*~*~*~*Official Personal Statement Guide and Reader List 2015-2016*~*~*~*

[mmmcdowe]

This thread is for this year's applicants (for the class of 2020) who are beginning to work on their personal statements. If you're looking for someone to read your PS, check out the list of volunteers below In the most recent post ONLY!!

If you need help getting started, check out the second post in this thread.


If you are willing to volunteer, the thread will be self regulated this year. Respond below, following the instructions at the end of this post (and in the third post), with your credentials and specific things you are willing to edit for (content only, grammar only, etc). Please read the full list of rules posted below before you volunteer or contact a reader, and good luck to the 2014 applicants.

Specific comments, questions, or complaints can be addressed to me via PM. If I can't answer them they will be forwarded to the rest of the Pre-Allopathic moderator staff.



Official Personal Statement Guide thread and Depakote's Personal Statement Guide/Tips.

• If you are looking for feedback on your personal statement, it is better to PM individual users here whose strengths are better suited to your needs rather than posting a response in this thread.

• Once you contact a reader and they agree to read your personal statement, please email it to them as a Word document with your SDN username in the title. Including your SDN username makes it easier for the readers to keep track of who they've already read for and who they still need to read. DO NOT JUST PM YOUR STATEMENT TO A READER.

Rules for Readers:

• If you would like to be added or deleted from the list, please make sure that you follow the directions below, and add or delete yourself.
• As a volunteer, you may read as many or as few personal statements as you'd like or have time for. If you will be unavailable for a certain time or have been inundated with requests, simply take yourself off of the list using the instructions below
• If you receive a request and are unable to fulfill it, please respond to the writer so he/she is not waiting for a response and can request help from elsewhere.
• For your protection, we will not allow you to post your email addresses here. All email addresses will be edited out of the list and any further posts containing email addresses will be edited to remove them. Writers will contact you via PM and you can exchange email addresses privately.
• As this is on a volunteer basis, absolutely NO solicitation of money for your services will be tolerated. Volunteers who violate this policy will be removed from the list and subject to further disciplinary action.

This thread is brought to you by the Pre-Allopathic Volunteer Staff
Please remember that these people are volunteering their time. Be nice to them!

Edited on 6/13

Current Readers Available:

- 22031 Alum | If you sent me your PS on or after May 23rd, and still need a reader, message me again.| MD attending/faculty who does NOT participate in med school admissions | Willing to edit for content, organization, and grammar. Send PS via PM and I will respond in kind.

-Relax! | I am willing to edit personal statements for content/grammar/semantics/organization. I would also not mind editing other aspects of your application, such as responses to secondary prompts, activity descriptions, etc.

-soccerusa | Incoming MD student accepted to 10+ schools | Will read and edit for anything besides grammar | College tuition paid for by writing scholarship | Copy and paste PS and brief description of yourself as an applicant in a PM and send it to me. I will acknowledge I have received it and give you an approx time frame for return with comments | Happy to help!

-benmarker | incoming MD student, humanities major | will read solid drafts and read mostly for content and structure. Will give lots of constructive criticism

Readers Not Available:

- Australopithekus | Overwhelmed yet again. I have multiple textbook and journal publications, and I consider writing one of my strengths. I will be blunt. I am also happy to critique school lists. PM a short bio for approval.

- syoung | INBOX FULL will deal with backlog in my inbox and that's it. | current MS3, waiting for Medicine to start on June 8 and am a non-trad with MDapps on my profile. I received assistance during my cycle and helped read and edit for the 2013-2014 year. You have until June 1 to request editing from me and I will try to send all edits by June 8. Please state in a PM to me: "If you had to sell me something from your closet, what would it be and why should I buy it?" Taking requests from SDN with posts > 50. I will read for grammar and give you an impression of what I think you are. Happy to help!

-ThinkReallyFast | Inbox Full || Just finished my M.A. and happy to pay it forward after getting a lot of help here. | I will read solid personal statements drafts for content, flow, and minor grammatical errors. | PM me with a google docs link (comment permissions, NOT edit permissions - so you can see my suggestions). | Preference for non-traditional and LGBT personal statements, but I am happy to help anyone!

- pobms4 | MD/PhD (in social science) graduate who just matched into radiation oncology | Currently full. Will edit more when I get through.

- CaliforniaDreamer | All full, no computer (motherboard failure). Can help with readability/organization. I also just enjoy editing grammar, maybe I am weird. You need a version of Microsoft word compatible with in line edits and comments.

-Alejandro|M3/4|Full Box-Studying for boards| Currently studying for boards but am willing to read a few essays here and there to help out. If you ask me to read your essay, please be comfortable 'appropriately harassing me' for it as I'm going to be busy, but would be happy to read it for you. What can I offer? Well, I've read a fair number of essays, served as a premed advisor for two undergrad institutions, and usually I consult a lot of my peers at other schools (harvard, hopkins, washington, mcw, basically whoever is online) to take a gander at your essay if I'm having difficulty figuring out what my consensus is. The one thing I ask for you in return, and this is my favorite practice interview question I like to ask is: Why should I choose you? Can be as long and short as you want. Feel free to be as arrogant or pompous as you want. Doesn't have to be proofread. You can even write it in internet language (as if I'm IM'ing you). I don't care. I just want to see how passionate you are about this. Sound good? Later in the year, you can ask me to help you with interviews if you'd like.

- hellanutella | currently full-up; I will post again whenever my queue is empty | Preference will be given to users with 50+ posts. Please PM me a short bio if interested. | Incoming medical student; app cycle results can be seen in my MDapps. I have published in a scientific journal and a literature textbook. Once wrote an essay on global climate change using only single-syllable words. Willing to edit for content and flow. While I love critiquing PSes, my true love is editing AMCAS activity descriptions so feel free to contact me with these as well!

