Thank you to everyone on NN for the warm welcome! I said my next post was going to be about bSMART, but I need to let this out.
A friend recently told me that the med school application process would be filled with emotional ups and downs. Let’s just say last night was a huge DOWN.
In the case that a med school admissions officer decides to google my name and finds this, I’m sorry but I have to be honest about the process. Gaining admission into academic institutions has become a commodity. Pay Kaplan and Princeton Review your thousands, and your results are “guaranteed.”
I went to a public high school that didn’t provide me with high end counseling services, so I was quite proud when I got into Duke on my own. Now that I’m applying to medical school, I feel like it’s a whole new ball game. I want to believe that passion, creativity, and genuine interest are valued but yesterday I had a rude awakening.
As per my father’s request that I get some important questions answered, I had a meeting with an admissions consultant at a prep company who also happened to be an admissions officer and graduate of a medical school I’m considering (conflict of interest, anyone?). I had heard about these services but always believed that it was up to me, the candidate, to best represent myself.
After taking a quick look at my personal statement, the consultant just goes “why do you talk so much about your research?” I told him that the essay shows who I am. Did he want to hear the sappy, emotional, “I have to be a doctor because it is my calling” type of thing? I think it’s a wonderful profession and I want to commit my life to providing excellent patient care, but my essay is not going to be a tearjerker.
Unlike for a lot of pre-meds, research just wasn’t some hollow vessel that I used to get my foot through the door. It introduced me to an aspect of medicine that I really enjoy. In addition to learning about diseases, I established problem-solving skills that I can apply to clinical research. Just because you enjoy working in a lab doesn’t mean you want to do a PhD. And why should I not emphasize research? It was a really important part of my undergraduate experience. Plus, I don’t want to be like the Chief of Radiation Oncology (at a great hospital) I met last year who did not know what p53 or cyclins were.I also discussed my involvement with service in my essay; I started an ESL program in the Durham Public Schools two years ago. It gave me a level of social awareness that is important for providing the best patient care. The consultant seemed as if he could care less and made it quite obvious that I wasn’t iterating what med school admissions officers “wanted” to hear. Not all pre-meds these days work in HIV clinics in Kenya (greatly admire those who do) or get Science publications (luck, anyone?) or run triathlons and pull a 40 on the MCAT. He used these people as examples of “stand-out candidates” who are just “made of a different DNA.” Well, I guess that resolves the nature versus nurture debate! Genius!
He made a point of scaring me about the process…telling me stories of mean admissions officers who made him feel like walking right out of the room. At that point, I hope he realized that he was exactly the type of person he seemed to despise.
At the end of the hour, I simply could not believe that someone could be so arrogant and rude in judging students. Quite frankly, I don’t want to go to a medical school that doesn’t treat all prospective students with respect and value. This person made me question whether the school would even be a good fit for me. The worst part was his candidness about the job: “You know, I’m on an admissions committee already so I figured I’d just make extra money doing this…It’s great money.” Seriously?! That’s exactly what these prep companies are all about. These resources are so unequally distributed and their affordability is completely class dependent. The cost of $800 for a class or counseling is the combined monthly cost of rent+food for many families!
After I left, my dad asked how it went and whether meeting with him in the future would be helpful during this process. I just remained silent. I know who I am and why I want to be a physician. I am not going to dump money so that an “expert” can craft me into whoever admissions officers want me to be. Despite the plummet in my self-esteem yesterday, I do think it’s possible that other admissions officers will appreciate me for who I am and all the other students who are made of normal DNA.
Hi Trisha
I’m sorry your meeting was so frustrating. Your consultant is obviously of the same “species” as the radiation oncologist with no concept of cell biology!
As for your last paragraph, half of me thinks “good for you, stick to your guns!”, while the other half wonders whether jumping through the expected hoops might be a means to an end… you can only improve the standing of research within medicine by doing research within medicine, after all. (Although I totally agree that your ESL experience is relevant and should stay in the essay!)
There may be some middle ground here, and maybe you could re-order and otherwise tweak your essay to really communicate WHY you feel that a thorough grounding in research will be beneficial to you in your medical career. I work with many clinician scientists (and a few pure clinicians) and I have heard the way they talk about the introduction of personalised medicine, targeted therapies such as herceptin for breast cancer (these are all oncologists BTW) and so on – things are going to change, and the more a clinician understands the basic biology of their chosen speciality, the better placed they are going to be to cope with this change.
Do you know any clinical scientists who would be willing to look over your esssay and offer advice?
