Contractions in Personal Statement

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Revilla said:
In my PS -- which I won't post here -- I start by telling a very personal story that I think is emotional in a good way. My first line after the story is: "that's when I decided to start this incredible journey." I think it flows much, much better, given the context, than "that is when I decided..."

That's just an example. My PS is hardly formal because I didn't want it to be. I wanted them to get to know me and my reasons for entering medicine on a personal level so I didn't treat it as an essay. I treated it as a question that I was asked and am answering.
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This is exactly my point. When is the last time you said something like, "That's when I decided to start this incredible journey" out loud? The answer is never. People don't talk like that. This is essay writing. Hence, "That is" or some other construction is more appropriate.

Anyway, I'm spinning my wheels here. If you guys are hell bent on using contractions in your statement, be my guest. Maybe it does show the adcom how informal and conversational you are. But if it was me reading your statement, I would be thinking either this person doesn't know how to write an essay or he didn't proofread.
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This thread makes me chuckle, if only because I have a tendency to speak formally to begin with, and have had proper essay technique pounded into me. My challenge with my PS was to make the conclusion a bit less formal.

I'm voting with the no contractions group, with two exceptions: quotes and 5302. ;)
 
I understand that:

i.e. I'm for I am

is a no-no.

But what about:

i.e. "the victim's pain"?

Am I really supposed to say: "the pain of the victim"?
 
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hsperson said:
I understand that:

i.e. I'm for I am

is a no-no.

But what about:

i.e. "the victim's pain"?

Am I really supposed to say: "the pain of the victim"?
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That is not a contraction. That is a possessive noun.
 
I think the camp that's claiming contractions sound better and make the sentence flow more easily are reading the statement as they would a conversation. Yes, reading, "That's when..." is a lot "easier" and more "comfortable" than reading, "That is when..." because that's how we speak. When you're not accustomed to speaking that way, it sounds awkward to write/read that way, as well.

And see? Without thinking, I just used "that's" right above because this is an informal forum. It's okay to do that. This is conversational. A personal statement, however, is NOT conversational. It is a FORMAL piece of writing. Just because it has the word personal doesn't mean it's informal- it means that it is a statement of purpose unique to you. It is personal, not informal. Understand the difference?

I think this thread is telling of the unfortunate demise of English skills amongst those in the scientific community. Admittedly, I'm no English major (haha), but I wouldn't even *think* of using contractions in my personal statement. That's just how I was taught.

That said, I don't think it's going to make or break your app, but it certainly shows a lack of effort on your part. It's lazy and sloppy and any old-schooler (or new-schooler with a proper education) will recognize that.

If nothing else, look at it this way: you're showing up for your first day on the job or to a very important dinner party. Wouldn't you want to be the one showing up over-dressed rather than under-dressed? It's just worth that bit of time and effort *just in case*. (Although again, I don't even think this is a "just in case" scenario. It's a no-brainer to me.)
 
cpants said:
This is exactly my point. When is the last time you said something like, "That's when I decided to start this incredible journey" out loud? The answer is never. People don't talk like that. This is essay writing. Hence, "That is" or some other construction is more appropriate.

Anyway, I'm spinning my wheels here. If you guys are hell bent on using contractions in your statement, be my guest. Maybe it does show the adcom how informal and conversational you are. But if it was me reading your statement, I would be thinking either this person doesn't know how to write an essay or he didn't proofread.
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:thumbup: I was thinking the same thing. I'm also going to make a judgment call and think (s)he didn't care enough. After all, ad coms have to make judgment calls based on your application and why give them one more reason to toss your application into their recycling bin?
 
I used contractions, the world didn't blow up at me, I got offered a decent number of interviews so it wasn't a deal killer. You can read my PS if you like: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dd73b3pw_3ddr7wfcb

I don't have them all over the place, but there are some here and there. I got comments from my Penn and Pitt interviewers that they really enjoyed my essay, so the contractions must not have distracted them THAT much. Shrug, I'll vote that no contractions is safer, but I personally did choose to take a "risk" and use contractions based on some insightful advice I got from people who have worked on adcom committees in the past.
 
One of my English professors told us he didn't care whether our papers were grammatically perfect or not. His concern was, "Don't bore me!" This also applies to the personal statement.

