How taking a gap year helped me get into Harvard Medical School

gap year Health Professions medical school admissions
By Ruby G.

I would not be where I am today, at Harvard Medical School, if I hadn’t taken a gap year after college. If you’re thinking about taking one but still on the fence about it, here are some reasons for why I took a gap year and how I feel about that decision looking back today.  

Why I decided to take a gap year

Stress reduction

If I had wanted to go straight through, I would have had to take the MCAT and submit my application by the end of junior year. I would have been flying out for interviews throughout senior year, along with completing my senior thesis, courses, and extracurriculars. Instead, by choosing to take a gap year, I was able to fully participate in courses and activities through all 4 years of college, saving myself the stress of cramming these things into 3 years. 

I wanted to explore my passions

Let’s face it – college is hard. It’s hard to find the time to pursue that research project that really interests you, or the volunteer program you’re excited about, when you’re balancing everything else that happens in college. It was amazing to be able to focus on just my research (at the UCSF Breast Care Center) for an entire year. 

I wanted to take a breather.

My gap year job was a 9-5 position, which meant that I had the freedom to hang out with friends, exercise, and cook (even on weekdays)! I can thank all the self-care I did during this year for feeling rejuvenated and ready to tackle med school.  

I wanted to Strengthen my application

I looked at this as an opportunity to fill in my gaps in my application. I didn’t have as much clinical experience as I wanted, so I pursued positions that would give me that exposure. Ultimately, the extra year was worth getting into a school that I was ecstatic about.  

Some other things I considered:

Finances

Many gap year positions (such as being a research assistant or a fellow) don’t pay very well, so it will be important to budget. I was able to save a bit of money from my gap year, but it was more difficult because I was living in a city with a high cost-of-living. 

Adjusting to a new city

I’m grew up in Jersey and went to college there, so moving out to the west coast was a big adjustment. I’ll be honest – at first it was a bit lonely, and I was left wondering how on earth people made friends in new cities. I was lucky that my co-workers were awesome people, and they became my community. 

Looking back

When I got to med school, I was surprised to find that many of my peers had taken multiple gap years and done a range of things, like working at programs addressing the unique needs of the homeless population, teaching English in South America, working at a biotech startup abroad, and doing cutting-edge psychology research. One of my older classmates had a career in the music industry before deciding to apply to med school, and a few are married and have families. It’s clear to me that going directly from college to medical school is becoming less and less common, and I have no regrets about taking my gap year. I feel wonderfully prepared to tackle the years ahead. Who knows, maybe I’ll take a research year before applying to residency!

Ruby studied Molecular Biology at Princeton University. After completing research fellowship at the UCSF Breast Care Center, she is now pursuing an MD at Harvard Medical School.

Comments

topicTopics
academics study skills MCAT medical school admissions SAT expository writing college admissions English MD/PhD admissions strategy writing LSAT GMAT GRE physics chemistry math biology graduate admissions academic advice ACT interview prep law school admissions test anxiety language learning premed MBA admissions career advice personal statements homework help AP exams creative writing MD study schedules test prep computer science Common Application summer activities history mathematics philosophy organic chemistry secondary applications economics supplements research 1L PSAT admissions coaching grammar law psychology statistics & probability legal studies ESL CARS SSAT covid-19 dental admissions logic games reading comprehension engineering USMLE calculus PhD admissions Spanish mentorship parents Latin biochemistry case coaching verbal reasoning DAT English literature STEM excel medical school political science skills AMCAS French Linguistics MBA coursework Tutoring Approaches academic integrity chinese letters of recommendation Anki DO Social Advocacy admissions advice algebra art history artificial intelligence astrophysics business cell biology classics diversity statement gap year genetics geometry kinematics linear algebra mechanical engineering mental health presentations quantitative reasoning study abroad technical interviews time management work and activities 2L DMD IB exams ISEE MD/PhD programs Sentence Correction adjusting to college algorithms amino acids analysis essay athletics business skills careers cold emails data science dental school finance first generation student functions graphing information sessions international students internships logic networking poetry resume revising science social sciences software engineering tech industry trigonometry writer's block 3L AAMC Academic Interest EMT FlexMed Fourier Series Greek Health Professional Shortage Area Italian Lagrange multipliers London MD vs PhD MMI Montessori National Health Service Corps Pythagorean Theorem Python Shakespeare Step 2 TMDSAS Taylor Series Truss Analysis Zoom acids and bases active learning architecture argumentative writing art art and design schools art portfolios bacteriology bibliographies biomedicine brain teaser campus visits cantonese capacitors capital markets central limit theorem centrifugal force chemical engineering chess chromatography class participation climate change clinical experience community service constitutional law consulting cover letters curriculum dementia demonstrated interest dimensional analysis distance learning econometrics electric engineering electricity and magnetism escape velocity evolution executive function freewriting genomics harmonics health policy history of medicine history of science hybrid vehicles hydrophobic effect ideal gas law immunology induction infinite institutional actions integrated reasoning intermolecular forces intern investing investment banking lab reports linear maps mandarin chinese matrices mba medical physics meiosis microeconomics mitosis mnemonics music music theory nervous system neurology neuroscience object-oriented programming office hours operating systems