Number of experiences to discuss in PS

[rubisco88]

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I'm writing my PS and it's too long. Initially, I was going to write about 4 important experiences/activities. Should I try to cut it down to 3?

These were the four experiences I was going to write about:
1) Caring for a loved one with a serious illness (P1 and P2/ Intro-hook)
2) Volunteering in the nursing home
3) Volunteering with homeless (free clinic and tutoring)
4) Shadowing experience

I am thinking about taking out the shadowing experience, since I didn't get to form as much of a relationship with the patients as in #2 and #3. I mostly observed, assisted the physician, and saw what the day to day duties of a physician. The shadowing experience solidified that I wanted to be a doc because I saw what one actually did, but I didn't really do anything to help the patients. Do I need write about this in my PS or can adcoms assume that I know what it's like to be a doc from my shadowing experiences listed on my app.

 

[BABSstudent]

Try cutting down some of the fat. If it is included in the activities section and doesn't really serve a purpose in the PS, then erase it. Try to condense a little more.

But give us a character count that you are at so we can give you a little more help.

 

[rubisco88]

About 6500 characters. I need to cut it down to 5000 for TMDSAS.

 

[BABSstudent]

I would suggest getting rid of some of the intro/hook. Leave it at the bare minimum needed to get their attention. But 1500 characters is quite a bit to get rid of. You may need to also condense your conclusion and maybe get rid of a paragraph.

I know, it sucks. It took me 4 times to write my PS, starting from scratch every time.

 

[mimelim]

Remember, your personal statement is NOT about your activities/experiences. It is about how those activities/experiences affected you. Discussing many experiences dilutes the message/theme of a personal statement. This isn't a place to explain your activities. None of your experiences or activities stand out on their own. This is true of 99%+ of med school applicants. What makes people different is what they took from those activities and how it shaped that individual. Do NOT fall into the trap of trying to make the activities sound impressive. (exception being of course if you actually did something exceptional) Your personal statement is about YOU. This is a place to showcase yourself to adcoms. In the words of a Wash U adcom, "There is a reason Science only gives you 800 words. If you can't say it in less, you are doing something wrong."