-Avocado8 | Currently full, will post when my queue is empty. Incoming medical student | Experience editing admissions essays for grammar and content (tend to be borderline brutally honest). Happy to help with activity descriptions, etc as well!

-MoonJelly | Swamped. Will re-list my name when I can edit more | First-year medical student | I am a former English teacher and my personal statement was brought up at a number of interviews. I have a lot of experience editing admissions essays and tend to focus on content/style/flow/originality. I am most interested in editing essays for non-trads, but I'm happy to help anyone!

-TheRhymenocerous | Working through a bit of a backlog. I'll be back! I have a BA in English and was until not too long ago pursuing a writing career. I've worked as a journalist and a copy editor and have a sixth sense for grammatical errors. I'm applying this cycle and have already finished my personal statement, so I'm happy to help with others'! Would prefer to work with statements closer to completion so I can focus on writing and flow, rather than content.

-MPB |Full up. Will repost once it opens up | Incoming M1| B.A. in English and interdisciplinary social science major. LizzyM 71-3. Received 6 IIs and very positive feedback on my written materials during interviews. Will mostly read/edit for content/flow/style, and prefer to work with semi-complete drafts. Please provide brief overview of yourself as an applicant in PM.

-EatingCake |/Done for this cycle, GOOD LUCK ALL!/ Incoming M1| Minor in English and extensive writing tutoring experience. I'm happy to help with content, style, organization and grammar and can work with applicants in any stage of the writing process. Please PM me with a clear objective (eg: prewriting, editing for grammar, flow, continuity, etc.).

-ridethecliche| Done for the cycle |Incoming M1| I've worked in research and have a few pubs including a first author| I am a harsh editor and will refuse to comment on your PS if you haven't taken the effort to edit it yourself| Will give constructive criticism on theme, style, and organization otherwise| Don't send to me if you don't like your work being ripped apart to be made better. This is an important aspect of your app and you should put the work in! PM Me about yourself, your goals, your experiences, and target schools etc and what your ps is about in a short paragraph and we'll go from there. COMPLETED PS' ONLY! Not editing any more personal statements this cycle.

-Gsb653 | Full up for right now...I don't know why my name was removed from the available list on the update, but oh well! I'll put it back up when I get through with my que. I'm an incoming MD/ PhD student with a lot of research background. Was a collegiate athlete and took 2+ years off in between undergrad and med school. Willing to read anyone's PS! Also had very positive feedback from AdComs on my essays. Good luck!

-Hippogriff | Full |Incoming M1| I am best at editing for content, style, and organization. My advice style is constructive criticism. So I will be honest about your weakness, but will also highlight your strengths.

-turayza | Full | incoming M1, bioc/ph major. | will read for content and organization. I also really like critiquing ECs so I will take those too! Application cycle visible on MDapps.

-canadianinusa| Full temporarily | Incoming M1| Dual science-social science major with a grad degree. I received many scholarships in undergrad/grad school (school + national level). Lots of research experience (incl. publication). Prefer to work with semi-complete or complete drafts. I received interviews at 50% of the schools that I applied (as an international applicant). I'd be particularly helpful for nontrads, people with research experience, or social science majors but I'm happy to help out anyone who thinks I'd be useful.

-shinobiz11:incoming M1, content and grammar- I'll take a look at your PS, give some advice. Did well in writing classes, enjoy hearing peoples stories. Took me many drafts to get my PS to an acceptable level, I'll do my best to help you
PLEASE send me your PS in a Google doc so you can view the changes!

-tick_tock400. FULL. Incoming M1 who received interviews at over half the schools/programs applied to. Happy to edit for content mainly and a little grammar. If you send me your PS, it has to be complete, and you have to address Why Medicine & Future Ambitions in Medicine. Please email me a short bio with some main activities you've done before you send me your PS-- and only please send me your PS once I've told you I'm ready to receive it. Please only message me if you're willing to re-do/rewrite your entire PS and are open to heavy duty criticism, as I often tell writers to rewrite their entire things, so beware! Here is a thread of great tips compiled by some of the editors here! Best of luck! http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...on-personal-statements.1134113/#post-16450618

-On Eagle's Wings | | I will not be taking any more requests from anyone for the next few weeks. I will be taking a break from reading essays for now. | Incoming MS1 accepted to 2 CA schools. I am only willing to look at Work/Activities Descriptions. I have written many descriptions of my activities throughout college for scholarship applications. I have been awarded $10,000+ in individual scholarships for my work and activities. I will review Work/activities descriptions for content and just about anything else that I see. I will leave you my overall impression, please do not take blunt comments and critical review personally. If interested, please PM me and paste your work/activities description into your message. I am getting full here, so I will be giving priority to those who send me only a few paragraphs or one sample work/activity description to look at. I am happy to look at all 15 of your work/activity descriptions, but just know it will take longer for me to return it.

- PlaqueBuster| FULL| Please stop sending me requests to read. I have over 75 and I cannot read them now. Hope you understand

-vellez | incoming MD student, accepted more than 1 MD; interviews at several MS programs (vagueness is intentional) | Will read for anything, though I think I'd be best at reading for content | Never done this before; hopefully I can be helpful | Most familiar with NW schools/programs | PM beforehand with a 1 sentence bio. I'll acknowledge that I got your request and hopefully get back with the edit | Will probably only read 10 or so for now (I'm new to this!) | Good luck, guys!Sorry guys, I'm full at the moment. I'll read the ones that I have and read more once I get through them.

