VMCAS Personal Statement

[Eunice Cho]

Hi,

I was wondering if the VMCAS personal statement question remains same every year. I'll be applying for the second time this year, and thought I should prepare personal statment as early as possible.

The question asks you to discuss about development of your interest in vet med, discuss experiences in preparation to professions, discuss your goal.

And, what was the word limit? I remember it was 600, but just wanted to double check...

Thanks in advance!!

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[libster06]

Hi,

I was wondering if the VMCAS personal statement question remains same every year. I'll be applying for the second time this year, and thought I should prepare personal statment as early as possible.

The question asks you to discuss about development of your interest in vet med, discuss experiences in preparation to professions, discuss your goal.

And, what was the word limit? I remember it was 600, but just wanted to double check...

Thanks in advance!!

I'm sure it does. That was the one last year (which I'm sure you know, since it's your second time applying) and I am sure that it's been something like that before then. It's your one chance to show your uniqueness and want to go to vet school so I'm certain they are going to ask the basic "why do you want to be a vet" question, leaving a lot of room for you to say why and list your personal reasons.

 

[twelvetigers]

They don't change the prompt, and I don't think they will in the foreseeable future. However, it changed from a 600 word limit to a 5,000 character limit, which for me was about 840 words.

Remember that there will be lots of buzz about statements on SDN during July and August, so you will get lots of feedback then as well.

 

[Eunice Cho]

They don't change the prompt, and I don't think they will in the foreseeable future. However, it changed from a 600 word limit to a 5,000 character limit, which for me was about 840 words.

Remember that there will be lots of buzz about statements on SDN during July and August, so you will get lots of feedback then as well.

Thank you TT,
I'm glad the word limit changed to 5,000 because the first part alone counted near 400.
I'm trying to prepare early this year, so I don't freak out right before the dead line (like last year...👎)
After being demoralized for about a month upon receiving rejection letters, I'm finally off my feet to apply once more. 🙂
I wish I can write on one of the "successful applicant" thread next year..
phew....

 

[LetItSnow]

The question asks you to discuss about development of your interest in vet med, discuss experiences in preparation to professions, discuss your goal.

I wouldn't worry too much about the exact question. The personal statement is basically your chance to focus THEM on your strengths, and to set yourself apart with whatever unique, excellent characteristics or experiences you bring to the table that might make you a strong candidate. It's also your chance to show them through your experiences and goals the depth of your understanding of the field. The question they give at VMCAS is just designed to give you an idea of the sort of topics they want you to address.

For instance, in mine the underlying thread that tied it all together was 'learning' as a lifelong venture for me (I've been in school for 25 of my 41 years) as well as a necessity for truly competent clinician. I let that theme speak for itself with regards to 'goals' (though I did give a nod to some more specific professional interests).

Stay hopeful! Best of luck next cycle!!!

 

[twelvetigers]

It's good to think for a while about what you want to write. Also, keep it in the back of your mind throughout the day - you might suddenly be struck by inspiration for something to write or a catchy start, and jot it down for later! I think that's what happened for me.

Also, I would be happy to share mine when the time comes. Of course there's no magic formula, but you want to explain where the interest stemmed from as well as where you want to go with it and how your experiences have affected you. Or, heck, I just said there wasn't a formula - you just want it to tie in somehow. 🙂

 

[AngSchmange]

Thank you TT,
I'm glad the word limit changed to 5,000 because the first part alone counted near 400.
I'm trying to prepare early this year, so I don't freak out right before the dead line (like last year...👎)
After being demoralized for about a month upon receiving rejection letters, I'm finally off my feet to apply once more. 🙂
I wish I can write on one of the "successful applicant" thread next year..
phew....

Careful, 5000 characters is a lot different than 5000 words. And I think spaces count 🙁 I was in the habit of hitting the space bar twice after a period, so I had to train myself to only hit it once to save myself characters

 

[sumstorm]

It's good to think for a while about what you want to write. Also, keep it in the back of your mind throughout the day - you might suddenly be struck by inspiration for something to write or a catchy start, and jot it down for later! I think that's what happened for me.

