Writing Your Personal Statement

Medical and dental school applications require that you write a personal statement. This allows you to tell the admissions committee anything that is not included in other parts of the application. Allopathic medical schools and dental schools allow one page; osteopathic schools provide a half-page.

Your essay should be focused, positive and personal. Illustrate your point with examples. To stimulate ideas for your topics, ask yourself these questions:

• Why did I choose medicine or dentistry as a career?
• What have been some of the biggest challenges in my life and how did I handle them?
• What person or event most influenced my life, and how?
• What are the reasons for the major decisions in my life?
• What are my future goals, and why?

If you have anything in your background which you feel needs to be explained, include it in your personal statement. If you missed a year because of illness or family problems, discuss it here. On the other hand, do not feel compelled to discuss the only “C” you received as this will just call attention to it. Make the explanation as positive as possible, stressing what you have learned from the experience.