How do you come up with compelling reasons for "why you want to go a certain medical school?"

[mrh125]

This is mainly for secondary apps because I've seen these questions appear a ton. What exactly counts as a good reason that stands out to ADCOMs? What exactly counts as a bad reason? I'm thinking stuff like "I went to undergrad there" or "it's in my homestate and because of this I will be able to actively address the needs of others in my nearby community" won't cut it.

Going from "I'd just be thankful to get into one medical school with all of the competition" to "here's a few really specific unique reasons why I want to go to each of 20+ med schools I applied to that nobody else has thought of" seems like a daunting task, especially since I would think that everyone's googling each of these schools and trying to combine their vague mission statements and programs into the meaning of their lives. This also made me think of an absolutely lethal interview question if I was an adcom "What unique opportunity does our school offer that no other school offers?"

How do you come up for compelling reasons for "why you want to go a certain medical school?" What was your thought process? I want to be original, but this is like the whole personal statement business where everyone has a dying relative with a disease that gave them the urge to apply to become a doctor and then went on to save starving children in Angola. I also feel really bad if I'd to bs these because I really want to make them meaningful and have genuine passion because if I can find something that genuinely compels me about each school it'll come across why easier than "oh you have nice research". I also don't have a degree in creative writing lol.

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[cookiemonsters]

I hated these questions, it is basically a contest to see who can BS the best.

Location: if a school is close to your home state, say you want to stay close to home because you are very family-oriented. If it is far away, say you want a change of scenery for the next four years. If it's in a gutter area, you can say that you are interested in working with underserved and [insert city] would be a good fit with this goal.

Curriculum: if a school uses lots of PBL, say you like working in groups. If it is mostly lecture, say it's a good fit because you like studying on your own. If it has an accelerated pre-clinical curriculum, say that you can't wait to get into clinic to figure out which area of medicine interests you the most.

Research: if a school has great research opportunities, say you are interested in academic medicine. If not, say you are mostly interested in practice and serving the community.

Browsing the school website for 1-2 hours can potentially give you some interesting topics/programs to write about.

Bad reasons in my mind: the weather, went to undergrad there, have lots of friends at the school, it is prestigious.

 

[mrh125]

I hated these questions, it is basically a contest to see who can BS the best.

Location: if a school is close to your home state, say you want to stay close to home because you are very family-oriented. If it is far away, say you want a change of scenery for the next four years. If it's in a gutter area, you can say that you are interested in working with underserved and [insert city] would be a good fit with this goal.

Curriculum: if a school uses lots of PBL, say you like working in groups. If it is mostly lecture, say it's a good fit because you like studying on your own. If it has an accelerated pre-clinical curriculum, say that you can't wait to get into clinic to figure out which area of medicine interests you the most.

Research: if a school has great research opportunities, say you are interested in academic medicine. If not, say you are mostly interested in practice and serving the community.

Browsing the school website for 1-2 hours can potentially give you some interesting topics/programs to write about.

Bad reasons in my mind: the weather, went to undergrad there, have lots of friends at the school, it is prestigious.

Great post. I'm saving your post, since this is a really awesome guide on how to evaluate these schools. Also, you really hit the nail on the head about the BS contest. I was hoping that was over after the personal statement (reading how flowery and obviously exaggerated many of them are made me want to puke). I can't wait until this process is over.

 

[moop]

It's probably BS for most, but for some who really do have very specific and logical reasons to make a school their top pick, those essays will be very natural and make a lot of sense (beyond the generic stuff mentioned above), which is probably why schools still ask it. No one will be penalized for trying to BS, but it shouldn't be hard for someone who really has a strong reason to stand out and have the committee notice them.

 

[DermViser]

This is mainly for secondary apps because I've seen these questions appear a ton. What exactly counts as a good reason that stands out to ADCOMs? What exactly counts as a bad reason? I'm thinking stuff like "I went to undergrad there" or "it's in my homestate and because of this I will be able to actively address the needs of others in my nearby community" won't cut it.

Going from "I'd just be thankful to get into one medical school with all of the competition" to "here's a few really specific unique reasons why I want to go to each of 20+ med schools I applied to that nobody else has thought of" seems like a daunting task, especially since I would think that everyone's googling each of these schools and trying to combine their vague mission statements and programs into the meaning of their lives. This also made me think of an absolutely lethal interview question if I was an adcom "What unique opportunity does our school offer that no other school offers?"

