Ok i know its important, but how important? Is it the difference of getting many interviews from schools in ur gpa and mcat range and getting none?
how important is personal statement?
- Thread starter zurned
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zurned said:
Not really an easily quantifiable thing - A badly thought out or gramatically poor PS can certainly cost you an interview even if you have the numerical stats. But a great PS probably can't get you an interview if the rest of your app is lacking. Just do a good job and don't let this totally controllable part of your application cost you.
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Let's start by considering schools where you have stats that equal or exceed the average for recently matriculated students.
Adcom member says, "this applicant has great stats. 🙂 But we don't have enough slots to interview everyone who has great stats. 🙁 Why does this person want to go into medicine?" [People who come across as doing medicine because their parents want them too, or some other external motivation -- or who don't seem the least bit interested in medicine at all get the boot.] Next question: " Is this someone who comes across as an interesting person whom I'd like to meet and talk to?" The adcom people who review applications are not necessarily the same ones who do interviews but they don't want to inflict a bunch of boring people on the interviewers. The adcom reads the application and decides if you sound interesting, if there is something that comes across in your appie that makes the reader think that it wouldn't be too painful to be assigned to sit next to you at a dinner party.
Let your personality shine in the PS. It counts quite a bit.
Adcom member says, "this applicant has great stats. 🙂 But we don't have enough slots to interview everyone who has great stats. 🙁 Why does this person want to go into medicine?" [People who come across as doing medicine because their parents want them too, or some other external motivation -- or who don't seem the least bit interested in medicine at all get the boot.] Next question: " Is this someone who comes across as an interesting person whom I'd like to meet and talk to?" The adcom people who review applications are not necessarily the same ones who do interviews but they don't want to inflict a bunch of boring people on the interviewers. The adcom reads the application and decides if you sound interesting, if there is something that comes across in your appie that makes the reader think that it wouldn't be too painful to be assigned to sit next to you at a dinner party.
Let your personality shine in the PS. It counts quite a bit.