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[PlaqueBuster]

There is a thread on this but I wanted to update with some of the more recent work I have seen:

So I have read through 30 or so Personal Statements over the last month and here are my general suggestions from what I have commonly seen and the advice I keep giving:

1. Your focus should be on telling us something about yourself and then how you arrived at the decision to pursue medicine and specifically the career of a physician

• You need to make sure you understand what a physician does. If you are so focused on service, there are social workers and volunteers for that

2. Do not elaborate about your negatives. You can talk about a challenging time in your life and how you turned yourself around. But do not beat yourself to death and give the reader a bad image of yourself.

3. Intro:

• What I am currently seeing are many people saying: “Medicine was not decision I made in childhood, but something that gradually built on my experiences”
• There are probably thousands that are following this format and it will not make you stand out in any way by doing this. Try to organize your experiences around a theme.
• The theme should unify your essay while each body paragraph will make a reference back to this theme.

4. Work on transitions! Don’t put together two or three activities descriptions sandwiched between an intro and conclusion and call that a personal statement. This is what I have seen from the majority of writers

5. Remember that almost everyone will have volunteering, shadowing, tutoring, and research experiences. It is how you personalize these experiences that make your personal statement unique from another. If you proofread your essay and it seems like anyone could have written this then you need go back and work on your writing

6. When describing experiences show do not tell.

• What not to do: “I did volunteering at X hospital in the Y Department and saw patients ranging from young to old. I enjoyed the patient interactions and felt a great deal of satisfaction when I helped someone in need.”
• Elaborate on your experiences and at the minimum tell us what you did, why you did it, and what you learned.
• Do not put 3-4 experiences in one paragraph. Leave that for your activities page on AMCAS.

7. Keep the conclusion short and sweet. Summarize in a sentence or two and leave the reader with something profound at the end that will continue to resonate with them after they are done reading. Don’t just end by saying “These experiences have paved the way for me to pursue a career in medicine”

8. Finally make sure you are within the character limit of 5300 characters.

 

[moonjelly]

There is a thread on this but I wanted to update with some of the more recent work I have seen:

So I have read through 30 or so Personal Statements over the last month and here are my general suggestions from what I have commonly seen and the advice I keep giving:

1. Your focus should be on telling us something about yourself and then how you arrived at the decision to pursue medicine and specifically the career of a physician

• You need to make sure you understand what a physician does. If you are so focused on service, there are social workers and volunteers for that

2. Do not elaborate about your negatives. You can talk about a challenging time in your life and how you turned yourself around. But do not beat yourself to death and give the reader a bad image of yourself.

3. Intro:

• What I am currently seeing are many people saying: “Medicine was not decision I made in childhood, but something that gradually built on my experiences”
• There are probably thousands that are following this format and it will not make you stand out in any way by doing this. Try to organize your experiences around a theme.
• The theme should unify your essay while each body paragraph will make a reference back to this theme.

4. Work on transitions! Don’t put together two or three activities descriptions sandwiched between an intro and conclusion and call that a personal statement. This is what I have seen from the majority of writers

5. Remember that almost everyone will have volunteering, shadowing, tutoring, and research experiences. It is how you personalize these experiences that make your personal statement unique from another. If you proofread your essay and it seems like anyone could have written this then you need go back and work on your writing

6. When describing experiences show do not tell.

• What not to do: “I did volunteering at X hospital in the Y Department and saw patients ranging from young to old. I enjoyed the patient interactions and felt a great deal of satisfaction when I helped someone in need.”
• Elaborate on your experiences and at the minimum tell us what you did, why you did it, and what you learned.
• Do not put 3-4 experiences in one paragraph. Leave that for your activities page on AMCAS.

7. Keep the conclusion short and sweet. Summarize in a sentence or two and leave the reader with something profound at the end that will continue to resonate with them after they are done reading. Don’t just end by saying “These experiences have paved the way for me to pursue a career in medicine”

8. Finally make sure you are within the character limit of 5300 characters.

Fantastic advice. I'll be sending a link to your post (unless you object) to the people whose statements I'm reading. I've been sending them this article from the AAMC: https://www.aamc.org/students/aspiring/basics/284794/application16.html It seems to be helping applicants edit their anecdotes and add more meaningful ones. I'm seeing a lot of personal statements that could use more specific language, particularly when it comes to describing what the applicant has learned. Here's what the AAMC has to say:

Tell me why you did that, what you learned, how that experience has affected you, and how it will affect the way you intend to practice medicine in the future.

For example, don't just write, "I learned patience and compassion volunteering for hospice." That leaves me wondering how you learned it, what that learning process was like, and what experiences you had related to it. Be specific! Example: "Taking an hour to help Mrs. Rodriguez get dressed taught me patience. I had to learn to be present and stop fretting about how long it was taking. She could sense when I was watching the clock and getting antsy. For her, being able to button her shirt was vital to her sense of well being and empowerment in the aging process. It was a small thing, but it meant a lot to her. As I developed my patience, my compassion also grew".​

 

[eatingcake]

There is a thread on this but I wanted to update with some of the more recent work I have seen:

So I have read through 30 or so Personal Statements over the last month and here are my general suggestions from what I have commonly seen and the advice I keep giving:

1. Your focus should be on telling us something about yourself and then how you arrived at the decision to pursue medicine and specifically the career of a physician

• You need to make sure you understand what a physician does. If you are so focused on service, there are social workers and volunteers for that

2. Do not elaborate about your negatives. You can talk about a challenging time in your life and how you turned yourself around. But do not beat yourself to death and give the reader a bad image of yourself.

3. Intro:

• What I am currently seeing are many people saying: “Medicine was not decision I made in childhood, but something that gradually built on my experiences”
• There are probably thousands that are following this format and it will not make you stand out in any way by doing this. Try to organize your experiences around a theme.
• The theme should unify your essay while each body paragraph will make a reference back to this theme.