How do you come up for compelling reasons for "why you want to go a certain medical school?" What was your thought process? I want to be original, but this is like the whole personal statement business where everyone has a dying relative with a disease that gave them the urge to apply to become a doctor and then went on to save starving children in Angola. I also feel really bad if I'd to bs these because I really want to make them meaningful and have genuine passion because if I can find something that genuinely compels me about each school it'll come across why easier than "oh you have nice research". I also don't have a degree in creative writing lol.

Look at the school's mission statement. That will help a lot in incorporating it into your secondary.

 

[Pacna]

I love this question.

They want some profound example of how the mission statement resonates with your inner essence or some s***. You ask them why they work there and they'll say "Oh, the food around here is pretty good I guess."

Just another hoop to jump through.

 

[ThisCouldBeYou]

This question guarantees you'll at least look at their website.

Look at the school's mission statement. That will help a lot in incorporating it into your secondary.

 

[Bovary]

This question guarantees you'll at least look at their website.

I've spent a lot of time crawling around websites trying to find details on programs and curricula. They all need a big button that says "Click here for the unique facets of our curriculum" or a banner saying "YES we study organ-based systems, YES we have PBL, NO we're not P/F" and that'd save me about 503873 hours.

 

[bearded frog]

​

 

[DermViser]

This question guarantees you'll at least look at their website.

Yup, there are always idiots who apply to medical schools talking about how much they want to do medical research, not realizing that the school's emphasis is on primary care (for example).

 

[Cyberdyne 101]

I feel that some of these websites are very helpful. For example, if a school has a research requirement they often talk about the resources available to students to conduct research. And this can help with a secondary if you're interested in research. Other schools are more community/primary care focused and they mention it in their mission statement (ie we aim to produce physicians for the State of blank). Some schools are more "rural" (and they advertise this) while others are more "urban" (advertised as well). For example, there's definitely a difference between USC and the Iowa in terms of their respective communities. Yeah, all of this probably amounts to making a spreadsheet of med school categories, but in the end, the more you know, the more it'll help.

 

[Patros]

This also made me think of an absolutely lethal interview question if I was an adcom "What unique opportunity does our school offer that no other school offers?"

Is this an unreasonable question? Given 30 minutes of research, you should be able to find something unique about basically every school. You don't need to praise the school or declare how you and the school will be soul mates. But if you can raise some things that are unique to that school, then you have demonstrated that your decision to apply there was well-informed. Another question in a similar vein is, "So what do you know about our school?" You should apply largely to the schools that suit your interests, so it'll be more easy to write and speak honestly. If I were an adcom, I would always a "Why our school?" question. Honestly, there are much more annoying aspects of the admissions process.

Of course you'll have to apply to some safety schools, which is where your BS skills will need to be honed. Still, keep in mind they are not really testing if the school is the right fit for you, but simply that you are knowledgeable of what the school has to offer. If you seem unaware or otherwise disinterested, then you are likely to turn down an acceptance, which they want to avoid.

 

[mrh125]

I've spent a lot of time crawling around websites trying to find details on programs and curricula. They all need a big button that says "Click here for the unique facets of our curriculum" or a banner saying "YES we study organ-based systems, YES we have PBL, NO we're not P/F" and that'd save me about 503873 hours.

sounds about right. if the admissions process is continually going to get more and more ridiculous med schools should at least make it more convenient for us.

 

[Bruits]

Look at the school's mission statement. That will help a lot in incorporating it into your secondary.

But 90% of schools' mission statements are some gist of "Our mission is to educate students, advance healthcare, and do biomedical research." With the exception of the few schools which make it clear they are primary-care focused, missions statements are not really helpful.

 

[DermViser]

But 90% of schools' mission statements are some gist of "Our mission is to educate students, advance healthcare, and do biomedical research." With the exception of the few schools which make it clear they are primary-care focused, missions statements are not really helpful.

Not entirely true. WashU (as an example) makes it very clear that they value research vs. say SIU.

 

[Cyberdyne 101]

It also helps to look at the hospitals that are affiliated with the school in question. For example, I'm sure LA County hospital gives USC students a unique experience in helping underserved patients. The U Wash hospital is a rehabilitation powerhouse (if helping ppl with disabilities is one of your interests).

Maybe it would help to start with regions of interest to you and then you can take an in depth look at the schools and hospitals in that specific region.

