Prior withdrawal from grad school

[monkeyfeet]

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So, more than 10 years ago, I withdrew from an MS program 3/4 of the way through. I left in good standing (3.8 GPA, good progress on research) and remained on good terms with my advisor. My entire decision to apply to grad school was rather hasty; after getting medically DQed from Air Force OTS shortly before graduating, I freaked out, took the GREs, and applied to schools in the span of about 4 days. After my first year I was pretty sure grad school had been a mistake, and after another semester I left to take a job in an unrelated field. I expect that adcoms will look at the withdrawal unfavorably, so I'm wondering if I should just openly address it in my PS? Is it better to avoid drawing attention to something so negative? My motives for applying to med school are very different... I've been a medic for 6+ years with something like 15 to 20,000 hours of clinical experience and have spent the last 3 years on a DIY post-bac to get to this point, so this definitely isn't a spur-of-the-moment decision like grad school was. Would it be a good idea to clearly highlight this difference in my PS? Thanks.

 

[October88]

So, more than 10 years ago, I withdrew from an MS program 3/4 of the way through. I left in good standing (3.8 GPA, good progress on research) and remained on good terms with my advisor. My entire decision to apply to grad school was rather hasty; after getting medically DQed from Air Force OTS shortly before graduating, I freaked out, took the GREs, and applied to schools in the span of about 4 days. After my first year I was pretty sure grad school had been a mistake, and after another semester I left to take a job in an unrelated field. I expect that adcoms will look at the withdrawal unfavorably, so I'm wondering if I should just openly address it in my PS? Is it better to avoid drawing attention to something so negative? My motives for applying to med school are very different... I've been a medic for 6+ years with something like 15 to 20,000 hours of clinical experience and have spent the last 3 years on a DIY post-bac to get to this point, so this definitely isn't a spur-of-the-moment decision like grad school was. Would it be a good idea to clearly highlight this difference in my PS? Thanks.

I don't see it as a huge deal as long as you show that you are more committed to medicine and tour decision to enter medical school. I am usually against drawing attention to negative things in a PS but I would address this briefly. Don't go into huge detail and focus the majority on your experiences that have made you want to be a physician.

 

[PanRoasted]

It definitely sounds very compelling to me, but probably not a great topic for your PS. Talk about your positive experiences in your time as a medic and how they have given you motivation to become a physician, rather than dwell on a past incident that ended poorly. I'm sure you'll get somewhere to mention it on a secondary.

edit: ninja

 

[monkeyfeet]

Thank you both for the input! I gave it 2 lines in the PS but kept the focus elsewhere. Appreciate the advice.