AMCAS experiences: plain, prose or poetry?

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schatzie81

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I'm having a hard time describing my experiences. Which way is best?

Plain (list of duties):
blah blah worker, x years
certified in blah
worked with blah
blah experience

Prose (list of duties in complete sentences):
I have worked x years as a blah, where I was exposed to blah and blah. Duties included blah. I am certified in blah, and have extensive experience in blah.

Poetry (complete sentences with commentary):
While working x years as a blah, I was able to take part in many aspects of the healthcare system. Studying for my certification is blah has taught me blah about medicine, and using my skills in blah is very rewarding yet challenging.

😕
 
schatzie81 said:
I'm having a hard time describing my experiences. Which way is best?

Plain (list of duties):
blah blah worker, x years
certified in blah
worked with blah
blah experience

Prose (list of duties in complete sentences):
I have worked x years as a blah, where I was exposed to blah and blah. Duties included blah. I am certified in blah, and have extensive experience in blah.

Poetry (complete sentences with commentary):
While working x years as a blah, I was able to take part in many aspects of the healthcare system. Studying for my certification is blah has taught me blah about medicine, and using my skills in blah is very rewarding yet challenging.

😕
Click to expand...

I have been told by a senior that she did more or less "mini-essays" about each of her experiences and how it impacted her. She said that some of her interviewers commented on that and so that's how I'm writing mine.
 
I'm not sure whether mine is prose or poetry. I just tried to explain my experience as best as possible, making sure to give background if needed. Here is one of them just to give you an idea (its about me being a gross anatomy lab instructor):

The Biology department of Oakwood College has 4 cadavers which are used to teach students gross anatomy in preparation for medical school. Since most students that take this class are seniors, the teacher rarely has lab instructors. This past school year, I along with 3 other juniors were given the opportunity to take the Gross Anatomy class, so that we could be lab instructors our senior year. As lab instructors we have virtual autonomy in the lab, and we work in setting quizzes, grading dissections, filling out pathology reports, setting up cadaver practicums, and helping students identify structures on the cadavers during open lab. At the end of my junior year I had an early start as a lab instructor when I was given the opportunity to guide a group of students from the Madison School of Massage through the cadaver, pointing out key muscles treated in their field.
 
I think mine would be considered "poetry". I not only discussed each activity but important moments and "lessons learned". It worked out well and I received positive comments about my entries.
 
I'm doing mine in haiku:

While volunteering
I learned new things about the
public health systems.

Haaaaaaiiii!!


Or maybe I'll send in a video and do it kabuki style...



Wow, yeah, totally just kidding. OP: The poetry style sounded more natural to me though, more readable. So says the double English major/assistant editor!

MFP
 
What about poetry that rhymed.

I worked in a sleep lab
For the last year
my EEG hookups weren't bad
and my patients never cowered in fear
the job was cool as you can see
except for doing tests on peoples pee
 
Vizious said:
What about poetry that rhymed.

I worked in a sleep lab
For the last year
my EEG hookups weren't bad
and my patients never cowered in fear
the job was cool as you can see
except for doing tests on peoples pee
Click to expand...

Brilliant. I dare you to put that down in the field.
 
OwnageMobile said:
Brilliant. I dare you to put that down in the field.
Click to expand...
Haha no way. For undergrad admission, one of the colleges I applied to asked for "something creative" within a space. I wrote a "poem". Let's just say I didn't get into that school.
 
Vizious said:
What about poetry that rhymed.

I worked in a sleep lab
For the last year
my EEG hookups weren't bad
and my patients never cowered in fear
the job was cool as you can see
except for doing tests on peoples pee
Click to expand...

that's awesome. if anyone can find a way to use the word pee in their app, they definitely have a leg up!

i guess i shall wax poetic on what wiping butts has taught me...
 
I guess mine would best be described as "poetry," but very concise. I only included commentary where the relevance to medicine may not have been obvious at first glance.
 
schatzie81 said:
I'm having a hard time describing my experiences. Which way is best?

Plain (list of duties):
blah blah worker, x years
certified in blah
worked with blah
blah experience

Prose (list of duties in complete sentences):
I have worked x years as a blah, where I was exposed to blah and blah. Duties included blah. I am certified in blah, and have extensive experience in blah.

Poetry (complete sentences with commentary):
While working x years as a blah, I was able to take part in many aspects of the healthcare system. Studying for my certification is blah has taught me blah about medicine, and using my skills in blah is very rewarding yet challenging.