 

[Cyberdyne 101]

Not entirely true. WashU (as an example) makes it very clear that they value research vs. say SIU.

Stanford, UCSD, Vanderbilt, and Chicago make it very clear that they require a research project for graduation (these are just examples, I'm sure there are more).

 

[mrh125]

I got more thoughts and a Follow up to what I said earlier:
i've been researching medical schools through the msar, google, and their website and i'm basically just writing down buzzwords and programs they have, but really they all have similar opportunities for primary care, they have proteomics and genomics labs, they all have objectives to serve their communities and put you in underserved areas, opportunities to be mentored under advisors, opportunities to pursue a quicker pathway to primary care, renowned faculties, ability to pursue research in whatever you choose public health, connections, vaccines, whatever.

I'm writing down specific programs, but it's like ugh all these schools have most of the same opportunities so it's hard to have a reason that really sets mine apart. Would I be penalized for putting down something every school seems to have and treating it like it's unique for the one particular school i'm writing about even if im genuinely interested in it?

like "I'm really interested in this school because of its emphasis in primary care and ability it gives to me to directly interact with patients in underserved areas and get my feet wet right away. I like the ability to be encouraged to pursue and observe research in an area of the world I want through partnerships in <insert country/area here>. I also find the emphasis on group-learning outcomes to crucial as I am quite the teamplayer blah blah blah and medicine is all about team synergy. I also really like the rural area because any lessons I learn in this underserved area can be utilized in the area I intend to practice medicine and grew up in which is also rural."

This is the sort of stuff I would be writing with more details. Is that too BSy? How stringent are ADCOMs about this sort of stuff? I hope adcoms have a perspective of how difficult this could be.

 

[moop]

It's about what you see in the school that's awesome.

 

[Cyberdyne 101]

It's about what you see in the school that's awesome.

I see awesomeness in schools that are not in my home state (particularly those in California).

 

[LizzyM]

You don't need a unique (held by you alone) reason why you are a good fit with the school. You don't need to get across the uniqueness of the school (aside from its address, it is going to share characteristics with some of the 100+ other schools in the US).

The point of the question is to be sure that you know something about the school and find it attractive before you submit the secondary. Sure, you might be happy to get into any school that will take you but you will narrow your list of schools and there are some reasons why you choose to apply to one school over another... The point is to find the reasons why you are choosing that school other than the one's you wouldn't mention (the school's stats are lower than mine so I'm likely to get in, the school is prestigious and close to home, etc).

You may remember writing teachers who have told you "don't tell me, show me". Good advice. In the essay, give an example of what you've done in the past that shows that you are a good fit for this school whether it is having done research or written a thesis as an undergrad, or having been involved in teamwork as an engineering student.

 

[Venko]

Okay, so I hear a lot of people talking about the BS nature of the question...

The question is why do you want to train here?

If you are upset by this, I hate to break it to you, the rest of your job hunts are going to suck. It's a simple question and maybe the answer is equally simple and that's okay....but it is important.

If your answer is I want to train here because you have the power to award me an MD at the end of it...that's okay.

But, if you happen to have special ties to the school or it is convenient for your spouse or your kid or you have a fascination with the research being done or the financial aid package is the best (I've never heard of anything as absurdly generous as mayo medical school by the way), or the biochem professor is your hero because they mapped one of the ETC complexes or whatever, then great, here is your chance to share.

Come on gang you need to reserve disgust for things that are truly unreasonable...asking why you want to come here? Work here? Live here? Shop here? Is a very very reasonable question.

You even hear people ask significant others...why do you want to marry me? Love me? Be with me?

People ask God the same question...why me?

Come on now, chin up...this is far from the most offensive or disturbing thing you will go through in your life when competing for a spot in something

 

[Planes2Doc]

Okay, so I hear a lot of people talking about the BS nature of the question...

The question is why do you want to train here?

If you are upset by this, I hate to break it to you, the rest of your job hunts are going to suck. It's a simple question and maybe the answer is equally simple and that's okay....but it is important.

If your answer is I want to train here because you have the power to award me an MD at the end of it...that's okay.

But, if you happen to have special ties to the school or it is convenient for your spouse or your kid or you have a fascination with the research being done or the financial aid package is the best (I've never heard of anything as absurdly generous as mayo medical school by the way), or the biochem professor is your hero because they mapped one of the ETC complexes or whatever, then great, here is your chance to share.

