The Application Essay: Pointers for Success
When seeking admission to a professional school, applicants would be wise to remember how much the personal essay portion of the application can count toward a successful future.
Admission counselors look to the essay to get a sense of the applicant as a person, beyond reported test scores and GPAs. A simple checklist can guide the student in its completion:
Be passionate. Robert Ryan, Associate Dean of Enrolment Planning at St. George’s University in Grenada, West Indies, reviews submissions from applicants across the world seeking entrance into the University’s medical or veterinary medical programs. “I look for a passion in the student’s life. Most students write about their medically related experiences but I am equally interested in someone who has little or no medical background but who was a concert pianist, a varsity or national team swimmer…something that requires the dedication, motivation and time commitment that being a doctor requires.”
Write clearly and succinctly. Avoid wordiness and language that smacks of self-importance. Pick up a copy of Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style for guidance.
Write in the first person. Use “I” when referring to yourself. Third-person references, as in, “John Futuredoctor always knew he wanted to go to medical school,” will generate the kind of comments you really don’t want attached to your admission file.
Be positive. Mr. Ryan says, “The biggest NO is for a student to blame his/her school, professor, classmates, etc., for bad performance, even in only one class.”
Reveal the nonacademic side of yourself. Because St. George’s is an international university, Mr. Ryan searches for well-rounded applicants: “I also look for international and traveling experience. Many applicants are volunteers on missions to other countries or help in a disaster area, and this is great. For example, the pianist or swimmer who has traveled to compete or represent his or her team – someone who can adapt to new environments and make friends easily.”
Be critical. The best way for a student to judge an application essay is to write it and then put it away for a few days to let it get “cold.” The separation will bring great clarity on a second review.
Be meticulous. Spell check is only the beginning. Check it yourself and give it to as many trusted advisors and friends as possible to catch errors that might derail an acceptance.
In the end, the application essay should be true to the person the student really is. That’s the person the admission committee wants to enroll. “The number of applications to medical and veterinary medical schools is increasing year after year; therefore, the essay is your opportunity to help an admissions office select you over another candidate for the next step in the process – being invited to the interview,” says Mr. Ryan. “Your essay should convince the admissions office that you will be a great student, an asset to the university and most importantly that you will go on to become a passionate and caring doctor or veterinarian in the global health-care workforce.”