😕
Click to expand...


I think mine were a mix of prose and poetry (at least how you have them identified). I listed what I did in complete sentences, and added a sentence at the end of a few entries about what I learned from my experience...particularly if there was something memorable that occurred. The main thing, I think, is not to get too long-winded with your description. Think about how many applications an adcom has to read through...be concise and they'll appreciate it.
 
Mine was a mixture of prose and poetry. In formal writing, I tend to be somewhat wordy so I had to make an effort to make my descriptions concise yet informative.
 
a limerick would be pretty tight too

honestly, i don't even think i wrote in complete sentences.
 
tomorrowgirl99 said:
bump
Click to expand...

I kept mine pretty simple by saying what i specifically did and the time frame (the average hour per week is pretty vague), and then I had a few sentances about what I learned and how it impacted me and then a little about how it relates to medicine. All of this got me usually between 800 and 1000 characters.
 
If you received an award or the like, how is it possible to relate that to medicine? Do you have to?
 
tomorrowgirl99 said:
If you received an award or the like, how is it possible to relate that to medicine? Do you have to?
Click to expand...

No. I don't think you even have to make all of your activities related to medicine. They just want to know you can work hard (please don't try to make your summer job at Burger King related to medicine), you were involved in your community, and that you have some idea of what you're getting into (which is where the relating things to medicine part comes in).
 
Is anyone interested in posting up some good examples?

Is this an appropriate forum to explain by telling a story (more like the personal statement) or should it stick to more facts with a little narration?
 
Mine are "plain" I guess, they are to the point, describe what I did or how I did it, for how long, etc. It's concise. I thought I remember reading that this is what adcoms prefer, that you show them rather then tell them about your experiences. Kind of let them make their own conclusions about your stuff rather then explaining the meaning behind everything. Or am I missing something here? :scared:

All my descriptions are no longer than 600 characters, seems like I'm the odd man out here by not flowering it up. Should I change this and add more to it, describe the meaning of it, supplement it with experiences, and what it meant to me and such?
 
I've been told by a former UCSF admissions officer that they don't even read the descriptions but only the title of the activity.
 
schatzie81 said:
I'm having a hard time describing my experiences. Which way is best?

Plain (list of duties):
blah blah worker, x years
certified in blah
worked with blah
blah experience

Prose (list of duties in complete sentences):
I have worked x years as a blah, where I was exposed to blah and blah. Duties included blah. I am certified in blah, and have extensive experience in blah.

Poetry (complete sentences with commentary):
While working x years as a blah, I was able to take part in many aspects of the healthcare system. Studying for my certification is blah has taught me blah about medicine, and using my skills in blah is very rewarding yet challenging.

😕
Click to expand...

I dont know why, but i treated the experience section like the results section of a lab report. just listed the activities and specifics but didnt go into how each activity made me feel. I think some adcoms will appreciate succinct applications, while others may appreciate long winded "passion". i doubt it will be a huge difference in the end, either way.
 
doctajay said:
The Biology department of Oakwood College has 4 cadavers which are used to teach students gross anatomy in preparation for medical school. Since most students that take this class are seniors, the teacher rarely has lab instructors. This past school year, I along with 3 other juniors were given the opportunity to take the Gross Anatomy class, so that we could be lab instructors our senior year. As lab instructors we have virtual autonomy in the lab, and we work in setting quizzes, grading dissections, filling out pathology reports, setting up cadaver practicums, and helping students identify structures on the cadavers during open lab. At the end of my junior year I had an early start as a lab instructor when I was given the opportunity to guide a group of students from the Madison School of Massage through the cadaver, pointing out key muscles treated in their field.
Click to expand...

Too long & boring. I'm reading 800 of these things in the coming year.

What I'd cut is in red. My commentary is in italics. What I'd add is in green.


The Biology department of Oakwood College (this will be in the field above the narrative & is not needed) has 4 cadavers which are used to teach students gross anatomy in preparation for medical school. Since most students that take this class are seniors, the teacher rarely has lab instructors. This past school year, I along with 3 other juniors were given the opportunity to take the Gross Anatomy class, so that we could be lab instructors our senior year. As a lab instructor s we I have virtual autonomy in the lab: , and we work in setting quizzes, grading dissections, filling out pathology reports, setting up cadaver practicums, and helping students identify structures on the cadavers during open lab. At the end of my junior year I had an early start as a lab instructor when I was given the opportunity to Also guided a group of students from the Madison School of Massage through the cadaver, pointing out key muscles treated in their field.
 
