Residency Personal Statement
Are you getting ready to work on your residency personal statement? Below are some tips and advice for putting together your personal statement.
Resources
American Medical Association Writing Your Personal Statement
Personal Statements vs. CV How is the Personal Statement different from the CV?
•Motivations for your career in medicine
•Reasons/motivations for undertaking an activity
•How an experience affected you or your professional development
Personal Statements A personal statement might describe:
•Why you have chosen this specialty
•Specifics of what solidified your interest
•Your career aspirations
•Why you are well-suited for this career
•What strengths you will bring to the program
Personal Statements Writing your personal statement
•Include specifics or clarifying examples where relevant
•This is a writing sample! Your PS should be focused and clear, with impeccable grammar and punctuation
•Represent yourself accurately
•No more than one page
Getting Help
•Career advisor(s): advice on the content of your CV and PS, and specialty-specific questions
•Office of Career and Professional Development: additional help with writing
•Have several people review your final CV and personal statement, including a career advisor
Take-Home Points
1.This is your opportunity to introduce yourself
2.Include experiences and accomplishments that define who you are as a person and professional
3.Review your CV and Personal Statement with a career advisor
Resources
•Career Advisors
•Dr. Papadakis and Dr. Loeser (UCSF Students)
•Office of Career and Professional Development: http://career.ucsf.edu(Kathleen Cassidy and Françoise Chanut) (UCCSF Students)
•UCSF Careers in Medicine: http://medschool.ucsf.edu/professional_development/careers
•AAMC Careers in Medicine: https://services.aamc.org/careersinmedicine(Getting into Residency section)
The purpose of the personal statement:
- It is your opportunity to make a personal case for yourself
- It is your chance to communicate your decision to go into this field
- The PS is where the program directors and resident selection committee really gets to know more about you
- This is your opportunity to make yourself look good
- It is a akin to your first impression
- It is a window into your personality and work ethic
Requirements of the personal statement:
- Must fit onto one page when it is printed on the ERAS system (about 5-6 paragraphs)
- Use 12 pts font
- Keep it simple and easy to read
- Do not include anything too weird or too creative
Getting started with your personal statement
- Start early, and revise, revise, revise
- Write down every reason you decided to choose this specialty, even if trivial or unimportant
Some helpful suggestions in getting started
Mistakes to avoid in your personal statement
Writing personal statements for residency programs
Tips on preparing a personal statement
Writing the personal statement ppt
What do I say in my personal statement?
4 Essential must-haves in your personal statement
Questions to answer in your personal statement:
Question #1: (paragraph #1)
- What got you interested in the field that you have chosen?
- What truly made you chose this specialty over others
- What has happened since the beginning of medical school that has narrowed your interest in this field?
- Was it a specific rotation, elective, patient, or environment?
Question #2: What are you looking for in a residency program?
Question #3: What are your expected goals in the field that you have chosen?
- How well informed are you about current issues that are affecting the specialty
- Why do you find these interesting to address once you match into a residency program?
Question #4: What are your other activities that make you a normal, likable person?
- Show you are a well-rounded individual who has a life outside of medicine
- Let them know about issues that motivated you strongly enough to dedicate valuable time to them as a volunteer, researcher, team player, or leader during your medical school years
- Describe interests, hobbies, travels, volunteering, clubs/organizations
- Talk about your trips abroad to foreign countries or anything else that may have enriched you as a person
Question #5 : Can you and are you willing to handle the future rigor that the residency entails?
Question #6: What experiences have prepared you for what is to come?
Queston #7: Anything else?
- A few sentences on particular events that may have been overlooked or under emphasized on the CV
- Comment on academic or professional mishaps that appear elsewhere on your application. Not appropriate to make excuses for past mistakes or actions.
- If you feel you have a flaw on your application that absolutely needs explaining, simply acknowledge the experience, state what you have gained from it and move on.
- Do not draw attention to items that would normally go unnoticed. Seek advice.
Forming paragraphs:
- Once you’ve written down all of your thoughts and ideas, concentrate them in paragraphs
- Write in an active tone
- Make things interesting and exciting; not fancy or flashy; no arrogance or pretentiousness; limit the “I” statements
Sample personal statement
Sample personal statement, and additional personal statement tips
Once you’re done, have people you trust proofread your drafts for content
Have your non-medical friends and family read it for fluidity and clarity. Then pass it on to your medical colleagues. Then send it to your advisor.
Check for spelling and grammar mistakes.
Source
The links above
AAEM’s Rules of the Road for Medical Students (great book)
cle.ucsf.edu PPT presentation by Dr. Loeser, Dr. Papadakis, and Kristen Fitzhenry
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Categorised as: Personal Statement