"Most significant achievement outside classroom"

[Jloyay]

I'm currently submitting my batch of secondaries and one of the questions asked is "what is your most significant achievement outside the classroom?"

I feel like bragging about my research project I'm doing now but I feel like I already did enough of that in my AMCAS essay, so I decided to say that my most significant achievement was building my own computer, since people used to crack jokes about how I didn't know anything about computers and I was able to learn from that, do research about the hardware, and built my own desktop computer which I am using now.

I think this sounds lame but I honestly don't want to repeat the same things over and over and over again that are already on the AMCAS essay.

Would you say this will work? Is it too simple of an achievement?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[link2swim06]

post in pre-allo.

 

[MedPR]

I'm currently submitting my batch of secondaries and one of the questions asked is "what is your most significant achievement outside the classroom?"

I feel like bragging about my research project I'm doing now but I feel like I already did enough of that in my AMCAS essay, so I decided to say that my most significant achievement was building my own computer, since people used to crack jokes about how I didn't know anything about computers and I was able to learn from that, do research about the hardware, and built my own desktop computer which I am using now.

I think this sounds lame but I honestly don't want to repeat the same things over and over and over again that are already on the AMCAS essay.

Would you say this will work? Is it too simple of an achievement?

I don't think being able to follow instructions is am achievement.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile

 

[wololololololo]

Given the amount of faculty members that can't operate Powerpoints and don't know how feedback is caused, you could probably spin this into a good response. I thought building a computer was pretty intimidating, until I found out the hardest part was finding complementary parts.

 

[tiedyeddog]

I think an awesome achievement would be if you PM'ed a mod and had them move this to pre-allo, the appropriate place for this question.

 

[D elegans]

Given the amount of faculty members that can't operate Powerpoints and don't know how feedback is caused, you could probably spin this into a good response. I thought building a computer was pretty intimidating, until I found out the hardest part was finding complementary parts.

Knowing academic personalities, most faculty will assume that it would be relatively trivial for them to build their own computers

 

[evilbooyaa]

Your most significant achievement outside the classroom? Failing to post this in the correct section. Congrats.

 

[Bangersandmash]

I recently built my own computer and it is definitely NOT worthy of a significant achievement. If your essay was extremely light-hearted and humorous and you connected it to something in your character (maybe dedication to something or personal drive) it might be viable, but the achievement itself is paltry compared to most other things people have done.

 

[DrDrToBe]

Examples of what's considered significant? Cure cancer, built a house for habitat, collected food/ medicine and delivered it to save starving children in Timbuktu, etc.

Only partly jesting- pretty much everyone applying has done research, so unless yours is outstandingly awesome, don't put that. Your best bet will be something you did that wasn't for personal gain, and it doesn't have to be related to medicine. Building your own computer- as awesome as it makes you feel- is not significant to most people who will be reading your application.

 

[Dr Love]

I'm currently submitting my batch of secondaries and one of the questions asked is "what is your most significant achievement outside the classroom?"

I feel like bragging about my research project I'm doing now but I feel like I already did enough of that in my AMCAS essay, so I decided to say that my most significant achievement was building my own computer, since people used to crack jokes about how I didn't know anything about computers and I was able to learn from that, do research about the hardware, and built my own desktop computer which I am using now.

I think this sounds lame but I honestly don't want to repeat the same things over and over and over again that are already on the AMCAS essay.

Would you say this will work? Is it too simple of an achievement?

You probably want to say something related to interacting with people. You risk sounding like a nerd if you keep talking about computers or research.

 

[GoSpursGo]

Moving to pre-allo.

 

[911 Turbo]

Assembling a computer takes about 30 minutes tops.... and it takes like 2 hours of research for a noob to to go to newegg and pick out the parts.

 

[GBfan5]

Hey guys so I am currently filling out a secondary with the same question for the 2013-14 cycle and I was wondering if getting EMT certified could be a valid answer? At first I thought it was going to be easy, but it ended up being a semester long commitment with over 200 hours of training. I realize it it somewhat of a class, but considering it isn't part of my undergrad experience would it work? Thanks!

 

[Lya]

Hey guys so I am currently filling out a secondary with the same question for the 2013-14 cycle and I was wondering if getting EMT certified could be a valid answer? At first I thought it was going to be easy, but it ended up being a semester long commitment with over 200 hours of training. I realize it it somewhat of a class, but considering it isn't part of my undergrad experience would it work? Thanks!

I wouldn't put EMT certification as a significant one. If you did CPR on someone in a shopping mall and s/he was saved at the end, that sounds like a quite significant one. But taking EMT classes itself is not, in my opinion.

 

[GBfan5]

Considering I have not had any "life-saving" opportunities I guess it's the next best thing...what are some other examples you would recommend?

 

[Mt Kilimanjaro]

The only two things you've ever done in a non-academic setting are build a computer and do research?

