I am a fellow non traditional who was working in IT for many years as I see from another thread here that this is not such an uncommom transition. Anyhow, I just took the April MCAT and happily did much better than I thought I would so I am now applying to med schools. I am getting conflicting advice if I should talk about im ny essay as to why I decided to switch carreers. Some people tell me not to make it a focus but to just be prepared for it on my interviews. Others tell me to grab the bull by the horns and to discuss it in my essay. What do you say?
In the essay ,discuss why you switched?
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njbmd
picof said:
Hi there,
Use the personal statement to sell yourself to the admissions committee. Use anything that gets the message across that you would be an asset to medicine and to their freshman medical class. You have one shot to get this done so do not waste this statement "explaining" anything. Use this statement for presenting yourself in the best and most interesting light. You can relate how you became interested in medicine but do not justify your decision for a career switch. If someone on an admissions committee wants to know about this, they can invite you for an interview and ask you directly.
njbmd 🙂
picof said:
Agree with nbjmd. It makes sense to briefly mention your current/past career in the context of describing your desire to become a doctor, but do not make "the switch from IT" a central point. There are a lot of people coming to medicine from IT, so it's not going to be a big shock for someone on the adcom to see an ITer switching to medicine.
On the other hand, if you can convey how your IT skillz mesh with your future as a doctor, then by all means use it. But keep a positive spin on your switch, and do not badmouth your IT past... Keep a nice positive vibe going in your ps, and you'll be fine.
Best of luck.
Celiac Plexus said:
I definitely second the idea of stressing which attributes that made you successful in IT will also make you a successful MD. My essay also included facets of medicine that my former career couldn't offer me as a professional or as a person. Be honest and be respectful.
Good luck.
picof said:
I made a loop of my experience with chronic illness in the family as a young person, how I left the idea of medicine, and how further contact with the chronically ill as an adult drew me back. In the middle I had a short anecdote about a challenging week in my job ending in an evening volunteering at a hospice, illustrating without SAYING "and that's how I know I want to be a doctor and not a systems librarian anymore".
My fleet of proofreaders/commentators/editors liked the way it worked out, so you may try something like that for yourself. IF there's something pulling or calling you away from IT into medicine, it makes sense to make that part of your essay.
If you're doing it just to answer the question you think they might ask, I don't know that it's worth it.
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Besides DOB on our application I found it hard for them to know I was a non-trad, which is I think was an advantage (of course they should've asked for a photo). 😉
Anyways. I used the essay to plug that aspect, and the breif discription of my past career served that purpose.
So I would try weave it in.
Anyways. I used the essay to plug that aspect, and the breif discription of my past career served that purpose.
So I would try weave it in.
QofQuimica
Seriously, dude, I think you're overreacting....
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I agree that you should try to work your previous experience and skills into your essay because they are a big part of who you are today, and they make you unique as an applicant. The biggest caveat is that you should avoid sounding defensive or apologetic about switching careers. I think some posters responded negatively to the idea of "explaining" why you want to switch careers because it could come across as being defensive. It's better if you can integrate your previous experience with your new plans to showcase yourself as an interesting and unique applicant instead. Also, I agree with celiac that even if you are miserable in your current job, you should make your essay positive and talk about how your IT skills will complement the new set of skills that you will learn in medical school.
