Here are two Volunteer Programs available to us:
1) This came through the Biochem classes' list-serve.
Collegiate Medical Volunteer Program at County Hospital Downtown
If you are interested in:
--pursing a career as a health professional
--gaining valuable experience in a major metropolitan hospital
--shadowing a team of physicians and residents
--rotating through 3 different departments in the course of one year
(Internal Medicine, OB-GYN, and Pediatrics)
Application/Information Sessions
Two information sessions held (choose one):
--Monday, 4-30-07 at 7 pm
--Tuesday, 5-1-07 at 7 pm
Where?
Los Angeles County + USC Medical Center
General Auditorium 1645
1200 N. State Street
Los Angeles, CA 90033
*Mandatory if accepted*
Orientation/Training on May 12, 2007, 8:30 am to 3 pm
Department Specific Training: TBA
All majors are welcome.
You must attend one of the two information sessions to apply. You must be a college student, 18+, and have a GPA of 3.0 or better. For more information, please call 323-226-6945.
2) Clinical Care Extender Volunteer Program
√ Interested in medicine or the health care field?
√ Looking for a way to give back to your community?
√ Want hands-on experience in hospital departments?
Join the hospital’s patient care team as a Clinical Care Extender intern:
Maternal Child Health- Rotate through Labor & Delivery, Pediatrics, the Mother Baby Care Unit & NICU
Emergency Medicine- Develop your skills in one of the busiest Emergency Rooms in Van Nuys.
Surgery- Observe different procedures in the Operating Room, Gastro-Intestinal Services, and Labor & Delivery
Take advantage of other opportunities as a Clinical Care Extender Intern:
♦ Pre-Nursing- Scholarships to nursing schools are available.
♦ Pre-Physical Therapy- Interact with Physical Therapists.
♦ Pre-Med- Take a free mini MCAT Prep Course by Berkeley Review, interact with MDs, etc.
♦ CCE Internships tailored to Pre-Physician’s Assistant, Pre-Allied Health, Hospital Administration, Public Health, and other healthcare fields are available
More information at:
http://copehealthsolutions.org/services/hwt/CCE%20Program/Hospitals/ValleyPres/register.html
Reservations are required for all Interviews. They will be held May 9th– June 30th. To sign up for an interview, please visit:
https://instant-scheduling.com/sch.php?kn=9543
and click on “2007C VPH CCE Interviews (1h).”
For additional information, contact:
Matt Landon at vphapdrt@copepartnershwt.org
PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
Immunizations:
Hepatitis B Series: Must have completed the series of three shots or be in the process of completing the series by the time you start the first shift.
MMR: Must have two by the time you start your first shift.
TB Test: Must have been taken within the last six months (if positive, must provide the results of a chest x-ray).
CPR: Must have American Heart Association (AHA) CPR certification that covers adults, infants, and children.
You must be 18 years or older to participate.
You must be enrolled in, accepted to, or graduated from an accredited college or university.
You must have an active e-mail account (checked at least twice weekly).
You must be able to volunteer 4 hours per week.
If accepted, you must attend the 3-day mandatory training dates:
Saturday, July 28th
Sunday, July 29th
Sunday, August 5th
Additionally:
♦ Leadership Opportunities are available
♦ Clinical Care Extender’s who complete at least 240 hours and graduate from the program are eligible for a Letter of Recommendation!
Friday, April 27, 2007
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Thank You to Dr. Nassar and Dr. Doucette!
We just wanted to give a big Thank You to Dr. Antonio Nassar, prof of the Physics Series at UCLA Extension and to Dr. Pete Doucette, prof of the Biochem Series at UCLA Extension and Chem courses at SMC. These two excellent educators have been instrumental in spreading the word about the club! THANK YOU!!
Tanya & Sara
Tanya & Sara
My Experience Taking the MCAT
Hi, everyone! Sara here! I took the April 16th MCAT at the Culver City location and I am still decompressing...but I wanted to give you details on what it was like.
There are two or three rooms of about 16 computer stations each. We have no control of which room we take the MCAT in, and unfortunately, one of the rooms has cubicles where the test-takers can see the person across from them. Luckily, I wasn't in that room.
I arrived at 10:40am, put my snacks and keys in the locker, got my picture taken, had my fingerprints recorded, and went into the testing room to start the 12pm MCAT at 10:55am. They're really lax about letting you go in whenever you're ready. There were two people already in the room, finishing some other standardized test. I was the first MCAT-er to enter and was seated in the back corner which meant that no one would walk past me during the test.
Unfortunately, my computer monitor was a flickering, glass-covered antique, so I was distracted at first. I could have moved seats, but I opted to stay because I'd be more distracted by people walking past me during their breaks.
