Save 10% on 1-on-1 MCAT Tutoring Before Our Price Increase on May 1st! | Book Here
A new application cycle is on the horizon, but with the pandemic, many students don’t have recent shadowing experience. Should they be worried?
Listen to this podcast episode with the player above, or keep reading for the highlights and takeaway points.
By the way, the episodes in this podcast are recordings of our Facebook Live that we do at 3 pm Eastern on most weekdays. Check out our Facebook page and like the page to be notified. Also, listen to our other podcasts on MedEd Media. If you have any questions, call me at 617-410-6747.
Q: “I want to talk to you about shadowing. I don’t have a lot of recent shadowing hours. I did a Global Brigades trip in 2018. That’s 40 hours of shadowing.
I also had another experience in an ER where I was floating around shadowing but I don’t have the documentation for that. So I can’t really use those hours. On my end, I was recording stuff but I don’t have contact with a supervisor there if they wanted to verify the hours. I don’t really know how much proof the medicals look for in an application anyway.”
A: Put someone down and you’ll be fine. There are no records or proof of anything that you have to submit. A lot of this is an honor system.
Q: “Is it too late to start getting more shadowing hours now? It would probably seem like I’m rushing into more hours right before applying or look like I’m trying to check off a box, which I’m not. But I also want to show them that I have hours.”
A: You have previous hours and Global Brigades is obviously a big organization. Whatever little shadowing you had at the ER is good. The fact that you have that is going to help with whatever little bit of hours you can get.
“With COVID, schools are aware of the lack of clinical experience and shadowing and the adjustments that they are needing to make.”Click To TweetI just had a conversation with a Director of Admissions at a DO school and that was the question that I brought up to her. I asked how they’re evaluating students who are coming forward, not only in the last application cycle but also this current application cycle for 2021-2022. All these students are going to have chunks of time missing from their application. And she said that is what it is and they’ll just figure it out. They’ll just have to make do.
Q: “Is the Global Brigades shadowing looked at differently since it was in Nicaragua where I went?”
A: It depends on the school. If it’s just “shadowing,” then it’s okay. There are some schools that would specifically say shadowing only counts if it’s in the U.S. The University of Utah is one of those schools off the top of my head that specifically says that.
“With international experiences, the biggest concern is talking about things that you did that you wouldn't be allowed to do here in the States.”Click To TweetWhat medical schools are concerned about when it comes to international experiences is when you’ve done things that aren’t allowed here in the country. For example, you scrubbed in on a surgery and you helped. You are the first-assist in the operation. But you wouldn’t be a first-assist here in this country unless you’re a surgical tech in your day job.
So talking about those types of things for an international trip is definitely looked down upon but shadowing experiences are probably going to be safe to talk about.
Now, our student says she’s an EMT. She has lots of clinical hours and volunteering outside of medical environments as well so she’s well-rounded.
“Shadowing is the least important of the important things, and clinical experience, being the most important.”Click To TweetClinical experience is the most important though because you’re putting yourself around patients. Shadowing gets super boring after a while because it’s just very passive.
That being said, a Harvard medical student, who used to be on the admissions committee at Harvard, said that one of their red flags that puts a hard stop for them is lack of shadowing. So again, it’s going to depend on the school.
Q: “For DO schools, do they like to see you shadow a DO? I don’t have any DO shadowing experience and I’m considering applying to DO schools.”
A: There are only two schools that “require” a letter from a DO which you obviously get from shadowing a DO. Ideally, you shadow one just so you can talk about it, but you don’t have to shadow a DO to apply to DO schools.
“You don't have to shadow a DO to apply to DO schools.”Click To TweetAgain, it’s going to be up to the individual schools to understand that there’s a lack of shadowing across the board. Even more so with DO’s because there are far fewer DOs in this country than MDs. It is what it is.
What you can do as well is research what Osteopathic Medicine is, what it entails, what OMT is, and be able to talk about those things and how they relate to you. So that when you apply, and you get an interview, or when there is a secondary question about Osteopathic Medicine, you’re able to talk about those things.
Q: “Talking about those things in a primary application, are you going to have as many spots to talk about them?”
A: For a primary application, there really isn’t any spot to talk about it. The personal statement doesn’t need to be catered to Osteopathic Medicine. There aren’t going to be any extra questions on the AACOMAS to talk about Osteopathic Medicine other than in the activity section if you have shadowed a deal.
Medical School HQ Facebook page
Medical School HQ YouTube channel
Instagram @MedicalSchoolHQ
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit
I just received my admission to XXXXX! This is unreal and almost feels like I am dreaming. I want to thank you for all of your help with my application. I cannot overstate how influential your guidance and insight have been with this result and I am eternally grateful for your support!
IM SO HAPPY!!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR HELP, IM INDEBTED TO YOU! Truly, thank you so much for all your help. Thank you doesnt do enough.
I want to take a few moments and thank you for all of your very instructive, kind and consistent feedback and support through my applications and it is your wishes, feedback, and most importantly your blessings that have landed me the acceptance!
I got into XXXXX this morning!!!! It still has not hit me that I will be a doctor now!! Thank you for all your help, your words and motivation have brought me to this point.
I wanted to once again express my heartfelt gratitude for your help in providing feedback during my secondary applications. Your guidance has been instrumental in my journey.
Just wanted to share my wonderful news! I received my first medical school acceptance! Thank you for all that you do for us Application Academy!!!
I am excited to tell you that I just got my third interview invite from XXXXX today! I can’t believe it. I didn’t even know if I was good enough to get one, let alone three – by mid-September. Thank you so much for all of your help and support up to this point; I would not be in this position without it!!
I wanted to thank you for helping me prepare for my XXXXX interview. Even in a 30-minute advising session, I learned so much from you. Thank you for believing in me, and here’s to another potential success story from one of your advisees!
I just received an acceptance with XXXXX! This is so exciting and such a huge relief and so nice to have one of our top choice schools! I also received an interview with XXXXX which brings the total up to 20 interviews! Thank so much, none of this would have been possible without you!
Sale Ends In
