think I could reduce my loans so I wouldn’t have to get money for textbooks.</p>

<p>The call is yours.</p>

<p>Personally, I’d take the paid hours if the $$ went towards reducing the amt of loans you’d need to take in the fall.</p>

<p>Also in the current economic environment, it’s a big plus to have a history of employment.</p>

<p>Job is always superior on my list to anything else. I would not hesitate a minute.</p>

<p>Whichever offers more clinical experiences and first-hand interactions with patients. If volunteering means working in the supply closet today and being a runner tomorrow, it may not offer the level of experience. Likewise, if a paid position means entering records… You get the point. Get as close to the real action as you can.</p>

<p>BTW, you have mentioned flex hours for volunteering, so why not to do both?</p>