Showing Commitment Is Key When Applying to Medical School

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The commitment needed to become a doctor starts before you make the decision to even apply to medical school and lasts as long as you practice, perhaps beyond.

When they enter college, undergraduate students who are pondering medical school know they must get good grades in hard courses with many other very smart students from the onset. They also know they will be giving up a lot of free time to accomplish this, and hopefully they realize the commitment that this will take. If not, they will likely end up on a different path.

Once a premed student has succeeded through required courses and the MCAT, and sees the commitment that it takes, it’s time for the medical school application. Seriously consider how you will approach commitment during the application process and in the interviews that follow.

Commitment – not necessarily the word, but the concept – should run through the entire application, from your personal statement through the activities and to the end of your essays. Hopefully your commitment to medicine will be evident, even in the letters of recommendation. It should be something people will observe in you in your daily life.

Show Commitment in Essays and Interviews

In your primary application, you may have written about a person you knew well who was seriously ill, and how your role in that person’s care led you to wanting to become a physician. This type of story demonstrates you thought a lot about this person, cared about their plight and wanted to be helpful.

Be unique in sharing such a story in your primary essay. Put yourself back in time to that very moment, as if you are experiencing it again and telling the story for the first time. This should not be a cookie-cutter example, but rather your true life experience. Your behavior as you tell the story will express even more, demonstrating how you put others first.

In secondary essays, there are often opportunities to write about commitment in other ways. Maybe it was about a hard decision or difficult choice you had to make. Show how your dedication to long-standing values helped in the situation and were consistent with who you are.

You may be asked to write or later to speak about why you want to attend a particular school. Social life, outdoor activities or nonmedical opportunities may be on your list, but it is wise not to write or articulate them at the onset.

What you can write or say early is that your career plans are to enter medical school and that your commitment to patients in medicine comes first as you perceive it in their school. Look for ways to describe that school’s commitment in the development of their curriculum, or the well-being of their student body.

Unfortunately, I know of one student who lost his chance at a residency position because when he was asked this question, he answered that the program was in a city with many attractive women.

Show Commitment Through Volunteer Experiences

Your commitment to medicine can be shown by how you follow up with obligations, particularly volunteer work. It is not the number of volunteer activities that make you competitive for a school, but rather the quality of your commitment and the level of ownership you have in the mission of the organization.

One student walked out on a group he founded and a project he initiated when his interest suddenly changed. This did not sit well with the admissions committee and is likely why he wasn’t accepted. If a student is perceived as a person who would rather play video games than volunteer in their community, they will be at a disadvantage.

The key is to choose your activities wisely so that you can put your best foot forward.

Avoid Emphasizing Politics or Hobbies

Although you may have interest in politics, administration or the business of medicine, try to stay focused on the practice of medicine during the application and interview process. If it seems that politics is your first goal and medicine your second, some may not take a chance on offering you an acceptance.

Unless you are applying specifically to an M.D.-MBA program, I would not emphasize business. Joint-degree programs like M.D.-J.D. or M.D.-M.P.H are looking for a commitment to more than just medicine.

Show Commitment to Teamwork

You can also demonstrate commitment to medicine by being there for colleagues, as well as patients. Leaders in medicine will tell you today’s medicine is a team sport. Ask yourself if the activity descriptions on your application show that you were a team player.

During in-person interviews, you may be able to demonstrate commitment to showing respect for others, like administrators, other applicants, students, faculty or anyone else you meet. Be your best self. What did you learn from your interviewer or others you met?

Ask others why they love medicine, or why they are committed to that particular school where you’re interviewing. These conversations may resonate with you and provide you greater insight into your own journey.

Finally, have someone who is objective read your entire application to see if they honestly believe that it speaks to a commitment to medicine. If they express doubt, rewrite your application and prepare for your interviews by practicing answers that offer real examples of your commitment to others.

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