Random Observation

[Columbia22]

Aren't you guys scared to post your personal statements online?? I see a lot of people asking to have their statements read by SDNers. I dont get it. If you ask me, its a bit risky. Being all premed folk, we are by nature competitive. Anyone can easily rip off someone elses personal statement. Im sure there are people out there who havent even begun their personal statement, or who are having great trouble writing one. It would be a simple endeavor just to take someone elses personal statement and sell it, without causing a huge fuss about it. Also, who are medical schools gonna believe is the rightful owner of the essay if it shows up twice, or more. How are you gonna prove its yours and not that other Joe's? Does it then simply come down to who submits their personal statement first? Sorry, i was just bored and started coming up with these thoughts out of nowhere. But if you ask me, I would rather have the essay read by my advisor or a close friend or something.

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[mikeyboy]

Wow you're paranoid. First of all, if someone was gonna steal my personal statement, I think it would be easy to prove it's mine; not many people have done EXACTLY the same things as me. I would also have a record of sending it to them through the PM which is on the SDN servers, if it came down to it. If someone wants to steal my PS so much that they hack servers to cover it up well then I'll take it as a compliment that they like my writing so much.

 

[Pinkertinkle]

Haha, if someone ripped off my pathetic PS drafts, they'd be doing themselves a great disfavor. Also, PS's usually reflect your EC's and solid proveable life experiences, it would be very difficult just to steal someone else's.

 

[docjolly]

Columbia22,

You make an interesting point. Unfortunately, personal statements are, by nature, just that...personal! In the PS, everyone include specific life and academic experiences that aren't usually so general that someone else can 'steal' them..

I'm also certain that when PSs are brought up in med. school interviews, adcom members will know whether or not the PS before them belongs to YOU..

Granted, there are some individuals out there who would try to take someone else's ideas and claim them as their own..but I think that they are among a very small minority..Give some of your fellow SDNers a bit of slack..hmm?

 

[mmz6]

plus most of the people that do the reading are people from the previous cycle, who are done with the process anyway... but yea.. sending it to people still in the 2005 cycle would be a little risky in the sense that they can gleam ideas/central themes from yours- but oh well. plus, having 2005 people read over 2004 would be less useful in my opinion since us 2004 people have gone through the process and have a little bit better idea of what works. good luck!

mmz6

 

[juber22]

Plus, people generally have access to more cohesive, "model" examples of personal statements through PS workshops, PS self-help books, free PS how-to's online, in university career centers, in university pre-med files, etc, etc, etc. No need to steal a SDN rough draft...