I put in the ear plugs and put on the orange sound-reducing headphones. I couldn't hear a thing past the bizarre vacuum sound that comes with the headphones. Happily, I got used to it very quickly.
You cannot take a jacket or sweater off inside the testing room, but you CAN take it off outside of the room. I ended up leaving my jacket in the locker after the first section. The room was kept at a very even temperature.
I had a booklet of pink scratch paper. I believe it was 3 or 4 pages total. You could get a new booklet for each section if you wanted. Two sharp pencils were sitting at the computer station.
Starting the MCAT, I was thrown a bit by the format. It isn't like the AAMC online practice tests. Take a look at the following links:
http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/differences.htm
http://www.prometric.com/demos/mcat/index.htm
My nerves got the best of me during the first section (Physical Sciences) and I was wasting time re-reading questions and second-guessing myself even when I knew the answers. There were a lot more conceptual questions than I had expected. I calmed down for the second section (Verbal) and even more for the Writing Section. The Biological Sciences section was a combination of Bio/O.Chem and Verbal. One passage in particular felt like in should have been in the Verbal Section.
I took about eight minutes of the ten provided between each section, even if I didn't need the break. I grabbed my water and granola bars from my locker and noshed a bit, hit the bathroom, and then returned to the testing room and just sat there until I was ready to hit END BREAK.
A note of caution: DO NOT PULL YOUR CELL PHONES OR NOTES OUT DURING BREAKS. It's in the AAMC MCAT Rules that we cannot study in between sections, and the people who run the testing centers know this. If they see you with notes or with cell phones, they may write you up, and your scores will have some note attached to them for all med school adcoms to see.
After the test was over, all I could focus on were the questions I didn't know. I felt awful. I was happy to discover that this was the normal reaction for most MCAT-ers. It's still another few weeks until I get my scores, and until then, I'll just try not to think about how I did.
What I would have done differently:
1) more practice tests to make it feel more routine...of course, I don't know if that would have helped...
2) practice tests on many different computer screens, so that I wouldn't be as thrown as when I started the real MCAT. I got so used to taking the practice tests on my computer screen with my font and font size...
3) more time on preparing for the NERVES aspect before taking the test
4) read and practiced more essay prompts. One of the prompts I got was almost identical to one that I did as practice, so I was all set. The other one threw me because I had never practiced an essay from that topic area or had even checked out any prompts from that topic area.
5) more practice at rounding numbers
6) concentrated more on concepts and trends across the disciplines
7) been prepared to comment on the testing experience. They give you a survey after the MCAT and I typed in a short comment about my flickering monitor, but I wish I had taken the time to really write all my issues down about the experience. This being the first year of all CBT MCATs, it's important for AAMC to know the differences from facility to facility, monitor to monitor...
If you have any questions, ask away!
Good luck,
Sara
There are two or three rooms of about 16 computer stations each. We have no control of which room we take the MCAT in, and unfortunately, one of the rooms has cubicles where the test-takers can see the person across from them. Luckily, I wasn't in that room.
I arrived at 10:40am, put my snacks and keys in the locker, got my picture taken, had my fingerprints recorded, and went into the testing room to start the 12pm MCAT at 10:55am. They're really lax about letting you go in whenever you're ready. There were two people already in the room, finishing some other standardized test. I was the first MCAT-er to enter and was seated in the back corner which meant that no one would walk past me during the test.
Unfortunately, my computer monitor was a flickering, glass-covered antique, so I was distracted at first. I could have moved seats, but I opted to stay because I'd be more distracted by people walking past me during their breaks.
I put in the ear plugs and put on the orange sound-reducing headphones. I couldn't hear a thing past the bizarre vacuum sound that comes with the headphones. Happily, I got used to it very quickly.
You cannot take a jacket or sweater off inside the testing room, but you CAN take it off outside of the room. I ended up leaving my jacket in the locker after the first section. The room was kept at a very even temperature.
I had a booklet of pink scratch paper. I believe it was 3 or 4 pages total. You could get a new booklet for each section if you wanted. Two sharp pencils were sitting at the computer station.
Starting the MCAT, I was thrown a bit by the format. It isn't like the AAMC online practice tests. Take a look at the following links:
http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/differences.htm
http://www.prometric.com/demos/mcat/index.htm
My nerves got the best of me during the first section (Physical Sciences) and I was wasting time re-reading questions and second-guessing myself even when I knew the answers. There were a lot more conceptual questions than I had expected. I calmed down for the second section (Verbal) and even more for the Writing Section. The Biological Sciences section was a combination of Bio/O.Chem and Verbal. One passage in particular felt like in should have been in the Verbal Section.
