For me it's more a family matters. My family has a long history of diabetic problems. My grandmother went into diabetic coma when I was only 10 years old. Seeing her laying there motionless at times and shaking violently at others, and foam coming out of her mouth was not a very good memory or experience. My uncle and I drove her 45 min to the nearest hospital. My mother has diabetes and so does my sister. It's kind of rough seeing so many people close to me live with such a harmful disease. Even though I want to become a doctor for that reason it's very possible that a cure might be found before I even begin practicing medicine. In that case, I hope to specialize in a different area that needs help in. For example the oncology department. I want to return the help that will be brought to my family. Perhaps even myself, as I'm at high risk for diabetes due to family history. For me, it's not for the money why I choose to become a doctor. There are many other fields that would allow me to become rich. 😱
Read NavyFP's posts on the personal statement. I think it applies for the interview question.
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=187188&page=44
As someone who has read hundreds of medical school application personal statements I can honestly say that none have ever brought me to tears or made me even a little choked up. Nauseous? Oh yes. Laugh my butt off?
Again yes.
The stories of your relatives (or yourself) injured, sick, and/or dying inspiring you to join the healing arts are typically over embellished. The EMTs breathing life into the dying patient also have a bit of a hollow ring. The desire to serve humanity and develop the universal cure AIDS, Cancer and male pattern baldness (all in the same treatment) have been done as well. I think I have heard them all.
What do I want to see? Evidence that you have some understanding that medicine is a lifestyle and not just a job. Show me you have some abilty for critical thinking. Show me you can relate and work with people.
These are what I care about.
Another excellent post by NavyFP:
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Originally Posted by
xmsr3 
Sorry for posting again but I can't pass up the oppertunity to ask someone who has sat on an admissions committee this question.
NavyFP, it sounds like you agree that most PS are in three categories:
1. Someone I know got sick and I want to help others
2. I saved someones life once, (EMTs)
3. I want to help people, make a difference
Could you please give us a ball park estimate of what % of PS are in these categories?
1- about 25%
2- about 5-10% (and its not just EMTs, but they are the most common)
3- about 60%
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More importantly, as an adcom member, how did you react to these cookie cutter PS? You mentioned nausea and laughing, but surely that couldn't have been at most, just the extremes.
Yes, the nausea and laughs are the extremes.
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Did you get angry at the unoriginality? Where you apathetic? And how exactly do essays such as PS get scored? Is it by one person, 2 or 3? Is it a simple, "good" "bad" pile, where you automatically reject the ones you don't like?
It is not so much the unoriginality as the embellishment.
"I watched him/her wince as they placed the IV while he/she was lying there helplessly......"
They often read like a dime store novel.
Typically 3 people will review a record. I can't say I have allowed a personal statement to have swayed me significantly either way. I would not say a bad personal statement automatically gets shoved to the NO pile.
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And most importantly, the question all pre-meds are dieing to know. If almost all PS are essentially the same, how much do PS and essays effect the final decision?
Is it a matter of a truely exceptional, unique essay helping by makeing you stand out and all the cookie cutters have little to no effect? Or does a cookie cutter essay activley hurt our chances?
I am looking for a bit of pragmatism with some passion. Being a physician is a complex blend of book smarts, street smarts, drive, and compassion. Most of that can be gleened by what you have done (jobs, volunteer work, hobbies) and your education (GPA, MCATs). The PS can fill in some of the gaps that are not in the rest of the application.
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Finally, your description of a PS you would like to see, where an applicants shows that they consider medicine a lifestyle, know what is involved and gets along well with people, sounds like what I and I'm sure, everyone else tried to do, but apprently failed.
Have you ever read a PS that included all of these criteria and was done well? Have you come across an essay that made you think, "this person really gets it" or got you excited about a candidate? How often does this happen?
If I were to write a PS now it would be framed like this:
I have had an interest in the health system for however long (but not tooo long or it was solidified at a certain time). I truly became exposed to the system at x event. I watched the team and felt my personal characteristics best fit in the role of a physician. I believe physicians should be this and that, and I demonstrate those attributes in this way. My goals as a physician are x (but don't say you want to cure cancer), but I recognize that as I progress through training (ie med school) I may find an even more suitable area for my talents.
The keys are not to put too many adjectives. It can have some emotion, but it should not be dripping with it. We all had to suffer with creative writing in college and it often shows in the PS. I believe many of the stories have been impacted by those classes. Keep it real and short. If you have a quality or talent that makes you unique and could somehow be related to medicine, express that.
Most applicants are generally smart and good at science. These are not going to set you apart. It is hard to remember what I had in mine, but I think I talked about how learning customer service at a fast food restaurant would apply to the practice of medicine. I doubt anyone else would have made that analogy.
Brevity is preferable. Remember, ADCOM members have to read these. How much of their time do you want them to spend on this one section of your application. Don't make it War and Peace.
These are my opinions. I am not a touchy/feely guy. Most on ADCOMs are not either. Are you willing to try to play to the few that are?
