Pre-Med Extracurriculars for Medical School Application (& What I Did)

Getting good grades is just part of the equation for getting into medical school. Here’s how you should spend your free time in college. In this video, I go over extracurricular activities and tips on optimizing them for gaining admission to med school.

First, there is no magic bullet, there is no “one size fits all” when it comes to extracurriculars. Everyone’s activities will be different. That being said, you should have activities in each of the three major groups:
1. Clinical
2. Research
3. Personal

Clinical exposure helps you understand (and show admissions committees that you understand) what it means to be a physician. This includes volunteering, medical mission trips, etc.

Research can be basic or clinical. Having some publications under your belt will help you be a more competitive applicant.

Personal activities are whatever you want them to be. Sports, outdoor activities, dance, racing your car, etc.

Leave a comment below on what your extracurriculars are!

[heyheyloljk]

I have had a weird pre med journey because there was a time I gave up on my goal, but overall, I’ve been able to work as a pharmacy technician, became VP of a pre medical club for women, did research at a hospital (an opportunity I got through my club), held various positions in a cultural organization which I love, and I also just got a job as an ER scribe! My grades aren’t the best but I still have a lot of classes to go. Wish me luck! I wish you all luck!

[kendariouswells]

Oh my As an confused Pre-med student, you just don't know how bad I needed this video. Thank you so much for creating this. It's highly appreciated.

[yjking]

Super cool that you participated in a competitive dance team! I am a rising junior bio major deciding to pursue med school and leading a dance team of my own on campus! To hear that you made time for a dance team during your undergrad years while studying as a premed student is greatly encouraging!

[LuisFlores-czpq]

About to start my first semester of bio at lsu in August. This really helped get a understanding of things early! Thank u!!

[jonathanbraat]

as a powerlifter, i love this channel so much more now

[heatherschneps]

Thanks for this video! I’ve been putting a lot of time into captaining our club basketball team and was worried that to medical schools it might look like a waste of time. Great to know that both for my personal growth and from a leadership perspective while applying that it’s not.

[jmanjsn]

watching these videos from Northern Ireland as a factory engineer. I may not have a stressful or difficult a life as a doctor(money will make up for that) but I love seeing all these thoughts, ideas, facts, published like this. very interesting, thanks for sharing!

[yypigno]

At around 2:00 you mention international volunteering. I would advise all students to be wary about deciding to do this. Most of the time you end up spending $4000 on a trip to a third world country and handing out advil all day while playing doctor. Trips like these are considered "voluntourism." It is much more valuable to go on a non-clinical international trip paid for by a church or do work for underserved populations near you. After all, you will be learning and most likely practicing in the US so it is best to do your volunteering there.

I am not saying this as just for preference, some adcoms look down on voluntourism or any other service where you essentially pay thousands to hand out advil and wear a disposable stethescope for a week.

[rumshahlatif]

Thank you for these awesome insiders!!

[isaiahshipp]

Great videos! Keep it going, helps a lot.

[abdelhafedmorsli]

thank you it's very helpful .... I'm in second year medical school and for my extracurriculars , i'm a member of national medical association, I do fitness, guuitar, some research about anatomy and nutrition and food, i'm a volunteer too in red crescent

[priscillaose]

great video! it's so important to get the right balance. As a dental student, i also find it difficult at times to strike the right work/ activities balance because there's just not enought time to do so sometimes. i really like the tips you gave here ☺

[KinzaHussain]

This is a great video! Thank you for these insightful tips.

[rosscimagala]

Senior in college: taking a gap year, but planning on applying having worked as a barista my entire four years, 3 different international shadowing experiences (got to enter the OR during my semester abroad), volunteering at the food bank and a hospital, a year of research (if not more during my gap year) and working as a chemistry TA. Also founded/am vice president of a club about tea, haha. I have a bunch of random personal hobbies, including playing various instruments and calisthenics.

Nearing the end of my process of applying to med school. I used to be freaked out about not having enough or doing the "right things" that would get me in, but I've realized that there will always be people with more and people with less. Sure, there are some unseen prerequisites to garner favor, but at the end of the day it's what you're bringing to the table and how you present it.

[SummerFilms]

I’m a pre med student and some of my extracurriculars include: electric guitar, anatomy painting, bike riding, lifting weights and advocating scoliosis . I am Vice President of my college Medical and Natural Sciences Club and currently researching/innovating a modified treatment for scoliosis!😁 I will also be a part time phlebotomist soon and I’m loving it!

[zoinks]

I play guitar on my freetime and kickbox. Those two things relieve so much stress for me.

[aimeepadilla]

I never thought of personal hobbies also being important! I love research, however, and I'm participating in a STEM project at my college.

[saipanidarapu]

Solid vid, and rather insightful as opposed to the rest on yt. Thank you

[pencil]

AHH . THANK GOD . I thought I was the only medical student who loves graphic design and digital art . Much relief ☺️

[owenfeest]

Granted I’m just a freshman so this will probably all change over the years, but currently for clinical experience the vast majority of my free time is spent working or volunteering as an EMT. I have two jobs doing this, one of which is volunteer for a service at which l get to work with paramedics and watch and assist with advanced life support skills. My other job is a paid position where I respond to 911 calls in a larger city with just another EMT. Although I don’t get as many opportunities to see advanced procedures at this job, it offers me the opportunity to frequently be in charge of patient care, sometimes on very critically ill or injured patients. This experience of learning medical decision making, true assessment skills (not just taking vitals and letting your boss decide what they mean) and leadership under extreme pressure seems to me like a rare opportunity for premed students. As EMS is the reason I chose to pursue med school in the first place, a lot of my free time has been spent gaining as much EMT experience as possible. However, in my first semester of college I have also been elected as Red Cross club president for my school and begun shadowing a PA hospitalist who’s specific job is absolutely fascinating to me.