Homer Simpson said:
I've been told by a former UCSF admissions officer that they don't even read the descriptions but only the title of the activity.
Click to expand...

This is the second or third time I've heard someone saying that they personally heard from UCSF admissions don't look at stuff on the application (personal essay, activities, etc) besides the numbers. They're starting to seem like jerks to me!
 
LizzyM said:
Too long & boring. I'm reading 800 of these things in the coming year.

What I'd cut is in red. My commentary is in italics. What I'd add is in green.


The Biology department of Oakwood College (this will be in the field above the narrative & is not needed) has 4 cadavers which are used to teach students gross anatomy in preparation for medical school. Since most students that take this class are seniors, the teacher rarely has lab instructors. This past school year, I along with 3 other juniors were given the opportunity to take the Gross Anatomy class, so that we could be lab instructors our senior year. As a lab instructor s we I have virtual autonomy in the lab: , and we work in setting quizzes, grading dissections, filling out pathology reports, setting up cadaver practicums, and helping students identify structures on the cadavers during open lab. At the end of my junior year I had an early start as a lab instructor when I was given the opportunity to Also guided a group of students from the Madison School of Massage through the cadaver, pointing out key muscles treated in their field.
Click to expand...

I'm certainly no adcomm member but I was thinking the exact same thing when I read that. 👍
 
I was told that they do read the personal statements though. I just think a lot of people tend to be verbose in their descriptions of extracurricular activities that the adcom simply can't afford the time in a preliminary screening. After some initial weeding they eventually do read the applications of strong candidates in depth.

sara3426 said:
This is the second or third time I've heard someone saying that they personally heard from UCSF admissions don't look at stuff on the application (personal essay, activities, etc) besides the numbers. They're starting to seem like jerks to me!
Click to expand...
 
bump
 
hmm...well i guess it's helpful to spend a bit of time making the titles of the activities sound as good as possible
 
I actually liked the above sample, but maybe it is a little too verbose.

Does anyone know what order the events should be listed it? Chronological (with most recent first or last) or by importance?

Thanks
 
Also, does anyone know what to do for the contact person for each activity? For example, if you attended a one-day seminar on a healthcare topic, who would you put down? The event coordinator? Does AMCAS call each contact to verify info?
 
Monkeygirl said:
Also, does anyone know what to do for the contact person for each activity? For example, if you attended a one-day seminar on a healthcare topic, who would you put down? The event coordinator? Does AMCAS call each contact to verify info?
Click to expand...

i did chronological entries. and i chalked it up to the horrible amcas interface entries that asked, e.g., for a contact person concerning conference attendance. gimme a break. some conferences didn't require registration, and for those that did it would be a serious pain in someone's butt, if possible at all, to look through old records for my name.

for all the money we're throwing to amcas, they need to do some user-testing and re-programming.
 
Do you have to put down contact numbers? I mean, I'd rather not, plus are they really going to contact them?


And also, how long is everyone's entries? I mean, mine are all coming to about 400 characters, which seems a bit shorter than the 1325 or so that you can use...
 
Suaveness said:
Do you have to put down contact numbers? I mean, I'd rather not, plus are they really going to contact them?


And also, how long is everyone's entries? I mean, mine are all coming to about 400 characters, which seems a bit shorter than the 1325 or so that you can use...
Click to expand...

400 characters is sweet. An adcom member or two will want to kiss you for being "to the point".

I've never heard of anyone confirming contacts. If you worked with someone for 8 mos. or more, you should have a phone number. For conferences, mtgs attended, etc, it is obvious that one doesn't have #s.
 
LizzyM said:
400 characters is sweet. An adcom member or two will want to kiss you for being "to the point".

I've never heard of anyone confirming contacts. If you worked with someone for 8 mos. or more, you should have a phone number. For conferences, mtgs attended, etc, it is obvious that one doesn't have #s.
Click to expand...

phone numbers? there isn't even a field for those! should they just be put in the description?
 
Sorry there isn't a field for phone #, just contact name. So I should put the name of someone I've worked with over 8 months?
 
Suaveness said:
Sorry there isn't a field for phone #, just contact name. So I should put the name of someone I've worked with over 8 months?
Click to expand...

it seems like if you have a contact who knows who you are and could speak about what you've done, you should list that person. it doesn't seem like schools will actually contact them, though. who knows? i listed contacts who met the criteria above.
 
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