medical school application essays

Focusing on Your Personality as a Future Doctor in Your Medical School Application Essays

Getting into medical school is no piece of cake, starting with the admission essay alone.  Admissions to medical schools tend to become very competitive, as more and more people develop an interest in the medical profession because it is one of the most recession-proof jobs out there.   Those who are planning to get into medical school know that they need to spend some time writing their admissions essay, because this is perhaps the only thing about their application for admission that they will have control over.  Sure, letters of recommendation are also there to raise one’s chances of getting into the med school of their choice. However, one drawback to recommendations is that the applicant has no control over what the referrer is saying about him or her, and even about how these things are written.

What to remember when making a personal statement

Perhaps one of the most important points to remember when making an admissions essay is to talk about your personality and how this suits your desire to become a doctor.  Being a doctor usually involves not only sharp brains but also a good dose of personality and attitude.  A doctor is someone who has a natural inclination to help and care for people, and this is one of the traits admissions officers will try to look for as they pore over your application and decide your fate.

Making a personal statement for medical school requires an  applicant to express his suitability for the profession by  painting a picture who he is as a future  medical doctor.  Experts suggest dividing the personal statement for medical school into  two  categories: your motivations for becoming a doctor and the abilities that make you qualified to be a doctor.  This little attempt at organization has one purpose: to avoid boring your admissions officers to death. They have read hundreds of other essays and have mastered the art of scanning through each one, their eyes trained on only the most important points. Putting your essay into categories will put the most important information forward.

Anwering the “why” question

The most obvious question one can expect to as is “Why medicine?”  Experts suggest not using vague and generalized answers but instead focus on drawing from personal experience, which tend to sound more interesting and is something that the admissions officers will appreciate.  A typical example is describing the personal impact that a doctor has made on your life, or how a disease or accident in the family contributed to your desire to take up this course.

Letting them know about your qualifications as a future medical doctor will also have to follow the same pattern.  Choose important moments in your life that showed your sharp and quick-thinking skills or throw in a couple of stories about how you spent summers in a medical mission in Jamaica, while avoiding how to sound too puffed up about it.  Be truthful, too. Padding up your essay with imaginary accomplishments will do you more harm than good, especially if you find yourself having a hard time keeping your stories straight during the interview.

Bottom line, a good personal statement for medical school involves the use of sincere and specific statements that will stand out in the minds of the people who have the power to get you into the medical school of your dreams.

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It is my firm belief that most problems have a solution, and for those that do not, there is a way of coming to terms with it. Human’s perseverance would be anchored on resiliency in the face of odds, whether small or big. It is my assertion that the gravest matters in the field of medicine runs the same way. When the time comes that I am already a doctor, it is my vision to work with individuals so that their lives would be more easy and the problems more bearable.

This mindset towards difficulties is something I imbibed from my parents. I am an only daughter, and I was the principal reason why they left Vietnam for the United States. Their sacrifices and perseverance would always be in my consciousness, and this is the biggest inspiration for my decision to go to medical school.

All throughout college, I worked odd jobs for a cousin- a car mechanic. All those years made me acquire an interest in the way of fixing things, and looking for creative solutions, no matter how impossible it seems. My undergrad years were hectic, and I was a Dean’s lister for about half of my college life. I joined the activities of the American Medical Association and parallel entities. When I finished my college course, I had a research-technical job at the _______________ College of Medicine. In the course of my stay there, I volunteered in different research tasks at a couple of major research centers.

Among the greatest difficulties I experienced was the learning of the English language. In the beginning of my medical learning, I was intimidated with all the books we had to go over. So many times, reading twice (a whole book) was not enough, due to my lack of proficiency in the language. I hit the simple solution: read months before we were supposed to tackle a subject matter. It has become a most useful habit, and this is a habit I intend to keep for the rest of my life.

Yes, I have come to acknowledge that an excellent physician should be able to augment scientific know-how with interpersonal skills/positive mindset. If you would be kind enough to allow me residency in your institution, then I will find it a concrete avenue to practice the attitudes and lessons I have learned over the years.

I consider myself as a tenacious worker, with a great deal of resiliency. One insight I gained from all the time I worked in the clinical/research settings is: the capability to get data and analyze data from patients and fellow physicians separates the best doctors from the merely competent ones. Studying medicine is a never-ending road, and as early as now, I am excited to meet the various challenges.

Thank you very much and Godspeed.

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