What is your answer to

I like science and want to help people.
Seriously this is a very difficult question to answer. But I think if you can answer it in a way that creatively says that first sentence then you are fine.

Its a pretty loaded question. Kind of asking, How do you know you're in love. Alot of is instinct. If you search around in the pre-allo forums you can find numerous threads addressing this question.

Because I want to help people.

While the above is cliched and true, my take on it is that:

1) The human body is fascinating. Whether you're looking at the level of protein interactions or something higher order, it's amazing that we exist. Not only that - it's amazing that we can think, feel, learn, and love. Seriously. Whenever I'm having a bad day, I think of that, and I'm so grateful to be here.

2) I think that the purpose of my life - not necessarily for everyone, but for me - is to pass on the knowledge that I know so that others can achieve more than I have in my life. As a doctor, this means treating their bodies and educating them about health so that they can be healthy (duh) and pursue other things... after all, someone probably isn't worrying too much about a college education when they're struggling with a chronic illness. The big idea is to achieve the potential... I will achieve my potential by learning all I can and passing it on so that humankind can achieve even more. I see myself as important, but only a small part in the grand scheme of things.

Thanks for asking this question... Typing out my rambling thoughts has helped me plan my personal statement a little bit =/ So nervous!

to get a bmw.


c'mon, the point is for you to answer that question.

I want to be an MD because I strongly believe no teenager should be treated the way I was treated when I first developed my medical problem (I have juvenile rheumatoid arthritis). No one took me seriously and assumed I was exaggerating. I went through so much crap with the doctors at NewYork-Presbyterian (So many x-rays, MRIs, CT scans, bone scans, shrinks, every anti-inflammatory - OTC and prescription - and some heavy medicines.) It took almost two years to realize "Gee, maybe this guy does have JRA and needs to be treated with immunosuppressives." Why, I don't know. That's why I want to go into medicine; what the hell took them so long to fix me!?

Now I'm good as new. Still not the way I was pre-JRA, but pretty ****in' close enough.

my reason: I think it's my calling, my purpose in life. I've just known since middle school really, when we took our science courses... I loved it. I also like helping people and did a lot of service projects. But I have yet to delve into myself to discover exactly why cuz I have to have a detailed answer for the interview... hopefully after the MCAT when I'll have time for leisurely thinking haha

voirlesetoiles said:

my reason: I think it's my calling, my purpose in life. I've just known since middle school really, when we took our science courses... I loved it. I also like helping people and did a lot of service projects. But I have yet to delve into myself to discover exactly why cuz I have to have a detailed answer for the interview... hopefully after the MCAT when I'll have time for leisurely thinking haha

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If I were your student interviewer, and you hit me with the any or all of the phrases: "my calling," "my purpose in life," "I've just known since middle school" and/or "delve into myself," I would deposit your app neatly into the trash. That is all.

If I was an adcom member and you said all that fluff in an interview you would get rejected.

silverlining1 said:

Because I want to help people.

While the above is cliched and true, my take on it is that:

1) The human body is fascinating. Whether you're looking at the level of protein interactions or something higher order, it's amazing that we exist. Not only that - it's amazing that we can think, feel, learn, and love. Seriously. Whenever I'm having a bad day, I think of that, and I'm so grateful to be here.

2) I think that the purpose of my life - not necessarily for everyone, but for me - is to pass on the knowledge that I know so that others can achieve more than I have in my life. As a doctor, this means treating their bodies and educating them about health so that they can be healthy (duh) and pursue other things... after all, someone probably isn't worrying too much about a college education when they're struggling with a chronic illness. The big idea is to achieve the potential... I will achieve my potential by learning all I can and passing it on so that humankind can achieve even more. I see myself as important, but only a small part in the grand scheme of things.

Thanks for asking this question... Typing out my rambling thoughts has helped me plan my personal statement a little bit =/ So nervous!

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Quote: "no teenager should be treated the way I was treated when I first developed my medical problem (I have juvenile rheumatoid arthritis"

Then do research on this disorder. You won't make any impact on this disorder besides treatment. If you want to make an impact, you need to be inovative. This means improving treatment, making new discoveries, etc.