I took about eight minutes of the ten provided between each section, even if I didn't need the break. I grabbed my water and granola bars from my locker and noshed a bit, hit the bathroom, and then returned to the testing room and just sat there until I was ready to hit END BREAK.
A note of caution: DO NOT PULL YOUR CELL PHONES OR NOTES OUT DURING BREAKS. It's in the AAMC MCAT Rules that we cannot study in between sections, and the people who run the testing centers know this. If they see you with notes or with cell phones, they may write you up, and your scores will have some note attached to them for all med school adcoms to see.
After the test was over, all I could focus on were the questions I didn't know. I felt awful. I was happy to discover that this was the normal reaction for most MCAT-ers. It's still another few weeks until I get my scores, and until then, I'll just try not to think about how I did.
What I would have done differently:
1) more practice tests to make it feel more routine...of course, I don't know if that would have helped...
2) practice tests on many different computer screens, so that I wouldn't be as thrown as when I started the real MCAT. I got so used to taking the practice tests on my computer screen with my font and font size...
3) more time on preparing for the NERVES aspect before taking the test
4) read and practiced more essay prompts. One of the prompts I got was almost identical to one that I did as practice, so I was all set. The other one threw me because I had never practiced an essay from that topic area or had even checked out any prompts from that topic area.
5) more practice at rounding numbers
6) concentrated more on concepts and trends across the disciplines
7) been prepared to comment on the testing experience. They give you a survey after the MCAT and I typed in a short comment about my flickering monitor, but I wish I had taken the time to really write all my issues down about the experience. This being the first year of all CBT MCATs, it's important for AAMC to know the differences from facility to facility, monitor to monitor...
If you have any questions, ask away!
Good luck,
Sara
Friday, April 20, 2007
Complementary and Alternative Med (CAM)
Many of you know that I am a firm believer in studying all the healing arts available to us. Allopathic, Osteopathic, Homeopathic, Naturopathic, Eastern, Ayurvedic, Chiropractic--you name it, I want to learn it. Luckily for me and those of you that share this view, many allopathic (aka M.D.) schools in the US have incorporated complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) courses into their curricula as requirements or electives. Some schools that have done so for years (and some for decades) include Harvard, Georgetown, UCLA (and in fact, most of the UCs), U of Miami, Mt. Sinai, Brown, UMass, Tufts, UNebraska...the list goes on and on.
My hunting-and-gathering brought me to these links:
http://www.amsa.org/humed/CAM/CAM_search.cfm
This is a search engine for MD/DO/Eastern med schools that teach CAM courses. Unfortunately, it's not very up-to-date, so if you're interested in specific schools, search their websites.
All of these links below present info on the current relationship between CAM and US healthcare today.
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/whatiscam/
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/alternative-medicine/CM99999
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/therapy/CAM
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmccomplementalternmed/
http://www.kidshealth.org/teen/your_body/medical_care/alternative_medicine.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/altmed/interviews/eisenberg.html
Enjoy!
Sara
My hunting-and-gathering brought me to these links:
http://www.amsa.org/humed/CAM/CAM_search.cfm
This is a search engine for MD/DO/Eastern med schools that teach CAM courses. Unfortunately, it's not very up-to-date, so if you're interested in specific schools, search their websites.
All of these links below present info on the current relationship between CAM and US healthcare today.
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/whatiscam/
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/alternative-medicine/CM99999
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/therapy/CAM
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmccomplementalternmed/
http://www.kidshealth.org/teen/your_body/medical_care/alternative_medicine.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/altmed/interviews/eisenberg.html
Enjoy!
Sara
Websites We Know and Love
If you don't know these websites yet, check them out! You'll need them!
The Homepage for AAMC:
http://www.aamc.org/
The link to AMCAS' Online Application for med schools:
http://www.aamc.org/audienceamcas.htm
The AAMC online practice MCATs and MCAT info:
http://www.e-mcat.com/
The following are websites that we frequent to find info for and from non-trads!
The Student Doctor Network which has a specific forum for Non-Traditionals:
http://www.studentdoctor.net/
The Mom MD website:
http://www.mommd.com/premed.shtml
The online medical community Tiromed:
http://www.tiromed.com/index.php?promo=2518
www.oldpremeds.org
-The name speaks for itself! They are having a conference outside of Chicago this June. I (Tanya) went to the one in DC last year and it was very beneficial to me. I met my advisor there, several non-trad. MD and DO's, fellow students, heard from great speakers, met recruiters from MD/DO schools, Kaplan/TPR, etc...if you can make it this year, it's worth it. Check the website for more details and the speaker line up.
www.judycolwell.com
-Amazing pre-med advisor, especially for non-trad.'s. I (Tanya again) hired her and she has been a big help to me. She used to be on the adcom @ Stanford.
