Is one month enough time for writing the PS

[DopamineNYC]

I am taking the MCAT in May and between then and when I get my scores, I am planning on writing my personal statement. Is this enough time?

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[Takamori]

PS is one page.

 

[Smoove]

It depends on how strong of a writer you are, I think only you can answer that. Some people like peace of mind and edit their PS over the span of a few months. I wrote mine on a plane ride, sent it to two people for edits, and submitted. Feel it out!

 

[Mad Jack]

I wrote mine in two days, start to finish. All depends on how well you know what you're going to say and how good of a writer you are.

 

[kmp0410]

Yes. Mine took longer because I had people here edit it so just the nature of sending it someone and waiting for them to edit it, etc.

But realistically you can sit down and write it in one go. I would recommend having people read it and edit it, but if that could be quick as well.

 

[eteshoe]

Yes a month is enough, even if you are not the strongest writer. The following is a possible plan

- Take 1 day: brainstorm what you'd want to include in the PS
- Next day: Take 2-3 to write a rough draft
- Next day: Edit rough draft (2-3 hrs)
- Send it to 2 people to edit - don't touch it for a wk while they edit
- Incorporate the changes you like the following weekend
- Forget it for a wk
- Look over it the 3rd weekend (2-3 hrs)

There 3 wks and your PS is done. Just need the discipline not to harp over the editing too much.

 

[bearintraining]

I am taking the MCAT in May and between then and when I get my scores, I am planning on writing my personal statement. Is this enough time?

It's not really about time and much more about how motivated you are to write and do so creatively.

 

[laughingfrog]

It took me longer just to brainstorm what I wanted to write about. You want to answer "Why medicine?" in a way that is coherent, convincing, and hopefully interesting.

I tried thinking about that but ultimately it came to me in a few flashes over the course of a few weeks.. Then I put it in words in an evening and it took a few edits.

Although I do think the PS gets so much time sunk into it and most ad-coms just gloss over it.. It seems they're not really interested unless you already have a hook on your application and then your PS talks about that (such as if you're a Olympic athlete and PS talks about it, or if you're a Native American and your PS talks about your struggles growing up)

 

[IlyaR]

I wrote one, let it sit for a few days, read it and cringed hard. Wrote another in about an hour and got very positive feedback on it


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[Lucca]

I wrote one, let it sit for a few days, read it and cringed hard. Wrote another in about an hour and got very positive feedback on it


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This is my method for writing in general. Write. Put it down. Come back later. Edit. Put it down. Repeat until the writing says exactly what I want to say.

For the Ps you want some other people to look at it too, of course.

 

[justadream]

I get that the PS is perhaps the most important essay but if it takes you one month to write the PS, I have a feeling writing secondaries won't go too well.

 

[Terror Billy]

I would recommend getting people who've been successful applying to med school to check your PS over.

 

[DrSponge]

I wrote mine in two weeks. Looked it over a week later. Scraped it. Started over. Sent it to three different individuals for opinions/edits. Finished it within a few more weeks. When writing yours, make sure to be genuine, humble, and not "cheesy."

 

[sharpstickie]

I wrote mine in just a few days. I had been brainstorming for months so when it actually easy when I started writing.

 

[cheesin]

Wrote/finished mine in about a week.

 

[MrLogan13]

It's more than enough time.


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[Whyamionhere]

Please don't spend an entire month writing it unless you historically have spent a month writing one page papers which I'm guessing you have not.

 

[NotYou20]

You'll be fine. My first 3 drafts were horrible but once I got the right idea it didn't take long. Might want to let your editors know in advance that you'd like feedback quickly though

 

[El-Rami]

I wrote mine in a single day. I read some personal statement samples in a book written by a major test prep company and then outlined everything the night before. I took a short break after every paragraph in order to keep my mind fresh. The first draft only required a few minor changes before it was ready to put in AMCAS. Everyone that read it commented that I was a great writer and that the essay was convincing.

If you have a good idea of why you want to pursue the medical profession, then you shouldn't have too much trouble writing the personal statement. The main thing is to get a good idea of the basic structure of a medical school personal statement (hence read some samples that are freely available). I would suggest that you outline what you want to communicate in each paragraph and also estimate the minimum number of sentences that will be needed to communicate what you want to write in each paragraph. This helps you write concisely, which is very important.