JimJamJimmy said:

I want to be an MD because I strongly believe no teenager should be treated the way I was treated when I first developed my medical problem (I have juvenile rheumatoid arthritis). No one took me seriously and assumed I was exaggerating. I went through so much crap with the doctors at NewYork-Presbyterian (So many x-rays, MRIs, CT scans, bone scans, shrinks, every anti-inflammatory - OTC and prescription - and some heavy medicines.) It took almost two years to realize "Gee, maybe this guy does have JRA and needs to be treated with immunosuppressives." Why, I don't know. That's why I want to go into medicine; what the hell took them so long to fix me!?

Now I'm good as new. Still not the way I was pre-JRA, but pretty ****in' close enough.

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FroggieBet said:

If I were your student interviewer, and you hit me with the any or all of the phrases: "my calling," "my purpose in life," "I've just known since middle school" and/or "delve into myself," I would deposit your app neatly into the trash. That is all.

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Whoa.... why so harsh.... I thought we were all trying to encourage each other here.

Note that I said that I would come up with a more detailed example (about events that have affected me and influenced me). But do you have any suggestions about how to go about doing this?

It would be nice for experienced premeds to post constructive criticism as well as ways for us to rectify it.

How did you figure out why you want to be doctor?

Voir- dont use calling, known since you were a child type of things. no one knows they want to REALLY become a doctor until they start removing the alternative career options when researching about what other paths are out there. That is, have you ever tried shadowing or working in jobs outside of medicine for you to know that medicine is your thing? No one does this until they are well into college, maybe high school, and beyond. That's why non-trads are typically more desired, they have more life experience and their pursuit to go into medicine is one that required more sacrifice and a decision that wasn't made lightly, but probably made with more information

I'd be interested in hearing a "good" response since everyone's honest opinion is so terrible.

marie_in_wa said:

"Why do you want to be a doctor?"

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Free pens. Also, in how many other jobs can you ask all your customers to disrobe and have them actually do it?

Seriously this is a personal question and not one you can answer by getting other peoples' reasons. And you absolutely don't want to go into a career because someone else thinks it's the only one for them. If you cannot answer this question for yourself easilly and without help, you need to do some more shadowing, career research and maybe take a harder look at other fields too.

jonathon said:

If I was an adcom member and you said all that fluff in an interview you would get rejected.

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Don't be an @$$, please. I was being honest, and I thought that what I had said had more substance than "because I want to help people". If you're going to tell me that's fluff, at least be considerate or even help me out. Did it look like I was joking around in my earlier post?

armybound said:

I'd be interested in hearing a "good" response since everyone's honest opinion is so terrible.

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I totally agree. Or at least tell me constructively why my ideas are fluff. Maybe it's funny for you, but this is my future career on the line, and I would like it if what I had to say wasn't dismissed so flippantly.

Law2Doc said:

Free pens. Also, in how many other jobs can you ask all your customers to disrobe and have them actually do it?

Seriously this is a personal question and not one you can answer by getting other peoples' reasons. And you absolutely don't want to go into a career because someone else thinks it's the only one for them. If you cannot answer this question for yourself easilly and without help, you need to do some more shadowing, career research and maybe take a harder look at other fields too.

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Sorry to break it to you L2D, you probably get better free pens as a lawyer, its time to change the name from Law2DocAnd180again. I guess if you win the lawsuit, you are metaphorically disrobing the defendants

silverlining1 said:

Or at least tell me constructively why my ideas are fluff.

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It's not a horrible answer, but I didn't think much of the "I see myself as important..." sentence. Focusing on your role in the universe is too existentialist and too far outside the fold for application purposes.
Most of your answer applies to any job in healthcare, not just a physician. Nurses are also fascinated about the body and get to pass on information to patients.

