How to convey strong motivation for medicine in PS? When you can't explain why?
To clarify a bit on that title, I am very motivated for medicine, but I never had an epiphany or anything, I've been lucky to lead a very healthy life and literally had zero experience with any healthcare professional or environment until my work experience.
I was always told by parents that they wanted me to be a doctor, teachers encouraged it too. It was always expected of me, but I'm happy to do it if that makes sense. It started out as obligation, but I've since wanted to do it for myself. I like biological sciences, I like the hospital environment, I want a meaningful career, helping people, I like the job security and (relatively) high pay. I loved my work experience and can't see myself doing anything else. But there's no driving force or experience.
I was always told by parents that they wanted me to be a doctor, teachers encouraged it too. It was always expected of me, but I'm happy to do it if that makes sense. It started out as obligation, but I've since wanted to do it for myself. I like biological sciences, I like the hospital environment, I want a meaningful career, helping people, I like the job security and (relatively) high pay. I loved my work experience and can't see myself doing anything else. But there's no driving force or experience.
This is due to lack of reflection on the why medicine question. Don't worry it does happen to applicants and you do not need a profound life changing experience to have a valid reason as to why you want to do medicine.
But I would say ask yourself why YOU want to do medicine? Don't think about how your parents want you to do it or your teachers because that shows you do not really have any motivation for studying medicine, you could talk about how you were expected from an early age to become a doctor and you could link it to how you had an early interest in the sciences and how you got work experience to see if this career is for you. Then you could reflect on your work experience and how that showed you why you want to do medicine.
At the end of the day, there's no perfect answer to this as everyone has their own motivations and reasons to do medicine but make sure you don't say money is one of them as that could come across as you wanting to be in the profession for the wrong reasons.
But I would say ask yourself why YOU want to do medicine? Don't think about how your parents want you to do it or your teachers because that shows you do not really have any motivation for studying medicine, you could talk about how you were expected from an early age to become a doctor and you could link it to how you had an early interest in the sciences and how you got work experience to see if this career is for you. Then you could reflect on your work experience and how that showed you why you want to do medicine.
At the end of the day, there's no perfect answer to this as everyone has their own motivations and reasons to do medicine but make sure you don't say money is one of them as that could come across as you wanting to be in the profession for the wrong reasons.
Original post by pepsiu
To clarify a bit on that title, I am very motivated for medicine, but I never had an epiphany or anything, I've been lucky to lead a very healthy life and literally had zero experience with any healthcare professional or environment until my work experience.
I was always told by parents that they wanted me to be a doctor, teachers encouraged it too. It was always expected of me, but I'm happy to do it if that makes sense. It started out as obligation, but I've since wanted to do it for myself. I like biological sciences, I like the hospital environment, I want a meaningful career, helping people, I like the job security and (relatively) high pay. I loved my work experience and can't see myself doing anything else. But there's no driving force or experience.
I was always told by parents that they wanted me to be a doctor, teachers encouraged it too. It was always expected of me, but I'm happy to do it if that makes sense. It started out as obligation, but I've since wanted to do it for myself. I like biological sciences, I like the hospital environment, I want a meaningful career, helping people, I like the job security and (relatively) high pay. I loved my work experience and can't see myself doing anything else. But there's no driving force or experience.
How about expanding on "I like biological sciences, I like the hospital environment, I want a meaningful career, helping people, I like the job security and (relatively) high pay. I loved my work experience and can't see myself doing anything else"?
Original post by pepsiu
To clarify a bit on that title, I am very motivated for medicine, but I never had an epiphany or anything, I've been lucky to lead a very healthy life and literally had zero experience with any healthcare professional or environment until my work experience.
I was always told by parents that they wanted me to be a doctor, teachers encouraged it too. It was always expected of me, but I'm happy to do it if that makes sense. It started out as obligation, but I've since wanted to do it for myself. I like biological sciences, I like the hospital environment, I want a meaningful career, helping people, I like the job security and (relatively) high pay. I loved my work experience and can't see myself doing anything else. But there's no driving force or experience.
I was always told by parents that they wanted me to be a doctor, teachers encouraged it too. It was always expected of me, but I'm happy to do it if that makes sense. It started out as obligation, but I've since wanted to do it for myself. I like biological sciences, I like the hospital environment, I want a meaningful career, helping people, I like the job security and (relatively) high pay. I loved my work experience and can't see myself doing anything else. But there's no driving force or experience.
