Can't think of specific moment that made me want to go into medicine

[HarvardMed2024]

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Hi SDN. Applying in the spring and starting to think about my personal statement. I know for a lot of people, a specific event (family illness, death of friend, etc) made them want to do medicine. For me, it's just kind of something I've wanted to do for as long as I remember. One of my parents is a physician, so I'm sure that probably had some influence on me. I'm worried that my lack of a compelling story will hurt me in admissions, since I plan to apply to mostly top tiers. The only thing I can think of that I can write is that my parent spurred my initial interest, and I did a bunch of activities (hospital volunteering, shadowing) to make sure it was the right fit for me. But this just seems super boring and cliche. How common is it for people to make up or exaggerate something that motivated them to go into medicine? Where can I find inspiration for how to approach the PS?

 

[Lucca]

The Ps does not need to be literary, or unique, or all that good even. BUT, it needs to be true, answer the question, and set the theme, tone, direction for the rest of your app.

Think of your Ps as the compass that someone can use to navigate your app. You need to understand what kind of app you can have before you really get to work on the PS.

Also, read MedEd’s post about writing the PS. It’s in the Essential Wisdom sticky

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Tell the truth and aim for middle of the road in terms of PS quality. Most applicants are not great writers, and trying to produce a very literary, moving PS will land you in the **** pile. Just tell your story in your own voice.

 

[makemeadoctordoctordoctor]

Additionally, while an "aha moment" is a great thing to write about, you can also pick an experience that exemplified to you the type of physician you would like to be (competent, resourceful, empathetic, reassuring, etc. etc. etc.) or made you think more holistically about your career choice. Example: a notable interaction with a patient or physician that stuck with you.

 

[AttemptingScholar]

A moment/story that affirms rather than reveals your desire to go into medicine is also acceptable for these types of prompts.

 

[Drakozord X]

I had the same problem (but no one in my family is a physician or nurse or PA, etc.) when brainstorming what to write for my PS. It was honestly the hardest thing for me because 1) I'm not used to revealing so much about myself or my family 2) I wanted to be honest and didn't want to lie (yeah sure, I can say a sick family made me want to go into medicine, but it wouldn't be true)

So what I did was just list out "meaningful" experiences that I've had when volunteering, shadowing, etc. Then why those were meaningful and how they influenced me to want and become the "type" of doctor I'm aiming to be. Using all that info, choose an angle and write around it.
It was a lot of soul searching. Dig deep.

 

[LizzyM]

What professions did you consider as you were growing up. At some point, medicine surfaced as one of many options. Did you see out any classes or volunteer experiences because of that or perhaps the idea that medicine would be a good career for you surfaced after you did something (helped an injured friend, took a first aid class, volunteered to help a disabled person, got a job in a lab, etc) that made you think that medicine might be an interesting career.

 

[Princeton Medical Student]

If all else fails

 

[HarvardMed2024]

What professions did you consider as you were growing up. At some point, medicine surfaced as one of many options. Did you see out any classes or volunteer experiences because of that or perhaps the idea that medicine would be a good career for you surfaced after you did something (helped an injured friend, took a first aid class, volunteered to help a disabled person, got a job in a lab, etc) that made you think that medicine might be an interesting career.

Ok, so here it goes. When I was very young (like 6-8) I think I was thinking astronaut or firefighter lol. Then it was like "scientist" and eventually I landed on medicine. My dad is a physician so medicine stood out all of my possible options. I think my mind was basically set on medicine by the time i was in 3rd or 4th grade. This may sound stupid but it was actually this knee replacement computer game that got me super interested in the first place. Then in 5th grade we had some kind of project where we had to interview someone who was what we wanted to be when we grew up. I interviewed an ortho resident haha(met him through my dad so idk if its good to mention this). Then i think in 8th grade we had some sort of field trip to a science museum and they did a live stream where we got to see a surgeon do a CABG and ask him questions. That was pretty cool I remember. Then because of my interest in medicine I started seeking out medical related activities as soon as I was old enough. So in high school I already started volunteering in a hospital and shadowing docs to get a sense of what it was like. So pretty much the interest came from myself, but having a physician parent allowed me to do things a lot of other people wouldn't have been able at my age.

 

[jarednogeek]

there doesn’t need to be a eureka moment. Sounds like you’re trying to say you were interested in the sciences and had exposure to the medical field. Through your volunteer/life experiences you gradually affirmed these aspirations etc

 

[RNtoMD87]

If all else fails

Yep. Its how I aced speech class. Just start talking, and if you misspeak, keep going if its something they'll never know anyway.

Annoys me when- "It all started when I was 5.... wait no I was 7... well maybe I was 5 because that's the year I...."

Just go with it, when I start bullsh**ing theres many times I realize I misspeak, but people don't know because its details about my personal life that they'll never be none the wiser to. I try to avoid going on about scientifically factual things unless its something I'm very confident in.

 

[Dwight Snoot]

I think that most of the time when people write or talk about those "aha" moments it probably comes across as a bit "fake" (for lack of a better word). To truly want to be a doctor there needs to be a whole not more than one moment- write about the small things.

 

[LizzyM]

Ok, so here it goes. When I was very young (like 6-8) I think I was thinking astronaut or firefighter lol. Then it was like "scientist" and eventually I landed on medicine. My dad is a physician so medicine stood out all of my possible options. I think my mind was basically set on medicine by the time i was in 3rd or 4th grade. This may sound stupid but it was actually this knee replacement computer game that got me super interested in the first place. Then in 5th grade we had some kind of project where we had to interview someone who was what we wanted to be when we grew up. I interviewed an ortho resident haha(met him through my dad so idk if its good to mention this). Then i think in 8th grade we had some sort of field trip to a science museum and they did a live stream where we got to see a surgeon do a CABG and ask him questions. That was pretty cool I remember. Then because of my interest in medicine I started seeking out medical related activities as soon as I was old enough. So in high school I already started volunteering in a hospital and shadowing docs to get a sense of what it was like. So pretty much the interest came from myself, but having a physician parent allowed me to do things a lot of other people wouldn't have been able at my age.

You could go with a cute hook something along the lines that if there had been a firefighter or aeronautics video game instead of a knee replacement computer game in your console, you might be applying to the fire academy or NASA instead of medical school. But considering firefighter, astronaut or doctor, the idea of being a doctor rose to the top and computer games, field trips and oportunities to shadow brought careers in medicine into focus yada yada yada. Then go into how, as an adult, you have continued down this path in a journey of discovery that will take a lifetime...

 

[puahate]

You could go with a cute hook something along the lines that if there had been a firefighter or aeronautics video game instead of a knee replacement computer game in your console, you might be applying to the fire academy or NASA instead of medical school. But considering firefighter, astronaut or doctor, the idea of being a doctor rose to the top and computer games, field trips and oportunities to shadow brought careers in medicine into focus yada yada yada. Then go into how, as an adult, you have continued down this path in a journey of discovery that will take a lifetime...

this is so cute lmao

 

[WedgeDawg]

There are 45,000 applicants to medical school each year (more if you include applicants to DO schools). Your aim should not to be unique, but to be honest, answer the question, and tell adcoms a little bit more about who you are. Your application at this point should sell itself, this is just a little sprinkle of personality on top of everything else.