Asking for my D who is mostly interested in pre-med/ bs md programs. she was approached to work in a political campaign office this summer. does anyone know if doing political activities like this is helpful for college apps for bs md or pre-med? Or is it better just to do traditional volunteering? Thanks.
Your kid is applying to college, not medical school. Volunteering of any type is fine. It will be able to be listed on her application for undergrad school.
You mention “traditional volunteering”. What exactly do you mean by this?
You posted these activities on another thread. Your daughter is a HS junior…what is the breadth of these activities. IOW…how long did she shadow? Did she do this with a variety of specialties including primary care? What did she do volunteering for Hospice and for how long? What kind of work did she do in “lab research”?
The devil is in the details.
She is applying to BS/MD programs which have single digit acceptance rates. So…consider these applications a long shot.
@WayOutWestMom your thoughts?
It does not hurt as she may get more exposure to social issues as relates to healthcare in the society. This experience can be used in her bsmd essays. FYI, all MD applicants go through a criminal background check before matriculation to medical school.
They do? I’ve had to have a criminal background check done a number of times due to my job. Each time, I had to be fingerprinted at a police station or authorized fingerprinting site. There are lots of things I’m sure I don’t remember about my kid and Med school…but I honestly don’t recall this part.
Here is one medical school website’s requirements for accepted students
https://medicine.temple.edu/education/md-program/how-apply/accepted-students
Background Checks/Institutional Action Requirements for Matriculation
- Completion of a Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance and resolution of any reports of child abuse to the satisfaction of LKSOM. Instructions will be provided with pre-Orientation material.
- Completion of a Criminal Background Check and resolution of any reports of a criminal activity to the satisfaction of LKSOM: You will receive an email from Certiphi Screening, Inc. which contains instructions on how to begin the CBC. The email will contain the subject line: "Conditional Acceptance Background Check Consent Request." Should you be charged, convicted of, or plead guilty or no contest to a misdemeanor or felony crime after the date of your original AMCAS application submission, you are required to notify Dr. Jacob Ufberg in writing within 10 business days of the occurrence. This communication should be sent by certified mail to Dr. Ufberg at the address on the acceptance letter. Matriculation is contingent upon successful resolution of any reports of a criminal activity to the satisfaction of LKSOM.
- Should you become the subject of an institutional action after the date of your original AMCAS application submission, you are required to notify Dr. Jacob Ufberg in writing within 10 business days of the occurrence. This communication should be sent by certified mail to Dr. Ufberg at the address on the acceptance letter. Matriculation is contingent upon successful resolution of any reports of institutional action to the satisfaction of LKSOM.
Thank you all, where do you write the details of what you did on the college apps? The school counselors sent out sample resume and in that you just listed activities done but didn’t describe them. Is there a place to describe HS activities on common app? Thanks
It’s just a list. And not an endless one either. I forget how many activities you can list…but if your list is longer, you will need to prioritize what you put on the application.
This is the recommendation.
Looking more closely, if one has a criminal record, they are supposed to disclose this on their application.
There is a separate thread for BS/MD applications.
I suggest you post your question there.
There is a separate section on the common app where you list your activities but at the same time there is a limit to how many you can list. You can also submit your resume to most schools. Writing about important extracurriculars in essays will be where colleges learn the most about what you have done.
We had someone accepted into our program. It was not the school but the hospital where that person would be rotating who did the background check and found something that the applicant did not disclose. The hospital would not allow the student to have access to their patients, and so the applicant, although accepted, was let go. Hospitals have a duty to protect their patients.