Is it okay to talk about lacking confidence

[KT215]

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Hello all!
A good part of my story in applying to medical school revolves around the fact that i didn’t have confidence in myself to think i was good enough to be a doctor until halfway through college. i developed the confidence as a result of my clinical experiences and now know i am capable of being a great doctor, but i also know that i will probably experience the same confidence crises in med school and have to overcome it with experience & challenging myself. is it okay to talk about this in applications, or does it make me sound not sure of myself and like i wouldn’t be successful? TIA

 

[Princeton Medical Student]

Focus on how you overcame the issue and how you would address the issue with similar strategies if it came up again and you will be fine.

 

[Goro]

Endurance, grit, and good coping skills are required for medical students. Having a lack of confidence raises a red flag for me, especially since you haven't gone over yet.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

Some insecurity is a good attribute for a physician. So is being a little arrogant. Meaning you know what you know and more importantly, what you don't know. Medicine will not reward you with many Attaboys/girls. You will need to find comfort and security in knowing you did a good job, not from anyone telling you that you did.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Where is this going? PS? Tell us about you?

 

[Isoval]

If it's an essay talking about how you lacked confidence and learned how to persevere despite the lack of confidence and how you overcame the barrier, it will be fine.

 

[GoSpursGo]

It depends on the prompt. If it’s an “overcoming challenges” prompt, then I would focus on the fact that you have overcome it rather than qualifying it as something you haven’t actually overcome.

If it’s a “what is a weakness” prompt, this could be good provided that you again highlight how you have overcome this weakness previously and will know what to watch out in case this struggle rears it’s head again in the future.

 

[Browns99]

Hello all!
A good part of my story in applying to medical school revolves around the fact that i didn’t have confidence in myself to think i was good enough to be a doctor until halfway through college. i developed the confidence as a result of my clinical experiences and now know i am capable of being a great doctor, but i also know that i will probably experience the same confidence crises in med school and have to overcome it with experience & challenging myself. is it okay to talk about this in applications, or does it make me sound not sure of myself and like i wouldn’t be successful? TIA

I would not note the lack of confidence, rather, focus on what you overcame and DO NOT say that you are likely to experience the same confidence crisis in medical school....a big no-no.

 

[Browns99]

Some insecurity is a good attribute for a physician. So is being a little arrogant. Meaning you know what you know and more importantly, what you don't know. Medicine will not reward you with many Attaboys/girls. You will need to find comfort and security in knowing you did a good job, not from anyone telling you that you did.

Sure, some minor insecurities may be fine, but lacking confidence, then overcoming, only to say and feel they will likely experience the same confidence crisis in medical school raises some red flags. Although that characteristic may be inherent to OP, they have shown the ability to overcome it, so he/she need to be positive and believe in themselves if they want to have a successful career in medicine.

 

[deleted1139574]

Hello all!
A good part of my story in applying to medical school revolves around the fact that i didn’t have confidence in myself to think i was good enough to be a doctor until halfway through college. i developed the confidence as a result of my clinical experiences and now know i am capable of being a great doctor, but i also know that i will probably experience the same confidence crises in med school and have to overcome it with experience & challenging myself. is it okay to talk about this in applications, or does it make me sound not sure of myself and like i wouldn’t be successful? TIA

Talk about specific event and don't specifically say you lacked confidence