4. Work on transitions! Don’t put together two or three activities descriptions sandwiched between an intro and conclusion and call that a personal statement. This is what I have seen from the majority of writers

5. Remember that almost everyone will have volunteering, shadowing, tutoring, and research experiences. It is how you personalize these experiences that make your personal statement unique from another. If you proofread your essay and it seems like anyone could have written this then you need go back and work on your writing

6. When describing experiences show do not tell.

• What not to do: “I did volunteering at X hospital in the Y Department and saw patients ranging from young to old. I enjoyed the patient interactions and felt a great deal of satisfaction when I helped someone in need.”
• Elaborate on your experiences and at the minimum tell us what you did, why you did it, and what you learned.
• Do not put 3-4 experiences in one paragraph. Leave that for your activities page on AMCAS.

7. Keep the conclusion short and sweet. Summarize in a sentence or two and leave the reader with something profound at the end that will continue to resonate with them after they are done reading. Don’t just end by saying “These experiences have paved the way for me to pursue a career in medicine”

8. Finally make sure you are within the character limit of 5300 characters.

This is great. I'm especially seeing issues related to points 3 and 4, which are fundamental to organized and clear writing. A well-defined theme, arguments supporting that theme specifically and transitions are going to polish the crap out of your personal statement and probably help you keep your character count down.

Tip: if you are having trouble figuring out your thesis, I'm finding them neatly hidden in the conclusion.

 

[ridethecliche]

As an aside, I will comment that it will be of limited utility for you to send your PS to more than 2 people on here. Everyone has a different editing style and you're likely to get tons of different comments from everyone and it'll be hard to separate the signal from the noise at a certain point. I think it's good to pick 1-2 people on here to make the best use of their time and yours. If you're emailing and getting comments from EVERYONE, then that's a bit unfair to the readers, but also will make life harder for you as you edit.

I also didn't think I'd like doing this as much as I do, but I definitely feel a bit humbled that people are willing to share things so personal with a stranger and I've definitely enjoyed editing the handful I've done so far.

Definitely read @PlaqueBuster 's post on here and read the AAMC guide to writing one. It'll make the best use of everyone's time.

 

[owlegrad]

Anyone willing to read my personal statement? I will be applying both DO and MD this coming cycle. I have already contacted those in the official thread but thought I would throw it out there for anyone else seeing that there are only about ~6 people reading right now. I would really appreciate any feedback!

In before TOS lock.

Yeah PM it to me if you still want more readers!

Haha, no TOS lock, but I will move it to a better thread.

 

[WingedOx]

Darn, the scammy MS2 charging 300 bucks a pop to read essays was banned and deleted. That thread should have been stickied as a warning to others not to fall for that kind of thing.

 

[mmmcdowe]

Cleaning stuff up, please do not solicit readers. Contact them directly.

 

[tyrsa]

I read the following advice in an SDN personal statement thread from a few years ago:

"Remember to address any insufficiencies or lapses in your grades (or any major weaknesses in your application)"

I would like to ask about that. I already wrote my personal statement, it flows well and tells a story. Now, I do have a very weak semester. In my sophomore year (I was at a community college back then), I got a W, a C, and a D (in physics). This poor performance was because I was immature and thought I would get by without studying. After that bad semester, I learned my lesson, got straight A's the following semester, and went on to earn a degree in Engineering.

I think the upward trend of my grades speaks for itself, and obviously I mastered Physics (not only did I get an A the following semester, but I went on to graduate in Engineering).

Do I have to explain this lapse in performance in my personal statement? As of now, my statement flows well, and inserting an explanation of my bad semester would break up the flow and sound awkward in my opinion. Also, does my increased performance indeed speak for itself, or do I have to explain it? I would be more than happy to write about it, I most certainly learned a valuable lesson from this experience, but is the personal statement the appropriate place to write about it?

[For instance, I can discuss it in my secondaries, but will I even get secondaries if I don't explain this in my personal statement.]

 

[22031 Alum]

Here's another tip: the thesaurus is not always your friend. It seems many applicants believe they'll be penalized for saying "sad" instead of "lugubrious." If you mean "sad," just say "sad." It is painfully obvious when you write with a thesaurus in hand and use words that aren't actually in your vocabulary. How? Because the alternate word will have connotations that you aren't aware of, and will seem awkward and out of place. Just say what you mean, and don't try to be fancy.

 

[drhy]

Question: has anyone had any difficulty with entering into AMCAS words with accents like touché? Will that accent display properly in the submitted application?

 

[On Eagle's Wings]

1) Click "quote" on the most recent post.
2) Add your SDN screen name, your credentials, and specific things you are willing to edit for (content only, grammar only, etc). DO NOT post your email address.
3) Delete the quote tags at both the top and the bottom.
4) If you are unable to read any more personal statements, please come back and remove your name from the list.

Current Readers Available:

- 22031 Alum | If you sent me your PS on or after May 23rd, and still need a reader, message me again.| MD attending/faculty who does NOT participate in med school admissions | Willing to edit for content, organization, and grammar. Send PS via PM and I will respond in kind.

-Relax! | I am willing to edit personal statements for content/grammar/semantics/organization. I would also not mind editing other aspects of your application, such as responses to secondary prompts, activity descriptions, etc.

-soccerusa | Incoming MD student accepted to 10+ schools | Will read and edit for anything besides grammar | College tuition paid for by writing scholarship | Copy and paste PS and brief description of yourself as an applicant in a PM and send it to me. I will acknowledge I have received it and give you an approx time frame for return with comments | Happy to help!

-benmarker | incoming MD student, humanities major | will read solid drafts and read mostly for content and structure. Will give lots of constructive criticism

Readers Not Available:

- Australopithekus | Overwhelmed yet again. I have multiple textbook and journal publications, and I consider writing one of my strengths. I will be blunt. I am also happy to critique school lists. PM a short bio for approval.

