personal statement questions?

[amyl]

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At the beginning of third year I was quite certain I wanted to do pain management but was undecided about via PMR vs anes. I have research experience with traumatic brain injury patients and I am a DO so PMR seemed like a natural fit. However, during 3rd year I discovered that I really liked cardiology and the ICU -- I remembered that I love pharm. I loved the immediateness of fixing HTN urgencies and coping with patients that were on the edge...crying holding the hand of my first patient that died and getting to send someone home that we thought would never make it -- felt like I was part of really doing something, which is a rare feeling as a third year med student. Then I spent a month in a geriatric rehab unit and got some PMR exposure and decided it was definately not for me. This all lead me to the conclusion that anes is the way for me. I still like pain management a lot but a fellowship in CV or CCM is a close second and I feel like I won't be able to really choose until I do more of each.
So here's my question -- is it bad to put all that stuff about fellowships in your ps -- I mean will they be like "whoa girl" get the residency first? or is the truth never wrong?
also, one of the reasons why I like pain managment is -- I practice it on my horses. my vet has taught me to do some intra-articular injections, some mesotherapy and some injections into one of my horses interspinous ligaments (he has some trauma there that causes pain and calcifications). so my question is -- should I put this in my ps or discuss it during interviews? I don't want to come off as a crack-pot practicing vet med without a liscense. thanks for any advice y'all can offer, I am super nervous about my ps.

 

[jennyboo]

The examples you describe are all good fodder for a personal statement, and, presented appropriately, I don't think it would be too presumptuous. I would suggest just going ahead with your ideas, writing the statement and then seeing what needs fixing.

 

[Surfer]

I've been privy to lots of recruitment committee discussions, and I think you should change course a little. Here's why:

Saying you want to do pain management going into residency is like saying you want to be an orthopaedic surgeon going into med school. The vast majority of people think it's way cool, until they actually see everything it entails. My personal opinion, coming from somebody who has quite a lot of experience writing (not from a science background) would be to leave all that fellowship stuff off. You can talk about it in general anesthesia terms, because all anesthesiologists do pain management, etc, but don't talk about fellowships in your residency application.

Your personal statement should be focused, interesting, and honest. Write it well. Get lots of people to read it and give their honest first impressions, because your programs and interviewers are going to spend about 1 minute reading it and thinking about it. Don't write an essay that requires thought or contemplation, because you'll never get it.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[VolatileAgent]

just remember: it's called a "personal" statement for a reason. the more people read it and critique, i find, the more watered down it gets. the less "you" shows up. just use this as an opportunity to show who you are beyond your grades, class standing, and board scores. most importantly, ask to see your recommendation letters before they are sent out. what's said in those is far more important than your personal statement. trust me, i've read a lot of application packets in my time. 🙂

 

[Gern Blansten]

just remember: it's called a "personal" statement for a reason. the more people read it and critique, i find, the more watered down it gets. the less "you" shows up. just use this as an opportunity to show who you are beyond your grades, class standing, and board scores. most importantly, ask to see your recommendation letters before they are sent out. what's said in those is far more important than your personal statement. trust me, i've read a lot of application packets in my time. 🙂

You have to be careful on the issue of seeing your letters before they go out. If you request to see them, then the letter could contain a statement to the effect that the "student did not waive his/her right to view the letter." If your letter contains this statement, you might as well toss it out. It is a huge red flag that will cause people to wonder what you are hiding, whether it is justified or not. It is much better to find someone you trust and ask them point blank, "do you feel that you know me well enough to write me a very strong letter of recommendation?" If they hesitate, they are not a good choice. If they state that they would be pleased to, they are probably a good choice.

On a related note, if the letter writer just happens to leave the letter laying around for you to view, that is not the same as you "not waiving your right" to view the letter and this would not negatively impact you. It would be your little secret with your letter writer that you had actually previewed the letter.

I would be VERY CAUTIOUS about ASKING to see the letter before it was submitted. It could turn out very bad. Of course, there are those who will say that NOT seeing your letter could be very bad as well. That is true. But this is where you need to use your best judgment in carefully selecting who you ask. An advisor or a resident who knows the faculty member may be able to give some good advice on who would be best to ask as well.

Best of luck!

 

[VolatileAgent]

You have to be careful on the issue of seeing your letters before they go out. If you request to see them, then the letter could contain a statement to the effect that the "student did not waive his/her right to view the letter." If your letter contains this statement, you might as well toss it out. It is a huge red flag that will cause people to wonder what you are hiding, whether it is justified or not. It is much better to find someone you trust and ask them point blank, "do you feel that you know me well enough to write me a very strong letter of recommendation?" If they hesitate, they are not a good choice. If they state that they would be pleased to, they are probably a good choice.

On a related note, if the letter writer just happens to leave the letter laying around for you to view, that is not the same as you "not waiving your right" to view the letter and this would not negatively impact you. It would be your little secret with your letter writer that you had actually previewed the letter.

I would be VERY CAUTIOUS about ASKING to see the letter before it was submitted. It could turn out very bad. Of course, there are those who will say that NOT seeing your letter could be very bad as well. That is true. But this is where you need to use your best judgment in carefully selecting who you ask. An advisor or a resident who knows the faculty member may be able to give some good advice on who would be best to ask as well.

Best of luck!

good advice. but, i will tell you from firsthand experience (and this is just me as a former senior resident who had the chance to sit on votes on candidates at one program), none of us cared if you'd "waived" your right to see your letter before it went out.

and, fwiw, the dean's letter was still probably the most important of the lot.

 

[Gern Blansten]

none of us cared if you'd "waived" your right to see your letter before it went out.

I would say you are missing out on a big potential warning sign. The ones who DO NOT waive their rights are VERY rare and stick out like a sore thumb. During your one session of sitting in on the process, how many did you see that had NOT waived their right? Did your program check into why? I have only seen one in 9 years and the red flag was raised appropriately. We didn't take this otherwise great candidate (on paper). I checked back with the program that did a few years later. They regretted it. Really regretted it.

On second thought, everyone who feels they need to check their letters beforehand should NOT waive their right to see their letters. Having this extra tool makes it easier to sort applications.