Failed a year... put it in the personal statement?

[DonStracci]

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I had to repeat my M1 year due to personal issues. Should this be explained in my personal statement? I've heard different theories on this. Thanks!

 

[bananamed]

I wouldn't include negative items in your statement.

 

[John Deere Gree]

You must.

You need to explain specifically why you had to repeat your first year, otherwise you are going to leave program directors wondering. It's best to admit your shortcomings and why that was just an anomaly

 

[Samoa]

There's a dedicated section of the CAF where you can explain any extension of your medical school education. You should explain it there, and leave it out of your PS. That way, the PD has the explanation, but it won't become the focus of your app.

 

[NotAProgDirector]

I think it depends on the reason. The space on the CAF for this is quite short. If your explanation is short and sweet, then it can go just in the CAF. It's going to be on your MSPE also, so it depends on what's written there. If it's complicated, then you'll need to talk about it in your PS.

There is nothing inherently wrong about talking about something "negative" in your PS. In fact, talking about how you overcame some problem in your PS sounds like a fine idea.

 

[DonStracci]

Thanks for the replies... the person at my school who has my current MSPE with that pertinent year-repeating paragraph is out of town, and I won't be able to see it until next week. So, I think I'll have to hold off on submitting applications until I've seen that and can revise my personal statement. I need to see exactly what that mspe says.

Damn... I was ready to click "submit" until I thought of that personal statement thing. Guess I could submit apps without a personal statement for now? Ugghhh... I'm behind in this process.

 

[John Deere Gree]

Thanks for the replies... the person at my school who has my current MSPE with that pertinent year-repeating paragraph is out of town, and I won't be able to see it until next week. So, I think I'll have to hold off on submitting applications until I've seen that and can revise my personal statement. I need to see exactly what that mspe says.

Damn... I was ready to click "submit" until I thought of that personal statement thing. Guess I could submit apps without a personal statement for now? Ugghhh... I'm behind in this process.

You're not really behind. Just submit as soon as you can.

 

[EMforme]

Hey,
I'm in a similar situation - personal tragedy the day before med school started. I've been told that you SHOULD cover it in your personal statement. I've never heard ANY differently. That's your chance to explain what happened, how you overcame it, why you're a better person for it, and why you'll be a better resident for having gone through it. Don't count on that paragraph in the MSPE - they won't have that until November. Address it head on but in a positive light.
Hope this helps!

 

[PeepshowJohnny]

You need to address it, but not dwell on it. Something all the lines of "I had this difficulty, I got through it, I'm better for it, it won't happen again"

 

[DonStracci]

So, I wrote a nice, descriptive, succinct paragraph about my year failure on the CAF section addressing this... but did NOT address it in my personal statement. I liked my personal statement just as it was.

5 days after submitting my ERAS, the interviews are pouring in and some residency directors have actually emailed and commented on that paragraph on the CAF "medical education extended?" section, commending me for my honesty. I guess I made the right choice🙂

 

[peerie]

One of my friends had a hard time in third year and then took time off to recoup. Spent time working and with family. It was the best thing in the world for him - hands down. On his CAF he said that he took time off for personal and family reasons, and did not address it in his personal statement - which was really a great ps. He will address it in interviews, stressing what happened, what he learned and how he is different today because of it.

I think that was smart because it was a blip on his life record and he is better for what he went through, and for what he learned. Can't go back and change the past, but you can be a different because of what you have experienced. Talking to different programs and residents, people seem to be more interested in what he can do now and in the future. No one is perfect and sometimes we are changed for the better because of difficult things we have gone through.

 

[EternalMD]

When people talk about not going over one page for their PS, in situations like this, talking about a previous failure will result in a statement talking about only that. Yeah you can spin it and make it sound like you learned a lot and are a stronger person because of it but why not just NOT talk about it. Write your PS on why you want to do the specialty you chose and leave it at that. Let your dean's letter explain away the failure. If anything, just be ready to explain it on your interview (and if they don't ask, they don't ask).

I think I read the following paraphrased statement on this site somewhere: You wouldn't go on a date and talk about how ... (insert short comings here) so why do the same with your PS?

 

[DonStracci]

Write your PS on why you want to do the specialty you chose and leave it at that. Let your dean's letter explain away the failure. If anything, just be ready to explain it on your interview (and if they don't ask, they don't ask).

Yep, that's pretty much how I ended up going with this issue... if NOT putting it in my PS (which is quite good, I think 😉) hurts me... oh well! I think I did it right.

 

[peerie]

Sometimes, the dean's letter is the 'failure' or what contains something negative. In that case, then you still need to be able to explain what happened, what changed for you (=what did you learn), and what it is like today (=better person because of what I learned).

Some of my friends had dings along the way, including this guy, and so it has been a learning experience for me to watch this process. "Failure" comes in many shapes, and sometimes the person who 'aces' everything and sails into a competitive residency and then into a practicing position is the 'failure,' if it also means that they loose their spouse and children (and friends) along the way. There are plenty of practicing physicians who look great on the outside but are catastrophic when it comes to their support staff, family and friends. One PD in radiology told me that he looks carefully at the perfect applications, and more favorably on the mixture/imperfect applicants - since the latter tend to make better residents, in his experience.

 

[bjolly]

So, I wrote a nice, descriptive, succinct paragraph about my year failure on the CAF section addressing this... but did NOT address it in my personal statement. I liked my personal statement just as it was.

5 days after submitting my ERAS, the interviews are pouring in and some residency directors have actually emailed and commented on that paragraph on the CAF "medical education extended?" section, commending me for my honesty. I guess I made the right choice🙂

glad to hear it's working out for you. 👍