I did something similar; I'd jot down ideas or concepts that I felt were important to include, and the occasional inspired sentence, then I just started piecing it together.

Another tip, get everyone you can to read and comment on it. If you can get them to, ask them to write down their impressions, what they noticed made them feel positive and what made them feel negative, and how engaging it is. The broader the cross section you have reading it, the more comments and suggestions you have to filter but also the more likely you are to find suggestions that really work for you, and to understand the impressions (good and bad) your LOR makes. This is also a great time to use the 'friends of friends/family' stratgey, so that you get the impressions of strangers.

 

[LetItSnow]

Another tip, get everyone you can to read and comment on it. If you can get them to, ask them to write down their impressions, what they noticed made them feel positive and what made them feel negative, and how engaging it is. The broader the cross section you have reading it....

Don't undervalue the importance of that advice.

Don't just have vets read it, or friends interested in science, or teachers. Get all of that, of course, but get someone in business to read it. Get your parents to read it. Get the music major you sorta got to know because you had to take that one fine arts class to read it.

Sumstorm is right that you'll have to filter more, but it will be worth it.

 

[kaydubs]

Don't undervalue the importance of that advice.

Don't just have vets read it, or friends interested in science, or teachers. Get all of that, of course, but get someone in business to read it. Get your parents to read it. Get the music major you sorta got to know because you had to take that one fine arts class to read it.

Sumstorm is right that you'll have to filter more, but it will be worth it.

Totally agree with ^ & sumstorm's comment. I had a ton of professors help me, family, friends, acquaintances. I wanted it to be suitable for everyone. I may not have taken every opinion into account, but I thought of who my audience would be & wrote for them. Good luck, EC!!!

Also, I know this is worth mentioning but you may not want to hear it. Think critically about what was wrong (if there was anything) with your PS from last year. If your PS wasn't an issue, don't stress a ton about it. Attempt to figure out how to make your application better 🙂 Best of luck this cycle

 

[lareinesoleil]

Definitely find someone who is a grammar nazi to read it over too! You can always PM it to me, when the time comes...my high school POUNDED grammar into our heads!

 

[kaydubs]

Definitely find someone who is a grammar nazi to read it over too! You can always PM it to me, when the time comes...my high school POUNDED grammar into our heads!

👍 I think we had similar experiences. I accept and embrace the fact that I'm a grammar and spelling nazi 🙂

 

[sumstorm]

👍 I think we had similar experiences. I accept and embrace the fact that I'm a grammar and spelling nazi 🙂

One of my trusted editors (publication specialist/journalist) made me change my final paragrah including technical grammatical errors to have a dramatic impact (my PS had a dramatic opening, and she wanted it to end strongly as well) and it took a lot of faith to turn it in with an intentional grammatical error (it still sounded good, but it was technically incorrect.)

 

[Bacci]

I am one of those natural-born writers that every one hates, and I too would be happy to proofread/comment on others' personal statements when the time comes. 🙂

 

[midnight89]

Another piece of advice that worked for me..don't worry about the character count when you first sit down and write. Just write everything that you want them to know even if it ends up being really long. After you can re-read it and figure out what you really don't need to say and cut out things to decrease the characters, but this way you get a general idea of the things you want to say and just have to figure out how to say them more concisely. Good luck! 🙂

 

[lareinesoleil]

Another piece of advice that worked for me..don't worry about the character count when you first sit down and write. Just write everything that you want them to know even if it ends up being really long. After you can re-read it and figure out what you really don't need to say and cut out things to decrease the characters, but this way you get a general idea of the things you want to say and just have to figure out how to say them more concisely. Good luck! 🙂

👍

Good advice! IMO, it's much easier to trim things down rather than trying to expand them...

 

[Minnerbelle]

YES, definitely have everyone and anyone you know read it! But also be careful not to get bogged down by every comment. You'll find that everyone has opinions, and that some of them aren't very good, and there's no way to please everyone!