Come on gang you need to reserve disgust for things that are truly unreasonable...asking why you want to come here? Work here? Live here? Shop here? Is a very very reasonable question.

You even hear people ask significant others...why do you want to marry me? Love me? Be with me?

People ask God the same question...why me?

Come on now, chin up...this is far from the most offensive or disturbing thing you will go through in your life when competing for a spot in something

The way I see it, it's kind of a bad question for a process where it's well known that people will be applying to numerous other institutions. This isn't like asignificant other asking why you will marry him and her, because at that that time you would be long commited to each other.

If applicants were honest, there would be no such things as wait-lists since each school would be one's top choice. This is probably what makes the job hunt difficult for some people. Not every company is well-known that provides an exciting product or service. For example, one of my best friends works for Anixter. I bet you've never heard of it. Well it's a multi-billion dollar company that makes fasteners and cable products. I can't imagine job applicants being too excited about companies like Anixter and many others just like it.

Job applicants are looking for jobs to pay the bills and make a living, just like medical applicants are trying to get into an institution that will grant them an MD or DO degree in a very competitive process. But saying either of these truthful reasons for jobs or medical schools is not politically correct, and will get you rejected.

 

[Cinclus]

Figure out what's different about that individual school, what makes them feel they stand apart from most other schools, and talk about these things - why you love them, and why it makes you a great match for the school.

Small class size? I feel that the small class size allows for a tight-knit community, this is important to me because...

Unique curriculum? I'm excited about the curriculum because A, B, C.....

 

[LizzyM]

If applicants were honest, there would be no such things as wait-lists since each school would be one's top choice.

WRONG! The waitlist is operated by the medical school because some applicants get more than one offer and when these lucky candidates have to choose one school over another, it could happen that many schools end up with empty seats. With some folks not getting in anywhere and happy to go to any school to which they applied, a waitlist to fill empty seats after May 15th is very useful to both applicants and med schools.

 

[1012526fs]

OP, know the school, and then sell the school to your interviewer. It's that simple. If you can't sell a particular med school to someone else, then you need to learn more about that school before your interview.

 

[Genore]

WRONG! The waitlist is operated by the medical school because some applicants get more than one offer and when these lucky candidates have to choose one school over another, it could happen that many schools end up with empty seats. With some folks not getting in anywhere and happy to go to any school to which they applied, a waitlist to fill empty seats after May 15th is very useful to both applicants and med schools.

Quick side question, LizzyM. My roommate is first on the wait list for her dream school's MD-PhD program. Does that mean she still has a chance after May 15th to get in?
I was under the impression all seats were locked at that point. She got into two other programs, but will probably end up rejecting them both and taking a year off if she doesn't get off the wait list this year because she knows getting in to the dream school is a strong possibility now.

 

[LizzyM]

Quick side question, LizzyM. My roommate is first on the wait list for her dream school's MD-PhD program. Does that mean she still has a chance after May 15th to get in?
I was under the impression all seats were locked at that point. She got into two other programs, but will probably end up rejecting them both and taking a year off if she doesn't get off the wait list this year because she knows getting in to the dream school is a strong possibility now.

On May 15th someone, like your roommate, who holds two or more offers must withdraw from all but one of those schools. (Or she could withdraw from both but why???) However, she may stay on as many waitlists as she wishes. She'd rather take a chance of never going to medical school rather than taking one of the two offers she has? That's crazy! She can stay on the waitlist and accept one of the offers as a back-up.

Everyone with an offer makes a choice to accept or decline the offer by May 15th but that's when things get interesting for anyone still on a waitlist.

 

[ZeaL6]

Just tell them you applied there because your MCAT/GPA fits in pretty well.

But seriously, just find something you like. International programs, volunteer projects, research, Rotation location, etc. can all be great things to take a look at.

 

[mrh125]

On May 15th someone, like your roommate, who holds two or more offers must withdraw from all but one of those schools. (Or she could withdraw from both but why???) However, she may stay on as many waitlists as she wishes. She'd rather take a chance of never going to medical school rather than taking one of the two offers she has? That's crazy! She can stay on the waitlist and accept one of the offers as a back-up.

Everyone with an offer makes a choice to accept or decline the offer by May 15th but that's when things get interesting for anyone still on a waitlist.