There are really two answers that don't get you far with adcoms (1) helping people -- because it is as you suggest a cliche and also because all service oriented jobs, in healthcare and out, do this and there are paths of less resistance where you can help people, and (2) money, job security or other econ reasons.
Make sure your reason for wanting to be a doctor involves actually wanting to perform the role of physician. The only good reason for going down this career path is because you want to practice medicine. So focus on the practice part, I think.
And as I suggested earlier, this answer comes from soul searching and shadowing, not trying to come up with a philosophical reason.

braluk said:

Sorry to break it to you L2D, you probably get better free pens as a lawyer, its time to change the name from Law2DocAnd180again. I guess if you win the lawsuit, you are metaphorically disrobing the defendants

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No way -- as a lawyer we gave away more free pens than we took in -- every client who ever signed anything managed to pocket one.

Law2Doc said:

Make sure your reason for wanting to be a doctor involves actually wanting to perform the role of physician. The only good reason for going down this career path is because you want to practice medicine. So focus on the practice part, I think.
And as I suggested earlier, this answer comes from soul searching and shadowing, not trying to come up with a philosophical reason.

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Great, thank you - that's definitely something I needed to hear. I have indeed done shadowing and loved it, so I'll be sure to mention that as a concrete reason for "why medicine".

braluk said:

Voir- dont use calling, known since you were a child type of things. no one knows they want to REALLY become a doctor until they start removing the alternative career options when researching about what other paths are out there. That is, have you ever tried shadowing or working in jobs outside of medicine for you to know that medicine is your thing? No one does this until they are well into college, maybe high school, and beyond. That's why non-trads are typically more desired, they have more life experience and their pursuit to go into medicine is one that required more sacrifice and a decision that wasn't made lightly, but probably made with more information

Click to expand...

Thanks for the response! Yes I have shadowed a physician and volunteered at a children's hospital. I will use those experiences as supporting evidence for my reasons for wanting to be a doc. And I totally agree, although I say that I knew as a child - there's no way I could have been fully sure of it until I got to college.

But should I still say that I had wanted to be doc when I was a child... and then include that I later discovered that it was the right choice through so-and-so experiences? Or avoid the childhood aspirations stories altogether since it may seem cliche?

I'm still a few years away from medical school, so I haven't written any personal statements or anything yet and I don't know what parts will be included in my eventual personal statement...but here's my honest answer.

I want to be a doctor for the cliched reason of helping people, but there's more to it than that. I've always been interested in healthcare and decided that I wanted to be a clinical psychologist during my freshman year of college. As I went through college, though, I realized that it wasn't psychology overall that I was interested in. It was two specific aspects - the biological/chemical ones (i.e. how the brain works, neurotransmitters, etc.) and the prospect of being able to work people through their problems. The more I looked into it, the more I realized that the things I was interested in were much more applicable to medicine than psychology.

So, I shadowed a physician for several days. At the end of every day, I sat down with him and basically asked him questions about any aspect of healthcare I could think of for a half hour to an hour. After I left the office in the evening, I felt rejuvenated instead of exhausted like I have with other jobs (and I obviously wasn't even getting paid here). I found it fascinating to observe the physician start with just a few complaints and work those into a full plan of action. I want to be able to formulate a plan of action and administer it, thus helping a patient.

I've also shadowed a PA and, although she was intelligent and nice, she lacked the broad knowledge of a physician, as well as the ability to formulate and administer her plan of action. She complained a lot about having to get physician approval and the fact that she was limited in what she could and could not do. Knowing my personality, I would not be happy in that position.

Also, I would never be able to have a desk job because I enjoy being up and active throughout the day. I do not work well in situations where you perform the same, repetitive activities. I love on-the-job learning, too, and I feel like physicians (as well as other healthcare providers, most likely, but my reasons for wanting to be a physician specifically are above) are constantly getting the opportunity to see new things and learn from fellow physicians. If I don't have to think, I would not be happy!

So there's my long answer...any feedback or whatnot is welcome.

I like that.

voirlesetoiles said:

Thanks for the response! Yes I have shadowed a physician and volunteered at a children's hospital. I will use those experiences as supporting evidence for my reasons for wanting to be a doc. And I totally agree, although I say that I knew as a child - there's no way I could have been fully sure of it until I got to college.

But should I still say that I had wanted to be doc when I was a child... and then include that I later discovered that it was the right choice through so-and-so experiences? Or avoid the childhood aspirations stories altogether since it may seem cliche?

