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[misosoop]

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answered, tysm!

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Hi there, I would greatly appreciate any feedback on my diversity essay topic. Apologies for the long post ahead, I wanted to be as specific as possible.

The prompt is:

What unique life experiences, personal attributes and/or perspectives will you bring as part of the incoming class? Are there particular challenges or successes that you have encountered? If you do not wish to write anything, please write “NA.” (3000 characters)

I have three ideas currently:

1. I was initially on a path to work in K-12 education, focusing on STEM education in under-resourced communities. This gives me a "unique" (not really) perspective of the importance of good teaching as a core component of patient care--breaking down complex concepts to be accessible to the layperson and displaying a real desire/care that the patient understands their own health. I can supplement this with examples of challenges/success in my Americorps service and GED class at a homeless shelter.

My problem with this is that I have heard on these forums that basically every premed has a "passion for education" and numerous teaching roles. Also, my personal statement outlines my transition from education to medicine, so this may be repetitive.

Yes, it is a very well-worn path. What we don't know is how you support your statement. If you were a long-time educator and have paid your dues working in small-town or under-resourced urban schools beyond Americorps/TFA, you may have a good narrative that tells us how your experience is an asset to the incoming class and your student community. If you developed innovative methods that document your students' improvements, that may also be helpful. It's your details make you unique, and short of outing yourself, that's all the feedback I can provide.

2. Multiple encounters with death in medicine and the diverse perspectives on death gained from each: The personal grief associated with my grandmother's passing and the cultural perspective of death (very taboo, not talked about at all even at end of life, patients not wanting to know about their terminal diagnoses, etc), the use of medicine to prevent or even reverse death in the emergency room, and medicine preparing for death in hospice (treated as a neutral, natural experience; medicine not at all in opposition to death).

I worry that this is too specific of an aspect of medicine to make my "diversity" essay.

I don't know how this story makes you "cool" to be with or around. What did you disclose in Other Impactful Experiences?

3. I moved to a small, homogenous town in the South after spending ages 1-5 in China with my grandmother. I faced a lot of bullying from classmates and teachers and as a result am very sensitive to the exclusion of others and the power of education/advocacy to combat ignorance.

I don't think this is a very unique experience or perspective lol

Again, any help would be appreciated. Are any of these a good fit for the prompt? Should I keep brainstorming?

Sure, every premed moved to the South after spending their toddler years in China... (/sarcasm). I would check your other secondary prompts to see if you may have to discuss an inclusion experience (have you ever been an outsider or "the other"?).

 

[misosoop]

Yes, it is a very well-worn path. What we don't know is how you support your statement. If you were a long-time educator and have paid your dues working in small-town or under-resourced urban schools beyond Americorps/TFA, you may have a good narrative that tells us how your experience is an asset to the incoming class and your student community. If you developed innovative methods that document your students' improvements, that may also be helpful. It's your details make you unique, and short of outing yourself, that's all the feedback I can provide.



I don't know how this story makes you "cool" to be with or around. What did you disclose in Other Impactful Experiences?



Sure, every premed moved to the South after spending their toddler years in China... (/sarcasm). I would check your other secondary prompts to see if you may have to discuss an inclusion experience (have you ever been an outsider or "the other"?).

Thanks for the response!

For 1, I switched midway through undergrad due to an event that occurred during my Americorps term, so I don't think a have a substantive enough claim to "educator". For 2, yes I figured lol. I didn't write anything for OIE.

I think I will go with 3; I've already written a similar essay for another school for the prompt "Please describe the impact of your identity and experiences on your growth and development, and how it may impact your career as a physician" and will be able to expand on that.