Creative Personal Statements

[Mazz]

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I want to do a VERY creative personal statement. Im talking way out the box stuff. Would it be to risky to try this? Should I go safe and just make it funny, or go big and possibly fall on my face?

 

[supraman]

What are your stats like

 

[thethethe]

It will depend on who is reading your personal statement, some people might love originality and others might think it is weird because it is so different.

It also depends how well you write.

 

[Mazz]

What are your stats like

Should it matter?

Would you say:
Good Stats - Try it.
Bad stats - Stay safe

??

 

[thethethe]

I would think:
good stats- don't try it, be conservative, you'll get an interview with your stats alone

bad stats, you might need to do something to make your application shine more.

thats in my opinion

 

[Mazz]

I would think:
good stats- don't try it, be conservative, you'll get an interview with your stats alone

bad stats, you might need to do something to make your application shine more.

thats in my opinion

Makes sense.

 

[xianexiane]

I’m no expert but in my opinion you really have to consider your audience while writing your PS. Imagine yourself as the 50+ year old dentist that’s reading your PS. I don’t know exactly what you mean by “creative” and "out of the box" but you definitely need to hit the main points that they want to hear. Desire- Dexterity-Personal Experience etc….. with the main focus being dentistry of course….

The best advice I can give about a PS is to let someone, anyone, read it prior to submitting.😎 The best advice I received was from two of my friends who are lawyers. They blew my simpleton mind away with their recommendation, things that I would never and still don’t completely understand…. I hope some of this helps!!!!

 

[Mazz]

Basically, I want to write a PS that is a letter to my daughter. It would give all the information requested but in a reassuring letter to my daughter.

 

[supraman]

Basically, I want to write a PS that is a letter to my daughter. It would give all the information requested but in a reassuring letter to my daughter.

Sounds nice. If you have shaky stats, it could be a hit or miss for you which is why I asked that. There is plenty of time between now and the cycle that starts June 1 so get working on it!

 

[thethethe]

supraman, how did you find time to apply this year while working full time. playing 82 games a year with practice and the all star game is rough. did the admission committee like a non traditional applicant yourself?

 

[supraman]

supraman, how did you find time to apply this year while working full time. playing 82 games a year with practice and the all star game is rough. did the admission committee like a non traditional applicant yourself?

lol...all I put on my AADSAS was that I'm in the NBA- no GPA or DAT, instant acceptance!

 

[Svart Aske]

This is pretty creative:
http://www.accepted.com/medical/sampessay10.aspx

It's risky, because the only thing it reveals about you is that you are funny. It's only worth doing if the rest of your application shows that you're good student, interested in medicine etc.

 

[xianexiane]

This is pretty creative:
http://www.accepted.com/medical/sampessay10.aspx

It's risky, because the only thing it reveals about you is that you are funny. It's only worth doing if the rest of your application shows that you're good student, interested in medicine etc.

I laughed pretty hard....

 

[Stephie3]

to the OP: if you want to actually get accepted, don't do it. dental schools want people who can at least play along with society. are you going to start singing and break dancing in the middle of clinic time when you're at the school? what kind of a reflection would that be on the school. seriously.

 

[Stephie3]

but if you want to waste all that money applying just to not get accepted, then go right ahead.


think about it. whoever is screening applications has a bajillion applications to read. they are trying to get through them and probably tired and agitated after reading five kabillion personal statements. one that is off the wall could be seen as sarcastic and immature (people would probably get fed up with it..esp. if they're 50 year old professional men that went to old school dental schools).

when my dentist was in school back in the 70's, the school was SO strict. they were even strict haircuts. the teachers would come around and measure their sideburns. they'd be in super trouble if their sideburns were too long. so you have to think about what type of training these people come from.

 

[Stephie3]

p.s. plus, dentistry is serious business. while not to the same extent as an MD, you are still responsible for people's lives (that last patient didn't bother to premedicate...are you going to catch that?) and not screwing up their bites, facial appearance, wrecking their teeth, etc. people can die from dental infections.

 

[Waitlisted2009]

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[Mazz]

to the OP: if you want to actually get accepted, don't do it. dental schools want people who can at least play along with society. are you going to start singing and break dancing in the middle of clinic time when you're at the school? what kind of a reflection would that be on the school. seriously.

