Have you heard that a well-written medical school personal statement makes over 50% of your score as an applicant? Yes, it does! Contributing a worthy statement might become a start of your medical career. You may think it is enough saying to Admission Committee: “Since childhood, I have been dreaming of saving people’s lives”. Believe us, it is not enough to be admitted. Your Medicine Personal Statement is your chance to really explain who you are, and why you want to study Medicine. You should think of it as your opportunity to inspire Admission Tutors with your motivation. Get your Personal Statement right, and you’ll really stand out from the pool of other Med School applicants.
Such a wish sounds noble, but there are many professions making a great contribution to the well-being of other people. To reach your objective, prove helping people is your mission. How to do this? Persuade that medicine is your calling – write a top quality personal statement for medical school demonstrating strong points, great qualities, and benefits humankind can get if you become a doctor.
Challenging Exciting Stories Are Welcomed
Nobody promised it would be easy. The first challenge is choice of topic. Think of 1.5-page statement as of enjoyable adventure you have to go through with a medical school application. Brainstorm topic ideas. There are several winning variants for med school personal statement.
Why not tell about how excited you are about future experience? Remember, it is a competition! Be prepared for battle. Learn what is expected and exceed expectations. Sound creative and original to catch target audience attention. Explanatory and persuasive skills will be of great use. Explain how you can contribute to medicine. Mention research papers, if you already have publications. This would be a great benefit. Although it is not obligatory, why not to demonstrate an expertise you have, even as a student. You might tell a challenging story about an occasion that has completely changed your profession preferences. Regardless of chosen topic, the main key to success is to find your own tone and style that would sound natural.
Don’t exaggerate. No need to lie you have saved dozens of lives. But if you helped at least one person having a medical practice, it is a great plus. Let them realize you are ready for tough job and responsibility. Find best suitable words to characterize you as a reliable person who is strict about. Better demonstrate this through a story. Not your storytelling skills are checked but an ability to become a self-sacrificing specialist.
Helpful Tricks for Medical School Application Writing Process
Sitting in front of a clean sheet of paper puzzled how to write a personal statement for medical school? It is up to you to make writing process pleasant and enjoyable. Look at effective recommendations. They really work!
Organize time effectively
Preparation of top-notch quality medical statement requires much patience any worker obtaining medical profession must have. Don’t postpone until last minute. Reread, edit, proofread! Better leave statement for a while. Have a fresh look at writing in 1-2 days.
Concentrate on a specific point
Narrow topic writing about certain experience instead of sharing whole life story, plans for future. Highlight central idea. Prepare a list enumerating outstanding qualities. Brainstorm ideas for the best possible way to highlight them. Maximize chances to get accepted.
Show genuine interest in medicine
Prove that medicine sphere is your choice, not your mom’s, dad’s or granny’s. Words are your major weapon. Use it right carefully selecting each adjective characterizing you. Committee wants to discover more about your nature, reasons to connect life with medicine, and goals that are planned for future.
Stand out
Wish to help people is great but does this make unique? Everyone applying to the medical institution would say this. Not all applicants can be admitted. Take efforts making your statement different. Don’t think about standard reasons why everyone wants to work in a medical environment. Banality is the main enemy of success. Don’t be afraid to sound original. Think how to sell yourself at a higher price. Use promotional techniques to stand out. Make them want you and reject others. This is competition! Run, run, run! Never look back and reach the finish. Use honest, competitive methods.
Add secret ingredient to statement
Each tasty dish has secret component. Each person is unique having own secret ingredient. Reveal yours to make an unforgettable impression on Admission Committee. Raise interest in your personality. Include stories connected with career choice. Manage to intrigue avoiding vagueness.
Provide illustrative examples
Everyone knows: Better see than hear. People prefer seeing than listening to talks. Most applicants create nothing interesting listing good features: “ I am a well-organized person who feels compassion and sympathy”. No, no, no! Never do like this! Committee representatives will read hundreds of such unworthy senseless sentences. How to prove you have characteristics described? Words can’t be compared to actions. Use another tactic: instead of boasting saying “the best of the best”, tell life story about the incredible experience. Let officers make conclusions themselves.
Use understandable language
Don’t think the more complicated you’ll sound, the smarter you’ll look in front of Admission officers. Much better to choose a simple language. You are going to enter a medical school instead of art school. Doctors express thoughts concisely.
Write, re-write, let it sit, and write again!
Allow yourself 6 months of writing and revision to get your essay in submission-ready shape. This gives you the time to take your first pass, set your draft aside (for a minimum of 24 hours), review what you’ve written, and re-work your draft.
Stay focused.
Your personal statement should highlight interesting aspects of your journey—not tell your entire life story. Choose a theme, stick to it, and support it with specific examples.
Back off the cliches.
Loving science and wanting to help people might be your sincere passions, but they are also what everyone else is writing about. Instead, be personal and specific.
Find your unique angle.
What can you say about yourself that no one else can? Remember, everyone has trials, successes and failures. What’s important and unique is how you reacted to those incidents. Bring your own voice and perspective to your personal statement to give it a truly memorable flavor.
Be interesting.
Start with a “catch” that will create intrigue before launching into the story of who you are. Make the admissions committee want to read on!
Embrace the 5-point essay format.
Here’s a trusty format that you can make your own:
1st paragraph: These four or five sentences should “catch” the reader’s attention.
3-4 body paragraphs: Use these paragraphs to reveal who you are. Ideally, one of these paragraphs will reflect clinical understanding and one will reflect service.
Concluding paragraph: The strongest conclusion reflects the beginning of your essay, gives a brief summary of you are, and ends with a challenge for the future.
Good writing is simple writing.
Good medical students—and good doctors—use clear, direct language. Your essays should not be a struggle to comprehend.
Be thoughtful about transitions.
Be sure to vary your sentence structure. You don’t want your essay to be boring! Pay attention to how your paragraphs connect to each other.
5 Mistakes You Won’t Be Forgiven
Don’t say you are sure you’ll be the greatest doctor among all those existing today. Nobody like boasters!
Never say you have had a working experience if in reality saw blood only on pictures.
Don’t ask anyone write statement instead of you. This will be evident!Committee members have good analytical skills.
Don’t try sound better than you are. Show your skills, vocabulary, commitment.
Don’t tell that you know everything. Be a knowledge-seeking, motivated applicant.
Ability to Stick to Format is a Must
Don’t hurry while writing, look at medical school personal statement examples. Consider but don’t copy samples. You can’t focus on uniqueness ignoring required structure. The personal statement is a document written according to certain rules, structure, format. Make it bright, vivid, and plagiarism-free. Generate original ideas able to engage a reader.
Medical school personal statements contain 5-6 paragraphs. Start with introduction playing a crucial role in grasping attention. Use effective hooks. The reader must feel impatient willing to continue reading the main body. Write 3-4 paragraphs about personal experience connected to medicine, explain you were born to work in the medical sphere providing persuasive evidence. Bear in mind: Simplicity is a sister of talent. Never make things complicated if everything is simple.
Summarize remembering conclusion is the final part able to spoil overall impression or change attitude even if the beginning wasn’t impressive. Do the best writing within the word limit. Meet requirements taking into account writing instructions. Stick to right format following tips. Success formula has three components. They are verbs rather than nouns. Be persistent, goal-oriented, self-confident. Become best possible candidate they have ever seen applying useful recommendations in practice.