 

[gobigorgohome22]

Would publications count as "significant"? I have two first author pubs and I was planning on discussing that for this essay.

 

[GBfan5]

Pretty sure the person who posted about the computer is no longer paying attention to the thread. However, I did bring up another question about the same topic so do you think putting an EMT certification on there would be valid? It really opens up opportunities for saving lives.

 

[Lya]

Considering I have not had any "life-saving" opportunities I guess it's the next best thing...what are some other examples you would recommend?

Would publications count as "significant"? I have two first author pubs and I was planning on discussing that for this essay.

That's a tough call. It's significant research experiences, but even research seems, from what I've heard, not as significant for this type of essay. I could be wrong, though.

For me, I wrote about how I helped disadvantaged children cope with their family and academic issues through a music program for four years. Changes in their personalities were noticeable in a few years that I thought it was significant from my perspective. I really did feel like I helped change someone's childhood life.

From the way I see it, I think this essay is more about how much influence you gave to someone. It doesn't have to be many people. It could be one person. Sure, publications are extraordinary, no doubt about that, but adcoms probably saw a thousand others with publications as well and might not see your essay about research as a "great one."

Just my opinion.

 

[gmcguitar4]

If you don't know your most significant one, just choose a significant one. If you don't have any real type of personal achievement outside of school you have some issues..

 

[circulus vitios]

I wrote about losing nearly 100 pounds. In actuality it was pretty easy because I just stopped stuffing my face, but it makes a good story and I can "better relate" to patients who are obese.

 

[rosaceae]

.

 

[mttamgirl]

Would publications count as "significant"? I have two first author pubs and I was planning on discussing that for this essay.

I think if it's significant to you, it counts as significant. I wrote about fundraising for and completing a marathon. It's one of the achievements I'm most proud of and wrote about my 8 months of training and preparation. I highly doubt the adcoms will judge someone on what they consider "significant". I took it as more of a chance to talk about something I worked hard to achieve.

 

[nabilesmail]

I couldn't think of anything but I wrote an essay on lowering my cholesterol levels. Almsot everything else has already been mentioned in my application. Does it sound lame that I talk about how my physician was concerned with my levels, I decided to cut out bad food, learn to cook, exercise, and lowered it and at my free clinic I often give advice on good recipes etc when people have high BP (is this illegal for me to do lol?)

 

[DocForP]

Hey, I think it is whatever that's unique to you, which you learned something from that helped you grow as a person. It is not as much of what it is but rather how it changed you. Would be great if you can relate to how it will likely make you a better doctor.

 

[Mt Kilimanjaro]

I couldn't think of anything but I wrote an essay on lowering my cholesterol levels. Almsot everything else has already been mentioned in my application. Does it sound lame that I talk about how my physician was concerned with my levels, I decided to cut out bad food, learn to cook, exercise, and lowered it and at my free clinic I often give advice on good recipes etc when people have high BP (is this illegal for me to do lol?)

HIPAA self-violation. Enjoy your career outside medicine.

 

[TheShaker]

I'm thinking about either writing about gaining weight in muscle over this past year through diet and a workout program or overcoming stage fright while in the marching band. I think the stage fright one is more meaningful but it's from high school so...

 

[Espadaleader]

Are you serious? You never helped you siblings with homework or helped your family or friends with something?

 

[dbeast]

I feel like the best answer would be something non-science related if you have it. Like you swam the English Channel or walked on to the Miami Dolphins. Those would get you noticed for sure.

Just remember, if you've done great research, you're EMT certified (hell, even if you've helped save a life), or caught all 150 pokemon, these are all things that are common amongst applicants and won't help your cause if they're mentioned elsewhere in your application.

 

[OCDOCDOCD]

I get the feeling from this thread that research probably isn't the best subject to talk about, but what if you're applying MD/PhD? Would it be the opposite then, where not talking about research would raise red flags since you're expected to be all-in for research? Even if not, I feel like I'd be lying if I said my first first author publication wasn't what I considered to be my most significant achievement seeing as how it was the culmination of four years of hard work.

 

[dcc23]

Anyone have thoughts on using something from high school as our "most significant achievement?" I may talk about winning a state championship in baseball if it's fair game. Would an award for an honors thesis be better?

 

[plumhill]

Anyone have thoughts on using something from high school as our "most significant achievement?" I may talk about winning a state championship in baseball if it's fair game. Would an award for an honors thesis be better?

I don't think you're supposed to bring up high school accomplishments unless its an activity that you carried on in college.

 

[cookiemonsters]

When I applied last cycle, I put asking out my long-time crush on a date. I am a pretty shy guy without a lot of dating experience, so this was an honest answer. This was on secondary #30 I think and I was just too exhausted to BS some answer. I didn't get an interview invite to that school despite my stats being around their accepted average. Maybe they thought my answer was dumb? Maybe they thought saying I was shy was a red flag? Oh well.