- syoung | INBOX FULL will deal with backlog in my inbox and that's it. | current MS3, waiting for Medicine to start on June 8 and am a non-trad with MDapps on my profile. I received assistance during my cycle and helped read and edit for the 2013-2014 year. You have until June 1 to request editing from me and I will try to send all edits by June 8. Please state in a PM to me: "If you had to sell me something from your closet, what would it be and why should I buy it?" Taking requests from SDN with posts > 50. I will read for grammar and give you an impression of what I think you are. Happy to help!

-ThinkReallyFast | Inbox Full || Just finished my M.A. and happy to pay it forward after getting a lot of help here. | I will read solid personal statements drafts for content, flow, and minor grammatical errors. | PM me with a google docs link (comment permissions, NOT edit permissions - so you can see my suggestions). | Preference for non-traditional and LGBT personal statements, but I am happy to help anyone!

- pobms4 | MD/PhD (in social science) graduate who just matched into radiation oncology | Currently full. Will edit more when I get through.

- CaliforniaDreamer | All full, no computer (motherboard failure). Can help with readability/organization. I also just enjoy editing grammar, maybe I am weird. You need a version of Microsoft word compatible with in line edits and comments.

-Alejandro|M3/4|Full Box-Studying for boards| Currently studying for boards but am willing to read a few essays here and there to help out. If you ask me to read your essay, please be comfortable 'appropriately harassing me' for it as I'm going to be busy, but would be happy to read it for you. What can I offer? Well, I've read a fair number of essays, served as a premed advisor for two undergrad institutions, and usually I consult a lot of my peers at other schools (harvard, hopkins, washington, mcw, basically whoever is online) to take a gander at your essay if I'm having difficulty figuring out what my consensus is. The one thing I ask for you in return, and this is my favorite practice interview question I like to ask is: Why should I choose you? Can be as long and short as you want. Feel free to be as arrogant or pompous as you want. Doesn't have to be proofread. You can even write it in internet language (as if I'm IM'ing you). I don't care. I just want to see how passionate you are about this. Sound good? Later in the year, you can ask me to help you with interviews if you'd like.

- hellanutella | currently full-up; I will post again whenever my queue is empty | Preference will be given to users with 50+ posts. Please PM me a short bio if interested. | Incoming medical student; app cycle results can be seen in my MDapps. I have published in a scientific journal and a literature textbook. Once wrote an essay on global climate change using only single-syllable words. Willing to edit for content and flow. While I love critiquing PSes, my true love is editing AMCAS activity descriptions so feel free to contact me with these as well!

-Avocado8 | Currently full, will post when my queue is empty. Incoming medical student | Experience editing admissions essays for grammar and content (tend to be borderline brutally honest). Happy to help with activity descriptions, etc as well!

-MoonJelly | Swamped. Will re-list my name when I can edit more | First-year medical student | I am a former English teacher and my personal statement was brought up at a number of interviews. I have a lot of experience editing admissions essays and tend to focus on content/style/flow/originality. I am most interested in editing essays for non-trads, but I'm happy to help anyone!

-TheRhymenocerous | Working through a bit of a backlog. I'll be back! I have a BA in English and was until not too long ago pursuing a writing career. I've worked as a journalist and a copy editor and have a sixth sense for grammatical errors. I'm applying this cycle and have already finished my personal statement, so I'm happy to help with others'! Would prefer to work with statements closer to completion so I can focus on writing and flow, rather than content.

-MPB |Full up. Will repost once it opens up | Incoming M1| B.A. in English and interdisciplinary social science major. LizzyM 71-3. Received 6 IIs and very positive feedback on my written materials during interviews. Will mostly read/edit for content/flow/style, and prefer to work with semi-complete drafts. Please provide brief overview of yourself as an applicant in PM.

-EatingCake |/Done for this cycle, GOOD LUCK ALL!/ Incoming M1| Minor in English and extensive writing tutoring experience. I'm happy to help with content, style, organization and grammar and can work with applicants in any stage of the writing process. Please PM me with a clear objective (eg: prewriting, editing for grammar, flow, continuity, etc.).

-ridethecliche| Done for the cycle |Incoming M1| I've worked in research and have a few pubs including a first author| I am a harsh editor and will refuse to comment on your PS if you haven't taken the effort to edit it yourself| Will give constructive criticism on theme, style, and organization otherwise| Don't send to me if you don't like your work being ripped apart to be made better. This is an important aspect of your app and you should put the work in! PM Me about yourself, your goals, your experiences, and target schools etc and what your ps is about in a short paragraph and we'll go from there. COMPLETED PS' ONLY! Not editing any more personal statements this cycle.

-Gsb653 | Full up for right now...I don't know why my name was removed from the available list on the update, but oh well! I'll put it back up when I get through with my que. I'm an incoming MD/ PhD student with a lot of research background. Was a collegiate athlete and took 2+ years off in between undergrad and med school. Willing to read anyone's PS! Also had very positive feedback from AdComs on my essays. Good luck!

-Hippogriff | Full |Incoming M1| I am best at editing for content, style, and organization. My advice style is constructive criticism. So I will be honest about your weakness, but will also highlight your strengths.

-turayza | Full | incoming M1, bioc/ph major. | will read for content and organization. I also really like critiquing ECs so I will take those too! Application cycle visible on MDapps.

-canadianinusa| Full temporarily | Incoming M1| Dual science-social science major with a grad degree. I received many scholarships in undergrad/grad school (school + national level). Lots of research experience (incl. publication). Prefer to work with semi-complete or complete drafts. I received interviews at 50% of the schools that I applied (as an international applicant). I'd be particularly helpful for nontrads, people with research experience, or social science majors but I'm happy to help out anyone who thinks I'd be useful.

