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  • June 6, 2004 at 6:14 pm #21804
    pappy846
    Participant

    If I fail to get accepted into medical school my first year out of undergraduate school, I would definitely need to spend the time off making myself more desirable to med schools.

    So far, I have thought of the following possibilites:

    -Study and train to become an EMT (keep applying to med schools while doing this)

    -Travel, volunteer with the peace corps

    If anyone could think of any other possibilites, please let me know. Thank you!

    -Patrick

    June 6, 2004 at 6:22 pm #26281
    y82benji
    Participant

    I know a lot of people (including several starting this fall at Duke with me) that have gone to work in a lab for a year. It’s especially great if you can get your name on a paper or two.

    You could also try grad school to get more science education and show that you can pull a strong GPA with that level of work.

    Finally, I know a guy that got a job teaching high school biology for a year.

    June 6, 2004 at 6:24 pm #26282
    y82benji
    Participant

    As a follow-up to that research suggestion, the US Army has programs for students and recent grads to come work for a year or two in some of their labs under the tutelage of their scientists. The pay for those positions is decent and the experience is very good.

    June 6, 2004 at 11:05 pm #27149
    pappy846
    Participant

    my only problem is that I have been too busy with all my volunteering and gaining clinical experience and all my extra curriculars to gain lab experience…

    June 7, 2004 at 12:21 am #27151
    y82benji
    Participant

    I mention the last point, the US Army programs, because they are designed for students without much lab experience to be able to get in and get that lab experience. One program I participated in is the Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education (ORISE). I’m not sure if that is available nationwide, but I do know it is in the mid-Atlantic region of the eastern US. These programs are things you can do for a whole year or for just a summer. It might be a lot easier to fit in some lab experience in the summer than during the semester. And sometimes you can get paid too!

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