For some reason, many applicants believe that an application essay, always well-known among academia as a personal statement, is more important than an interview. Same deal with a med essay.
There is evidence indicating that admissions committees invite only approximately 16% of candidates to an interview out of thousands of application papers coming into medical schools. Here, we will find out what qualities admissions officers expect their applicants to possess and why a medical paper is an inherent part of the entire selection process.
Good Writing Skills
Of course, first of all, a medical essay can show how well the candidates’ writing abilities are developed. Thus, all applicants should concentrate on showing strong writing skills before they even start thinking about other things they should demonstrate with their papers.
Good written communication skills are a must-have for all med students as they will play an important role throughout their future career, as they do in other occupations. Maintaining documents, communicating with patients, writing research papers, – medical workers do so much more than just this.
Good writing is not about constructing sentences which are grammatically correct. It is also about ensuring a proper flow of thoughts and ideas as an essay progresses. Because the process of creating a paper is so personal, all applicants end up needing someone to proofread their papers. In this case, experts from Pro-Papers can lend a willing hand.
Sincerity and Self-Reflection
For many of us, it may sound strange but sincerity and self-reflection rank very high among other qualities that seem more specific to medicine. Being a good physician doesn’t require strong marketing skills and thus admissions officers don’t expect their applicants to sell themselves by writing a first-class essay, they simply want them to be sincere which literally means being themselves. In fact, they want candidates to be simple and straightforward.
The importance of self-reflection for the candidates’ papers as well as for their future career cannot be overestimated. The ability to self-reflect is what will help med students to cope with stress in school and upon their graduation.
Empathy
This is one more quality a good medical worker should possess. For medical students, it is crucial to be able to show empathy. Once they become professional physicians, they will have to care deeply about their patients suffering a lot. This quality is what admissions officers expect to see in their candidates because it is exactly what patients want to see in their doctors.
Motivation and Commitment
In a medical essay, candidates should give an answer to the fundamental question, “why do you choose medicine?” By explaining their motivation, applicants can achieve two goals. First of all, they can prove that they have thought about their true purpose as well as demonstrate their serious intentions. Secondly, they can illuminate their life values.
It is crucial to indicate what candidates have done to test their decision rather than just state that they want to be medical workers. Maybe they can tell about their previous relevant experience, etc.
When it comes to commitment, it is important to provide some backup facts. For instance, if the main idea behind the candidate’s decision to become a doctor is to show his or her compassion, then this applicant should explain how and when he or she has shown it earlier.
Specific Personal Traits
Doctors should be able to work equally well with both patients and their colleagues as this is what they will do during their career in medicine. Such qualities as empathy, integrity, compassion, as well as written and verbal communication skills, are essential for all medical workers as without them it is impossible to treat patients properly. To comply with their duties, doctors should have well-developed problem-solving, decision-making, and critical-thinking skills, not to mention creativity and curiosity. Without honesty, dedication, and sincerity, no one can become a good doctor.
In a med essay, candidates should discuss all of their personal qualities and demonstrate them through concrete facts. Of course, it is almost impossible to find all of these traits in a single person, but the more personal qualities an applicant has the higher chances of being accepted he or she gets.
With the said in mind, no one can question the importance of a med essay. But does judging applicants by their papers ensure a fair selection process? The answer is positive. For admissions officers, it is almost impossible to interview all applicants and thus they invite only those who could convince them with their med papers that their intentions of becoming a doctor are pure and serious.
They believe that if someone fails to create an effective paper, then he or she has all chances to drop out half-way as without good writing skills it is impossible to become an academically successful student. In fact, admissions officers don’t look for talented writers with well-developed storytelling skills and thus no one expects candidates to create masterpieces. However, writing well is crucial for all professionals, no matter their field of study, and med students are not an exception.
With no doubt, a good doctor should possess much more than just good writing skills, but without the latter ones, it is impossible to create the right impression on admissions officers. Therefore, applicants should start writing in advance and don’t hesitate to seek help from professionals if necessary.
