Guest KKRAZY Posted April 4, 2002 Report Share Posted April 4, 2002 Hey everyone I have a question about the autobio sketch. Do we have to say everything we did since we were 16 or is that just a suggestion. In my case I took 4 yrs off after high school to put out a majour record debut/tour with my band (sorry I can't tell you who I am, lets say we were semi famous in Canada, little in the US) I then went to University (once the band died) did a Bsc. then Msc with great marks. Now the thing is I really dont want to talk about everything since I was 16 since that was so long ago and I have done alot since then, can I just start discussing things from my band days through the University stuff or must I start with 16 and talk about high school which I spent most of my time jamming and partying with the band rather than in class, things were so bad they wouldnt even let me into University with my marks but I got in as a mature student. In the end I came out with a 3.97 Immunology so alls well that ends well Thanks for the advice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JSS02 Posted April 4, 2002 Report Share Posted April 4, 2002 Are you talking about the sketch or the essays? The sketch is just a brief list of 48 formal education jobs / activities / awards / research from the age of 16 until now. There's hardly any room to describe them anyway. As for the essays, you can talk about whatever you want. If you would rather focus on things that you have done more recently, I don't see the problem with that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KKRAZY Posted April 4, 2002 Report Share Posted April 4, 2002 I was wondering if we had to start with high school graduation etc and stuff when we were 16. Id rather not put in when I graduated from high school ie give away my age etc but just talk about things from the band era and onward. I know we have to disclose our age on the application but my understanding is that nobody who reviews essays or interviews has the chance to see that. having your high school date of grad would easily give that away for those that use it in interviews etc. thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KatieKat Posted April 5, 2002 Report Share Posted April 5, 2002 There shouldn't be a problem in disclosing your age. Applicants of all ages should be treated equally. And when you get to the interview stage, your age will be pretty obvious, if not by your appearance then by the amount of things you've been able to accomplish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posher Posted April 5, 2002 Report Share Posted April 5, 2002 As far as I know you are not *required* to put down everything you've done since you were 16, that would likely be impossible for you anyways. Put down the activities/awards etc that you feel most reveal who you are and what you enjoy doing. If that means leaving out all the high school stuff since it likely seems quite irrelevant at this point by all means go ahead! (this is my opinion...I haven't formally heard this from any med school, it's just the impression I got from the whole application process) As far as revealing your age I definitely wouldn't worry about it, in a lot of ways they're looking for older applicants so you can definitely make it work to your advantage. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KKRAZY Posted April 5, 2002 Report Share Posted April 5, 2002 Thank you for the advice I was also wondering if my experience in the band would be looked down upon (ie roudy rockers shouldn't be doctors) or would the experience of working in the small group touring Canada, Europe , japan and most of states and playing for crowds up to 10,000 kind of spark an interest. It seems things are conservative with medical schools, ie they seem to like people who play the piano and listen to classical music or partipate in ballet or shakesphere as far as their hobbies go. Any suggestions on that? Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest UWOMED2005 Posted April 5, 2002 Report Share Posted April 5, 2002 Not entirely true. . . one of the girls in our class here at Western was in a movie video a couple of years ago. Don't want to mention what video or what band - they're semi-famous in Canada, a little in the US. Seriously, though, she was in the video. And people in medicine have all sorts of interests. We do have a concert violinist (or maybe she plays viola) here in our class, but others here are interested in all sorts of music. . . Hip-Hop, alternative, R&B, jazz, jungle, east coast shanty tunes, "live progressive breakbeat house," and good-old rock and roll (wait - those are my musical interests. . . but they are shared by many of my classmates!) I've managed to find people in our class to hit up such diverse shows as The Baby Blue Sound Crew, The Burt Neilson Band, Bullfrog, Sloan, The New Deal, "Handsome" Jim McGinley, and Tricky Woo (actually we missed Tricky Woo - I had the wrong date they were playing 'Call the Office.' We made it to the bar only to find out we were a week late.) The diversity in interests goes beyond music - I think I even remember hearing during the Olympics that Hayley Wickenheiser (sometimes considered the Wayne Gretzky of Women's Hockey) is a med student out at Calgary, and you can find med students who will be interested in doing just about anything. . . One suggestion though. I think mentioning your musical background would be an excellent experience to share, but focusing on that and that alone seems a bit one-dimensional. . . you probably should throw some of the other stuff you've done down on your autobiographical sketch. Just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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