the contents of your personal statement...

[dreaminOfMD>.<]

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Hi everyone,

So far, I have a *decent* GPA that would be considered somewhat competitive for some schools. However, my grade trend is not so hot 😡 .

There are factors that contribute to this grade trend like I've mentioned in other threads...family illness being the primary reason for the winter quarter that has just passed.

How do I go about letting the admissions committee know about this? I don't want to sound like a whiner to them and at the same time I don't want to sound apologetic for it either. I simply want to let them know that I had faced an obstacle that may have caused me to get the whatever grades last quarter. I don't want adcoms to think I can't take on the rigors of med school. Not trying to sound cocky, but I'm confident that I can. How can I write it in my personal statement? So confused.

Also, I have noticed that on the UC Application (there's a separate UC application right?) that there is a section where you fill in you GPA for every year in college. It's probably like that for the AMCAS as well. My junior year's GPA will be pretty bad b/c of reasons I have mentioned above. Will they trash my application based off of that or will they look a little deeper?

If you can, please help me out...I'm *planning* on doing really well this quarter😀 ...this is b/c I know this quarter can make me or break me in terms of applying this year. I REALLY want to apply this year and therefore I WILL do well. I am very determined. I'm hoping admissions committees will look at that. Hopefully by that, they'll see that I am capable of doing well and that something may have contributed to the so-so grades.

Thanks, hope to hear from any of you!🙂

 

[abw]

I was told to just state it as briefly and objectively as possible then move on. That way you're informing them without whining or excusing yourself. Something simple like "I struggled with my grades as a result of a family illness," then move on to something else.

 

[sunflower79]

You seem to be asking about two things: effect of grades on the overall app and whether to address it on the PS.

1) It depends. What was your frosh and soph gpa? Decent to me is 3.5, and the weight of this varies a bit depending on the undergrad school. One disastrous quarter won't break you if you bounce back. Adcoms by and large know these things happen, and they will look at ALL the grades, not just the low ones! 🙂

2) I had to deal with this last year, it's a hard call.

Some things to consider:
- what kind of trend are we talking about? just one winter quarter? are the grades obviously out of place? did you bounce right back? if it was not significant, you risk "making excuses". Or it may be so obvious it's not worth explaining.

- What would your PS look like if this weren't an issue? Would the family illness play into your passion for medicine?

- OK, supposing you decide to address the grade drop after all. You have to find a way to subtly and gracefully weave it in so it is not the glaring highlight of your essay (I know, tall order). Emphasize the positive, i.e. what you learned from this whole mishap. How does it make you stronger and more prepared for challenges ahead?

I think a lot of it is your own perception of the situation, which is good because it's under your control. If you had to take care of an ill family member you have no reason to feel the slightest bit apologetic. You had to make sacrifices. Maybe it took an emotional toll, and that only shows to me you're a caring human being. That's the way I would present it if I were you.

I had a bad semester too, but it was part of something larger and so I dealt with it in my essay head on. I think it shows maturity and honesty. I've received positive feedback on it and it seems to have served me well (knock on wood at my top choices!).

Good luck! 🙂

cheers,
sunflower79

 

[The Philosopher]

First off, what is your cum GPA, and what has your GPA been year-by-year?

I don't really think you need to address anything unless if you dipped maybe below like a 2.0 for one of the semesters.

Maybe you can say something in your PS about your difficulties and how you've become a stronger person or something, but I think your PS should highlight different positive aspects of your application.

We all have our bad semesters, but if you've had a really bad trend for no reason, it's gonna be tricky.

Without knowing the year-by-year trend (as AMCAS separates your GPA year by year), or even you explaining your semester trends, and how high/low your cum GPA is, there's no way to tell.

 

[dreaminOfMD>.<]

Thanks for the input guys...

Ok so here I go answering some of the questions you guys asked.

First of all, with last quarter included, my cum gpa is a 3.50. I don't know my year to year GPA's exactly only that by the time I transferred it was relatively good. My first year's GPA wasn't so hot, cuz I was taking classes that I had no interest in b/c I was not yet a declared "premed" and was taking classes to fullfill another major. BUT by the time I transferred, my cum GPA was about a 3.7 something. Dang that looks bad...3.7 to a 3.5.

Anyhow, my first quarter at UCLA (fall) was ok besides the fact that I got a D in physics (A and B were my other grades for the quarter). That class was truly humbling and I'm readily going to admit to that. I'm retaking the class now and I'm going to do everything I can to get an A. I was working about 20 hours/week so maybe that helped to get the D. I think it was also the "transfer syndrome" I was suffering, adjusting to the quarter system and the new university, etc. Also, I didn't attempt my final. I went into the class, looked at it and almost fainted cuz it was so hard and I walked out very upset 30 minutes later. Had I known about withdrawing so late I would've. I'm was brand spankin new to UCLA so therefore, I was quite dumb.

The last quarter was in big part due to the family illness. I really don't think of it as insignificant. My dad had a heart attack. So naturally, I was not at all focused on school. I would've rather been at the hospital than studying for physics or virology. Without studying for the finals at all, I still made a C+ for virology and I still don't know what I got for physics (I don't think it's anything lower than a C).

About the bouncing back thing. It's so hard to tell only b/c I'm in that phase right now. Of course I'm putting all of my hopes in doing really well this quarter even though my dad's on schedule for a bypass. I told myself that I need to balance my time wisely and he should be okay at least halfway into the quarter. Well, okay as in not having to worry about the surgery and side effects and taking care of his recovery. I'm assuming the first couple of weeks will be the worst, and things will then be better.

I agree with making this issue subtle in the PS. My dad's illness however has some part of my wanting to go into medicine (he has a long list of ailments). I am in no way sorry for the grades that I have gotten last quarter...I'm just scared of the outcome that's all. So, with all this info I gave, what do you think?

Anyhow, thanks again for the advice.🙂

 

[The Philosopher]

Your dad's illness is probably something that you should mention in your PS. Especially, since your dad was one of your motivations to enter medicine. And this is pretty fortunate too because you can nicely tie in how he was and has been ill and this affected your grades. But as a previous post said, indicate how this has made you stronger and strengthened your will to enter medicine even more. Don't dwell on it, just mention it has a means to explaining your positive motivations to enter medicine.

You should be alright if you've got stellar MCATs

That D in physics is something to worry about, especially if you got a B- or lower in that 2nd physics class that you took. Retaking the D class and getting an "A" and maybe even taking another middle-level physics class in the same topic and getting an "A", as well as kicking ass on the MCAT Physical Sciences section are all essential.

If you feel that you are not ready this semester to take on the coursework, due to your dad's illness, why not take a leave of absence? I would rather do that and take some time off rather than continue so that you could dig the hole deeper. It's honorable to do this and to help your dad out through his and your toughest times. It'll add an entirely new dimension to your character as an applicant, which few applicants have.

 

[dreaminOfMD>.<]

You should be alright if you've got stellar MCATs

What do you consider stellar? I plan on doing well in my physics retake as well as the other physics class I'm taking which is the last of the series.

I'm not willing to take the quarter off...call me stubborn but I don't think I'm a bad person for doing so. I've discussed it with my dad and he himself thinks I should stay in. It's a matter of time management and studying harder this time around. I have thought on several occasions of just taking a year off. But I have my reasons for going for it this summer and those reasons are good enough for me to stay in and do my absolute best. Anyhow, I am ready to take this quarter on...

Thanks for your words of wisdom though. It definitely helps...
🙂