Thank you so much for the advice, Cath! I find it very helpful. I will definitely specify my goals more clearly in my secondary application (contains essays specific to each school). I’ve had a couple MDs and my Dean read my essay and they said it definitely conveyed my motivation to study medicine but I know that I will still work harder to elaborate on this!
As Cath mention, your ESL experience is definitely relevant; for one thing, it’s “other-centered”, and for another, it requires that you interact with people who are different from you (the diversity/cultural competencies issue). Also, if one of your interviewers is a basic research PhD, then your ability to discuss your research enthusiastically and in an informed manner will be a big plus.
I’ve been on our admissions committee for 5 years now, and if it’s not a COI (I need to ask), I might be able to give some advice. Free, and quite happily. I know the prep companies are all the rage, hugely popular, and part of the myths and legends associated with successful application to medical school, but I’m rather disgusted by the concept. For starters, access to such services is not equally distributed, by any stretch of the imagination.
As Cath mention > As Cath mentioned
Ooops.
Remember to proofread your application essays before posting. ;-)
LOL! I just emailed a student with the following advice:
It is also important to pay very close attention to correct spelling and grammar; neglect of these aspects of the proposal will reflect poorly on your perceived attention to detail as a researcher.Wielding my red pen like a machete today.
Oops… I think I know what you’re talking about Cath, I didn’t pick those up :(
However, I am wielding red pen with great gusto towards the thesis I am currently examining.
Nope, not that thing, another thing!
Thanks for the support, Kristi. :) I’m done with prep companies. You’re absolutely right- how can they expect everyone to afford courses that cost $2,000 and services in the similar price range? Outrageous. In fact, the admissions counselor openly told me “You know I was doing this for the university and then I realized, why not just make some money off it?” Oh dear.
I would LOVE your advice, but if there is a COI issue…no worries!!
Sorry you had such a bad experience =(
I do wonder in how far it might be a standard thing for the consultant to be so negative. After all, the fact is that most people don’t make it, and by being discouraging from the start they are both advising to try harder and to mentally prepare for a potential disappointment. If all the consultants said “Oh, this looks great, you’ll definitely get in” for all the great application essays they see, they’d be wrong a lot of the time! So, don’t take it too personal.
Yes, that’s totally possible…I’m trying not to take it too personally!
It’s never nice when you have put so much of yourself into a piece of work and then someone criticises it. It’s like they’re not just criticisng the work but rhey’re demeaning your very self and your interests and values.
Perhaps this person is just an insensitive b*****d, or perhaps he doesn’t care who he upsets. But it is worth stepping back and looking at exactly what he says, trying to block out the emotional impact of it. Perhaps there is something in there that might help.
And <cliche> what doesn’t kill you makes stronger </cliche>.
Thanks, Frank. I completely agree with you- there were definitely some important ideas I took away from his critique. It was just the way he conveyed his criticism; it did make it personal…ha, as they say…cliches are cliches for a reason!!
Hi Trisha … I spoke with several colleagues, and there is no problem with my giving free advice on medical school applications. Since I wouldn’t dream of charging for such, I suppose that’s a green light. ;-)
Not surprisingly, US medical schools differ in their methods and priorities for selecting from the thousands of applicants; some are formulaic (e.g. MCAT x GPA) in selecting those who get interviews, others more “holistic” (not the “woo” meaning, for those who are quick to assume the worst when it suits them). I’m used to the holistic approach, i.e. looking at the applicant’s healthcare experience, volunteer work, research, and exposure to diverse groups of people, in addition to MCAT and academics. Therefore, consider any advice/suggestions in that context, and YMMV.
Regardless of a medical school’s methods for selecting interviewees, one thing to keep in mind is that your interviewers are likely to be chosen from a diverse group. Not just gender or racial/ethnic diversity, but community physician/administrative/clinician scientist/basic scientist/resident/senior medical student diversity. A good applicant will be prepared for this, and not “blow off” the legitimacy of an interview with a medical student or “mere” PhD, for example. A senior medical student interviewer is likely to be interested in your commitment to a medical career and in your ability to function in a team, and her interview narrative is every bit as important as one from the chair of a clinical department. Community and staff physicians often probe an applicant’s knowledge of healthcare policy, in the US and perhaps elsewhere – you don’t have to agree with them, but you’d better be informed (your work on disparities this summer will help with that). At our school, and probably at others, MD/PhD program applicants have additional interviews in the basic science departments.
Hope this helps, and I’d be happy to answer specific question via e-mail.
Thank you so much, Kristi! I really appreciate your advice considering how much insight you have on the admissions process. I’m glad I learned more about the interview process. I feel more prepared already. I will definitely email you questions as they come up. :)