Shadowing
How Many Shadowing Hours For Medical School? A Summary of Official Answers
About Alexia
Alexia Katsaros is a Purdue graduate (’21) and a pre-medical student enjoying a gap year on the Atlantis admissions team. As an undergraduate, she majored in psychology and minored in biology and sociology. In the summer of 2019, she shadowed doctors at KAT hospital when she journeyed to Athens, Greece through the Atlantis shadow abroad program.
The Challenge of Physician Shadowing
Whether your shadowing journey has just started, or you’ve been at it for a while, a common question crossing your mind might be: “How many hours do I actually need?” It’s normal to wonder about how much time you should contribute, especially when you have so many other priorities in your day. In any case, understanding medical schools’ expectations for pre-med shadowing hours is paramount to maximizing the benefits you get out of it.
Determining How Many Hours From The Top Sources
Although shadowing hours seem like they should be predetermined and standardized by medical schools, a quick Google search shows that this is not the case. In fact, there are a wide array of opinions out there when it comes to shadowing hours. I’ve seen a range between 25 to 150 or even 200 hours over the years. In this post, I’ll be listing out some prominent online sources so I can break down their recommendations and give you my own advice.
- Bemo Academic Consulting recommends pre-med students to rack up anywhere from 100 to 120 hours of shadowing experience. This is on the higher end of the range, which can really serve your application well. However, Bemo describes a typical shadow day as a 10-hour shift, which might not be realistic for you. Depending on who and where you’re shadowing, you might only be able to get 4-5 hours in a day, and you might be able to shadow the specialist/physician you’re interested in only a couple days out of the week. This can ultimately double the timeframe you might expect to rack up those 100 hours of experience. Make sure to consider this, especially if you’re starting your shadowing late in the game.
- Global Pre-Meds recommends at least 40 hours of shadowing. A common theme when it comes to shadowing experience is quality over quantity. You could do 200 hours of passively shadowing a specialty you’re uninterested in and not have much to say during your applications. On the other hand, even if you contribute fewer hours to it, quality shadowing in fields you’re personally invested in learning about will do the most for you.
- Prospective Doctor seems to be in the same boat with the previous sources. Their article on pre-med shadowing comes to that same conclusion: quality hours have more weight than anything else. They even add that having a variety of shadowing positions could really make your application pop and give you that competitive edge. One of the main reasons I chose to shadow with Atlantis was because I would be able to achieve more than 90 hours of 360 shadowing through my program over 3 weeks. In such a short time frame, I cycled through many different doctors. Although shadow hours fulfilled abroad are not necessarily counted for pre-med requirements, they do offer you a powerful insight on the differences between foreign and domestic healthcare. These distinctions are crucial to understand as healthcare takes on a more globalized perspective. As a result, my experience with Atlantis gave me a lot to talk about on my AMCAS application.
- If you find yourself perusing the r/premed Reddit page, you can find hundreds of admitted MD students who list their experiences and application details. You’d be surprised to find students with some major deviations to the flexible ~100-hour recommendation. Some admitted pre-meds only have 20-30 hours, while others might have racked up over 200. This really goes to show that, although shadowing is a vital part of the application, it does share the stage with multiple other important characters: volunteering, GPA, MCAT, and core competencies. There can be some give and take between them, but if one is missing or severely deficient, it can hurt your chances. Don’t let yourself be misled by the accepted pre-meds with a red flag like that on their application. Major deviations often accompany atypical exceptions, and you don’t have enough insider information about any one applicant to use their experiences to make judgements and adjustments on your own. That’s a very risky move, and as an applicant you want to use every shot you have to make your application stellar. You want to go beyond just filling in the paperwork, and you don’t want to copy any one approach.
Key Takeaways
Shadowing is indeed a vital component of a pre-med’s application. The law of diminishing returns promises that the more energy we invest in something, the less we get out of it. Although that definitely does not apply to your medical training, it does raise the important point of quality shadowing hours. Before undergoing any shadowing experience, make sure you know what you want to get out of it so you can maximize the benefits.
Our Alumni Enter Great Medical Schools
John Daines
- Atlantis '17
- Brigham Young University '19
- Washington U. in St. Louis MD '23
Zoey Petitt
- Atlantis '17
- U. of Arizona '18
- Duke MD '23
Zoey Petitt
Hungary ’17 || University of Arizona (undergraduate) ’18
Completed Atlantis Program Location and Date:
Hungary, Summer 2017
Do you believe your Atlantis experience helped you get into your graduate program?
I believe it was very helpful.
Generally, why do you think Atlantis helped you get into your graduate program?
For me, my Atlantis experience played a key role in confirming my decision to go into medicine. This was important for me to discuss during the admissions process.
Specifically, did you talk about Atlantis in your interviews?
Yes
Yong-hun Kim
- Atlantis '17
- Stanford '19
- Mayo Clinic MD '24
Yong-Hun Kim
Budapest, Hungary ’17 || Stanford University
Program:
Budapest, Hungary – Winter 2017
Undergraduate:
Stanford University class of 2019
Major:
Computer Science
Honors:
Bio-X Grant (award for research)
Undergraduate Activities:
President and Founder of Stanford Undergraduate Hospice and Palliative Care, Volunteer for Pacific Free Clinic, Research Assistant in Wernig Pathology Lab, President of Hong Kong Student Association, violin performance
Describe Atlantis in three words:
Eye-opening. Spontaneous. Exhilarating.