Just literally write the above in a more organised and expanded manner. You don't need a big epiphany or unique story, it's not a TED Talk.
You don’t need a single epiphany. In fact, this is likely to do the opposite of conveying your motivating for medicine because it’s actually only conveying your initial impulse for studying medicine.
I’ve read so many unconvincing opening paragraphs on the examples on TSR that centre around being suddenly inspired to study medicine by a freak accident they witnessed or by watching their grandparent being wheeled off by paramedics. You can practically bear people rubbing their hands at the prospect of such trauma and it’s a bit twisted really.
Most people’s motives for medicine are around wanting to help people and having a meaningful career. And for a large majority money will factor in there somewhere. The obvious riposte to this is, well why not nursing, or teaching, or physiotherapy, or occupational therapy, or an accountant? You’ve basically got to try and convey your understanding of what makes medicine unique among these and why you are particularly motivated by this. Then there’s the obvious riposte to this which is, well how do you know medicine will meet your expectations? And how do the admissions team know that you’re suited for this kind of work? This is where your work experience and volunteering commitments/positions of responsibility come into it. Your personal statement basically makes the case that your decision to apply to medicine is an informed one.
Your opening paragraph of your PS should try and summarise your reasons (plural), and should just be sensible. There are only so many ways for a person to say they want to study medicine. They’re not expecting a unique and individual reason from every single person applying. They’re just wanting to see that you’ve developed your motives beyond that initial impulse, which is not always the most mature or the most informed reason. If I were focusing on that initial impulse, I was inspired by a rather petty moment where I got annoyed with a doctor in the unit where I work and thought, “I could do that better than you” and then part of my brain went, “go on then, prove it” (and another part of my brain went, “oh god not again”). Needless to say that didn’t make it into my personal statement and nor should it. It has very little to do with the reflective process I undertook to get me to the point where I decided to overrule the “oh no not again” part of my brain and listen to the part of my brain that was able to engage in that honest simple reflection. One person’s amazing story about witnessing a heart attack on a mountainside and being awestruck by a randomly passing GP’s actions in saving the person and being forever inspired to study medicine from that moment onwards (actual PS example on TSR) is not something you need to compete with. That’s not what they’re selecting for.
I’ve read so many unconvincing opening paragraphs on the examples on TSR that centre around being suddenly inspired to study medicine by a freak accident they witnessed or by watching their grandparent being wheeled off by paramedics. You can practically bear people rubbing their hands at the prospect of such trauma and it’s a bit twisted really.
Most people’s motives for medicine are around wanting to help people and having a meaningful career. And for a large majority money will factor in there somewhere. The obvious riposte to this is, well why not nursing, or teaching, or physiotherapy, or occupational therapy, or an accountant? You’ve basically got to try and convey your understanding of what makes medicine unique among these and why you are particularly motivated by this. Then there’s the obvious riposte to this which is, well how do you know medicine will meet your expectations? And how do the admissions team know that you’re suited for this kind of work? This is where your work experience and volunteering commitments/positions of responsibility come into it. Your personal statement basically makes the case that your decision to apply to medicine is an informed one.
Your opening paragraph of your PS should try and summarise your reasons (plural), and should just be sensible. There are only so many ways for a person to say they want to study medicine. They’re not expecting a unique and individual reason from every single person applying. They’re just wanting to see that you’ve developed your motives beyond that initial impulse, which is not always the most mature or the most informed reason. If I were focusing on that initial impulse, I was inspired by a rather petty moment where I got annoyed with a doctor in the unit where I work and thought, “I could do that better than you” and then part of my brain went, “go on then, prove it” (and another part of my brain went, “oh god not again”). Needless to say that didn’t make it into my personal statement and nor should it. It has very little to do with the reflective process I undertook to get me to the point where I decided to overrule the “oh no not again” part of my brain and listen to the part of my brain that was able to engage in that honest simple reflection. One person’s amazing story about witnessing a heart attack on a mountainside and being awestruck by a randomly passing GP’s actions in saving the person and being forever inspired to study medicine from that moment onwards (actual PS example on TSR) is not something you need to compete with. That’s not what they’re selecting for.
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