You should be a lot more concerned about boring most or all of the adcom members than about the possibility of one or two of them having enough free time to go through your PS with a red marker. Get their attention! Once you do that in a good way, you're about 95% of the way there.

Besides, any school that would disqualify you for including contractions in your PS is doing you a favor by sending you that thin envelope.
 
i used them in mine. got in just fine. i've read probably over 50 PSs the past 2 summers combined. i've suggest them in different places. if going for something powerful and short, i say use them. longer, more eloquent sentences i normally suggest no contraction. i definitely don't think it is an 'all-or-none' thing. i do think there is a place for them if it makes the sentence sound or flow better.
 
I used contractions in the quotes in my anecdote, where I'm talking to a patient and they're talking back to me.

I also used contractions in parts where I'm narrating what was going on in my head. For example "Don't touch anything sterile, I told myself".....1st time in operating room... nervous... etc

I didn't use contractions in the rest of the essay, where I'm talking to the reader, though.
 
Hey everyone,

I'm working on my PS and was not sure if its okay to use contractions...
I had a couple of lines where I had I'd, can't, we'd...etc....do you think that would make me look like a poor writer? I'm just trying to save space lol...thanks for your input :)
 
Pink3045 said:
Hey everyone,

I'm working on my PS and was not sure if its okay to use contractions...
I had a couple of lines where I had I'd, can't, we'd...etc....do you think that would make me look like a poor writer? I'm just trying to save space lol...thanks for your input :)
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Definately DON'T (Ha) put contractions in your personal statement. Your tone should be conversational, but written professionally.
 
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if you are stretched for characters..i think a few here and there is okay, but in no way, should your essay have a ton of them.
 
I'm not sure you can really generalize this, seeing as the syntax of the entire paper will be determined by the author's voice, and the grammatical style of the paper will flow from their voice. I just counted 11 contractions in my PS, and not one reviewer mentioned them negatively. In fact, I point blank asked everyone who read my essay if the contractions seemed appropriate, and they all advised me not to change them. If you received high marks in your writing classes or published a paper, the adcom will know you have the ability to write formally. But the personal statement is the only place on the primary application where they really get to hear you. In my view, that personalization not only refers to content, but to presentation as well. We all know the old adage, "It's not what you say, but how you say it." Well, I tend to take it to heart with the PS.

I'll second a piece of advice mentioned earlier: if you're confident in your writing skills, you can use stylistic elements such as contractions, fragments, beginning sentences with conjunctions, ending them with prepositions, parallelism etc. Why? Because decent writers can use these devices to effectively hold the reader's attention. But if you're not confident in your skills, avoid them and treat the PS like a formal essay for any other class, which you are presumably used to writing and therefore have greater comfort replicating.

In my view, the worst crime of the PS is to bore the reader. And having to read 30 PSs written in the scripted tone of a journal article (on the same topic, no less) would indeed qualify as boring to most people. Step forward from the background in any way you can, even if that means breaking the simplified rules of "formal" writing in favor of a more interesting paper. I'd love to get LizzyM's opinion here, but until that happens, I'll stick with the view that "personal statement" is not strictly analogous to "formal essay".
 
Somebody wrote this on the thread I linked to, but I'll repeat it. I don't think contractions is a good way to cut down on characters. There are ways of rephrasing sentences that eliminate extra characters without having to sacrifice grammar. Contractions can be used for stylistic reasons (I use them when I'm quoting something that I said, or when I'm thinking aloud to myself), but not for saving space.
 
shemarty said:
I used contractions in the quotes in my anecdote, where I'm talking to a patient and they're talking back to me.

I also used contractions in parts where I'm narrating what was going on in my head. For example "Don't touch anything sterile, I told myself".....1st time in operating room... nervous... etc

I didn't use contractions in the rest of the essay, where I'm talking to the reader, though.
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Same thing for me. I used contractions only in dialog.

And having read the work of the gentleman posting above me, I can vouch for his ability to use contractions and create a kickass PS.
 
Thanks, exi. :) I added a little something to it. If you still care, I can send that over in a few days, after I've convinced myself it isn't crap.
 
This thread is a repeat of one that was posted just a few days ago.

Mods, please encourage people to use the search function. Perhaps closing this thread is one way.

Edit: shemarty already pointed this out.
 