Im not sure a creative PS written as a letter to my daughter is really equal singing and break dancing in the middle of clinic time, But I get your point.

 

[r2thekesh]

That's some BS responses. I feel like if I didn't have a sense of humor as a 50 year old dentist, then I would be a terrible person. If I saw something that broke the mold of the crappy writing of some PS's that have been accepted, I would be say this is awesome.
I'm writing my personal statement and I'm going creative. I've been trying to add word games and since my favorite writer is a doctor, I would like it be whimsical (my favorite writer is Dr. Seuss).

 

[Stephie3]

That's some BS responses. I feel like if I didn't have a sense of humor as a 50 year old dentist, then I would be a terrible person. If I saw something that broke the mold of the crappy writing of some PS's that have been accepted, I would be say this is awesome.
I'm writing my personal statement and I'm going creative. I've been trying to add word games and since my favorite writer is a doctor, I would like it be whimsical (my favorite writer is Dr. Seuss).

i'm interested in seeing how you fare in the admissions process..be sure to keep us posted

 

[Stephie3]

i know a sense of humor is the singlemost important quality i would look for in a doctor, forget compassion and academic prowess

 

[Svart Aske]

i know a sense of humor is the singlemost important quality i would look for in a doctor, forget compassion and academic prowess

Academic prowess is reflected by your undergraduate records. Why can't you take a humorous approach with your essay while showing your dedication to helping people? I would probably want to hurl after reading 500 essays about how "my volunteering experiences have taught me maturity, compassion and dedication" or some soporific variations thereof.

If you want to stand out with your essay, make sure it's well-written above all else.

 

[Ab0mb]

I dont see what is so "humorous" about writing a letter to his daughter. Mazz can correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems like he wants to write this letter to his daughter explaining why he chose dentistry - hoping that it will allow his daughter to have the life she deserves. I like the idea. I think it will add some flavor to the otherwise bland PS the adcoms must read. Just make sure you remember to include reasons why YOU would be a great dentist - not only for your daughter. My PS was pretty unique as well and I did very well with adcoms. I say go for it!

Best of luck.

 

[Stephie3]

i just think its odd and that it would be more difficult to do one of those tastefully.

you can always find people to support you on whatever decisions you choose. however, i am just telling you that i don't like the idea. maybe a few people on the ad coms might like it, but usually ALL of the people on the ad coms vote for a student. also, you're not going to be the only person in the world who has ever tried to "stand out" by making your personal statement more "different" than everyone elses. i'm sure they see essays like that EVERY year.

it makes me think of like a dating service when a guy puts some corny pick up line as his "headline" lol

 

[uclaDDS101]

I want to do a VERY creative personal statement. Im talking way out the box stuff. Would it be to risky to try this? Should I go safe and just make it funny, or go big and possibly fall on my face?

For my undergrad applications, I wrote a letter to my recently passed grandfather. I wrote about how proud of me he would be and all the things I had accomplished up to that point. It was very heartfelt as well as relevant to the application.

I recently told a UCLA adcomm about this, and I asked him if such a creative style of personal statement would be appropriate for AADSAS. He replied with a simple, "No." He said that they don't really like to see creative styles or unique formats. They just want to know why dentistry, who you are, what motivates you, and anything else along these lines. According to him, they just want your message. The message should be the focus, not the manner by which you express the message. As long as your message is clear, and not overly embellished.

This is just what I heard. Hope that helps.

 

[MaverickPreDent]

Creative PS = Double edged sword. Be careful.

I wonder if anyone that actually did a creative PS and got in can give us some better insight.

 

[MichaelVicksDog]

I would think:
good stats- don't try it, be conservative, you'll get an interview with your stats alone

bad stats, you might need to do something to make your application shine more.

thats in my opinion

I would say the opposite. If you got good stats and you're confident about your application, DO IT. If you got borderline stats, play your position and write a regular personal statement. I still remember a dude at my Columbia interview. Everyone had their personal interviews and waited to talk to the financial aid lady, the current students, the deans, etc except this dude - he had his personal interview and just peaced out. I'm not talking about sneaking out, my dude straight up said peace out.😱 Dude's confident was on some next level **** Now I see him on the Columbia facebook group 😎

 

[Waitlisted2009]

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