Guest redgirl29 Posted September 25, 2002 Report Share Posted September 25, 2002 Hi everyone! It's really quiet around here lately- everyone must be busy with school and/or applications. My question is- Does anyone have tips or suggestions for how to keep the readers awake while reading your autobiographical submission? After speaking with many people, everyone says: answer the question, be honest, and keep the reader awake. As we all know, easier said than done! I know, hopefully your experiences are unique enough to stand out, but any other suggestions??? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mcmed Posted September 25, 2002 Report Share Posted September 25, 2002 I think another big part of keeping the reader awake would be to make sure that you use your space wisely, making sure to briefly (but thourghly) describe each activity you talk about. (I know that that can be easier said then done, but careful planning and a couple of re-readings/re-writtings can help). I'd also recommend talking about a variety of experiences. No reader wants to hear 15 times about how you volunteered at X or traveled to Y. Although X and Y may be very significant to your app...try to mix it up a bit so the reader gets an idea that you are a well rounded person. Hope that helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Carolyn Posted September 26, 2002 Report Share Posted September 26, 2002 I Agree with McMed - I also think it is very important that you create a "picture" of yourself - personalize it enough so that at the end the reader can feel like they actually just had a great conversation with you - that they have a gist of your personality -- this can be difficult but important. In order to get a lot of substance, I would suggest writing longer than the 700 characters then shortening it without losing the content -- you can always tell the answers where people have just run out of room. I actually believe you can get a lot down in 700 characters -- but I can only say that after the fact of course take care and good luck. Carolyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ploughboy Posted September 26, 2002 Report Share Posted September 26, 2002 ----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Hi '29. I find having a couple of pints while I'm writing helps a lot. No really, I'm serious! It puts me in a story-telling mood, and I'm able to telescope my opinions and experiences into a few concise phrases. It's not a case of "the more I drink the better I dance", it's my way of getting in touch with the right side of my brain. Something else that might help you: read some poetry to get a feel for capturing a whole scene in a few words. Just don't get so artsy in your responses that the evaluators write you off as a flake. (Apologies to all the artsies out there ;-) Carolyn: good to see you're still around the boards. I've read through the archives - as somebody who's been on both sides of Mac's admission process your advice has been invaluable. I'd like your opinion on what constitutes an "external standard" (as in "How do you know when you have learned enough without relying on external standards?") I have an R&D job, I write papers and share my results with others formally and informally. Having an article peer-reviewed is definitely an external standard, no question about that. Getting to the point where I'm ready for peer-review involves a lot of things - reading the literature to learn what's been done already, figuring out how my work fits in with the current state of the art, sharing my results with my co-workers, etc. I've had a whack of practice at spotting holes in my story and gaps my knowledge of the field, explaining to myself and others how my results mesh with what's already in the literature, anticipating other people's questions, etc. These are all ways I can judge how much I've learned and whether I'm on solid or shakey ground. None of that stuff is formal like an exam, but it's definitely external to me. As soon as I pick up a pen or open my mouth to communicate something I'm relying on something outside of me (for example - my colleague's reaction when I explain my latest half-baked theories). Even by asking you about this I'm using you as an external standard to judge my understanding of Mac's question. My head hurts... I suspect I'm so fixated on the word "external" that I'm missing the point that the question is about "external standards" (i.e. exams). Please unconfuse me! I have a second, less philosophical question. When answering questions that deal specifically with the school (e.g. 4 & 5) my first reference in each answer is to "McMaster", all the other references are "Mac" (hey, it's a chance to save five characters per ref...) Will the evaluators be cool with that, or will they think I'm being too casual? That I'm obsessing over such a niggling little detail should give you some idea of my state of mind right now. Not much time left... TIA pb -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.0.2 (GNU/Linux) Comment: For info see http://www.gnupg.org iD8DBQE9k7kI/HNgbK3bC2wRAob+AKCRH53VKTdXr3odl6JWhEcYwUZ2DgCeLTfl cDjkQD7ilL1V6glLTEhv+kM= =PBH7 -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Carolyn Posted September 27, 2002 Report Share Posted September 27, 2002 hmmm you signed off with TIA -- all I can think of is Transient Ischemic Attack!! Perhaps I've become too entrenched in medspeak I'm not sure but it sounds to me like you have a lot of experience to use in the external standards