-shinobiz11:incoming M1, content and grammar- I'll take a look at your PS, give some advice. Did well in writing classes, enjoy hearing peoples stories. Took me many drafts to get my PS to an acceptable level, I'll do my best to help you
PLEASE send me your PS in a Google doc so you can view the changes!

-tick_tock400. FULL. Incoming M1 who received interviews at over half the schools/programs applied to. Happy to edit for content mainly and a little grammar. If you send me your PS, it has to be complete, and you have to address Why Medicine & Future Ambitions in Medicine. Please email me a short bio with some main activities you've done before you send me your PS-- and only please send me your PS once I've told you I'm ready to receive it. Please only message me if you're willing to re-do/rewrite your entire PS and are open to heavy duty criticism, as I often tell writers to rewrite their entire things, so beware! Here is a thread of great tips compiled by some of the editors here! Best of luck! http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...on-personal-statements.1134113/#post-16450618

-On Eagle's Wings | | I will not be taking any more requests from anyone for the next few weeks. I will be taking a break from reading essays for now. | Incoming MS1 accepted to 2 CA schools. I am only willing to look at Work/Activities Descriptions. I have written many descriptions of my activities throughout college for scholarship applications. I have been awarded $10,000+ in individual scholarships for my work and activities. I will review Work/activities descriptions for content and just about anything else that I see. I will leave you my overall impression, please do not take blunt comments and critical review personally. If interested, please PM me and paste your work/activities description into your message. I am getting full here, so I will be giving priority to those who send me only a few paragraphs or one sample work/activity description to look at. I am happy to look at all 15 of your work/activity descriptions, but just know it will take longer for me to return it.

- PlaqueBuster| FULL| Please stop sending me requests to read. I have over 75 and I cannot read them now. Hope you understand

-vellez | incoming MD student, accepted more than 1 MD; interviews at several MS programs (vagueness is intentional) | Will read for anything, though I think I'd be best at reading for content | Never done this before; hopefully I can be helpful | Most familiar with NW schools/programs | PM beforehand with a 1 sentence bio. I'll acknowledge that I got your request and hopefully get back with the edit | Will probably only read 10 or so for now (I'm new to this!) | Good luck, guys! Sorry guys, I'm full at the moment. I'll read the ones that I have and read more once I get through them.

 

[Ismet]

Question: has anyone had any difficulty with entering into AMCAS words with accents like touché? Will that accent display properly in the submitted application?

I'm pretty sure accents/special characters don't display properly on the receiving end of the application. We even have trouble with apostrophes.

 

[Ismet]

Updated list and removed old lists.

Please remember to look at the latest post ONLY for the most accurate list. The list in the original post is only updated once a week or so.

Please be respectful of the readers volunteering their time and do not PM those who are on the "not available" list.

 

[choopss85]

Can anyone tell me how to contact a reader on the list? I am a new sdn user and can't find their email address to contact.

 

[sunshine02]

Can anyone tell me how to contact a reader on the list? I am a new sdn user and can't find their email address to contact.

If you search for their SDN name, click on it, and click "Start Conversation", you should be able to PM them.

 

[22031 Alum]

1) Click "quote" on the most recent post.
2) Add your SDN screen name, your credentials, and specific things you are willing to edit for (content only, grammar only, etc). DO NOT post your email address.
3) Delete the quote tags at both the top and the bottom.
4) If you are unable to read any more personal statements, please come back and remove your name from the list.

Current Readers Available:

-Relax! | I am willing to edit personal statements for content/grammar/semantics/organization. I would also not mind editing other aspects of your application, such as responses to secondary prompts, activity descriptions, etc.

-soccerusa | Incoming MD student accepted to 10+ schools | Will read and edit for anything besides grammar | College tuition paid for by writing scholarship | Copy and paste PS and brief description of yourself as an applicant in a PM and send it to me. I will acknowledge I have received it and give you an approx time frame for return with comments | Happy to help!

-benmarker | incoming MD student, humanities major | will read solid drafts and read mostly for content and structure. Will give lots of constructive criticism

Readers Not Available:

- Australopithekus | Overwhelmed yet again. I have multiple textbook and journal publications, and I consider writing one of my strengths. I will be blunt. I am also happy to critique school lists. PM a short bio for approval.

- syoung | INBOX FULL will deal with backlog in my inbox and that's it. | current MS3, waiting for Medicine to start on June 8 and am a non-trad with MDapps on my profile. I received assistance during my cycle and helped read and edit for the 2013-2014 year. You have until June 1 to request editing from me and I will try to send all edits by June 8. Please state in a PM to me: "If you had to sell me something from your closet, what would it be and why should I buy it?" Taking requests from SDN with posts > 50. I will read for grammar and give you an impression of what I think you are. Happy to help!

-ThinkReallyFast | Inbox Full || Just finished my M.A. and happy to pay it forward after getting a lot of help here. | I will read solid personal statements drafts for content, flow, and minor grammatical errors. | PM me with a google docs link (comment permissions, NOT edit permissions - so you can see my suggestions). | Preference for non-traditional and LGBT personal statements, but I am happy to help anyone!

- pobms4 | MD/PhD (in social science) graduate who just matched into radiation oncology | Currently full. Will edit more when I get through.

- CaliforniaDreamer | All full, no computer (motherboard failure). Can help with readability/organization. I also just enjoy editing grammar, maybe I am weird. You need a version of Microsoft word compatible with in line edits and comments.

