Extra-curric. question

So, in the section for post-secondary experiences, we have up to 510 characters to describe each entry. Are these descriptions supposed to be mini-essays complete with personal reflection on the experience? Or should they just lay down the facts?
Oh, and can I assume that the details I include in this section will be READ by adcoms, thereby freeing up some space on my personal statement to discuss other things? Or no?
Thanks!

Andrea, in your other thread Tara has given what I think is good advice - to word these similarly to resume entries. (but think of a resume that could be used to apply to different fields, rather than one where the trade shorthand would be instantly recognizable) It should be brief, but not TOO terse.
I’ve told this anecdote elsewhere - I knew an AdCom member who found a HUGE discrepancy between the writing style in the PS vs. these entries - apparently the PS was quite smooth and polished, EC entries were virtually illiterate. Fairly or not, it raised the question of whether this applicant had outsourced the writing of the PS, and the application was ditched. So “terse” does not mean poor grammar. But it also doesn’t mean lyrical - I’d think few “feeling” words would be found on the EC descriptions.

Mary,
Thanks for the advice. I’d never sacrifice proper grammar, but it makes sense to me to have the EC section be as concise as possible. Glad to know that’s acceptable!
Andrea

I advise that the experience section is a place to include information in a different way that might be in the personal statement. For sure, don’t repeat information in both places verbatim. It’s a waste of an opportunity to give additional information. As far as the format of the exp. description, don’t repeat what’s already in the header, do put the most important information near the beginning of the description (these are read very quickly), and I think a “quasi-resume/quasi-narrative” style works well…usually.
And to comment on the differences in “voice” between the personal statement and the experiences. If an applicant “outsources” the personal statement, it (often) becomes apparent rather quickly if not in the writing style of the experiences then in the writing style of the secondary essays. All of it needs to be in your “voice.”
Cheers,
Judy

I’m a little stumped on what to include in this section. It seems to be one of those areas tailored to the 22 year old graduating senior. Is this where I include, for example, all of the health-related jobs I’ve had since college? the missions trips and community activities since college? If so, there isn’t really any room for the actual college extracurricular stuff, which I think pales in comparison. I think a week long mission trip to Miami is more significant than 2 years worth of monthly tri-Beta club meetings that I don’t recall at all. Any input would be helpful since I don’t have a pre-med advisor.
Thanks,
Alison

I would go for a balance of your activities to give the AdCom a better idea of how well-rounded you are.
Just a quick thought while on Step I study break. Hope it helps.
Tara

Include the activities that are most meaningful to you. Maybe you can group some of you college extracurricular activities in one or two entries so you can mention them briefly without using up, say, five slots for them.

Also you can combine stuff in the same “area” I put all my honors/scholarships together in one EC.

I am not as familiar with the layout of AMCAS any more, so this advice may not be quite right, but if I remember correctly there is a section for WORK experience and a different section for ECs, is that right? Any JOB (paid) should be in the work section… and I do think that if you’ve had lots of different work experiences, you can select those that were 1) most meaningful and 2) longest-lasting. You do want your application to show a chronology without any huge holes.
For the ECs, you do get to pick and choose those that really frame your application nicely and present various facets of your experience.
(again, if I’m off-base due to fading familiarity with the format, I apologize. I did see apps in the AdCom but by that point there was so much information in a file that I couldn’t necessarily distinguish AMCAS from secondary from additional stuff sent in.)
Mary

Quote:

I am not as familiar with the layout of AMCAS any more, so this advice may not be quite right, but if I remember correctly there is a section for WORK experience and a different section for ECs, is that right? Any JOB (paid) should be in the work section… and I do think that if you’ve had lots of different work experiences, you can select those that were 1) most meaningful and 2) longest-lasting. You do want your application to show a chronology without any huge holes.
For the ECs, you do get to pick and choose those that really frame your application nicely and present various facets of your experience.
(again, if I’m off-base due to fading familiarity with the format, I apologize. I did see apps in the AdCom but by that point there was so much information in a file that I couldn’t necessarily distinguish AMCAS from secondary from additional stuff sent in.)
Mary


I totally agree with Mary.
I was having problems with this myself. I got some good advice (believe it or not) from SDN. It had to do with my military background, but should carry over to other job-like work. I had not even THOUGHT to put much detail on my time in the military, but some who have been in my boat (haha no pun inteded - I WAS in the Navy) have said that listing different jobs/training/awards from service ended up giving them something to talk about at interviews.
I would say that yes, it says ‘Extra curricular’, and yes, it is geared for the 22 year old. But as Mary said, those “extra-curriculars” can be defined as “Employment/Military” or “Employjent/non-military”. I say put down things that will help round out who YOU are, and not just piddly little “I was in the drama club in college”. Type of stuff.
Sorry, got a bit excited . . . . guess you can tell I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately.
-Matt

Yeah I put ALL my military stuff under one secondary EC thingie block, then all my other employment under another, then all my school awards/honors/scholarships under another, and so forth. Combine combine combine…

Remember, these are experiences that are relevant to your application to medical school. So if you have to pick and choose, show balance of course, but in the example earlier, I would suggest that leaving out tri-Beta for a medical mission in Miami would be a good choice between those two. Combine where possible, but not to the point of jumbling where the reader is going to become confused. Above all else, MAKE IT EASY FOR THE READER. S/he is speeding through these the first time. Don’t make it difficult to understand. Frame the context whenever possible.
Cheers,
Judy

I have yet another question about EC activities. Mary, you said not to leave any huge gaps in employment, but do the AdComs really care that I waited tables repeatedly to pay the bills both while I was finishing college and while my husband was in seminary? or that I did work-study at the library in college? I want to put these things in because they help explain my less than stellar gpa since I couldn’t devote all my time to studying and being involved in pre-med activities, but they are somewhat, well, less than distinguished. They are also not in one continuous time period, so it’s hard to put a start and stop date to them as required. And can anyone think of a diplomatic way to put childrearing as an EC? It is certainly time consuming and has been my primary extracurricular activity since the end of my sophomore year!!


