<p>I am a recent high school graduate and I will be attending university next year as a neuroscience major. I have been thinking about what I should be doing lately in terms of extracurriculars and I think a couple are pretty obvious choices that every pre-med student should be doing. I will definitely be volunteering at the university campus hospital, interning at a clinical research lab at the same hospital (I'm pretty sure I will prefer clinical research over bench) and shadowing a physician. But I was also wondering if, on top of those activities, I should tack on a couple clubs. I will be joining the HOSA chapter at the university I'm going to for sure as I have done HOSA in high school and enjoyed it very much but there are a ton of other academic STEM clubs that are available to join (WAY more than I can handle). I was wondering approximately how many clubs are a good amount for being a good candidate for med school and how involved I should be in each of them. To be completely honest, with volunteering, shadowing and interning on top of my classes and working, I won't have that much time to be seriously involved in a lot of clubs so I should definitely limit myself (when applying to colleges, I found that too many clubs are not good and I'm sure med schools are the same). So can anyone here give me some suggestions?</p>
<p>DS just finished his second year of med school. All of the things you have listed are good, but are basically just checklist items for a med school app. Find a club or activity that you have always wanted to try and which has nothing to do with medicine. DS joined the diving team as a walk on. Had always wanted to try it out. He loved it. Same for building robots and for a club that arranged anime conferences. When he went on med school interviews those activities were the ones the interviewers wanted to hear about. When he got acceptance phone calls these things were always mentioned as reasons for why the school wanted him. Do things YOU love. When it comes time to write essays your passion and well rounded background will impress admissions committees. Good luck.</p>
<p>There are pre-med clubs. If you are interested, check when you start school. Also, you will not be choosy in anything, you will be grabbing opportunities as they come, First in, First served. Another point to consider, while some can manage sport, my D. could not, she tried for freshman year, at the club level also. Her sport was one of her greatest passion and she was involved with it since she was 5 y o all thru graduating from HS. Just could not manage at college. You can try, see what happen. Yes, you should do what you LOVE (besides medical ECs, those grab as they come, opportunities will not last forever). Most UGs also work. D’s involvement in whatever pre-med club was very minimal and the least time consuming. She got absolutely nothing out of it, much less than she got out of her sorority participation, but she mentioned it in her application. Just remember, your primary focus is your college GPA, later MCAT score, personal growth and some reasonable ECs. </p>