Should I talk about life and health problems in my application?

[TexasHopeful]

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Things like difficult life circumstances that may have affected my performance. My overall numbers aren't terrible, 3.7 GPA and 33 MCAT, but my second year was absolute hell for me and it shows in my transcripts. I don't know whether or not I should even call attention to it or if it would even be appropriate to reference it in the application. Should I just leave it out and hope to get an interview still, and maybe talk about it there? Is it something that belongs in a personal statement? I don't want my application to come off like I'm making excuses at all because I'm proud of those grades as horrible as they seem. Still, I wonder...

I can go into more detail if I have to, but thanks in advance for your input!

 

[petlee1]

your numbers are good enough so I wouldn't..they might think you are trying to get brownie points to put yourself over the top

 

[TexasMDtobe]

I agree with petlee1, your numbers stand for themselves. You seem to be in excellent shape for the Texas admission cycle, provided your ECs are in order.

If, however, you are still deadset on including it, perhaps you could mention it in passing in your personal statement, provided it strengthens your narrative and makes you seem a stronger individual. Definitely don't overplay it though, it may backfire. Best of luck to you. . .

 

[dw2158]

Things like difficult life circumstances that may have affected my performance. My overall numbers aren't terrible, 3.7 GPA and 33 MCAT, but my second year was absolute hell for me and it shows in my transcripts. I don't know whether or not I should even call attention to it or if it would even be appropriate to reference it in the application. Should I just leave it out and hope to get an interview still, and maybe talk about it there? Is it something that belongs in a personal statement? I don't want my application to come off like I'm making excuses at all because I'm proud of those grades as horrible as they seem. Still, I wonder...

I can go into more detail if I have to, but thanks in advance for your input!

re: the bolded-- clearly that's not true, or you're just fishing for compliments 😎

look, i also had some really bad stuff going on during my junior year. it dropped my GPA a bit. even though i felt really badly about it, and i knew the grades i got during that isolated period of time did not reflect my abilities, i didn't say anything about it on my application. since it was just two semesters though, a few interviewers spotted it and asked me what happened directly.

your situation sounds similar in that the lower grades came during a single, isolated period of time. i would recommend that you not say anything about it on your application. it will come off as making excuses. and FWIW, i don't think a lower MCAT score cannot be blamed on "difficult life circumstances." a 33 is a good score, but if you hoped to do better, well... that's on you.

the only exception i can think of is if whatever your explanation would be is something that you'd write about in your PS anyway-- something that influenced your decision to become a doctor. and even then, i wouldn't directly tie it to your GPA. lay out the facts and the timeline and the adcom can piece it together themselves. but honestly, i wouldn't write about it at all if you have anything else to say instead.

and here's the compliment you were fishing for-- your numbers are solid and you'll have no trouble getting in somewhere(s).

 

[DoctorDude]

I have a question that's kinda related to OP's but a little different... what if you have dealt with a health problem (chronic illness) since you were a little kid and it really influenced your decision to go into medicine? Is it still inappropriate to mention it? I don't want to use it as an excuse but I feel like it's a huge part of my story. It did not affect my performance at all (I'm fortunate to have consistently high stats) but it's my main motivation for going into medicine... although I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me.... what do you guys think?? It's a cornerstone of my PS.

Thanks

 

[dw2158]

I have a question that's kinda related to OP's but a little different... what if you have dealt with a health problem (chronic illness) since you were a little kid and it really influenced your decision to go into medicine? Is it still inappropriate to mention it? I don't want to use it as an excuse but I feel like it's a huge part of my story. It did not affect my performance at all (I'm fortunate to have consistently high stats) but it's my main motivation for going into medicine... although I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me.... what do you guys think?? It's a cornerstone of my PS.

Thanks

that's different. as long as you're not using it to get sympathy or make excuses for poor performance, i think those stories, if you're able to tell them well, can be really interesting and give a lot of insight into your personality and motivations.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

I have a question that's kinda related to OP's but a little different... what if you have dealt with a health problem (chronic illness) since you were a little kid and it really influenced your decision to go into medicine? Is it still inappropriate to mention it? I don't want to use it as an excuse but I feel like it's a huge part of my story. It did not affect my performance at all (I'm fortunate to have consistently high stats) but it's my main motivation for going into medicine... although I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me.... what do you guys think?? It's a cornerstone of my PS.

Thanks

Including a motivation for medicine is practically a given for all personal statements. Any topic is ok for a personal statement as long as the topic isn’t overly controversial, keeps the reader interested, and spins everything in a positive light to support the applicant. If you can do these three things, you'll probably be ok.

Obviously follow other hints here regarding writing a personal statement, but these are the big points to hit.

-admissions committee interviewer / senior medical student

 

[TexasHopeful]

snip.

haha, I guess it's true I'm not proud of them, but I'm not ashamed of them either. Also, I was two weeks out of heart surgery when I took my mcat. I suppose this is half compliment-fishing, so thank you, but I also hope I just don't have to talk about ANY of this at my interviews. 🙂

 

[dw2158]

haha, I guess it's true I'm not proud of them, but I'm not ashamed of them either. Also, I was two weeks out of heart surgery when I took my mcat. I suppose this is half compliment-fishing, so thank you, but I also hope I just don't have to talk about ANY of this at my interviews. 🙂

for your sake, i hope so too... but just in case, i'd recommend practicing talking about it. to yourself, to the mirror, to a friend who won't care, whatever. i also had medical problems-- but it was something that is way more difficult to discuss with an interviewer than heart surgery. so i practiced exactly what i would say and how i would respond to intrusive questions. i know lots of people suggest not sounding too rehearsed at your interviews, and i usually agree, but in this particular circumstance i felt much better and calmer knowing how i'd respond ahead of time.

and don't feel bad if you have to say "i'd rather not discuss that" or something similar. at my first interview i felt that i gave too much info and was not accepted (though i withdrew before i got a decision, so maybe i would have been, and who knows if my openness would have been the reason for a rejection anyway). at all the other schools where i was asked about it (and responded more vaguely), i was accepted following the interview. probably coincidence, but i certainly felt better about the later interviews.

 

[ThaliaNox]

Some schools have closed interviews, where they don't have your statistics, but they do have your personal statement and extra-curriculars. Schools like this would get the idea you're a weak numbers candidate if you put this in your personal statement. With your decent numbers, it just doesn't seem worth it.