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Check out our unique SHADOWING PROGRAM in partnership with the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC)! Shadowing opportunities available throughout the year!

Read our article in the McGill Reporter here!

Watch the Shadowing Program being featured on CTV Montreal here!

Want to find out more about medical school, volunteer opportunities, and research? Check out the links & resources page!

Links

Volunteering

Here’s a brief list of volunteer organizations within Montreal to get you started! 

McGill University Health Centre 
** volunteer application forms for Montreal General Hospital are available - email us at medspecs@ssmu.mcgill.ca for a copy!

Jewish General Hospital 

Volunteer Bureau of Montreal 

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation 

Douglas Hospital 

Frontier College Tutoring 

Montreal Children's Hospital 

AIDS Community Care 

The Yellow Door 

Habitat for Humanity 

Red Cross - Division Quebec 

Montreal Heart of the City Piano Program 

Apathy is Boring

Benedict Labre House

La Maison du Pere

St. James Drop-In Centre

Big Brothers Big Sisters

Dans la Rue

Women's Centre of Montreal

Med School

Career Overview - Medicine 
http://www.careerservices.uwaterloo.ca/resources/Medical%20School.pdf 

AAMC: Directory of Canadian & U.S. Medical Schools 
http://www.aamc.org/medicalschools.htm 

Tomorrrow's Doctors from the Association of American Medical Colleges 
http://www.aamc.org/students/start.htm 

Admission Requirements of Canadian Faculties of Medicine (2008) 
http://www.afmc.ca/pdf/2008_admissions_book.pdf 

Compiled links to Canadian, American, UK and Australian Medical Schools 
http://www.mcgill.ca/medicine/admissions/about/ambassadors/

The Medical School Admissions Process 
Dispelling myths and restoring hopes. Download pdf here (from a MedSpecs' past event). 

Student Doctor Network 
http://www.studentdoctor.net/ (Warning: this is an addictive site!) 

McGill CAPS (McGill Career and Placement Services) 
Great resources on applications, interview, you name it! 
http://www.mcgill.ca/caps/students/graduate-studies/ 
Download CaPS' resources for med school pdf. 

Preparation for Applying to Medical School by Richard Dowds of D'Youville College 
http://careers.dyc.edu/guide/sec5/med_school_prep.pdf 

Thinking of Applying to Medical School? By Sandra Hodge, taken from Sault News 
http://www.saultthisweek.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1675795 

Medical School: Resources for Application and Students from About.com 
http://gradschool.about.com/od/medicalschool

Medical School Interviews from McGill's Career Planning Services Website 
http://www.mcgill.ca/caps/students/graduate-studies/med-interviews/ 

Medical School Interview Advice from About.com 
http://gradschool.about.com/od/medicalinterview/MedicalSchoolInterviewAdvice.htm

Canadian Medical School Interviews from Premed 101 
http://www.premed101.com/interv.html

Personal Statement

Medical School Personal Statement Secrets by Geoffrey Cook, Founder of EssayEdge.com 

Tips for Writing a Personal Statement: Structure & Style by Carnegie Mellon Health Professions Program 

Ten Do's and Don'ts for Your Medical School Personal Statement from Accepted.com 

Tips on Writing a Personal Statement Medical School from the blog Personal Statement Medical School 

Professional Goals in Medical School Essays from the blog Personal Statement Medical School 

Medical School Essay from Grad School Tips 

All About the Graduate Admissions Essay from About.com:Graduate School 

Medical school personal statement tips from the opposite side from the blog Getting Into Medical School And Then... 

Before You Write Your Personal Statement, Read This from the Student Doctor Network 

Essay workshop 101 from the Student Doctor Network

Medicine Personal Statements from Studential.com

Health Careers

One of the goals of MedSpecs is to help students make INFORMED decisions about their future. 

Do you know all your options? Dentistry, Optometry, Health Administration, Medical Technology, Epidemiology, Nursing, Physical/Occupations Therapy, Podiatry, Prosthetics and Orthotics, Veterinary Medicine…yet these are just the common career choices. 

