Writing your Personal Statement

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Just remember . . . :
“Admissions Committee members are looking for individuals who are motivated, academically prepared, articulate, socially conscious, and knowledgeable about the profession.”
-AADSAS manual, 2013

Purpose of the Statement

Provide a personal (but not informal) “picture” of you. Demonstrate qualifications for and commitment to medicine
Present yourself beyond the MCAT & GPA numbers
Convey passion for and understanding of what you are getting into; that you have gone through a process of careful reflection and self-examination

Be heartfelt, genuine, and mature.
Know about the schools to which you are applying.
Don’t use unusual or shock-value information.
Consider your readers.
Read before you write. Answer the question.
Follow guidelines (5300 character MD, 4500 DENT, OPT, POD and DO.)
Organize by first doing self-reflection.
If you have nothing to say, take this as important information.
Talk about you. More importantly, highlight your view of the world, patients and their experience, medicine.
Convey empathy and a sense of other-directedness. It’s not all about YOU.
Don’t pretend you know what it is like to be a doctor, dentist, etc

Motivation for Medicine:
Life changing experience, medically or non-medically related
Experiences that have given you insight into medical practice, who you wish to serve, how you will contribute
Family Background/Influential mentor:
What individuals or incidents shaped your life? How so?
Extracurricular Activities and Work or Volunteer Experience:
What did you learn? How have you matured as a result?
How did you contribute to getting the job done?
Future Plans (long and/or short term):
Goals in medicine - especially if you are committed to working in underserved communities or primary care
Explain and Clarify any outstanding issues:
But only if they are really issues, but only if they relate to your reasons for pursuing this profession-otherwise leave this to the secondary process

What do I care about the most as it relates to my future?
What experiences have shaped me the most and how?
Why is it important for me to tell about this topic?
How does my choice of this topic reflect on me?
How is this topic relevant to my pursuit of the health professions and to my application to health professions school?

Focus on a few illustrative incidents.
Unite with a theme or thesis.
Outline first, write second.
BE SPECIFIC! Use examples that distinguish you.
Be interesting. Be someone you’d want to meet.
End your essay with a conclusion that refers back to the lead and restates the thesis.

What does it mean to you to enter into a profession?
If selected for an interview, what one life experience would you most like to talk about?
At XXSOM, we are committed to building a superb educational community with students of diverse talents, experiences, opinions, and backgrounds. What would you as an individual bring to our medical school community?
Please feel free to use this space to convey any additional information that you might wish the Committee to know.

MD/PhD Essay: 3000 characters-describe why you want the dual degree, what specific research interest you have and questions you want to explore
Significant Research Experience Essay: 10,000 characters –describe big picture of the work of the lab(s) and 1) what is known 2) holes in the current research 3)hypothesis 4) your specific work on the project

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