Why did you choose Atlantis?
I chose the Atlantis program because it combines opportunities to shadow physicians and travel abroad, both of which I had little prior exposure to.
What was your favorite experience as an Atlantis participant?
My favorite experience as an Atlantis participant came in the stories exchanged over meals or excursions and the breadth of conversation that reflected the diversity of backgrounds within our cohort and site managers.
What was the most meaningful aspect of your time shadowing?
I appreciated the chance to speak with physicians in Budapest and hear their personal motivations for pursuing medicine because it really helped better contextualize and validate my own interest in medicine. The physicians were also just really welcoming, relatable, and down-to-earth people.
How has Atlantis helped equip you for the future?
The Atlantis program has equipped me with a better understanding of what a career in medicine looks like, which I think is an invaluable gift considering the long road ahead of those who aspire to be a physician.
How has Atlantis equipped you for active leadership in the medical field?
The ability to interact and empathize with patients of diverse backgrounds and communities is a necessity to be a leader in the medical field. I think the Atlantis program, through my interactions with mentors and their patients, has helped me take my first steps toward attaining the cultural vocabulary and literacy required of a physician.
Megan Branson
- Atlantis '18
- U. of Montana '19
- U. of Washington MD '24
Sarah Emerick
- Atlantis '19
- Eckerd College '20
- Indiana U. MD '25
Snow Nwankwo
- Atlantis '19
- Catholic U. of America '21
- Georgetown U. MD '26
Tiffany Hu
- Atlantis '16
- U. of Maryland '17
- U. of Michigan MD '22
Tiffany Hu
Tereul, Spain ’16 || U Michigan Medical School
Program:
Teruel, Spain – Summer 2016
Undergraduate:
University of Maryland class of 2017
Admitted medical student at:
University of Michigan Medical School
Major:
Neurobiology
Honors:
Honors Integrated Life Sciences Program, Banneker/Key Scholarship
Extracurricular Activities:
American Medical Student Association Co-President & Advocacy Day Liaison, Alternative Breaks Experience Leader, Health Professions Advising Office Student Advisory Board, Biology Teach Assistant, Health Leads, Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation, NIH Research Intern, Physicians for Social Responsibility Environment & Health Intern
Describe Atlantis in Three Words:
Educational. Eye-opening. Exhilarating.
Why did you choose Atlantis?
I wanted to expand my horizons and understand a culture of health different from the ones I am accustomed to. I had shadowed doctors in the United States and Taiwan prior to my Atlantis program experience, and being able to see first-hand the healthcare system in Spain allowed me to draw comparisons between the different complex healthcare systems.
What was your favorite experience as an Atlantis participant?
Bonding with the other participants and celebrating our time together along with the doctors we shadowed. We would discuss our interests, passions, and motivation for medicine, and it was an incredible experience to learn from and alongside them.
What was your experience with the doctors you were shadowing?
Because of the pre-established relationships with the hospitals in which we shadowed, all the doctors were very welcoming and accommodating. They were willing to translate for us and explain in detail all of their medical decisions. My doctors and I had wonderful conversations about the differences between life in Spain vs. the United States.
What was the most meaningful aspect of your time shadowing?
I was excited to scrub in on surgeries and watch as the doctor explained what he was doing throughout the operation. Before and after surgeries, as well as in my other rotations, I observed how the doctors reassured and communicated with their patients. I was able to glean insight into differences between the experience of health in Spain versus the United States through observation as well as conversations with the doctors.
How has Atlantis helped equip you for the future?
Besides the wealth of medical knowledge I gained from shadowing the doctors, I challenged myself to step outside of my cultural comfort zone and explore more than I thought I was capable of. Atlantis allowed me to make connections with people from all around the United States and abroad, and the friendships I gained helped me learn so much more than I would have on my own.
Lauren Cox
- Atlantis '18
- Louisiana Tech '20
- U. of Arkansas MD '24
Lauren Cox
Libson, Portugal ’18 || Louisiana Tech
Completed Atlantis Program Location(s):
Lisbon, Portugal
Year of most recent program:
Fall ’17 – Summer ’18
Season of most recent program:
Summer
Do you believe your Atlantis experience helped you get into your graduate program?
Extremely helpful
Generally, why do you think Atlantis helped you get into your graduate program?
It exposed me to shadowing that was hard to come by in the states. It also gave me a chance to see other systems of healthcare.
Specifically, did you talk about Atlantis in your interviews? If so, how much relative to other topics?
Yes – they wanted to know about my experience, and specifically how the healthcare I saw in another country compared to what I had seen in the USA.
Kayla Riegler
- Atlantis '18
- U. of Kentucky '20
- U. of Kentucky MD '24
About Atlantis
Atlantis is the leader in pre-health shadowing and clinical experience, offering short-term programs (1-10 weeks) over academic breaks for U.S. pre-health undergraduates. Medical schools want 3 things: (1)healthcare exposure, (2)GPA/MCAT, and (3)certain competencies. Atlantis gives you a great version of (1), frees you to focus on (2), and cultivates/shows (3) to medical school admissions committees.
Watch Video: The Atlantis Shadowing Experience and How it Helps In Your Med/PA Admissions Future
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