Personal Statement. Does everyone have a "special story"?

[DentalStudent8991]

Hey everyone,

Im currently working on my personal statement along with studying for the DAT. As some of you might know from my previous posts I am a reapplicant and thus I decided to rewrite my entire personal statement.

One question I had for some of you that got in was, how did you make your personal statement or story unique?

I find that all the examples I see online, it seems that some students have some sort of traumatic tooth injury or eye opening volunteering moment that makes for a great story and reason for going into dentistry. But what if you dont have that? Although I do plan on addressing my personal journey with dentistry, alongside a passion for healthcare, science, and research. Are these too generic? I dont want to simply repeat whats on my resume either.

Greatly appreciate some advice!

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[Chicago_predental]

I actually didnt write about any personal trauma or "aha" moment in my statement! I started out talking about a pre-dental weekend I did and how it made me really interested in dentistry. Then I spoke about shadowing/DA and then tied it with how the skills I have gained through various experiences both paid/volunteering have shaped my long term goals as a dentist and what I will bring to dental schools. Good luck!

 

[frenzysword]

I pretty much just shared my journey of dentistry, where I started and up to now

 

[DentalStudent8991]

Thank you guys for the responses. Its nice to know that not everyone has had an "aha" moment, although that is what it seems like after reading some of the examples I see online.

I guess what Im worried more so is if my PS would be considered "generic". My story begins with me explaining how the dental field (specially my treatment with an orthodontist) rebuild my confidence after years of bad teeth in my childhood. I then segue into how my shadowing experiences in undergrad solidified my desire to pursue dentistry as I observed dentists interact with their patients and establish relationships through trust and compassion, much like I had experienced when I was a patient.

Somewhere in here I also plan on addressing conversations ive had with dentists about the disparity in access to oral care in rural communities, which is the area I went to school in.

Lastly I talk about my extensive work in research and how it helped me develop crticial thinking skills but more importantly hand skills for a profession like dentistry, thus a desire to continue research efforts in dental school etc.


Im not sure if im being overly critical but to me I feel like a admissions member would call this generic? But this is actually my story so im not sure what else to say? If the rest of my app is strong, then would this really matter much?

 

[doc toothache]

About 99.99 percent of the pss that come up for review have the feel of having come from the same template . An acceptance may be granted in spite of rather because of the arrangement of 4500 characters.

 

[MLC45]

My personal statement hardly talked about dentistry. Instead I discussed how things in my childhood made me the person I am today. There were no crazy "aha" moments in there either, but the way I grew up, created the person I currently am.

 

[Blueshirts]

Ortho treatment is almost always talked about during the essays because most students main personal experience with procedures is only ortho treatment. The goal of the essay is to say something personal about yourself that might reveal your character or how you think..try to stay away from saying ortho inspired you, adcoms probably read too many of those, maybe someone else can chime in

 

[Chicago_predental]

Ortho treatment is almost always talked about during the essays because most students main personal experience with procedures is only ortho treatment. The goal of the essay is to say something personal about yourself that might reveal your character or how you think..try to stay away from saying ortho inspired you, adcoms probably read too many of those, maybe someone else can chime in

totally agree! Many personal statements tend to have an opener about ortho. I had a very difficult time trying to figure out what to start my statement with, and i guarantee if you dig a bit deeper youll find something unique to you that would make a great story

 

[MG14]

Thank you guys for the responses. Its nice to know that not everyone has had an "aha" moment, although that is what it seems like after reading some of the examples I see online.

I guess what Im worried more so is if my PS would be considered "generic". My story begins with me explaining how the dental field (specially my treatment with an orthodontist) rebuild my confidence after years of bad teeth in my childhood. I then segue into how my shadowing experiences in undergrad solidified my desire to pursue dentistry as I observed dentists interact with their patients and establish relationships through trust and compassion, much like I had experienced when I was a patient.

Somewhere in here I also plan on addressing conversations ive had with dentists about the disparity in access to oral care in rural communities, which is the area I went to school in.

Lastly I talk about my extensive work in research and how it helped me develop crticial thinking skills but more importantly hand skills for a profession like dentistry, thus a desire to continue research efforts in dental school etc.


Im not sure if im being overly critical but to me I feel like a admissions member would call this generic? But this is actually my story so im not sure what else to say? If the rest of my app is strong, then would this really matter much?

No “aha” moments for me. Just multiple experiences that molded my desire for dentistry. I would say I was pretty ‘generic’ at first and had to be creative in how I portrayed my story and pursuit in dentistry.

For example, I realized if I was pretty generic I had to create/connect some experiences. I had a friend who got into an automobile accident and was paralyzed from the waist down with partial paralysis in his upper limbs. He was told he’d never walk again. The guy was very ambitious and extremely positive and set a goal to complete a marathon within 10 years of his accident. Well the 10 year mark was approaching and while he had made progress in his mobility, he still couldn’t really walk, let alone run. A few friends and I had a neat idea where we got together, trained (which I am no runner btw) and ran a marathon pushing him through the course and across the finish line.

Now, what did that have to do with dentistry? Well, I was able to help someone accomplish a goal and assisted them in something they couldn’t necessarily do them self. I liked that feeling or that “high.” I felt from my shadowing experiences dentistry brought a lot of those same gratifications.

This experience was neat for a couple reasons. 1) it was overall extremely special and life changing and 2) it showed that I was a human with feelings and real experiences with a natural desire to help.

My biggest advice when it comes to personal statements, 1) be genuine and 2) if you don’t ‘think’ you have a unique or profound story, create one (a real one of course). Whether it’s a service project, starting a business that serves others, or a hobby that will allow you to connect and help people. Adcoms want to see your character and you as a human. That speaks more volumes about how you’ll be as a dentist than the usual “teeth are my passion, and my dentist is Superman’s brother who changed my life by healing a toothache.”