DoctorDreamer said:
Yes, as well as:
"I'm" for "I am"
"wasn't" for "was not"
"can't" for "can not"

Etc.
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technically "cannot" is correct and accepted and does not require a space between the 2 words. Or so I've read before.
 
gujuDoc said:
technically "cannot" is correct and accepted and does not require a space between the 2 words. Or so I've read before.
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Technically can't is the contraction of cannot, not can not. :laugh: Cannot means one is unable to do something. Can not means that one is able to choose not to do something.
 
:)
 
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Even though I'm commenting on this thread, I have already submitted my personal statement and there is no looking back.
When I wrote my personal statement I went for what sounded right when I was writing. For me that meant I put cannot in some sentences to make it stand out.
In my AMCAS I actually never put in any contractions, but I wasn't thinking about it at all. That was just how I ended up writing. In my TMDSAS essays I am pretty sure I had about 4 contractions over 3 essays.
Don't stress out if you already submitted your essays and had contractions. There's nothing you can do about it now. If you haven't submitted your essays look to see if it would make sense and still flow to not have contractions. If it works a lot better to use contractions, then use them. You want your essay to be something that adcoms can read and not get stuck in the middle of trying to decipher what you are trying to say. If a contraction makes it easier for them then that's probably a better choice.
 
And this thread still gets replies...

Here's a nice summary for you all:

1) Avoid contractions

2) If you choose to use contractions, use them approrpriately and only when necessary to bring across a certain point, for example within the context of speech.

3) If you choose to use contractions, use them sparinlgy.







So no more replies, right? I think I summarized everyone's view. But if I didn't, I can not do so because I chose not to.
 
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contractions are a no-no especially in formal writing...

can't ----> can not
won't ----> will not

and so on and so forth
 
Fluid, elegant, easy-to-read English is impossible without contractions. If you won't or can't use them then your prose will sound like either grade school Vulcan or a declaration of war.

It's not the contractions, the real problem is that most of you can't write a decent essay to save your lives. I know, I've read many of them and they are for the most part cringe-inducing and vomit-making.

Not to mention that there is nobody except maybe the Pope (or people of his stature) who needs 5300 characters to describe themselves. I think most of you can get by with a couple of thousand and some generous spaces between paragraphs.

Good Lord.
 
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Besides, written English has to sound right to the ear or it becomes ponderous.
 
schismal said:
I'm not sure you can really generalize this, seeing as the syntax of the entire paper will be determined by the author's voice, and the grammatical style of the paper will flow from their voice. I just counted 11 contractions in my PS, and not one reviewer mentioned them negatively. In fact, I point blank asked everyone who read my essay if the contractions seemed appropriate, and they all advised me not to change them. If you received high marks in your writing classes or published a paper, the adcom will know you have the ability to write formally. But the personal statement is the only place on the primary application where they really get to hear you. In my view, that personalization not only refers to content, but to presentation as well. We all know the old adage, "It's not what you say, but how you say it." Well, I tend to take it to heart with the PS.

I'll second a piece of advice mentioned earlier: if you're confident in your writing skills, you can use stylistic elements such as contractions, fragments, beginning sentences with conjunctions, ending them with prepositions, parallelism etc. Why? Because decent writers can use these devices to effectively hold the reader's attention. But if you're not confident in your skills, avoid them and treat the PS like a formal essay for any other class, which you are presumably used to writing and therefore have greater comfort replicating.

In my view, the worst crime of the PS is to bore the reader. And having to read 30 PSs written in the scripted tone of a journal article (on the same topic, no less) would indeed qualify as boring to most people. Step forward from the background in any way you can, even if that means breaking the simplified rules of "formal" writing in favor of a more interesting paper. I'd love to get LizzyM's opinion here, but until that happens, I'll stick with the view that "personal statement" is not strictly analogous to "formal essay".
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****ing A. This is the most intelligent thing written about the personal statement on SDN.
 
i'd shy away from contractions just because it sounds less professional. i understand the PS isn't a formal essay in the strictest of terms but still, it's not a casual piece.

in addition, you should never ever be stretched for characters to the point where you have to use contractions. once it gets past 5000 char or so, it's wayyy too long and boring already, and you need to cut stuff out.
 
