personal statement

[elz787]

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how does one start a personal statement? and how long did it take you guys?

 

[budge311]

I'm in the same boat. I know I need to start writing mine but I don't know how to start.

😕

 

[dental poopie]

How about starting by telling who you are and WHY dentistry. Give your story.

Sorry, but, if you cant think why then maybe this isnt for you. I sat down and started writing and in an hour had over 1500 words.






A girl at my school told me last week that she choose dentistry because its easier than medical and she will make the same money.

I hope she puts that in her personal statement because I personally dont think someone like that deserves a spot in dental school. It made me kinda mad. Should it have?

 

[bosox_9]

Here's what I did:

I made a list of all the things i wanted to include in the personal statement, which is obviously specific to each person (this was the easy part). Then, before writing anything, I thought about the "angle" I wanted to take. Did I want to be funny, tell a story, describe a significant life experience, be ridiculously random in the hopes of standing out, etc. - you get the idea. So I chose the angle that best allowed me to include all (or most of) the things I had listed at the same time not writing a list in prose form - because that's wicked boring.

Anyway, I spent about 2 weeks from start to finish, and most of that was revision and tinkering. I think you'll find that if - and hopefully when - you choose the style for your personal statement, the process will not be as bad as you may expect.

Hope that helps.

 

[fruity_trident]

i dreaded writing my personal statement...cuz i suck @ writing..

but once i started...i couldn't stop...and wrote WAAY too much...the trouble is distilling your ramblings into 1 coherent, succinct piece.


i spent a lot of time on it...that's why i applied "later" than i should've.
i got 5 diff people to read over it, 1 who is a dentist.

 

[budge311]

Sorry, but, if you cant think why then maybe this isnt for you. I sat down and started writing and in an hour had over 1500 words.

Its not that I don't know why, it's just I didn't know what I was supposed to write about.



A girl at my school told me last week that she choose dentistry because its easier than medical and she will make the same money.

I hope she puts that in her personal statement because I personally dont think someone like that deserves a spot in dental school. It made me kinda mad. Should it have?

Its not that I don't know why, it's just I didn't know what I was supposed to write about.

I think you should be mad. It makes me mad. 😡 It makes me more mad that there are people like that out there that are dental student and dentist who only care about makeing money and not about doing quality work.

All these people care about is drill, fill and bill.

I wouldn't want them working on me.

 

[Sprgrover]

Since there is no template or set requirements with which you can frame your essay writing it can be a bit daunting. If you are planning on being one of the early birds then you still have at least four to eight weeks to get it done. I have suggested to some individuals seeking help with their statements that a good starting place is with an inventory of their skills, personal qualities, goals, and aspirations. A good personal statement should not read like a shopping list, but cataloguing such items is a good way for you, the author, to determine what you would like to discuss and mention in your statement. Despite the lack of guidelines one should keep in mind the audience for the essay and how it functions in the application process: it is the one document that allows your personal voice and subjectivity to shine through all of the numbers and statistics tagged to your name. Besides all of this you also need to craft a response that 'objectively' promotes yourself while not intentionally coming across as arrogant or defensive. All of this takes time to develop and that is why I encourage you to write - you don't have to start at the introduction at all. Have several people look over your essay and encourage/welcome good, strong criticism (having someone merely say "it's good" is of no benefit to you as there is always room for change and improvement within any essay) and expect your essay to undergo many transformations before you arrive at an acceptable version.

 

[budge311]

Since there is no template or set requirements with which you can frame your essay writing it can be a bit daunting. If you are planning on being one of the early birds then you still have at least four to eight weeks to get it done. I have suggested to some individuals seeking help with their statements that a good starting place is with an inventory of their skills, personal qualities, goals, and aspirations. A good personal statement should not read like a shopping list, but cataloguing such items is a good way for you, the author, to determine what you would like to discuss and mention in your statement. Despite the lack of guidelines one should keep in mind the audience for the essay and how it functions in the application process: it is the one document that allows your personal voice and subjectivity to shine through all of the numbers and statistics tagged to your name. Besides all of this you also need to craft a response that 'objectively' promotes yourself while not intentionally coming across as arrogant or defensive. All of this takes time to develop and that is why I encourage you to write - you don't have to start at the introduction at all. Have several people look over your essay and encourage/welcome good, strong criticism (having someone merely say "it's good" is of no benefit to you as there is always room for change and improvement within any essay) and expect your essay to undergo many transformations before you arrive at an acceptable version.

That really helps. Thanks.

