Unique Applicant - Personal Statement Question

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DrFLAGATORS

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  1. Pre-Medical
Hey guys,

Originally, I pursued medical school...I graduated in 2010 and completed an SMP in 2012. Subsequently, I was accepted to an MD program. Unfortunately, I was considered an international student because I did not have my permanent residency, and I couldn't enroll. I've been living in America for 21 years, but INS is ridiculous. I finally obtained my Green Card last year, but after working for several years I gained perspective on what kind of career/lifestyle I want. So, I decided to change to dentistry, and have shadowed a dentist and an omfs over the past year.

There is a section in the application that asks if you've ever been accepted/enrolled in another health profession school. I stated that I was accepted to a medical school, but couldn't attend due to my immigration status. Additionally, my application has a lot of medical experiences listed.

I've been getting a lot of feedback on my personal statement, and I have a few sentences with reasons on why I decided to switch from medicine to dentistry. However, a lot of my reviewers have told me this will not sit well with admissions. But, these reviewers don't know about my prior medical school acceptance.

So, my question is do you think it is a good idea to BRIEFLY talk about this in my personal statement? Or should I only talk about "why dentistry" and wait until I'm offered an interview to talk about the prior med school acceptance?

Look forward to you responses.
 
by virtue of the application itself, adcoms will be aware of your previous med school acceptance. it sounds like it also provides you the space to explain the reason why you didn't attend.

if you feel the blurb on the dental application is sufficient, save characters in your ps for dental-related stuff. all of the details can be hashed out in the interview, should your interviewers even care.

good luck.
 
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