International underserved areas in personal statement

[HopefulDoc91]

I've been trying to decide what to write about in my personal statement. The way I take it, this is the one portion of the application where I should stand out while explaining why I want to be a doctor. I want to write about a study abroad trip I took during my undergrad. Although the purpose of the trip was for wildlife conservation, I traveled to villages and met natives that lived in the jungle, and I saw how severely medically underserved they were. It definitely impacted me and has influenced me to want to help others.

Is this an ok topic for my personal statement? Just wondering because I've heard that it's not the best to talk about international trips? Any advice is appreciated, thanks.

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[workaholic181]

I've been trying to decide what to write about in my personal statement. The way I take it, this is the one portion of the application where I should stand out while explaining why I want to be a doctor. I want to write about a study abroad trip I took during my undergrad. Although the purpose of the trip was for wildlife conservation, I traveled to villages and met natives that lived in the jungle, and I saw how severely medically underserved they were. It definitely impacted me and has influenced me to want to help others.

Is this an ok topic for my personal statement? Just wondering because I've heard that it's not the best to talk about international trips? Any advice is appreciated, thanks.

I've seen some stuff on this site discouraging talking about "medical tourism" undergrad trips in your statement. It doesnt sound like thats what you did exactly, but for an adcom who reads ten thousand statements, it could be generalized that way I suppose.

Honestly man I would just write about whatever feels most genuine to you. I had a similar intersting experience I flirted with making the core theme of my statement, but for whatever reason it didn't feel really encapsulating for why I wanted to pursue medical school. I wrote about a more "mundane" hospital experience I had that had a bigger impact on me and I think (and my LOR writers have expressed to me) that it turned out very well.

Point is, the genuine impact of whatever you write about will stand out in your writing most. Go with whatever you feel is most true to your story, not with what sounds most exotic.