Writing Your Personal Statement for Medical School

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Writing Your Personal Statement for Medical School

• Kim Sauerwein
• Dartmouth College
• Career Services

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The Personal Statement

• Admissions Committees view your Personal
  Statement as an opportunity to get to know you
  over and above the facts conveyed by other parts
  of the application

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Personal Statement Supplemental Application
Essays

• Serves almost the same purpose as a face-to-face
  interview
• Should generate enthusiasm for your candidacy

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Preparation

• Investigate thoroughly all schools of interest
• Develop a method to reduce your list of medical
  schools to an appropriate number
• Be serious about attending any school to which
  you apply

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The Admission Committee Consider Your Audience

• Often consider themselves gatekeepers of the
  profession
• Research scientists, clinicians, med students,
  admissions officers
• Often are conservative
• Overly creative and unusual essays will receive a
  chuckle or two, but seldom receive serious
  consideration

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MOST COMMON COMMENTS FROM 2008 STATEMENTS

• Make sure it answers the question Why do you
  want to be a doctor?
• Dont simply restate your resume
• Convey who you are as a person your thoughts,
  your fears, your motivations
• Create an outline for your essay after its
  written. Does it make sense?
• Look at the last paragraph. Does it sound like
  you're rushing to finish? Are you introducing
  new material?

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Some Desirable Attributes

• Attribute
• realistic self-assessment
• resourceful
• accountable
• cooperative
• persistent
• resilient
• supported (emotionally)
• focused
• active learner
• flexible
• efficient
• organized
• Purposeful
• Capacity for work

• As indicated by
• acknowledging limitations
• seeking help when appropriate
• accepting responsibility for learning
• working well with others
• completing tasks
• accepting disappointment and moving on
• not isolating self from others
• concentrating on the task at hand
• integrating and applying new information
• willingness to change
• making good use of time
• systematically taking care of business
• setting long-term and short-term goals
• Demonstrating good or improved performance

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The Writing Process Content

• Brainstorm possible topics consider
• What is important to you?
• Who are the most influential people in your life?
  What did they do for you?
• What have been the pivotal moments in your life?
  Looking back, what can you recall having changed
  you? How were you affected?
• Do you feel a passion for medicine? What is the
  source of that passion?

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The Writing Process Content

• Write your autobiographical sketch
• Pay attention to your emotions reactions while
  you write weave it in if it demonstrates
  positive characteristics like compassion,
  resiliency, courage, etc.

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The Writing Process Content

• Provide new information and details
• Convey YOUR personality
• Distinguish yourself

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The Writing Process Content

• Future Plans - this topic only works if you can
  say something definitive that has some
  substantial basis
• If it is insincere, it will not fool anyone
• Personal Philosophy - this topic can be risky
• If you have strong convictions and those
  convictions reflect maturity and flexibility then
  it may be ok
• If there is a possibility that it will create
  controversy, it may be brought up in an interview
  (if you get to the interview stage)

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The Writing Process Tone

• Generate enthusiasm for your candidacy
• Be honest and sincere
• Use specific, vivid details that describe
  experiences lessons learned as a result
• Strike a balance between I statements and the
  sense of accomplishment conveyed
• Get feedback from a trusted, knowledgeable reader
• Write and re-write until you are convinced that
  your statement is the best it can be

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The Writing Process Mechanics

• Be clear and concise
• Solicit help from someone who will not be
  concerned about hurting your feelings and who
  understands the purpose of the essay
• Help your reader understand without having to
  struggle to make sense of what you have said
• Remember to write an introduction and conclusion
  for each essay
• Read your essays out loud and listen carefully to
  what you hear
• Have someone proofread your essays to ensure that
  spelling grammar are acceptable

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Additional AMCAS Essays

• Disadvantaged Status (1325 characters)
• Felony (1325 characters)
• Institutional Action (1325 characters)
• Work/Activities (1325 characters)
• MD/PhD Essay (3,000 characters)
• Research Experience Essay for MD/PhD candidates
  (10,000 characters)

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Get Organized Supplemental Applications

• Prepare a timeline to help you keep track of due
  dates
• Keep all of your application materials in one
  place
• Create one master chart that outlines all the
  requirements for each schools application

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Get Organized Supplemental Applications

• Respond and take advantage of essay questions or
  space for additional comments that are optional
• Exercise caution by reading questions raised in
  the application before answering them

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Supplemental ApplicationsContent

• Think of 3-4 adjectives that describe you as a
  desirable candidate
• Consider what evidence you could give your
  readers make the argument
• Evidence is likely to come from descriptions of
  events or reflections about experiences that
  illustrate what you have learned from having had
  the experience
• Details and vocabulary you select in describing
  these instances will set your essay apart from
  all the others

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Make a Favorable Impression

• Make sure that supplemental applications are
  typed, error-free and aesthetically appealing
• Pay special attention to the mechanics and
  organization of your essays
• Make copies of everything before submission

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Irregularities in Your Application

• Withdrawals, incompletes, repeated courses,
  academic action, probation, below-average grades,
  non-traditional background, re-application, etc.
• Schedule an appointment with me
• CALL 6-3377 (DO NOT BLITZ)

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IMPORTANT!!!

• Plagiarism
• or
• misrepresentation
• WILL prompt an investigation

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In Conclusion

• Investigate schools before applying
• Consider readers of your application
• Reflect before you write
• Correct obvious errors
• Organize
• Restrain use of the unusual in the process
• Ask for help
• Submit well in advance of deadlines

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Helpful Resources

• Career Services http//www.dartmouth.edu/csrc/
• RWiT http//www.dartmouth.edu/rwit/
• University of Wisconsins Writers Handbook
• http//www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/apessay.html
  
• Purdue Writing Center
• owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/pw/p_perstate.htm
  l

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Review Sample Essays

• A few are attached to your handout and the book
  is available in Career Services
• Write for Success Preparing a Successful
  Professional School Application (3rd edition) by
  Evelyn Jackson Harold Bardo (National
  Association of Advisors for the Health
  Professions, Inc. 2005).

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Follow-Up

• Personal Statement Review Service Expect 2 week
  turn-around (blitz Kim Sauerwein)
• Appointments Call 6-3377
• Walk-in
• Mondays 2-4pm in Parkhurst 9B
• Thursdays 130-4pm
• (may call ahead to verify availability)