–Alison

Quote:

I have yet another question about EC activities. Mary, you said not to leave any huge gaps in employment, but do the AdComs really care that I waited tables repeatedly to pay the bills both while I was finishing college and while my husband was in seminary? or that I did work-study at the library in college? I want to put these things in because they help explain my less than stellar gpa since I couldn’t devote all my time to studying and being involved in pre-med activities, but they are somewhat, well, less than distinguished. They are also not in one continuous time period, so it’s hard to put a start and stop date to them as required. And can anyone think of a diplomatic way to put childrearing as an EC? It is certainly time consuming and has been my primary extracurricular activity since the end of my sophomore year!!
–Alison


Not to pester anyone, but could I get some input on this question?
Thanks,
Alison

I read Med Sch App advice that said put all experience in but frame it positively (rather than as a reason for not doing well in school–AdComs will figure that out themselves). Focus on what your positions taught you about yourself, human nature, managing multiple responsibilities, etc. Tailor “what you learned” to illustrate how your experience developed your character in a way that makes you perfect for a medical career. You can do this in a concise sentence as you state job responsibilities.
anita

In relation to jobs held while in college, I suppose what you could do is put a broad time frame, choose the heading “employment” and then your own heading of “work-study” or “work while student,” or something like that. Again, I am NOT familiar with how this stuff is entered into AMCAS so I don’t have any way to give more specific suggestions. See what efex said earlier about combining stuff when you need to.
Childrearing - I think this is better addressed in the personal statement, frankly. But if there’s a category from the pull-down menu in this EC section that you think would apply, I suppose you could try it. I’ll be honest, I’d find it a little too cute if I came across it. And since I took my own full-time mothering career pretty seriously, I’d be irked if someone else referred to it as an EC activity even though I totally understand what you mean.
You can address your particular balancing act of school, work, and children in a sentence or two in the PS. Note that someone pointed out you do not want to be using ECs as an excuse for bad grades. A sentence along the lines of, “I had to adjust to the demands of a new baby, a part-time job, and a full-time course load,” is the way to go. Now don’t anyone go and use this sentence, okay?!
Mary

Quote:

I have yet another question about EC activities. Mary, you said not to leave any huge gaps in employment, but do the AdComs really care that I waited tables repeatedly to pay the bills both while I was finishing college and while my husband was in seminary? or that I did work-study at the library in college? I want to put these things in because they help explain my less than stellar gpa since I couldn’t devote all my time to studying and being involved in pre-med activities, but they are somewhat, well, less than distinguished. They are also not in one continuous time period, so it’s hard to put a start and stop date to them as required. And can anyone think of a diplomatic way to put childrearing as an EC? It is certainly time consuming and has been my primary extracurricular activity since the end of my sophomore year!!
–Alison


Hi Alison,
I am going to agree with Mary on the childrearing. I would include it in the personal statement but I would leave it out of the employment record unless you were a paid childcare assistant in a Day Care facility. Work-study was designed NOT to interfere with studies. I would lump all of the work study positions together on a semester basis.
As for the waiting tables, put that in. Being able to handle yourself in a restaurant setting shows that you are good at multi-tasking. It also shows that you were employed and as Mary said, it fills in the gaps. You don’t have to be specific as to exact start and end dates but month and year would suffice.
If you did something like odd jobs for the elderly folks in your neighborhood, you could lump that together and call it something like neighborhood assistant especially if you got paid. I would briefly describe it as it would be a positive thing even if you were hauling groceries, emptying trash or cleaning house. It would also show that you were interested in community work. Do you get my drift? Almost any employment experience can be made positive as long as you were paid. If you were not paid, it goes under volunteering. Take a piece of paper and list all of your in-between jobs. Come up with a description for them and lump them together.
I hope that this helps!
Natalie
P.S. I would leave any mention of “less-than-stellar GPA” out of your application or personal statement. Anyone on an admissions committee will be able to see if you had the demands of motherhood, work-study, family life and full-time college that your GPA might suffer, if you have filled out your application properly. In short, don’t put anything “negative” on your application. Some things that you think are negative might actually be seen in a positive light unless you draw attention to them as a negative.

Thanks for the responses. I’m fairly straight forward most of the time, so the marketing aspect of the application is somewhat difficult for me. I appreciate your comments. They will help me direct my statements in a way that portrays a positive perspective.
Thanks!!
–Alison

Quote:

Thanks for the responses. I’m fairly straight forward most of the time, so the marketing aspect of the application is somewhat difficult for me. I appreciate your comments. They will help me direct my statements in a way that portrays a positive perspective.
Thanks!!
–Alison


This prompts me to echo something that OldManDave likes to say as his main piece of advice to non-trads: Do not apologize for your past. The application is not the place to confess your sins or point out your failings. It’s the place to put a positive spin on what you’ve done to get so far that now you’re applying to medical school with your head held high, and conviction in your heart that you are able to do this very challenging and rewarding thing.* No excuses, no apologies.
Mary
*If YOU are not convinced that you are worthy of this endeavor, you cannot convince others. Your first selling job is to yourself.