Advice on writing a personal statement for GPR/AEGD?

[mangler]

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I’m a bit lost lost on how to structure my essay and what topics to write about.

I want to join a residency program to broaden and become more proficient in my clinical skills before practicing on own.

In school, I kept my nose down, worked hard, and joined a few volunteer programs. None of it seems like a talking point relevant to residency programs. I don’t really have any special circumstances or family members with severe illnesses like the best essays all seem to have.

So what do normal people write about?

 

[TanMan]

I’m a bit lost lost on how to structure my essay and what topics to write about.

I want to join a residency program to broaden and become more proficient in my clinical skills before practicing on own.

In school, I kept my nose down, worked hard, and joined a few volunteer programs. None of it seems like a talking point relevant to residency programs. I don’t really have any special circumstances or family members with severe illnesses like the best essays all seem to have.

So what do normal people write about?

I'm surprised that you would need a personal statement. Maybe talk to some of the AEGD/GPR PD's/graduates around here to seek advice?

Normal people have some kind of mission statement, who they are and what they are all about. You just need to prove to whoever is reading it that you're open to learning, you are someone they can get along with, not crazy, and not a liability. Interview is probably going to matter a lot more.

 

[mangler]

I'm surprised that you would need a personal statement. Maybe talk to some of the AEGD/GPR PD's/graduates around here to seek advice?

I’m hoping some of them see this thread 🙂

Normal people have some kind of mission statement, who they are and what they are all about. You just need to prove to whoever is reading it that you're open to learning, you are someone they can get along with, not crazy, and not a liability. Interview is probably going to matter a lot more.

I have a clear idea of who I am and what I want to accomplish. I’m a hard worker and an eager learner and I want to acquire as much clinical experience I can from a residency program before practicing on my own.

I’m just having a hard time tying specific extracurriculars or life events to an, in my opinion, pretty ordinary mission statement.

 

[prime1time]

Family members with a severe illness? What does that have to do with anything? How about you just write the truth and let your authenticity and passion shine through.

 

[mangler]

Family members with a severe illness? What does that have to do with anything? How about you just write the truth and let your authenticity and passion shine through.

Because lots of residencies are hospital based and focus on treating medically complex patients. So if something very personal to you is strongly relevant…like a family member with an illness… You get the point. A sample essay I read had a guy writing about his sister with leukemia.

My truth is that I work hard and want to learn. Do people just write their whole essay on that? My ECs don’t even seem relevant because they’re all volunteering based.

 

[TanMan]

Because lots of residencies are hospital based and focus on treating medically complex patients. So if something very personal to you is strongly relevant…like a family member with an illness… You get the point. A sample essay I read had a guy writing about his sister with leukemia.

My truth is that I work hard and want to learn. Do people just write their whole essay on that? My ECs don’t even seem relevant because they’re all volunteering based.

I'm just curious, is it a lot harder to get into an AEGD/GPR? Maybe it's the culture of dental school that I "grew up" in, but when we were seniors, if we told our classmates that we got into an AEGD/GPR, they would say "what happened/went wrong?" or "are you going to apply to x specialty next year?" implying something negative about doing an AEGD/GPR. Then again, more than half my class got 99's on their Part I boards and most ended up specializing.

If it's not hard to get into an AEGD/GPR, then do you really have to try hard to impress in your essay? If it is hard, then you may want to treat it like an essay for dental school (or even look for your old essays and just reword them).

 

[mangler]

It's not hard to get into a GPR/AEGD, but like everything in life, not all programs are created equal. Some programs are a lot better than others and there's competition to get into those. I could just phone in my app and probably get accepted somewhere random, but I don't want to waste my time in a bad program.

 

[TanMan]

Are you at UCLA at this time or UCLA undergrad?

 

[mangler]

I went to UCLA for undergrad but I'm in my last year of dental school at UOP now.

 

[setdoc7]

I am a GPR PD. My suggestion would be to write about what makes you a strong candidate, and what you will bring to my program that will make you invaluable as a member of my team and the hospital team in general. Too many PS's talk about what the applicant wants from the program. I already know that. What do you bring to the table?

 

[mangler]

I am a GPR PD. My suggestion would be to write about what makes you a strong candidate, and what you will bring to my program that will make you invaluable as a member of my team and the hospital team in general. Too many PS's talk about what the applicant wants from the program. I already know that. What do you bring to the table?

I appreciate the input, thank you.

 

[sisyphusrolled]

You talk about your drive and work ethic, talk about what lead to that. How did you come to be this person? What parts of your life lead you to become a person with your traits?

It doesn't have to be one event like most PS's are written (death in family, sickness, childhood adversity). It can be about a set of experiences that shaped and molded your character.

Even an "uneventful" story can be compelling if looked at from the right perspective. The hard part is going to be writing it in such a way that is compelling, but that's where finding others who might be better at writing comes into play.

If you want a break down for how to structure your essay:

1: If you have an interesting background or history, include it at the start and try to incorporate it as a theme throughout your statement.
2: What lead you to dentistry
2.5: If you think it's worth mentioning, discuss your education and/or relevant experiences prior to dental school that tie into the theme of your statement
3: Your experiences in dental school, what you got out of it, what did you learn, what made you stand out, what you want to learn more about
4: What you want to get out of a residency

For step #1, typical themes would be pursuit of knowledge, caring for others, making the world a better place, etc. Look deep into yourself and find what makes you tick, then sit down and write. The first draft will likely be terrible, I wrote over 12 drafts when applying. Just keep writing and be sure to work with one or two people you trust for help revising. You'll get there..

 

[setdoc7]

4: What you want to get out of a residency

I know what you want. I have read this in almost every PS. What can you do for the program?
" I am that person who will be at the hospital early for rounds, know each patient's current status, and the plan. I will know which patients are on my schedule from the day before when I reviewed the schedule, checked that the lab had delivered all the cases, and know what procedures I am going to accomplish. At the end of the day, all of my charts will be written correctly, and I will be there until I am told we can leave, even if it is 8-9pm and I am not on call. I am that first in and last out person who will get things done."
Although I never expect to see this, this is what I expect.

 

[D1ForLifeSon]

I didnt write a single thing about a clinical or dental experience. I barely mentioned dentistry other than how thankful I am to be in a career where I can give back and I mentioned wsnting the challenge of a residency and being able to provide all treatment my pt needs. Literally 4 or 5 sentences about dentistry. I wrote about "my legacy".. how my family, military experience etc have influenced who I am and how I try to grow personally and where I want to go as a leader / member of my community.... But also, I dont know how it was recieved yet lol

 

[D1ForLifeSon]

I know what you want. I have read this in almost every PS. What can you do for the program?
" I am that person who will be at the hospital early for rounds, know each patient's current status, and the plan. I will know which patients are on my schedule from the day before when I reviewed the schedule, checked that the lab had delivered all the cases, and know what procedures I am going to accomplish. At the end of the day, all of my charts will be written correctly, and I will be there until I am told we can leave, even if it is 8-9pm and I am not on call. I am that first in and last out person who will get things done."
Although I never expect to see this, this is what I expect.

This is something I was going to say in the interview aling with driving home that I WANT to be here and I dont take the opportunity for granted.

 

[setdoc7]

Everyone tells me at the interview that they want to do everything. After the first month, everyone wants to leave early. Except Star, who is never worried about time.