2nd time applicants.. re: essay

[HaveFaith]

Hey everyone..

I'll be applying for the second time this year and I was wondering what most of you do regarding the personal essay. Do you write a new one or use the old one?? In my situation my old one says everything that I want it to say and I don't think the admissions committees even read it because my MCAT score wasn't..... what it should be. Thanks in advance.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Cacophony]

unfortunatley you have to write a new one.

Update what you have done since your last application, etc.

You should change every sentance. It can say the same thing, but not the same way. (unless you are applying to completely different schools)

I know it's a pain. Sorry.

 

[shamthis]

I concur. Remember the old credo, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"? Well, the opposite holds true also. This is a great opportunity to discuss why you're reapplying and how much medicine means to you. Talk about what you're doing this next year for personal development, fulfillment, and to better your chances of realizing a dream of becoming a doctor.

Good luck! If I could do it the second time around, so can you.

Sham

 

[wolferman]

I was actually counseled on this by a person on an admissions committee. He told me I didn't have to start from scratch, but that my introduction had to be completely new, otherwise the adcoms would just assume it's the same. He also said that I needed to update it to make it more current. I also made a few modifications here and there throughout the piece but for the most part the letter had a lot of the same content. After my changes, the adcom member read it and said it would work.