Hey! Im a Junior interested in pursuing a career in medicine in the future, and I would love some advice about college applications and extracurricular activities, I have been looking into bs/md programs, more specifically the rice/baylor 8 year program, and wanted to see if anyone had suggestions about what extracurriculars to get involved in this year! As a background, I am currently on the debate team at my school, do research at a medical school in my state, co founded my own non-profit organization, and volunteer at the healthcare building at a nursing home! Thank you so much!
Within your existing extracurriculars, I'd suggest deepening your commitments. For instance, registering your non-profit if you haven't already, or achieving a goal or metric in terms of people helped, money raised, etc. will legitimize it more in the eyes of admissions officers. Similarly, if your research gets published, this will demonstrate achievement beyond merely being an active participant.
If you're looking to get involved in more extracurriculars, I would suggest expanding on your current commitments to cultivate a spike. For instance, is there something you can do in order to pursue the particular field of medicine you eventually want to work in? Or, is there a way you can get more involved in debate, either by getting involved in competitions or gaining a leadership position within the organization? You can also expand your non-profit by starting a long-term initiative.
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@VV395, thanks for editing your question! For BS/MD, and healthcare in general, it's important to have a solid foundation in volunteering and the sciences. Your research and volunteer/non-profit extracurriculars are right up the alley of what a pre-med student needs to demonstrate skills that would be transferable to an MD. That being said, BS/MD programs are extremely competitive, and you really need standout extracurriculars in order to make your application unique.