 

[Eunice Cho]

wow,, Thanks everyone!

I'll definately pm my personal statement when i'm done writing to those who are so kind to help proofreading it.

I got the first part(development of interest in vet) done, but I want to wait to write the rest of the parts until I get experience in LA.

I'm looking for a LA vet, so I can shadow over the summer actually..

 

[LetItSnow]

I am one of those natural-born writers that every one hates, and I too would be happy to proofread/comment on others' personal statements when the time comes. 🙂

It's "everyone". 😀

*ducks and runs*

Teasing... teasing...

I worked as a newspaper reporter/editor many years ago. I started as a proofreader. Among my more
embarrassing moments was when the hiring editor asked me to proofread my own resume and I couldn't
find the one mistake that he immediately spotted. For some reason, he hired me anyway.

 

[Minnerbelle]

wow,, Thanks everyone!

I'll definately pm my personal statement when i'm done writing to those who are so kind to help proofreading it.

I got the first part(development of interest in vet) done, but I want to wait to write the rest of the parts until I get experience in LA.

I'm looking for a LA vet, so I can shadow over the summer actually..

I wouldn't worry too much about the PS at this point, because at least from the ones I've read, the best ones seem to be the ones that have a cohesive reflection that incorporates all of their experiences. As opposed to the ones totally segmented by different experiences (i.e. "I worked in clinic X for X number of months/years. I did this and learned this"). Chances are, by the end of the summer, your views and what you want to share of it on your PS will change dramatically.

 

[CurrySpice]

Does this advice not freak anyone else out?

One of the main reasons that I dropped my Philosophy major was how stressed out I became whenever I thought of anyone else reading my writing. For some reason, essays always seem like part of my soul, and so the idea of having 10 people read it is terrifying! I'm hoping to take mine to a few anonymous tutors at the writing center, and then get info from helpful SDNers.

Our pre-vet advisor would just tell me mine is a piece of dog dung and send me to the Caribbean (yes, I'm still bitter that he told me as a freshman with a 4.0 first semester, equine vet experience, and animal experience that I would never get accepted into a US vet school and should just stop trying. I might be headed to the UK, but I certainly don't think I'm a pre-vet failure!)

ETA: I had a dream about my personal statement last night. I was writing the opener about (a real experience) watching an equine colic surgery and seeing the veterinarian just pull out the HUGE colon and start massaging it. BUT the pony died from a burst colon, so the vet let all the students see the pony's innards. It was SUPER cool, but I can't/couldn't think of a positive way to end the story. So, I wrote my PS with that story, but kept the super depressing ending and spent the rest of the essay talking about why I prefer watching the animals recover from surgery. Then I got rejected from all my vet schools. (And finally woke up)

 

[Metry]

The PS is the part of the of the application process that I am MOST nervous about. I find it so difficult to sum the long journey that has taken me to the point of actually applying in 5000 characters or less. There is so much riding on your written word!! I actually like to write so whenever I am feeling creative, I start just letting my thoughts flow with the intention of taking all of that and eventually putting it togethe to form my PS, however it ALWAYS ends up sounding kind of novelish...

For those of you that have been through this before, did your PS sound like a story or more like a resume?

 

[broncogal12]

My PS was like a professional story... a mix of my background and how I came to the decision I wanted to be a vet and my experiences at the 2 clinics I've worked at. I had the doctors I work for read it probably 5 times, along with my parents, and the pre-vet advisor. All of their comments were VERY helpful (especially from the vet who graduated recently). Good luck to all of you applying this coming cycle!! PM me if you need any help!

 

[goldnretrivrgrl]

Does this advice not freak anyone else out?

One of the main reasons that I dropped my Philosophy major was how stressed out I became whenever I thought of anyone else reading my writing. For some reason, essays always seem like part of my soul, and so the idea of having 10 people read it is terrifying! I'm hoping to take mine to a few anonymous tutors at the writing center, and then get info from helpful SDNers.