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/medicine/education-faq/part1/
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/medicine/education-faq/part2/
Thanks to Kris for the following...
Application process (MD and DO)
http://www.osteopathic.org/
http://career.ucla.edu/GraduateSchool&PreProfessionalServices/ApplicationProcess.asp
http://web.princeton.edu/sites/hpa/index.html
http://www.mdapplicants.com/selectschool.php
http://www.aamc.org/students/cim/specialties.htm
DO info
http://www.osteopathic.org/index.cfm?PageID=ado_whatis
http://career.ucla.edu/GraduateSchool&PreProfessionalServices/Osteopathic.asp
Foreign medical school guide
http://www.sunysb.edu/healthed/foreign.html
Summer research/pre-medical programs
http://www.smdep.org/
http://www.cityofhope.org/SummerStudent
http://www.training.nih.gov/student/sip/
http://ssrp.stanford.edu/
http://saa.ucsf.edu/summerprogram/applicants/index.html
http://www.rit.edu/~gtfsbi/Symp/premed.htm
http://hpap.syr.edu/spstate.htm
http://www.healthcareers.org/main/index.htm
Post-bac program list
http://services.aamc.org/postbac/
https://meded-postbac.ucsd.edu/index.cfm?curpage=home
http://hpap.syr.edu/pblist.htm
Clinical volunteer programs (Los Angeles area)
http://healthcare.ucla.edu/shared/volunteering/
Pre-Medical Association
http://www.amsa.org/premed/
MD/PhD and DO/PhD guides
http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_development/previous_issues/articles/2590/the_m_d_ph_d_an_academic_path_to_a_career_as_a_physician_scientist/(parent)/12095
http://www.physicianscientists.org/Training_Programs/DO-PhD.html
http://www.mdphds.org/guide.shtml
Please post a comment with any other links you guys know of! Thanks!
The Homepage for AAMC:
http://www.aamc.org/
The link to AMCAS' Online Application for med schools:
http://www.aamc.org/audienceamcas.htm
The AAMC online practice MCATs and MCAT info:
http://www.e-mcat.com/
The following are websites that we frequent to find info for and from non-trads!
The Student Doctor Network which has a specific forum for Non-Traditionals:
http://www.studentdoctor.net/
The Mom MD website:
http://www.mommd.com/premed.shtml
The online medical community Tiromed:
http://www.tiromed.com/index.php?promo=2518
www.oldpremeds.org
-The name speaks for itself! They are having a conference outside of Chicago this June. I (Tanya) went to the one in DC last year and it was very beneficial to me. I met my advisor there, several non-trad. MD and DO's, fellow students, heard from great speakers, met recruiters from MD/DO schools, Kaplan/TPR, etc...if you can make it this year, it's worth it. Check the website for more details and the speaker line up.
www.judycolwell.com
-Amazing pre-med advisor, especially for non-trad.'s. I (Tanya again) hired her and she has been a big help to me. She used to be on the adcom @ Stanford.
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/medicine/education-faq/part1/
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/medicine/education-faq/part2/
Thanks to Kris for the following...
Application process (MD and DO)
http://www.osteopathic.org/
http://career.ucla.edu/GraduateSchool&PreProfessionalServices/ApplicationProcess.asp
http://web.princeton.edu/sites/hpa/index.html
http://www.mdapplicants.com/selectschool.php
http://www.aamc.org/students/cim/specialties.htm
DO info
http://www.osteopathic.org/index.cfm?PageID=ado_whatis
http://career.ucla.edu/GraduateSchool&PreProfessionalServices/Osteopathic.asp
Foreign medical school guide
http://www.sunysb.edu/healthed/foreign.html
Summer research/pre-medical programs
http://www.smdep.org/
http://www.cityofhope.org/SummerStudent
http://www.training.nih.gov/student/sip/
http://ssrp.stanford.edu/
http://saa.ucsf.edu/summerprogram/applicants/index.html
http://www.rit.edu/~gtfsbi/Symp/premed.htm
http://hpap.syr.edu/spstate.htm
http://www.healthcareers.org/main/index.htm
Post-bac program list
http://services.aamc.org/postbac/
https://meded-postbac.ucsd.edu/index.cfm?curpage=home
http://hpap.syr.edu/pblist.htm
Clinical volunteer programs (Los Angeles area)
http://healthcare.ucla.edu/shared/volunteering/
Pre-Medical Association
http://www.amsa.org/premed/
MD/PhD and DO/PhD guides
http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_development/previous_issues/articles/2590/the_m_d_ph_d_an_academic_path_to_a_career_as_a_physician_scientist/(parent)/12095
http://www.physicianscientists.org/Training_Programs/DO-PhD.html
http://www.mdphds.org/guide.shtml
Please post a comment with any other links you guys know of! Thanks!
