Being a pre-med student is hard. 

Waking up for the 8 a.m. lab, going straight to volunteering at the hospital, going back to class and going to the library to study is the everyday life of a pre-med college student.

And that’s just doing the bare minimum to succeed. 

And oh yeah, don’t forget studying for the MCAT and striving for a 4.0 GPA.

To improve medical school resumes, students should participate in activities such as volunteering in clinics, biomedical research and receiving certifications. 

Here are some that I chose that you can too.

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Being in a clinical setting is one of the best parts about volunteering. You get a front row seat watching the medical staff work as a team to provide patients the best care while helping a community in need.

While volunteering at Moffitt Cancer Center during my freshman year, I had the chance to interact with patients and hospital staff while participating as a transport volunteer.

Although this was a small task of wheeling patients down to the valet, being able to put a smile on a patient’s face after a long stay at the hospital made me appreciate the impact hospital staff can have on patients. 

Being able to experience this motivated me everyday to reach my goal of becoming a physician. 

Right on campus, Moffitt Cancer Center provides opportunities to volunteer in the surgical waiting room, urgent care, blood draw and the infusion clinic.

Tampa General Hospital, Advent Health and Hospital Corporation of America hospitals also provide volunteering opportunities for students.

If volunteering at a hospital isn’t up your alley, there are always other ways to help out communities in need. 

As a bilingual student, I volunteer at the USF Bridge Clinic as a Spanish interpreter.

By participating right at USF, I have the chance to help out a community close to me. It allows me to work alongside medical students and physicians from different specialities.

Although working in these places is rewarding, being a pre-med student can be rough. 

Community is a way to make it better. The best support I have received was from other pre-med students as they are truly the only other ones who know what you are going through.

Finding a pre-med community, such as Pre-med American Medical Student Association, Health Occupations Student of America, or the medical fraternity, Phi Delta Epsilon is another great extracurricular to be a part of. 

But it’s important to spend time doing things outside of the medical field.

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Giving time to devote to other interests gave me a chance to escape from my daily activities. 

For me, this activity is writing for The Oracle. Writing gives me the space to nourish my love for journalism while writing about topics that interest me to help other students. 

Research opportunities are another kind of extracurricular that pre-med students seek. Since USF is one of the top 50 research universities, there are many opportunities for this on campus. 

All students have to do is reach out to professors or search online for active research projects at USF or Moffitt. 

Since this can be a daunting task, and oftentimes overwhelming, students can join the Undergraduate Research Society. 

Being able to work alongside other students to create and present our research gave me a glimpse of the teamwork skills I intend to use as a doctor. 

To get hands-on medical experience, students can receive certifications to become medical assistants, certified nursing assistants, phlebotomists and more.

USF makes this easier for students as they offer a free, non-credit Emergency Medical Responder (EMR) course. With this certification students can work alongside EMTs and paramedics to receive hands-on medical experiences.

Being a pre-med can be daunting, but don’t let the academic side stop you from getting out in the real world and seeing the medicine happen in front of your eyes. 

From one pre-med student to another, you got this.