Quoted: History of anorexia nervosa and medical school application

[Doodledog]

A question about med school application - I will address this later as well.

I began a struggle with anorexia at age 10, and although I grudgingly engaged in treatment as an adolescent, it was not until I was an adult, on my own, that I realized that I had to take charge of my health if I wanted to live a fulfilling life.

Accordingly, after 1 month into college, I withdrew from school, got treatment, and returned to schooling during the next semester. This essentially delayed my education, but I took enough classes to graduate as originally planned, earned a 4.0 and was inducted into phi beta kappa, and really proved to everyone that I was a different person after my freshman year.

I took 3 years off before applying to medical school to do research and writing, and now I have to explain the big 'W' on my transcript -secondary essays. I left illness out of my primary essay because I am more than my illness; but I know that a professor or two mentioned how I overcame the adverse circumstances associated with illness and triumphed... So it's out there. Nevertheless, my last 3 year's worth of recommendation letters- 2 from physicians with whom I work- make no mention of it. It has simply not played a role in our relationship.

How do I explain?

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[Doodledog]

I think you really have two choices here. The first would be to not bring it up at all. There is no need to explain the LOA since you graduated on time. Rather, if someone asks (and not everyone will), you can simply indicate that you had some health issues that are resolved and leave it at that. Remember that many interviewers will not have read your letters anyway.

Bottom line is that no one has a right to hear about your AN and any details of your medical history if you don't want to tell them. Not discussing the history will NOT keep you from getting an interview or admission if all other aspects of your application are strong. Just state that any medical issues are fully resolved.

Now, the alternative approach is to BRIEFLY mention your AN in secondaries or in response to questions asked in an interview about an LOA. In this case, simply indicate you had the condition, received treatment and are recovered. Again you are under no obligation to discuss your medical history in any detail at all.

Ultimately, I don't think the leave of absence will be a substantial aspect of how your application is reviewed. Good luck! There are lots of folks with a history of eating disorders who are in medical school or who have graduated from med school.