According to Kaplan Test Prep’s 2012 survey of medical school admissions officers, while an applicant’s personal statement is not nearly as important a factor as their MCAT score or undergraduate GPA, they should be under no false illusion that it doesn’t matter. In fact, at a time when medical education is placing a new emphasis on the empathy skills of doctors-in-training, it can be vitally important for applicants to show a side of themselves that quantitative factors, like their MCAT score and GPA, don’t reflect.
While many pre-meds are not exactly fans of writing, they should look at the personal statement as an opportunity, not an obstacle. What a student chooses to write sends clear signals about what’s important to them and what their values are; while it’s expected that they will explain their motivation to pursue medical graduate work and the career path it will enable them to follow, the essay also allows them to explain any weakness or gaps in an otherwise commendable record.
Below are some key strategies for your students to consider when writing their personal statements:
1. Avoid the Rehashed Resume: The personal statement is not the time to recount all your activities and honors in list-like fashion.
2. Make It Personal: This is your opportunity to put a little panache into the application. Show the admissions committee why you decided to go into medicine. Was it an experience you had in school? Was there a particular extracurricular activity that changed your way of thinking? Did you find a summer lab job so exhilarating that it reconfirmed your love for science? Use vignettes and anecdotes to weave a story and make the essay a pleasure to read.
3. Avoid Controversial Topics: If you do include discussion of a “hot topic,” definitely avoid being dogmatic or preachy. You don’t want to take the risk of alienating a reader who may not share your politics. That said, it’s probably a good idea to avoid controversy completely. Brainstorm for a less risky idea..
4. Don’t Get Too Creative: Now is not the time to write a haiku. Remember, the medical establishment is largely a scientific community (although individual physicians may be passionate artists, poets, writers, musicians, historians, etc.). On the other hand, don’t be trite and don’t be boring – avoid writing the “I want to be a doctor because…” essay.
5. No Apologies: For instance, if you received a C in physics, you may feel compelled to justify it somehow. Unless you believe that the circumstances truly do merit some sort of mention, don’t make excuses – you don’t need to provide admissions officers with a road map to your weaknesses. That being said, some students do mention a weakness in their background in order to explain how they have overcome a setback.
6. Write Multiple Drafts: Have your pre-med advisor and perhaps an English teaching assistant read and edit it. Proofread, proofread, and proofread some more. Also, try reading it out loud – this is always a good test of clarity and flow. Finally, run it by a family member or friend who knows you well to make sure that it captures your personality.
7. Think Ahead to Interviews: Interviewers often use your personal statement as fodder for questions. Of course, if you’ve included experiences and ideas that are dear to you, that you feel strongly about, you will have no problem speaking with passion and confidence. Nothing is more appealing to admissions folks than a vibrant, intelligent, and articulate candidate. If you write about research you conducted five years ago, you’d better brush up before your interviews. Don’t engage in hyperbole: You risk running up against an interviewer who will see through your exaggerations.
