The Checklist - Aubrey Martinez (and associated artwork)

The Checklist - Aubrey Martinez

The elusive pre-med checklist.

At medical school seminars, admissions officers say that no such thing exists. They say that their approach is holistic and that applicants should only participate in activities that genuinely bring them joy.

Yet, despite our diverse interests, this list coerces pre-med students to engage in the same extracurriculars. So, we all study for a 528 MCAT, fantasize about a research publication in Nature, log 500+ volunteer hours, and gun for an E-Board position in at least 1 social and 2 academic clubs. Friday night parties on The Row pale in comparison to the cryfest you had last Tuesday when you realized your 100-level GE course might actually ruin your Summa Cum Laude status. 

It may sound like a hyperbole--but for cutthroat applicants, this list is the gold standard. And for those of us without healthcare professionals in our social network to consult, this checklist appears to be the yellow brick to medical school matriculation. 

Like many underrepresented minority and low-socioeconomic status pre-med students, I am the first in my family to pursue a career in medicine. Mentorship is critical for pre-meds, but especially so for those of us who identify as part of an underrepresented group. The current lack of diversity in medicine directly translates to a lack of concordant mentors who can provide career advice that is relevant to our cultural and economic realities. With limited access to healthcare professionals, we have no choice but to succumb to the pressures and try to fulfill the expectations set forth by this checklist. 

This exhaustive list torments pre-meds everywhere. But for some, it also serves as a quiet reminder of just how expensive the pre-med experience is. It is fairly well known that, between primary and secondary application fees plus travel expenses for interviews, the medical school admissions process costs enough to warrant an additional job. However, people tend to overlook the cost of simply building a good pre-med resume. Fancy shadowing programs or international service trips can run up a pretty high bill. But even the activities that do not require a payment upfront demand a time commitment--a time commitment that can take away from a low-socioeconomic status student’s potential to earn income for their essential supplies and to support their families.  

My point is: 

Ticking off the entirety of this checklist is already an arduous undertaking. But the endeavor of bringing O-Chem flashcards to your graveyard ER shift then hustling to judge a high school science fair in the morning so you can earn a 4.0 GPA and log volunteer hours while still paying rent on time-- that is a whole other herculean task. 

But you know what?

Medical school admissions committees are not blind to the plights of underrepresented minority and low-socioeconomic status applicants. They are aware of the bias inherent to this list and the limitations that some backgrounds impose on the pre-med experience. They know that among a diverse applicant pool, there is variance in the degree of how feasible these expectations are. 

And maybe that is why they urge us to forget about the checklist. And maybe they actually mean it. Maybe the pre-med checklist is not a stipulation after all; maybe it just represents an archetype that has become inflated over years of perpetuation. Despite the selectivity of the medical school admissions process, maybe completing this list is not the golden admissions ticket we apotheosize it to be.

The best physicians, the best residents, the best medical students, and the best pre-meds are not carbon copies of each other. We are individuals, unique in our passions, fears, and desires.. So maybe the real pre-med checklist is whatever you make it. You’re not expected to partake in any and every event related to medicine in your time as an undergraduate student. Instead, you should prioritize the activities that you actively enjoy. You should focus on the extracurriculars that you genuinely think will make you a better prepared physician and a more compassionate member of society. 

And, most importantly, you should emphasize your story through your pre-med checklist.