LizzyM, I have a question for you, since you're responsible for the whole lizzym score business and I think you said you're an adcom at a top 20 school. Is it worth applying to a few dream top med schools schools if your stats are significantly lower? Do these schools actually go through all the applications they receive, so that if you have a compelling story they will actually see it? I'm thinking of trying to apply to a few dream schools just to take a chance and I want to make sure my applications are actually read instead of just being prescreened out.

 

[LizzyM]

LizzyM, I have a question for you, since you're responsible for the whole lizzym score business and I think you said you're an adcom at a top 20 school. Is it worth applying to a few dream top med schools schools if your stats are significantly lower? Do these schools actually go through all the applications they receive, so that if you have a compelling story they will actually see it? I'm thinking of trying to apply to a few dream schools just to take a chance and I want to make sure my applications are actually read instead of just being prescreened out.

I can't argue with one or two dream schools and 12-13 that are in the range or below. Will you be pre-screened? It is possible. If a school is facing 5,000 applications and interviewing only 20% or less, they have to start cutting somewhere and it might be to make an arbitrary line around GPA or MCAT (or both) and trim there before going deeper into the application. A school with a GPA 3.7, MCAT 34 may not think that anyone with a GPA 3.3, MCAT 26 has a story compelling enough to make the cut, and so it goes.

 

[AliciaAccepted]

This is mainly for secondary apps because I've seen these questions appear a ton. What exactly counts as a good reason that stands out to ADCOMs? What exactly counts as a bad reason? I'm thinking stuff like "I went to undergrad there" or "it's in my homestate and because of this I will be able to actively address the needs of others in my nearby community" won't cut it.

Going from "I'd just be thankful to get into one medical school with all of the competition" to "here's a few really specific unique reasons why I want to go to each of 20+ med schools I applied to that nobody else has thought of" seems like a daunting task, especially since I would think that everyone's googling each of these schools and trying to combine their vague mission statements and programs into the meaning of their lives. This also made me think of an absolutely lethal interview question if I was an adcom "What unique opportunity does our school offer that no other school offers?"

How do you come up for compelling reasons for "why you want to go a certain medical school?" What was your thought process? I want to be original, but this is like the whole personal statement business where everyone has a dying relative with a disease that gave them the urge to apply to become a doctor and then went on to save starving children in Angola. I also feel really bad if I'd to bs these because I really want to make them meaningful and have genuine passion because if I can find something that genuinely compels me about each school it'll come across why easier than "oh you have nice research". I also don't have a degree in creative writing lol.

It can be overwhelming when you think about all of the schools that will pose this question or something similar. I recommend focusing on each individual school, take it one secondary essay at a time. And remember to breath!

They really only want to know how much time you have spent researching their school. I have written several blog posts about how to respond to these secondary questions for individual medical schools. You can sign up for a free secondary essay handbook here.

It's important to:

1) Be genuine
2) Look for reasons why you would be excited to be a student on their campus
3) Visit schools and attend pre-med fairs so that you can meet med students and admissions officers who can give you more information about their school
4) Find a mentor to help support you through this process
5) Pace yourself--start early and set a reasonable schedule so that you will be able to focus on responding to each school individually

Do submit each secondary two weeks after you receive it. For more information about secondary essays, here's an article on "Completing the Jigsaw Puzzle."

Good luck!

 

[Genore]

On May 15th someone, like your roommate, who holds two or more offers must withdraw from all but one of those schools. (Or she could withdraw from both but why???) However, she may stay on as many waitlists as she wishes. She'd rather take a chance of never going to medical school rather than taking one of the two offers she has? That's crazy! She can stay on the waitlist and accept one of the offers as a back-up.

Everyone with an offer makes a choice to accept or decline the offer by May 15th but that's when things get interesting for anyone still on a waitlist.

Thanks so much for your response. That's good to know! I didn't realize there was still some flexibility there. I just remember for undergrad having to make the final final decisions on May 1 (or whatever that date is)...though I wasn't on any waiting list so maybe it's the same for that, too...

Yeah, it would have been a risk, but the caliber of research at the programs of the two was reasonably far below that of her first choice. I mean, they were still MD/PhD programs but non-MSTP ones and she didn't really gel with the environments when she toured.
Good news, though! She just got the call tonight that she did get in to her top choice. Finally all three of my roommates know where they're going now! Woot. Now I'm the only one who's stressed about anything...ah, junior year.

 

[DK2014]

You use the internet to do research on the school. Simple. Every school has a website.... you know?!