How important are program specific questions?

[Benjuzo]

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I was just wondering, how important are the program specific questions? How insightful do you have to be? Shall I spend a lot of time trying to perfect them as I did for the personal statement?

How much time did you guys spend on these?

I put so much time into fitting in my diversity (hispanic immigrant, currently live in france), my understanding of the field, some leadership experience, research, volunteering (as a medical translator for the underserved populations of pittsburgh), just to be asked more about these questions all over again.

 

[southernswimmer]

If schools are asking them, then they're important. Adcoms would rather not read more essays then they have to. Think of them as a way to differentiate yourself outside of the cookie cutter PTCAS application. I assume the things you mentioned went into your PTCAS essay. Maybe use the supplemental questions to delve into your research, volunteering, etc. a little deeper, assuming those experiences are relevant to the questions. Some of my essays last year carried similar themes between them, and I got into a handful of schools.

 

[DesertPT]

They are very important. They wouldn't ask for them if they weren't important, because reading 3000 essays every year is undoubtedly a major time suck. They can be especially important if it is a school that does not conduct interviews.

 

[davidtheusername]

I'd assume that if a busy adcom asks to read even more than they already need to then it's very important. They picked what to ask there, as opposed to the PTCAS essay that they have no control over so it is likely more specific to what they really care to learn about you.

 

[Azimuthal]

If a program went out of its way to create/administer a separate requirement, you should assume that it's very important to the school.