 

[dental poopie]

Its not that I don't know why, it's just I didn't know what I was supposed to write about.

I think you should be mad. It makes me mad. 😡 It makes me more mad that there are people like that out there that are dental student and dentist who only care about makeing money and not about doing quality work.

All these people care about is drill, fill and bill.

I wouldn't want them working on me.

Yea, well keep pluggin man. It will come to you!

I suggest that you take a long hike in the woods and sit and meditate (if you know what I mean)

It will all make sense then my son.

 

[dental poopie]

Since there is no template or set requirements with which you can frame your essay writing it can be a bit daunting. If you are planning on being one of the early birds then you still have at least four to eight weeks to get it done. I have suggested to some individuals seeking help with their statements that a good starting place is with an inventory of their skills, personal qualities, goals, and aspirations. A good personal statement should not read like a shopping list, but cataloguing such items is a good way for you, the author, to determine what you would like to discuss and mention in your statement. Despite the lack of guidelines one should keep in mind the audience for the essay and how it functions in the application process: it is the one document that allows your personal voice and subjectivity to shine through all of the numbers and statistics tagged to your name. Besides all of this you also need to craft a response that 'objectively' promotes yourself while not intentionally coming across as arrogant or defensive. All of this takes time to develop and that is why I encourage you to write - you don't have to start at the introduction at all. Have several people look over your essay and encourage/welcome good, strong criticism (having someone merely say "it's good" is of no benefit to you as there is always room for change and improvement within any essay) and expect your essay to undergo many transformations before you arrive at an acceptable version.

First quality post this dude has done.

good job. 😀

 

[mochafreak]

Well, I've started writing mine and I'm still awake tonight because I accidently realized that it needs to be done in almost exactly a month from now. No sleep for me. I'm a pretty good writer, but I know mine has to be perfect and I it's not even close yet. It's on the 5th or 6th revision, and with each one it seems to get further away...last night I had a nightmare that I went to an interview with a baseball cap on, my shirt untucked, no coat...boy this is really gonna be fun.

 

[Tooth Fixer]

Well, I've started writing mine and I'm still awake tonight because I accidently realized that it needs to be done in almost exactly a month from now. No sleep for me. I'm a pretty good writer, but I know mine has to be perfect and I it's not even close yet. It's on the 5th or 6th revision, and with each one it seems to get further away...last night I had a nightmare that I went to an interview with a baseball cap on, my shirt untucked, no coat...boy this is really gonna be fun.

Holy crap over a peice of paper. You need to chill bro 😎

 

[mochafreak]

I do need to chill...however, I have my reasons. I'm still a member of the under 3.0 club, my science gpa when I apply will be 2.9. I've spent the last two years of my life (I'm 31) getting A's but I still feel like I have to be perfect on the essay, DAT, and interview. So, yeah all this over a piece of paper. I bet if you got your DAT scores and saw 14's you could freak out over a piece of paper too.

I'm a 'sis' btw...I know the avatar is a little confusing (I'm going through an embarassing mid-life crush on Kiefer, thanks to 24) 😎

 

[elz787]

Since there is no template or set requirements with which you can frame your essay writing it can be a bit daunting. If you are planning on being one of the early birds then you still have at least four to eight weeks to get it done. I have suggested to some individuals seeking help with their statements that a good starting place is with an inventory of their skills, personal qualities, goals, and aspirations. A good personal statement should not read like a shopping list, but cataloguing such items is a good way for you, the author, to determine what you would like to discuss and mention in your statement. Despite the lack of guidelines one should keep in mind the audience for the essay and how it functions in the application process: it is the one document that allows your personal voice and subjectivity to shine through all of the numbers and statistics tagged to your name. Besides all of this you also need to craft a response that 'objectively' promotes yourself while not intentionally coming across as arrogant or defensive. All of this takes time to develop and that is why I encourage you to write - you don't have to start at the introduction at all. Have several people look over your essay and encourage/welcome good, strong criticism (having someone merely say "it's good" is of no benefit to you as there is always room for change and improvement within any essay) and expect your essay to undergo many transformations before you arrive at an acceptable version.

Thanks that helps a lot. I've been keeping a little notebook with things i would liek to talk about, but my main problem is weaving them all into the same essay, guess i'll just have to work on it, *sigh*.

 

[nhangan]

The main thing is to organize your ideas. Begin with something that catches the eye of the reader, that makes you stand out. I suggest when you first begin writing your essay, list down what you want in each paragraph and make sure you have a sentence that links each paragraph. good luck!