-Alejandro|M3/4|Full Box-Studying for boards| Currently studying for boards but am willing to read a few essays here and there to help out. If you ask me to read your essay, please be comfortable 'appropriately harassing me' for it as I'm going to be busy, but would be happy to read it for you. What can I offer? Well, I've read a fair number of essays, served as a premed advisor for two undergrad institutions, and usually I consult a lot of my peers at other schools (harvard, hopkins, washington, mcw, basically whoever is online) to take a gander at your essay if I'm having difficulty figuring out what my consensus is. The one thing I ask for you in return, and this is my favorite practice interview question I like to ask is: Why should I choose you? Can be as long and short as you want. Feel free to be as arrogant or pompous as you want. Doesn't have to be proofread. You can even write it in internet language (as if I'm IM'ing you). I don't care. I just want to see how passionate you are about this. Sound good? Later in the year, you can ask me to help you with interviews if you'd like.

- hellanutella | currently full-up; I will post again whenever my queue is empty | Preference will be given to users with 50+ posts. Please PM me a short bio if interested. | Incoming medical student; app cycle results can be seen in my MDapps. I have published in a scientific journal and a literature textbook. Once wrote an essay on global climate change using only single-syllable words. Willing to edit for content and flow. While I love critiquing PSes, my true love is editing AMCAS activity descriptions so feel free to contact me with these as well!

-Avocado8 | Currently full, will post when my queue is empty. Incoming medical student | Experience editing admissions essays for grammar and content (tend to be borderline brutally honest). Happy to help with activity descriptions, etc as well!

-MoonJelly | Swamped. Will re-list my name when I can edit more | First-year medical student | I am a former English teacher and my personal statement was brought up at a number of interviews. I have a lot of experience editing admissions essays and tend to focus on content/style/flow/originality. I am most interested in editing essays for non-trads, but I'm happy to help anyone!

-TheRhymenocerous | Working through a bit of a backlog. I'll be back! I have a BA in English and was until not too long ago pursuing a writing career. I've worked as a journalist and a copy editor and have a sixth sense for grammatical errors. I'm applying this cycle and have already finished my personal statement, so I'm happy to help with others'! Would prefer to work with statements closer to completion so I can focus on writing and flow, rather than content.

-MPB |Full up. Will repost once it opens up | Incoming M1| B.A. in English and interdisciplinary social science major. LizzyM 71-3. Received 6 IIs and very positive feedback on my written materials during interviews. Will mostly read/edit for content/flow/style, and prefer to work with semi-complete drafts. Please provide brief overview of yourself as an applicant in PM.

-EatingCake |/Done for this cycle, GOOD LUCK ALL!/ Incoming M1| Minor in English and extensive writing tutoring experience. I'm happy to help with content, style, organization and grammar and can work with applicants in any stage of the writing process. Please PM me with a clear objective (eg: prewriting, editing for grammar, flow, continuity, etc.).

-ridethecliche| Done for the cycle |Incoming M1| I've worked in research and have a few pubs including a first author| I am a harsh editor and will refuse to comment on your PS if you haven't taken the effort to edit it yourself| Will give constructive criticism on theme, style, and organization otherwise| Don't send to me if you don't like your work being ripped apart to be made better. This is an important aspect of your app and you should put the work in! PM Me about yourself, your goals, your experiences, and target schools etc and what your ps is about in a short paragraph and we'll go from there. COMPLETED PS' ONLY! Not editing any more personal statements this cycle.

-Gsb653 | Full up for right now...I don't know why my name was removed from the available list on the update, but oh well! I'll put it back up when I get through with my que. I'm an incoming MD/ PhD student with a lot of research background. Was a collegiate athlete and took 2+ years off in between undergrad and med school. Willing to read anyone's PS! Also had very positive feedback from AdComs on my essays. Good luck!

-Hippogriff | Full |Incoming M1| I am best at editing for content, style, and organization. My advice style is constructive criticism. So I will be honest about your weakness, but will also highlight your strengths.

-turayza | Full | incoming M1, bioc/ph major. | will read for content and organization. I also really like critiquing ECs so I will take those too! Application cycle visible on MDapps.

-canadianinusa| Full temporarily | Incoming M1| Dual science-social science major with a grad degree. I received many scholarships in undergrad/grad school (school + national level). Lots of research experience (incl. publication). Prefer to work with semi-complete or complete drafts. I received interviews at 50% of the schools that I applied (as an international applicant). I'd be particularly helpful for nontrads, people with research experience, or social science majors but I'm happy to help out anyone who thinks I'd be useful.

-shinobiz11:incoming M1, content and grammar- I'll take a look at your PS, give some advice. Did well in writing classes, enjoy hearing peoples stories. Took me many drafts to get my PS to an acceptable level, I'll do my best to help you
PLEASE send me your PS in a Google doc so you can view the changes!

-tick_tock400. FULL. Incoming M1 who received interviews at over half the schools/programs applied to. Happy to edit for content mainly and a little grammar. If you send me your PS, it has to be complete, and you have to address Why Medicine & Future Ambitions in Medicine. Please email me a short bio with some main activities you've done before you send me your PS-- and only please send me your PS once I've told you I'm ready to receive it. Please only message me if you're willing to re-do/rewrite your entire PS and are open to heavy duty criticism, as I often tell writers to rewrite their entire things, so beware! Here is a thread of great tips compiled by some of the editors here! Best of luck! http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...on-personal-statements.1134113/#post-16450618

-On Eagle's Wings | | I will not be taking any more requests from anyone for the next few weeks. I will be taking a break from reading essays for now. | Incoming MS1 accepted to 2 CA schools. I am only willing to look at Work/Activities Descriptions. I have written many descriptions of my activities throughout college for scholarship applications. I have been awarded $10,000+ in individual scholarships for my work and activities. I will review Work/activities descriptions for content and just about anything else that I see. I will leave you my overall impression, please do not take blunt comments and critical review personally. If interested, please PM me and paste your work/activities description into your message. I am getting full here, so I will be giving priority to those who send me only a few paragraphs or one sample work/activity description to look at. I am happy to look at all 15 of your work/activity descriptions, but just know it will take longer for me to return it.

