Personal Statement: Why Doctor? AND/OR Why Qualified?

[AllDay24]

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Hey guys,

I just got my personal statement critiqued by my pre-health advisor, who a very thorough review of my essay. Before I incorporate his suggestions, though I wanted to ask:

Should the personal statement include thoughts on why I'm qualified to be a doctor based on my experiences, or just why I want to be a doctor? My current draft only really answers "Why Doctor?" based on my experiences, while only implying that I'm qualified because of these experiences.

So do you think I should add examples that show I'm qualified, such as how volunteering as an EMT helped me _____ or how volunteering at a hospital taught me ________?

Thanks in advance. Looked through the search results, but found nothing specific enough.

 

[LizzyM]

Attending medical school and passing the Boards qualifies you to be a doctor. There is nothing you've done to date that qualifies you for that.

Proving you have what it takes to be successful in learning the material taught in medical school is usually accomplished by presenting your academic credentials (transcripts and MCAT scores). The Personal Statement should be about why on earth you want to be a doctor and how you know this to be true. In other words, what do you know about what doctors do and why does this career appeal to you? Some schools might ask you about the characteristics of a good doctor and how you have demonstrated these characteristics (empathy, honesty, etc).

 

[Warren Peace]

I would say that your personal statement should explain why you want to go into medicine. What are your motivations and what brought that about?

I wouldn't go into why you are qualified because that's the job of the admissions committee to decide. And, honestly, how good of an assessment can you of your ability to be a doctor as a volunteer?

 

[VectreSpectre]

Attending medical school and passing the Boards qualifies you to be a doctor. There is nothing you've done to date that qualifies you for that.

Proving you have what it takes to be successful in learning the material taught in medical school is usually accomplished by presenting your academic credentials (transcripts and MCAT scores). The Personal Statement should be about why on earth you want to be a doctor and how you know this to be true. In other words, what do you know about what doctors do and why does this career appeal to you? Some schools might ask you about the characteristics of a good doctor and how you have demonstrated these characteristics (empathy, honesty, etc).

Bingo. Brilliantly put.

 

[Dr. Ducky]

Attending medical school and passing the Boards qualifies you to be a doctor. There is nothing you've done to date that qualifies you for that.

Proving you have what it takes to be successful in learning the material taught in medical school is usually accomplished by presenting your academic credentials (transcripts and MCAT scores). The Personal Statement should be about why on earth you want to be a doctor and how you know this to be true. In other words, what do you know about what doctors do and why does this career appeal to you? Some schools might ask you about the characteristics of a good doctor and how you have demonstrated these characteristics (empathy, honesty, etc).

+100 👍