Medical Admissions Essay - Continued

by EssayEdge.com - The World's Premier Application Essay Editing Service

Page 2 of 3    Back

Medical Admissions Essay Categories:

Why Medicine? | How Am I Unique? | How Am I Qualified?

This applicant does state his lifelong interest in the first sentence, but with a twist: "Sometimes I like to tell people that my father knew I wanted to be a doctor long before I did, but the truth is that the idea of becoming a physician has probably been gestating within me in some form or other since an early age."

By the third sentence, however, he moves to details in support of his lifelong interest. Telling a story is the best way to guarantee that your discussion stays grounded in concrete evidence. The second paragraph provides the "test" aspect: how he confirmed his interest in medicine through direct, hands-on experience. In this paragraph he does not tell another story, but still stays focused on details by describing some of his responsibilities and naming procedures he observed.

Although your own details might make the difference between a good and great essay, you can ensure a solid result simply by avoiding the above pitfalls, as this applicant did. On the first issue, he used a specific story to make a typical idea his own personal point. On the second issue, he used his childhood fascination only to describe the roots of what eventually grew into a more mature commitment. The result is a compelling explanation of his motivation to become a doctor.

Parental Influence

Some applicants will cite their parents as reasons for their choice. Here again you have to be careful not to sound juvenile or overly simplistic. The mere fact that one or both of your parents were doctors does not explain why you would want to follow in their footsteps. Some readers might even conclude that you haven't been able to make up your own mind. The above applicant included the following disclaimer: "I idolize my father and admire his commitment and contributions, but this alone would not be enough to make me want to become a doctor myself."

Firsthand Interaction

This is also a standard theme, but potentially a very powerful one. Describing the direct impact a doctor had on your life or the life of someone close to you can be a very effective way to demonstrate what draws you to medicine.

Perhaps someone close to the applicant was very ill once or died, and the experience with that person or with his or her doctors became very significant. After having read many statements, I believe these are the sorts of experiences that make people aware of what they themselves could do in medicine. These experiences can be very powerful material for the statement.
                                           -- School of Medicine, University of Washington