Successful Non-Trad Applicant Thread on SDN
Hi, everyone!
Here's a link to an informative forum thread on SDN for non-trads like us! Successful non-traditional med school applicants have posted their experiences with the application procedure. They discuss all the major segments of applying--GPA, MCAT, LORs (Letters of Rec), ECs (Extracurriculars), Personal Statements, and Interviews.
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=321873
It's well worth the read!
Here's a link to an informative forum thread on SDN for non-trads like us! Successful non-traditional med school applicants have posted their experiences with the application procedure. They discuss all the major segments of applying--GPA, MCAT, LORs (Letters of Rec), ECs (Extracurriculars), Personal Statements, and Interviews.
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=321873
It's well worth the read!
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
MCAT Prep Course Links
In no particular order, here are some MCAT prep course links. If you have info or opinions on any of them, please post a comment!
The Berkeley Review
http://www.berkeley-review.com/
The Princeton Review
http://www.princetonreview.com/home.asp
Kaplan Review
http://www.kaptest.com/Kaplan/3/Pre-Med/MCAT
Examkrackers
http://www.examkrackers.com/
The Berkeley Review
http://www.berkeley-review.com/
The Princeton Review
http://www.princetonreview.com/home.asp
Kaplan Review
http://www.kaptest.com/Kaplan/3/Pre-Med/MCAT
Examkrackers
http://www.examkrackers.com/
Letter Services
Hello, members!
It has come to our attention that some of you may not know about letter-sending services. When you are requested by med school adcoms (admission committees) to send in your LORs (Letters of Rec) during secondaries, you can either send the LORs yourself which we've heard is a major pain in the derriere (...just imagine sending all 6 letters to all 30 of the schools that you have applied to...and what do you do in terms of waiving your right to see the letters? Ask your evaluators to give you 30 sealed envelopes of their letter? Ask THEM to send the letters for you?), OR you can have a letter service do all the collecting, copying, and sending for you.
Every 4-yr undergraduate institution tends to have a letter-sending service. Many small private colleges don't charge for the service even for alumni of many years past. Unfortunately, you public university graduates will more than likely have to pay for the service at your alma maters. There are also private letter-sending services like Interfolio and VirtualEvals, but some schools don't take them while others do, so make sure you read these private companies' websites thoroughly before hiring them!
Strictly as UCLA Extension students and/or Concurrent students, we are not eligible for the UCLA service on campus.
Best of luck in all you do,
Tanya & Sara
I use the UCLA service. If you are a UCLA alumni then it is $75/year to enroll plus it's a few bucks for each letter you send. Probably about $5 per school or so. If anyone is a UCLA alumni you can sign up for it through the career center website. It has definitely made things easier because you can get a letter of rec. immediately and just have it stored until you are ready to apply.
-Tyler
It has come to our attention that some of you may not know about letter-sending services. When you are requested by med school adcoms (admission committees) to send in your LORs (Letters of Rec) during secondaries, you can either send the LORs yourself which we've heard is a major pain in the derriere (...just imagine sending all 6 letters to all 30 of the schools that you have applied to...and what do you do in terms of waiving your right to see the letters? Ask your evaluators to give you 30 sealed envelopes of their letter? Ask THEM to send the letters for you?), OR you can have a letter service do all the collecting, copying, and sending for you.
Every 4-yr undergraduate institution tends to have a letter-sending service. Many small private colleges don't charge for the service even for alumni of many years past. Unfortunately, you public university graduates will more than likely have to pay for the service at your alma maters. There are also private letter-sending services like Interfolio and VirtualEvals, but some schools don't take them while others do, so make sure you read these private companies' websites thoroughly before hiring them!
Strictly as UCLA Extension students and/or Concurrent students, we are not eligible for the UCLA service on campus.
Best of luck in all you do,
Tanya & Sara
I use the UCLA service. If you are a UCLA alumni then it is $75/year to enroll plus it's a few bucks for each letter you send. Probably about $5 per school or so. If anyone is a UCLA alumni you can sign up for it through the career center website. It has definitely made things easier because you can get a letter of rec. immediately and just have it stored until you are ready to apply.
-Tyler
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)