Not gonna lie- I felt exactly the same way. My PS was like a little chunk of myself and I really felt that I didn't need anyone else to approve of it. I wrote mine in May, revised, let it sit, went back to it, fixed it up several times, and submitted it without anyone else ever seeing it. I'm a confident writer and I got several compliments on how well written it was. However, I DON'T recommend this, especially when I see how many current vet students recommend showing it to everyone you know. Just wanted to let you know that it's not a weird to be a bit uneasy about sharing your work- it called a personal statement for a reason. 🙂
P.S.- I'd be glad to proof-read for any class of 2016 hopefuls. I got a 5/5 on the AP English exam in high school and a 5.5 on the analytical writing portion of the GRE as well as proofing for some of my classmates on a regular basis. Hit me up if you want! 🙂

 

[AHorseOffCourse]

I wrote a personal statement near the beginning of summer and had two people familiar with my writing proof it for me.

They both hated it. I kept trying to fix it, and they were less than impressed - but I had spent a lot of time outlining the PS etc. so was sure that I just needed to rewrite something etc.

Finally, I took their advice and just started from scratch. didn't look at the outline or any of my notes and just sat down and wrote the entire thing.

I took it to the same readers and they just said "yes, so much better than the other one, even in rough draft form!". We did some minor tweaks on it - nothing much. I did a bit of squeezing and massaging to fit within the character limit and that was it. Hardly anything remained from the first PS that I worked so hard at outlining and approaching traditionally. The way I wrote the final PS was much more how I approached my creative writing/article stuff rather than a report/essay.

I guess my point is - if you have having to work to hard at making a PS work, try starting over. You may be suprised at what comes and it may be better. Decide to write 2 or 3 different PS from scratch. Maybe outline one, maybe not the others. If you are having to work really hard at making it work, it's probably not the one. Don't feel married to a particular PS, even if you've spent a ton of time on it. I would have been sunk if I had insisted on keeping my original PS. My alternative one was much better.

Mine is actually posted on my blog if anyone cares to search for it. When it's the appropriate time (not sure when that is, but probably after admissions are done?), I'll gladly share it here.

 

[nyanko]

Does this advice not freak anyone else out?

One of the main reasons that I dropped my Philosophy major was how stressed out I became whenever I thought of anyone else reading my writing. For some reason, essays always seem like part of my soul, and so the idea of having 10 people read it is terrifying! I'm hoping to take mine to a few anonymous tutors at the writing center, and then get info from helpful SDNers.

The adcoms are going to read it. I recommend getting over it.

 

[AHorseOffCourse]

BTW - a bit of advice. The way to be a better writer is to write a LOT. That's one reason I started my blog a few years ago. I felt like I was very strong in the traditional essay/report form, but that my creative and narrative needed to be better. The blog was a perfect way to play with different techniques and get feedback of what worked and what didn't. I knew that I would be writing a PS, and yes, when I started my blog one of my secret objectives was: write a blog so that I can write a great PS. The blog eventually led to other, more traditional writing gigs, and I just continued to write as much as possible in as many different avenues as possible for many different audiences. I could not have written my PS if I hadn't been writing like crazy over the last 2 years.

I do have people edit my stuff (excpet for my blog - that's informal and I write too much and it's too "immediate" to warrent getting other people to proof - I rely on the computer) if it's going to be submitted somewhere (like the PS). My mother is a huge grammer fiend (listens to grammer podcasts for fun!) and has been proofing my stuff since middle school. One reason it works for her to do it is because she doesn't comment on the article content, just the wording and the grammer. Thus, I don't feel like she's judging me when she reads something. But if I ask her what she thinks, she'll give me an honest opinion. If I'm feeling fragile about the writing, I don't ask. 🙂

I will admit, the more I write, the less married I am to my work and the better I can accept criticism for it, look at it objectively and say "you are right! that totally works better if....." If you can get to that point with you PS, I think you PS will probably benefit.

Sorry for the long rambling post - I'm despretely trying to distract myself from thinking about the impending UCD c/o 2015 decision!