- PlaqueBuster| FULL| Please stop sending me requests to read. I have over 75 and I cannot read them now. Hope you understand

-vellez | incoming MD student, accepted more than 1 MD; interviews at several MS programs (vagueness is intentional) | Will read for anything, though I think I'd be best at reading for content | Never done this before; hopefully I can be helpful | Most familiar with NW schools/programs | PM beforehand with a 1 sentence bio. I'll acknowledge that I got your request and hopefully get back with the edit | Will probably only read 10 or so for now (I'm new to this!) | Good luck, guys! Sorry guys, I'm full at the moment. I'll read the ones that I have and read more once I get through them.

- 22031 Alum |I have a new class of interns to take care of so that means I'm done for the season. Sorry if I didn't get to your PS! |

 

[steelersfan1243]

I was looking to submit today, but I keep getting conflicting views on whether or not it was good. I am not looking for grammar edits, but by reading it does it seem to convey my message of why medicine? Any help would be appreciated, please and thank you.

 

[Holmwood]

I was looking to submit today, but I keep getting conflicting views on whether or not it was good. I am not looking for grammar edits, but by reading it does it seem to convey my message of why medicine? Any help would be appreciated, please and thank you.

I'll read it.

 

[typhoonegator]

I will not read it, but thank you for asking.

 

[Doctor Bob]

I will not read it, but thank you for asking.

Seconded

 

[ofthesaints]

You know it is your lucky day when a diehard Cowboys fan reads Steelersfan's PS.... Send it over

 

[xhilarationox]

happy to help!

 

[elfstruck]

I'm a sucker at writing , so it took me a couple of drafts to get my PS done today. I plan to summit my application next Tuesday, so would anyone please take a look at it? I also asked my advisor and my friends to look at it, but I also want to have some fresh eyes on it. Thanks!

 

[Sommando]

PM me and I'll take a look.

 

[starlite911]

If you want another look, I will as well! I'll primarily edit for grammar/flow of the narrative versus actual content, but I'm happy to offer my opinion on content as well.

 

[member000000000]

I will too if you want.

 

[AgentMay]

I can also help if you need an extra eye to look at it

 

[docwannabe1008]

pm me

 

[VirginiaResident]

If you want someone else to see it, PM me.

 

[Lawpy]

I will not read it, but thank you for asking.

Seconded

Honestly, this is the first time I saw super-docs in preallo. General residency forums got too boring?

 

[Mr. Beefy Lion]

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone would be willing to read my personal statement and critique it for anything they feel comfortable critiquing for (it needs all types of critiques). Through this process I haven't really had any help or feedback with the exception of one very kind SDN pre med. I'm trying to submit on Tuesday but if my PS isn't where it needs to be I will have to delay. If you are willing please inbox me with your email address and I will send it to you today. Thanks in advance.

Cheers,

Dickface

 

[docwannabe1008]

pm me

 

[NotAnotherPreMed]

Yeah sure, message me.

 

[Doctor Bob]

Honestly, this is the first time I saw super-docs in preallo. General residency forums got too boring?

Nah. Just coming down from Mt. Olympus to stretch my legs.

But seriously, the reason I don't help with personal statements on SDN is twofold.
#1) I read enough of them in real life
#2) I'm not sure it's really a good idea for people to solicit help from random internet strangers regarding something like a personal statement. The internet is full of useful resources and is full of backstabbing asshats who like to f*** around with other people just for the fun of it. And it can be really difficult to tell them apart. People should be getting help on their PS from friends, family, professors, etc... people you can hand a printed copy to and say "here, tell me what you think". For the most part the people who are in a position to really give you good insight (adcoms, PDs, etc) aren't going to read PS's online. So you're drawing from the remainder which is a mix of medstudents of various levels, pre-meds, and wanna-be-meds. If they're giving grammatical advice, then sure, but you should have fixed that already. If they're giving advice like "adcoms/PDs like to see this, and I wouldn't say this", well, they're talking out their butt. So what good is advice like that?

 

[venus666]

This is great. Thank you for sharing. I am doing the research of Antibody and a friend of mine give me a website. I really appreciate that.

 

[AgentMay]

I can help. I have too much free time on my hand

 

[123abcforme]

PM me, I'll be more than glad to give you feedback.

 

[Almighty Saguaro]

Hey fellas!

I've tried contacting the people on the most current reader list but haven't gotten a response (I wasn't able to PM @benmarker for some reason). I would really appreciate if someone with experience could give my PS a read!
If anyone is available, please PM me at your earliest convenience

 

[TealTurquoise]

Hi Folks,

I have had the same experience as mentioned above. If anyone could give my PS a read I would really appreciate it! Thank you! You can PM me as well.

 

[RimaP]

Anyone like to read mine

 

[DannySCR]

Hi Everyone, I've gotten in contact with those on the reader list and haven't gotten any response lately ( shoutout to alum for helping me early on)

Is there anyone who can help me with my PS? It's almost done and I just need maybe a few extra modifications/grammar corrections to finally finish everything.

Thanks in advance everyone!

 

[NSUFutureDoc19]

Hello, I am new on here so I don't know much about the forum but I would be happy to help with your personal statement.

 

[docwannabe1008]

pm me

 

[ex_animo_92]

PM me, I'm another applicant but I'd be happy to help

 

[gannicus89]

I can address grammar issues and comment on content.

 

[passacaglia918]

I can help take a look.

 

[passacaglia918]

I can help take a look.

 

[passacaglia918]

I can help take a look.

 

[belle88]

If you still need more feedback, pm me.