I learned to not use contractions in papers while I was in high school. Think of it this way....a commitee member will be reading THOUSANDS of personal statements. If she reads one with contractions, the other without, it will seem like the one without contractions is more professional and that they took the time to make it more formal. Why would you want to take that risk?
 
3535 said:
I learned to not use contractions in papers while I was in high school. Think of it this way....a commitee member will be reading THOUSANDS of personal statements. If she reads one with contractions, the other without, it will seem like the one without contractions is more professional and that they took the time to make it more formal. Why would you want to take that risk?
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Agreed. Right or wrong, if you're getting pushback from SDN, it's likely that at least one of the (generally older and more conservative) adcom members will feel the same way. Is it worth the risk? There are plenty of other ways to shorten an essay. I've done a moderate amount of proofreading, and if I read many formal essays in a row, I wouldn't have to work to notice a contraction. Things like that tend to jump out at me.
 
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The personal statement, from what I gather, is supposed to be a snapshot of you, not a formal argument against capitalism or a scientific analysis of the effects of neurotrophic factor. The goal is to have a one-sided conversation on paper with your potential interviewers, colleagues, or superiors. While there are different levels of formality in conversation, no level is so strict as to prohibit contractions. In writing the PS, I think an important thing to consider is whether you sound like you'll be able to talk in plain English to both patients and colleagues. And contractions are quite natural in day-to-day language, whether highly professional and formal or blue-collar and informal.

There are good arguments against the use of contractions in formal writing, e.g., that their omission contributes to a good language standard and that it feels appropriately professional. But an applicant's professionalism will be apparent in her letters of recommendation, extracurricular activities, coursework, and grades. Why risk sounding awkwardly robotic merely to conform to a perceived standard? To conclude, in my experience browsing medical schools' admissions websites, admissions decisions are often made by committee vote. Even if one or two members (and this is pushing it) decide to reject or waitlist based solely on one's use of contractions in her personal statement, the others probably won't. And a single English teacher's advice not to use contractions in high school shouldn't be taken to represent the entire English-speaking community in adulthood. The personal statement should include personal language, which no doubt suffers from the occasional contraction.
 
breeak said:
This thread makes me chuckle, if only because I have a tendency to speak formally to begin with, and have had proper essay technique pounded into me. My challenge with my PS was to make the conclusion a bit less formal.

I'm voting with the no contractions group, with two exceptions: quotes and 5302. ;)
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I just read this entire thread because I was your second exception.
 
Well, this no contractions thing is news to me!
 
i was always taught that there should be no contractions in formal writing
 
I have two contractions in my PS. Will be submitting this evening.

"It's" and "aren't"

The contractions are appropriate because they emphasize that I am speaking with my OWN voice. They occur in places where I am being very direct in my comments.

I think proper usage of contractions can demonstrate a nuanced understanding of the English language.

My 2 cents.

Note: You can break the rules if it's clear that you know them.
 
I described IN DETAIL the youthful nature of my axons in my personal statement.
 
pianola said:
I have two contractions in my PS. Will be submitting this evening.

"It's" and "aren't"

The contractions are appropriate because they emphasize that I am speaking with my OWN voice. They occur in places where I am being very direct in my comments.

I think proper usage of contractions can demonstrate a nuanced understanding of the English language.

My 2 cents.

Note: You can break the rules if it's clear that you know them.
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I think you'll be fine. I don't think they are going to take off points for using contractions as long as they are used appropriately.

That said, wow didn't realize you were from Florida. G'luck from another Floridian :)
 
Just posted this in another thread:

Taken from one of my favorite books, On Writing Well, by William Zinsser:

Your style will be warmer and truer to your personality if you use contractions like "I'll" and "won't" and "can't" when they fit comfortably into what you're writing. "I'll be glad to see them if they don't get mad" is less stiff than "I will be glad to see them if they do not get mad." (Read that aloud and hear how stilted it sounds.) There's no rule against such informality - trust your ear and your instincts. I only suggest avoiding one form - "I'd," "he'd," "we'd," etc. - because "I'd" can mean both "I had" and "I would," and readers can get well into a sentence before learning which meaning it is. Often it's not the one they thought it was. Also, don't invent contractions like "could've." They cheapen your style. Stick with the ones you can find in the dictionary.

This guy knows his stuff. I use contractions through out my PS and it reads MUCH better (not to mention you save precious characters).
 
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