 

[NStarz]

Do you guys think it's a little hairy to be writing about depressing things in the PS? Like something that really hit me hard today was a theme about when it's time to let go and say that you can't do anymore for an animal or a client. I wouldn't want to make it all about negativity and lost causes, but it's something that I've really paid attention to on my pre-vet journey. Thoughts?

 

[AHorseOffCourse]

I think you can address just about anything in a PS - it's all about phrasing. Try it. Have a bunch of people read it. Ask them honestly - did this inspire you? Make you uncomfortable? Decide whether you want to revise your PS so that it makes the type of impact you want.

 

[AHorseOffCourse]

Also - maybe the answer to the question could be: what feelings are you trying to invoke in your audience? (the adcoms). That will tell you a lot about how to phrase what subjects you want to include in the PS.

I'm a non-trad, so I wanted to convey a unique back ground wtih a sense that I'm a mature, qualified, confident person who would do credit to their DVM program as a graduate. Thus, I them curious, interested, and intregued, and prehaps even amused/slightly entertained.

I will say that there is one type of PS I'm really uncomfortable with. I know some of my friends tried to play the "feel sorry for me" card. I'm totally uncomfortable with that because it's not me, and I personally don't care for that card when it's played on me, so I stayed away from that. *shrug* but it worked for some of them.

Although I think any thing is better than the - "I love animals so want to be a vet" PS - but even with the right phrasing someone could pull even that off probably......

 

[Ricegrad]

The PS is the part of the of the application process that I am MOST nervous about. I find it so difficult to sum the long journey that has taken me to the point of actually applying in 5000 characters or less. There is so much riding on your written word!! I actually like to write so whenever I am feeling creative, I start just letting my thoughts flow with the intention of taking all of that and eventually putting it togethe to form my PS, however it ALWAYS ends up sounding kind of novelish...

For those of you that have been through this before, did your PS sound like a story or more like a resume?

If it sounds like a resume, I think that you're missing the point of the PS. The adcoms don't need another resume from you- your list of animal/vet experience, jobs, research experience, etc. in the application is a resume. They want to get to know you outside of those factors. My PS sounded like a story, because it was. It was the story of how I became interested in vet med, the experiences I've had that confirmed my desire to be a vet, and what I can contribute to the field. It should sound active. Instead of writing something like, "I have leadership qualities," or "I stay cool under pressure," you should share a story that demonstrates it. Does that make sense?

 

[nyanko]

If it sounds like a resume, I think that you're missing the point of the PS. The adcoms don't need another resume from you- your list of animal/vet experience, jobs, research experience, etc. in the application is a resume. They want to get to know you outside of those factors. My PS sounded like a story, because it was. It was the story of how I became interested in vet med, the experiences I've had that confirmed my desire to be a vet, and what I can contribute to the field. It should sound active. Instead of writing something like, "I have leadership qualities," or "I stay cool under pressure," you should share a story that demonstrates it. Does that make sense?

👍 If you are writing a personal statement this cycle READ THE ABOVE POST.

SO many people whose statements I read for them have basically a list of stuff you could find other places in the app. But the PS is the place where you make those things come to life and put them in the larger context! The statements that can do that are the best, regardless of their spelling or grammar or tone or flow or anything else.

 

[Minnerbelle]

Do you guys think it's a little hairy to be writing about depressing things in the PS? Like something that really hit me hard today was a theme about when it's time to let go and say that you can't do anymore for an animal or a client. I wouldn't want to make it all about negativity and lost causes, but it's something that I've really paid attention to on my pre-vet journey. Thoughts?

my ps was pretty much depressing as hell... pretty much all about euthanasia (or sometimes the lack there of) in non-profit situations. parvo, FIV/FeLV, ringworm, URI, and some more parvo. but wanting to change the depressing parts of shelter med is exactly why i want to become a vet!

 

[teatime]

👍 If you are writing a personal statement this cycle READ THE ABOVE POST.

SO many people whose statements I read for them have basically a list of stuff you could find other places in the app. But the PS is the place where you make those things come to life and put them in the larger context! The statements that can do that are the best, regardless of their spelling or grammar or tone or flow or anything else.

