Personal statement for Medicine
Hi, I’m currently writing my personal statement for applying to medicine, and I was wondering if anyone knew the general views views of admission officers when it comes to criticising the system? I am not criticising any healthcare professional, or speciality, more so how my passion started seeing the systemic issues regarding healthcare in low income areas. Is this alright or should I be going down the traditional route?
You can mention it, but always try to frame the individual healthcare workers in the best light and rather the system as the issue.
Original post by millietayy
Hi, I’m currently writing my personal statement for applying to medicine, and I was wondering if anyone knew the general views views of admission officers when it comes to criticising the system? I am not criticising any healthcare professional, or speciality, more so how my passion started seeing the systemic issues regarding healthcare in low income areas. Is this alright or should I be going down the traditional route?
Am gonna start this from a different end.
Have you decided your strategic choices and sense checked them on the which medschool megathread?
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7312527
If you have and you know where, have you spent some time trawling through their websites to find out IF they use the PS in their interview selection (1) and admissions process as a whole (2).
If you have done that, do you know HOW they use it,and at what stage , and what they are looking for?
Does your PS hit those points ? Does it have a fair bit of reflection in it ?
If it has all that stuff you may find that the first bit about why, is really squeezed.
The details might be something that you can expand upon at length at the interview.
So, I agree with the poster above that it could be the system not the people. But equally the why, is it the health ineqality? Why is that important to you? Rather than what is broken. You will want to have the answer for a suggestion for your interview. But for me it's the why, not the what.
And, it's very very brief. So personally I recommend not going for something that is ultra complex to explain in a short sentence.
Disclaimer:not an admissions officer 😁
(edited 3 weeks ago)
Med schools don't use the PS to shortlist applicants. It's a way to screen out applicants with major red flags, such as being a neonazi or proudly detailing all their convictions for assault. That's a very low bar to clear.
The main benefit of the PS these days is to give you a chance to get your thoughts into coherent order before interview. Does your PS explain why you want to be a doctor, how you reached your decision, and why you have the right abilities and attributes to study medicine? If your reflections on the health service relate to those questions, then by all means include them, but be careful you don't go off on a tangent. Journalists, sociologists, and politicians might all have interesting things to say about the healthcare system's failures, so if you end up focusing on those to the exclusion of 'Why medicine and why me?' it may feel less like an application and more like a generic speech on a topic of general interest.
The main benefit of the PS these days is to give you a chance to get your thoughts into coherent order before interview. Does your PS explain why you want to be a doctor, how you reached your decision, and why you have the right abilities and attributes to study medicine? If your reflections on the health service relate to those questions, then by all means include them, but be careful you don't go off on a tangent. Journalists, sociologists, and politicians might all have interesting things to say about the healthcare system's failures, so if you end up focusing on those to the exclusion of 'Why medicine and why me?' it may feel less like an application and more like a generic speech on a topic of general interest.
Original post by purpleflamingo77
You can mention it, but always try to frame the individual healthcare workers in the best light and rather the system as the issue.
Okay thank you!! This is actually a really helpful perspective
Original post by George&Mary
Am gonna start this from a different end.
Have you decided your strategic choices and sense checked them on the which medschool megathread?
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7312527
If you have and you know where, have you spent some time trawling through their websites to find out IF they use the PS in their interview selection (1) and admissions process as a whole (2).
If you have done that, do you know HOW they use it,and at what stage , and what they are looking for?
Does your PS hit those points ? Does it have a fair bit of reflection in it ?
If it has all that stuff you may find that the first bit about why, is really squeezed.
The details might be something that you can expand upon at length at the interview.
So, I agree with the poster above that it could be the system not the people. But equally the why, is it the health ineqality? Why is that important to you? Rather than what is broken. You will want to have the answer for a suggestion for your interview. But for me it's the why, not the what.
And, it's very very brief. So personally I recommend not going for something that is ultra complex to explain in a short sentence.
Disclaimer:not an admissions officer 😁
Have you decided your strategic choices and sense checked them on the which medschool megathread?
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7312527
If you have and you know where, have you spent some time trawling through their websites to find out IF they use the PS in their interview selection (1) and admissions process as a whole (2).
If you have done that, do you know HOW they use it,and at what stage , and what they are looking for?
Does your PS hit those points ? Does it have a fair bit of reflection in it ?
If it has all that stuff you may find that the first bit about why, is really squeezed.
The details might be something that you can expand upon at length at the interview.
So, I agree with the poster above that it could be the system not the people. But equally the why, is it the health ineqality? Why is that important to you? Rather than what is broken. You will want to have the answer for a suggestion for your interview. But for me it's the why, not the what.
And, it's very very brief. So personally I recommend not going for something that is ultra complex to explain in a short sentence.
Disclaimer:not an admissions officer 😁
Thank you so much!! This is extremely helpful I didn’t even consider how PS may or may not be considered which is a little ditzy of me 😅😅
Original post by GEMriatric
Med schools don't use the PS to shortlist applicants. It's a way to screen out applicants with major red flags, such as being a neonazi or proudly detailing all their convictions for assault. That's a very low bar to clear.
The main benefit of the PS these days is to give you a chance to get your thoughts into coherent order before interview. Does your PS explain why you want to be a doctor, how you reached your decision, and why you have the right abilities and attributes to study medicine? If your reflections on the health service relate to those questions, then by all means include them, but be careful you don't go off on a tangent. Journalists, sociologists, and politicians might all have interesting things to say about the healthcare system's failures, so if you end up focusing on those to the exclusion of 'Why medicine and why me?' it may feel less like an application and more like a generic speech on a topic of general interest.
The main benefit of the PS these days is to give you a chance to get your thoughts into coherent order before interview. Does your PS explain why you want to be a doctor, how you reached your decision, and why you have the right abilities and attributes to study medicine? If your reflections on the health service relate to those questions, then by all means include them, but be careful you don't go off on a tangent. Journalists, sociologists, and politicians might all have interesting things to say about the healthcare system's failures, so if you end up focusing on those to the exclusion of 'Why medicine and why me?' it may feel less like an application and more like a generic speech on a topic of general interest.
Thank you
)) the generic speech thing is what I’ve been trying to avoid from the start and I’m definitely going to avoid keeping it as a primary focus throughout my PS now and just reflect it slightly through the questions. I was just stressed about it as my 6th form has painted the PS as a life or death matter
Original post by millietayy
Thank you)) the generic speech thing is what I’ve been trying to avoid from the start and I’m definitely going to avoid keeping it as a primary focus throughout my PS now and just reflect it slightly through the questions. I was just stressed about it as my 6th form has painted the PS as a life or
death matter
)) the generic speech thing is what I’ve been trying to avoid from the start and I’m definitely going to avoid keeping it as a primary focus throughout my PS now and just reflect it slightly through the questions. I was just stressed about it as my 6th form has painted the PS as a life or death matter
It depends where you are applying as per my post above.
For some it isn't life or death but it is the difference between getting an interview or not. They may be looking for specific things (which sometimes they list - and sometimes they don't!)
For others it can make your actual interview a bit spicy if you aren't careful.
For others they will read it at the end, just hunting for red flags.
For a few others they won't ever read it.
My point was, know where you are in the continuum.with your choices and then give it the amount of effort it deserves. Which may be a lot, or may not be 🙃
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