We have compiled a list of websites to help you EXPLORE your future! 

What will you do with your degree?!! Get started with the McGill CAPS. We just want to say that if you’ve never been to Careercruising.com, you don’t know what you’re missing! The website has many up-to-date details related to education requirements, interviews (videos) with professionals, salaries. 
http://www.mcgill.ca/caps/students/job-search/explore/ 

Additionally, here are some resources from other PreMed/Pre-Health clubs as well as career centres from various educational institutions. 

University of Toronto 
http://www.utm.utoronto.ca/careers/pdf/CareersinHealthCare.pdf 

Student Doctor Network 
http://www.studentdoctor.net/ (Check out the various health career related forums!) 

Health Administration 
http://www.washington.edu/uaa/gateway/advising/prehealth...

Research

How to Find a Research job at McGill – Brought to you by McGill CAPS 
What’s a better place to start your research than a detailed intro from our Career and Placement Services centre? For the insider’s scoop, check out above link. 

16 Ways You Can Be Involved In Research 
This list was compiled by the Office for Undergraduate Research in Science (OURS). It is a worthwhile list to scan through, and it may also be helpful to attend the many information sessions and events (such as Soup and Science) offered by OURS throughout the year. 

List of Research Opportunities for McGill Science Students 
The following database of summer/part-time opportunities has been created to help you in your quest for research experience at McGill. The professors who are looking to hire undergraduate students in their laboratories (during the school year and/or in the summer) choose to be listed on this database, on which their contact information and a brief description of their research, as well as other information, are available. 

McGill Research and Innovations Page 
This is the official website dedicated to the abundant research at McGill, as was highlighted in the CAPS article above. Check it out for the latest discoveries, attend seminars to hear from researchers themselves! More importantly, there are great networking opportunities awaiting for you! 

Undergraduate Research Project Courses – 396 
Undergraduate Research Project Courses, labeled as 396 courses offered by our own university, gives an opportunity to undergraduate students to get a taste of what the professors in McGill have been doing. The website has all the details about how to go about registering for courses, if you meet the prerequisites, and known professors who have taken students previously. However, finding your own professor does not come easily. If you are very interested in a professor’s research field, make sure you email, or visit him/her with your resume. Also, as a disclaimer, the grades are very subjective, so make sure to find the RIGHT professor! 

Work Study Program 
Work Study program allows students with financial needs to work under a professor with pay. In order to register, you must be approved to work in the program. Furthermore, it is important to note that not all of these programs are for research. Some tasks may include data entry, while others may be more research-oriented, depending on the professor. 

NSERC – Undergraduate Student Research Award (USRA) 
NSERC is a scholarship that allows undergraduate students to research under an APPROVED supervisor. The scholarship provides a $4500 monetary award as well as a $1200 minimum contribution from the supervisor. The difference between this award and the work study program as well as 396 courses is that the research must be done during 16 consecutive weeks of summer. It is usually a full time responsibility, and the student is required to present his/her work at the end of the summer. The selection process is quite strict, as there are very limited spots per department (NOTE: You do not have to be in an health science related program to apply). 

*It is also important to note that you can apply for an NSERC with any approved supervisor all over Canada: you are not limited to McGill professors. 

FRSQ – Undergraduate Student Research Award 
This award is very similar to the NSERC in that it requires that the students work 16 consecutive weeks during summer with the same amount of monetary awards. However, this research award is limited to students studying in an undergraduate degree that is associated with health sciences. 

National Research Council of Canada 
“The NRC Student Employment Program provides students with practical career-related experience in research and development, library sciences, communications, marketing and other areas. 

The Student Employment Program offers students a challenging and intellectually stimulating environment, while providing them with access to superior equipment, facilities and expertise. Positions are offered at NRC institutes and corporate offices. Each term lasts for a period of approximately sixteen weeks (four months) and work can occur full-time between May and August and part-time between September and April. Salaries are based on the number of academic semesters a student has completed.”