I don't think I was actively attempting to convey those things, but I did in the end. phew!

I pretty much wrote down all the things I knew I wanted to address about myself, the profession, my experiences, and why I decided to pursue this career as a non-trad and it all kind of flowed like a story.

 

[Minnerbelle]

👍 If you are writing a personal statement this cycle READ THE ABOVE POST.

👍👍👍
The person writing the resume-PS doesn't think much of it usually, and more-often than not feel as though they HAVE to do with that way because they've just had sooo much experience that in order to fit all their experiences in the PS, they can only write 1-2 sentences about each. Don't fall into that trap! Even after reading just 10 of these in a couple week's span, it makes me want to just gloss over it and not pay attention. I can't imagine how eye-gouging it must be for adcoms that have to read hundreds of these.

 

[lareinesoleil]

If it sounds like a resume, I think that you're missing the point of the PS. The adcoms don't need another resume from you- your list of animal/vet experience, jobs, research experience, etc. in the application is a resume. They want to get to know you outside of those factors. My PS sounded like a story, because it was. It was the story of how I became interested in vet med, the experiences I've had that confirmed my desire to be a vet, and what I can contribute to the field. It should sound active. Instead of writing something like, "I have leadership qualities," or "I stay cool under pressure," you should share a story that demonstrates it. Does that make sense?

👍👍👍👍

I used my PS as a chance to kind of talk about why I wanted to pursue vet med (since I was not a science major I thought that was kind of an important point to make), and also how my interests related to what I might want to pursue (I'm into dog training, so I'm interested in behavior or orthopedic surgery as possible specialties if I don't become a GP). So I guess mine was kind of in-between - much closer to a story than a resume, but kind of with the tone of hey! Here's why everything on my application is an important part of who I am, why I want to be a vet, and what kind of vet I might want to be.

 

[Metry]

Thanks so much for all of your responses!! I feel so much better and I'm really glad it should be more story like than resume like because not much emotion shines through the latter.

 

[vacavet]

Definitely agree with the others about not listing every single thing you've ever done. Instead you gotta convey to the adcom who you are and why you'll make a great vet. Mine came across more like a story about how I became so passionate about food ag and why I'm pursuing it. No two personal statements are the same and when you have others read over it take everything with a grain of salt. You wanna make sure that you're personal statement is true to YOU and not what everyone else thinks. Also don't be afraid to write multiple drafts as in 5 or so. That way you get your ideas on paper and it gives you an opportunity to go back and decide on what ideas you like and what you don't. You're gonna be cutting a lot of stuff out but just be true to urself and ull be good.

 

[libster06]

Just to branch off from the whole "you-should-have-at-least-200-people-read-your-essay" theme that is always on this site, I had a total of 3 people read mine- my mom, my dad and my aunt. My mom works for a chemical company, my dad works for an engineering company and my aunt is a teacher. None of them are in vet medicine. They made suggestions and helped me revise and fix grammar mistakes, but for the most part, my writing was my writing. Should I may have had a pair of veterinary eyes take a look at it? Perhaps. But I just don't feel like you need every vet you've worked for, professor you've had and advisor you've been assigned to to read it over. I honestly feel like there is such a thing as too much revision and the voice coming through in your statement can diminish with too much editing. Only you know your story or what you want to convey to a committee, so it's important to still have control of your statement. Don't get me wrong, revision is great and important and necessary, but I knew that I had said what I wanted to say in my PS and other than syntax or grammar stuff, I was comfortable with sending it in as a paper representation of me.

 

[Bacci]

It's "everyone". 😀

*ducks and runs*

Teasing... teasing...

I worked as a newspaper reporter/editor many years ago. I started as a proofreader. Among my more
embarrassing moments was when the hiring editor asked me to proofread my own resume and I couldn't
find the one mistake that he immediately spotted. For some reason, he hired me anyway.

Ack! I knew it! I actually debated in my mind over it a little bit and then went "eh, it's the internet!" hahaha *lowers head in shame*