question... I think you are right in that "external standards" could be interpreted quite widely; however, I think the question is for quantitative or even quanlitative (i.e. there will be many weeks at a time where no one is specifically saying --- Yes you seem to know what you are talking about -- although you do get that in tutorials)... how do you ensure that you do actually know enough? Truly hard question to help you on butI think you seem to have a good grasp on it -- just my opinion of course. With regards to referring to the school as Mac - I can't say I'd have a problem with it - but I can't speak for others especially not those reading it... Sorry again - not overly helpful. Take care and best of luck... now back to my residency application! I swear I was just writing my mac application! Carolyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ploughboy Posted September 27, 2002 Report Share Posted September 27, 2002 -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Hi Carolyn, Thanks for your feedback (TIA = "thanks in advance"). After some more thought I have a strategy for answering the question. I might even dedicate a few of my 700 characters to a quick definition of what I think an external standard is. Anything is better than the answer I have right now (20 chars - "I just know, dammit!") Re "Mac": I appreciate that you can't speak for this year's crop of evaluators, all I really wanted was your gut feeling. If you'd said something like: "No, don't do it! When I was grading essays I punted anybody who didn't call my precious school by its full name!" then I would have been worried. (If you said that I would have been worried about a lot of things, actually.) I'll stick with calling the school Mac, it fits in with the conversational tone I'm taking with my answers. Good luck with the residency application! pb -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.0.2 (GNU/Linux) Comment: For info see http://www.gnupg.org iD4DBQE9lN6C/HNgbK3bC2wRAgFcAJURaH4wPDNOBOdFP28uaQh1adfcAKCdjeSF 3oiCaXNFIhIgzzaQSFtFCQ== =liDW -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ceds Posted September 28, 2002 Report Share Posted September 28, 2002 Hey folks, How are you approaching the "How have you given of yourself to the benefit of others over the last several years?" question? Did you just pick 2 or three of the most prominent examples and discuss them? Thanks, Cedrin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tanya24 Posted September 28, 2002 Report Share Posted September 28, 2002 Hi Cedrin, that's exactly what I did. I picked my 2 most prominent extracurriculars, the number of years/hours, and the different roles I had played with both of those organizations. Even spending 3 sentences per activity adds up to 700 characters pretty quickly. Some people are taking a "list" approach but I'm not sure that's the way to go. If they'd wanted a long point form list, they would've asked for it. Just my opinion, of course. Good luck with your app. Only 18 days left! Tanya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ceds Posted September 28, 2002 Report Share Posted September 28, 2002 All I've been hearing for the last couple of weeks is "tick tock tick tock". The clock's ticking! Doesn't help that I have a lab write up and midterms coming up as well!!! Thanks for the input Tanya. Cedrin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest redgirl29 Posted October 5, 2002 Report Share Posted October 5, 2002 Hi guys, Does anyone know if the readers of your auto submission ever look at your sketch prior to reading your submission (i.e. do they have some background or are you starting with a blank slate?) I know they don't see your marks or other aspects of your OMSAS application, but I was unsure about the sketch. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ploughboy Posted October 6, 2002 Report Share Posted October 6, 2002 -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 Wow, there's nothing like a deadline to focus the mind! I didn't think it was possible, but I moved four questions off my "weak" list to my "medium" and "almost ready to submit" lists today. I've only got three "medium" left, but it's weird - two of them are questions I thought I'd have no problem with. Maybe I'm trying too hard...I'll read an essay and think "wow, that's great, the adcom will be really impressed!" Five minutes later I'll read the same essay and think "wow, what a load of cr*p!". I need a break. Good luck to all. pb -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v1.0.2 (GNU/Linux) Comment: For info see http://www.gnupg.org iD8DBQE9n50B/HNgbK3bC2wRAqkhAJoC88oprNTh5NMe4BhU/RBcWDpIngCeKfAb 3WfPp+eJ6DdkAuyGhlnRY2o= =gCAM -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jane Posted October 6, 2002 Report Share Posted October 6, 2002 Hi redgirl29, Apparently the readers of the autobio submission only get your name (to make sure they don't read a submission of someone they know) and your responses to the questions. They have no background on you. The sketch is used by the interviewers so they have some background and are able to ask questions relevant to you and your experiences (they do not get your autobio submission). Hope this helps! Jane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest redgirl29 Posted October 6, 2002 Report Share Posted October 6, 2002 Thanks Jane- that's exactly what I needed to know:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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