I’d recommend purusing this brief piece by Varsity Tutors’ Dr. Anubodh “Sunny” Varshney regarding the benefits and drawbacks of taking a gap year before medical school. I should note that Dr. Varshney does not mention a gap year’s financial drawbacks, which can be significant.
I took an extra year (although it was during medical school, part of HMS’s 5-year plan) that grounded me and made me a more competitive emergency medicine applicant. If feasible, it’s a great opportunity.
Dr. Finkel is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Medical School. On completing her residency at Harvard, she was asked to
stay on as faculty at Harvard Medical School and spent five years teaching at the world-renowned Massachusetts General Hospital.
She was appointed to the Assistant Residency Director position for the Harvard Affiliated
Emergency Medicine Residency where she reviewed countless applications, personal statements and resumes. Read more