If anyone is wondering, we're still dating and she moved with me to my new city a few days ago. We have our own place for the first time and a lot of free time to waste before school starts, soooo....

 

[deuist]

Try something like this:

My most significant achievement was getting laid. For far too long I was considered a nerd and was not a people person. But thanks to college, I opened up and got better at meeting other people individually was able to find the girl of my dreams. And that, is how I acheived my most significant accomplishment.

 

[dcc23]

I don't think you're supposed to bring up high school accomplishments unless its an activity that you carried on in college.

Continued by playing club baseball in college, but the state championship was more significant than anything accomplished since. Valid?

 

[Soulstice]

I wouldn't put EMT certification as a significant one. If you did CPR on someone in a shopping mall and s/he was saved at the end, that sounds like a quite significant one. But taking EMT classes itself is not, in my opinion.

Shhhh, that's mine. Keep the good ideas under wraps.

 

[Ansar]

or caught all 150 pokemon,

I'll have you know I got all 151 pokemon, thankyouverymuch

 

[sunflower18]

I don't think you're supposed to bring up high school accomplishments unless its an activity that you carried on in college.

Really? I know you're supposed to leave them off of your work and activities section, but you can't even talk about them in your essays? Oh man. I did something in my senior year of high school that was really influential in my path towards medicine. Why should that not be mentioned just because it happened ~5 months before college started? That's a dumb rule!!

 

[plumhill]

Really? I know you're supposed to leave them off of your work and activities section, but you can't even talk about them in your essays? Oh man. I did something in my senior year of high school that was really influential in my path towards medicine. Why should that not be mentioned just because it happened ~5 months before college started? That's a dumb rule!!

I don't think it's a hard and fast rule. But I feel like for this particular question, if you're writing about an achievement your senior year of high school, adcoms will wonder "wow didn't this applicant achieve anything outside of the classroom while actually in college?" This pattern to only talk about your last time period of academics isn't unique to medical school applications. When you're applying to undergrad you're only supposed to talk about high school (and except in extreme cases leave out middle school/junior high), and when you're applying for residencies you'll only bring up accomplishments in med school.

I feel like for this particular question though you'll probably want to mention things in college or otherwise adcoms will wonder if you peaked in high school or something. I guess depending on other secondary questions, you'll have to make that judgement call.

 

[rudziutki]

I talked about tutoring a student in biology... he went from a D in high school to a B in college. Kinda dumb, but I am just hoping most people submit much dumber answers.

 

[KnuxNole]

I'll have you know I got all 151 pokemon, thankyouverymuch

Not gonna cut it anymore. 600 would turn heads tho

 

[yehhhboiii]

I'll have you know I got all 151 pokemon, thankyouverymuch

charmeleon! wartortle! mewtwo, tentacruel, aerodactyl. omanyte. sloooowpoke. pidgeot, arbok, that's all folks

 

[nabilesmail]

I couldn't think of anything but I wrote an essay on lowering my cholesterol levels. Almsot everything else has already been mentioned in my application. Does it sound lame that I talk about how my physician was concerned with my levels, I decided to cut out bad food, learn to cook, exercise, and lowered it and at my free clinic I often give advice on good recipes etc when people have high BP (is this illegal for me to do lol?)

Anyone care to comment on whether or not this is a good one. Another one I can do is how I gained weight/muscle.

Use to be 5 ft 7, 98 lbs ish, got to 5 ft 7 160ish lbs

 

[keevwu]

would mentioning sports we a good option on this essay (i.e. winning 1st place in nationals and making the national team)? or are these essays mostly supposed to be more science-related?

 

[nabilesmail]

would mentioning sports we a good option on this essay (i.e. winning 1st place in nationals and making the national team)? or are these essays mostly supposed to be more science-related?

That would be a great one!

 

[GBfan5]

Oh wow I didn't even think about sports! I was the captain of our club soccer team and we won 8 straight games to qualify for regionals for the the first time in school history. I am definitely going to write about that!

 

[bear2roo]

I won a national title in a sport (non-NCAA at my school). That should cut it right? Although I'm not really talking about the winning so much as the journey...

 

[GBfan5]

I would think so, and I focused on the journey as well (as much as I could with only 750 characters to work with). The more I think about this question, the more I feel like they aren't looking for superheros but rather someone who can take pride in something unique.

 

[Oldenuff2nobetr]

Anyone care to comment on whether or not this is a good one. Another one I can do is how I gained weight/muscle.

Use to be 5 ft 7, 98 lbs ish, got to 5 ft 7 160ish lbs

The weight gain itself is meh, but if you could have gone from 5 ft 7, 98 lbs ish to 6 ft 4, 98 lbs that would be significant...

 

[telomer22]

I wrote about completely supporting myself financially by working 1 or 2 jobs at all times throughout college while keeping my grades up in chem engineering.