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U could always mention it briefly, but you have to be realistic and put yourself in adcoms shoes. Do they really care if you wanted to be a doctor since you were a kid? How many other people have said it? What they will care about, is if you did your research, how do you really really know that medicine is what you want? How are you ready for it? What experiences have you had? When you were a child, did you ALSO know that you were probably not going to see your family much? Or that half your time as a physician might be spent filling out paperwork? Or that people will die on your hands and that families will be angry, upset, and ready to file a lawsuit to take your license away? I doubt that you knew this as a child, this is probably how an adcom would approach it. Prove it by citing your reasons and give very strong, compelling evidence that you have searched your soul, looked at the alternatives, and that, instead of a "calling", that medicine is naturally what you are good at and despite the drawbacks (and there are alot), you are willing to essentially sacrifice your life for it. Medicine is not a 9-5 job. Theres a book I recommend, "Essays that will get you into medical school" (look it up on amazon) it gives some really good points that provide you with a strong personal statement.

Personally, I don't think you should have to post on sdn to find a good answer to that question. But, I think an adcomm wants to know that you have the love/interest (maybe starting from an interest in science and the human body, maybe because of a personal experience, etc.) and also experience seeing it firsthand in your college years and knowing that it was the right fit for you.

At the risk of letting this be known to my advisees...

Me as interviewer: Why do you want to be a doctor?

Student: Because I want to help people.
Me: Why not become a priest?

Student: Because I'm fascinated with human disease.
Me: Why not become a nurse?

Student: Because I'm interested in the human body.
Me: Why not become a mortician?

Student: Because I like science.
Me: Why not become a geologist / organic chemist / physicist?

I think to me the "best" answer to this question is not so much on the qualities you think you have to be a good doctor but rather focus on the fact you have chosen a specific health profession. Why did you not want to be a dentist, a chiropractor, a nurse, a social worker, a vet, etc.? (Conversely for everyone else, why did you want to be a dentist, pharmacist, podiatrist, social worker, physical therapist, vet, ... instead of any of the other health professions.) To me, the comprehensiveness of this answer gives me insight on your reasons why you think medicine is your true calling more than the cliched answers everyone else usually gives.

Of course, then there's the next loaded question for those with higher MCAT scores :
Why not osteopathic medicine?

I'm going to become an M.D. predominantely for the money and prestige. My secondary reason is a broad interest in science and disease mechanisms.

MasonPrehealth said:

At the risk of letting this be known to my advisees...

Me as interviewer: Why do you want to be a doctor?

Student: Because I want to help people.
Me: Why not become a priest?

Student: Because I'm fascinated with human disease.
Me: Why not become a nurse?

Student: Because I'm interested in the human body.
Me: Why not become a mortician?

Student: Because I like science.
Me: Why not become a geologist / organic chemist / physicist?

I think to me the "best" answer to this question is not so much on the qualities you think you have to be a good doctor but rather focus on the fact you have chosen a specific health profession. Why did you not want to be a dentist, a chiropractor, a nurse, a social worker, a vet, etc.? (Conversely for everyone else, why did you want to be a dentist, pharmacist, podiatrist, social worker, physical therapist, vet, ... instead of any of the other health professions.) To me, the comprehensiveness of this answer gives me insight on your reasons why you think medicine is your true calling more than the cliched answers everyone else usually gives.

Of course, then there's the next loaded question for those with higher MCAT scores :
Why not osteopathic medicine?

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I think this is great advice.

Notice that you can still "help" someone with their personal answer to this question by giving broad advice.

Even answering with your own personal reason for wanting to be a doctor will help someone realize what a good answer should include, not just giving an answer for someone to copy verbatim.

MasonPrehealth said:

Of course, then there's the next loaded question for those with higher MCAT scores :
Why not osteopathic medicine?

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You may perhaps be asked "why osteo?" on osteo interviews but you would never ever be asked "why not osteo?" on an allo interview or in any application. Osteopathic schools may expect you to at least give lip service to their different philosophy, but allo schools won't.

silverlining1 said:

Don't be an @$$, please. I was being honest, and I thought that what I had said had more substance than "because I want to help people". If you're going to tell me that's fluff, at least be considerate or even help me out. Did it look like I was joking around in my earlier post?

