What to focus on... help appreciated

[sg4runner]

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I don't mean to be repetitive, but I'm having major problems with choosing what to focus on in my PS. I have had a unique experience abroad that really influenced my perspective and reasoning for going into medicine. Likewise, I had an incredible experience shadowing 3 physicians and was actively involved with a lot of their patients (not in the US) and saw a lot of what goes into being a doctor... then I also want to stick a few sentences in there explaining my low GPA my first year, but it doesn't have anything to do with the rest and sounds really awkward.
I could tie all the experiences together, but it's really superficial that way and I would like to go into detail (i.e. tell a story) and 5300 spaces just doesn't cut it, so I have to choose one. Do you guys think it's bad to leave the shadowing thing out of my PS and talk about it in the post-secondary section, despite it being a significant experience for me. Also, is there any other place that I could explain my low GPA, or does that have to be in the PS? Sorry I seem to be a little frantic, but I need some adivce! Thanks and good luck to those working on AMCAS.

 

[dmk724]

Oh yes, that wonderful 5300 character limit - guaranteed to produce anxiety in even the calmest applicant. When I applied last year, I had minor panic attacks each time I sat down to write the PS. It's much harder to think about things in terms of a "character count," instead of the more common word count.

It's difficult to comment on tying things together because I haven't read your PS, but you might not have to necessarily include anything about your low GPA if you have improved steadily every semester since your first year - and most people understand if you have trouble during the first few semesters of college, anyway. If you'd like to send me your rough draft, no matter how long it is, it would be easier to tell you what I think you should keep and what to ditch. If you would like someone to read it, feel free to PM it to me.

Good luck!

 

[snowwhite]

I would suggest to write your essay without worrying about going over the limit. After your first draft, you can then choose what is most important to you. You may find that it takes one sentence to describe something, while you may have written a whole paragraph on it. Anyway, this is my opinion only. Try giving your draft to friends, professors, anyone who you might think would help without trying to write the whole thing for you. Remember also that when you give your PS to someone, you can pick and choose what you want to listen to.

 

[berriesarie]

scrap the gpa part, if you have a premed advisor who writes a letter or a committee letter they might have already touched on this subject. I think you will be able to integrate the other two ideas together. In my ps I wrote about three experiences, is all about conciseness without losing meaning. Definately just write what you feel the first time around and then concentrate on splicing and re-wording to make it fit. Definately have other people read it, feedback was very helpful in the process.

 

[sg4runner]

Thanks for your replies, they give me a good idea of what to do. It's easy to get caught up in this process, and it helps to have people say, okay, this is what I think/did.

🙂