Guest turtle Posted August 20, 2003 Report Share Posted August 20, 2003 So, I've been working on my personal statement for a while now...maybe someone out there can help me... ...most of what i've written so far tends to come from academically-related experiences (undergrad, grad school, research, tutoring, etc.)...I know the directions for the essay say that one should "describe their premedical studies, expamding on what they have chosen to pursue and how this has prepared them for their future, including a career in medicine", but I am worried about it coming across as too academic...on the other hand, with only 1000 words, I can't talk about EVERYTHING and I do think that my best examples come from those areas... hmm....alright, maybe I don't really need anyone to answer this...because of course, there is no magic formula...it's just kind of stressful writing something that has the potential to make/break my chances of getting an interview! ahh!:\ feels good to vent... :rollin turtle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bkim20 Posted August 20, 2003 Report Share Posted August 20, 2003 Hi Turtle, Remember that medicine is both academic and non-academic. I consider it to be almost half and half... meaning that it is a combination of knowledge and care. That's why it is important to highlight your non-academic qualities along with your academic ones. Several of the questions in the essay can be answered using non-academic experiences. For example, you can discuss your ability to be a leader and work in a team through participation in sports. You may want to discuss a particular hobby (i.e. music) that has impacted your life. I think your evaluators will find more interest in reading about things that make you human and have led you to apply to medicine... and I hope this does not only include academic activities Try to find a balance, but don't sacrifice a good example in order to do this. Hope that helps, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest turtle Posted August 21, 2003 Report Share Posted August 21, 2003 Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking...I don't want to focus only on academic stuff. After giving it some more thought, I think my problem is how I have structured my essay. I've been doing it in a chronological format, i.e. this is what i did in undergrad, then i went to grad school, i've done such & such research/jobs/ec's, etc. The problem with this is that it seems kind of long and tedious. I'm thinking now it would be better to structure it around some specific characteristics so that I can then pull examples from a variety of experiences for each characteristic... Thanks for the input...sometimes it helps just to have someone to bounce ideas off of. turtle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bj Posted August 21, 2003 Report Share Posted August 21, 2003 Hi turtle, I think the U of T personal statement can be either the easiest or most difficult of the statements, depending on how you choose to approach the task. I structured my statement like an essay rather than in any specific order (chronological or question-answering) and found it MUCH easier to write once I had identified those 5 or 6 key points. I think previous advice to mix-in some personal qualities and experiences is good. Keep in mind that all the schools have your GPA and MCAT scores to give part of the picture of your academic abilities so there's no need to reiterate those qualities in that limited essay space. Focus on your personal qualities, abilities and experiences that make you suitable for medicine--and that drive your passion for it. Oh yeah--and the best advice is make it your own. Your statement is the admission committee's window into your personality. No one, myself included (duh), can tell you the best way to create this window. Good luck! BJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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