I totally agree. Or at least tell me constructively why my ideas are fluff. Maybe it's funny for you, but this is my future career on the line, and I would like it if what I had to say wasn't dismissed so flippantly.

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Be honest about your reasons - if that's your honest reason, then say that. But I'm sure by the time you've gone through 3 years of university, looked into medicine more - you'll find other reasons too. But no no, if I were an adcom or student interview - I'd appreciate the idealism.

My calling since I was in middle school isn't a good answer though. But everything you said about the body being fascinating, passing on your knowledge - I thought these were really good reasons, especially the 2nd part.

jonathon said:

Quote: "no teenager should be treated the way I was treated when I first developed my medical problem (I have juvenile rheumatoid arthritis"

Then do research on this disorder. You won't make any impact on this disorder besides treatment. If you want to make an impact, you need to be inovative. This means improving treatment, making new discoveries, etc.

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Well, not exactly. There is already research out there; the problem in this case was at the clinical and applied end.

I like expensive prostitutes, and medicine gives me the discretionary income to pursuit them

In honesty though, I love studying art, and to me, nothing is more beautiful or awe inspiring than the human body

MahlerROCKS said:

In honesty though, I love studying art, and to me, nothing is more beautiful or awe inspiring than the human body

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Sounds like you want to be an anatomical artist (like netter), or an anatomist, not a doctor.

marie_in_wa said:

Answers like this make me wonder what sort of answers adcoms would get if they *really* wanted the truth

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I just thought I should make it clear this was a joke--sometimes people on the forums take all things literally

Lol, it would be funny if it would be done theatrically. For example,

Interviewer: So why do you want to go into medicine?
*You sit forward cautiously, look the interviewer dead in the eye, with 100% seriousness, lean your upper body on your elbow, on your right knee*

You: Well honestly, if you must know, I have an insatiable appetite for foreign cars, lavish women, and to live a sinful, but tasteful life. I want to pursue this through medicine because honestly, how many professions out there can give you the prestige and respect of the majority to look the other way when you pick up 3 lady friends on a Sunday night in your dark blue Series 7 BMW for a lesson in group anatomy?

Props to someone who will pull this off man I should go into the medical entertainment writing industry. Nip/Tuck writers have nothing on me!

silverlining1 said:

Because I want to help people.

While the above is cliched and true, my take on it is that:

1) The human body is fascinating. Whether you're looking at the level of protein interactions or something higher order, it's amazing that we exist. Not only that - it's amazing that we can think, feel, learn, and love. Seriously. Whenever I'm having a bad day, I think of that, and I'm so grateful to be here.

2) I think that the purpose of my life - not necessarily for everyone, but for me - is to pass on the knowledge that I know so that others can achieve more than I have in my life. As a doctor, this means treating their bodies and educating them about health so that they can be healthy (duh) and pursue other things... after all, someone probably isn't worrying too much about a college education when they're struggling with a chronic illness. The big idea is to achieve the potential... I will achieve my potential by learning all I can and passing it on so that humankind can achieve even more. I see myself as important, but only a small part in the grand scheme of things.

Thanks for asking this question... Typing out my rambling thoughts has helped me plan my personal statement a little bit =/ So nervous!

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then why don't you want to be a professor where you have a fulltime job of educatiing people?

My answer was something along the lines of: "I want to be a doctor because no matter what type of doc I eventually will be, practicing medicine is all about problem solving. It entails interacting with and observing people to learn what is ailing them, and then having the knowledge and resources to set a course of action for their best outcome. It's problem solving in a field in which I have interest and talent (science), and it's the type of problem solving that can make a real impact as opposed to, say, doing the daily sudoku."

That said, I tend to get a little nervous during interviews so I fear it may have come out more like: "I...uh...help people...me...(hand flailing and sweating). Problem solving?"

I want to deliver babies.

stoic said:

to get a bmw.


c'mon, the point is for you to answer that question.

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It's fun imagining the interviewers face when you say:

I want a porsche

Ya science is alright too.

I hate people but love mankind therefore it seems like ideally medicine is a great profession. Plus I get to be in school forever and have the lowest salary of anyone within a city block.