 

[Bones 2020]

I wrote mine over the course of probably a year.

Started writing it, then didn't do well on the MCAT so I had to delay until the next cycle. Started working on it about 6 months later, and had some fresh ideas. Worked on it for a month or two with about 4-5 drafts between my universities english/student-editing department and had an awesome essay. I got a ton of compliments on it, because I received advice on how to make it personal, not on fixing grammar, etc

 

[caffeinemia]

I am taking the MCAT in May and between then and when I get my scores, I am planning on writing my personal statement. Is this enough time?

I've been hired to rewrite some utter and complete PS mush and done it in 2 hours. So a month would mean 29.5 days of partying for me.

 

[Takamori]

I've been hired to rewrite some utter and complete PS mush and done it in 2 hours. So a month would mean 29.5 days of partying for me.

I was thinking to ask someone to rewrite my PS, which I think is also not too perfect as I'm ESL still fresh off the boat. But I'm afraid it's gonna lose its authenticity. What do you think?

 

[caffeinemia]

I was thinking to ask someone to rewrite my PS, which I think is also not too perfect as I'm ESL still fresh off the boat. But I'm afraid it's gonna lose its authenticity. What do you think?

I think it's up to you to judge on that point. I PMed you my fuller thoughts on it. However, many applicants who have trouble writing in a non-native language have found that a skilled writing coach can help them better elucidate the jumble of ideas they have in their heads.

 

[clippers50fan]

It really depends on the person and your schedule. I'm still working on my personal statement and it's been a little over 6 weeks, but I've gone through essentially 5 different drafts as first went from writing what I thought what an adcom would want to hear to free writing what I wanted and making it much more personal and stronger. However, I work full time so when I say I've been working on it for 6 weeks, it's been couple hours a day a couple days a week for that period along with waiting to send it to people and then receive feedback multiple times. I think doing it so slowly has really helped me really think about things and make it stronger. I suggest starting earlier than later-- you can always use that time later if you finish early to start your secondaries.

 

[EverStriving]

A month should be plenty of time to write, get feedback on, and edit your PS.

You should start writing down ideas for your PS as they come to you, though. You definitely don't want to have writer's block when the time comes.

 

[NicksMD]

I wrote mine over a span of two years. However I think it's something you have to decide on your own. I know people who have wrote it in two days and they were really good. Time helped me craft a great PS.


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[deleted743871]

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[DopamineNYC]

.

 

[MaxPlancker]

I wrote mine in a day and then left it for a month. If a good idea randomly popped in my head, I'd note it. After a month, I came back with a fresh perspective and edited up the final touches.

 

[123456123456]

Unless you struggle with writing, you can probably write it in a weekend or less.

 

[The Knife & Gun Club]

Everyone seems to say writing it only took a day or two, and I think thats true.

But editing takes a while. I had mine reviewed extensively by others and that took almost a month (started mid may to june 7 submission)

The key is not to rush it. Move slowly and methodically, if you're worried or concerned about something, note it and come back to look at it again in a day or two.

 

[Amelie.]

I spent three months writing and editing mine and sending it out for review. I am a slow writer though and went through many different versions before I got it (IMO) perfect. I would think one month would be enough for a normal person.

 

[wavvvvvves123]

i'd say it took me 3-4 weeks and i felt like that was sort of longer than i had anticipated. i basically started writing it during the last week of may, thinking i could crank it out in a few days. so yeah, i'd say start working on it like 2 months before applications open. now would be a good time to start brainstorming, knock out a super quick rough draft, have people read over it, then leave it and give it a couple of days and come back with fresh ideas to tweak it. starting early means you'll have enough time to give yourself breaks and have it not be as stressful as it was for me since i was writing it while applications were open for submission.

also, just fyi i was marked complete in late july and everything worked out. i know it's important to get your application in ASAP but if you need an extra couple of weeks, then take those extra weeks to have a polished application. i definitely toyed with the idea of just submitting the darn thing but in the end, im so much happier with my decision to have taken my time with it.