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Please adhere to the character limit (including spaces) established by your health professional school application service. Your essay should address why you want to become a practitioner in that field. You may wish to include experiences, motivations, and/or challenges that distinguish you from other applicants. This is also the place to explain any significant fluctuations in your academic record. For help in creating an effective personal statement see the "Tips for Writing A Personal Statement" included in the application (see above) or contact Career Exploration and Development for assistance.

The personal statement you present for review should be a polished, final draft. You may receive feedback regarding content and structure, but you should provide a statement that includes well-developed and structured sentences and has already been checked for spelling and grammar. 

For this section, list up to 15 experiences that affected your life or decision to pursue this healthcare field. These may include (but are not limited to): volunteer activities, clinical experience (volunteer, shadowing, paid), laboratory research, employment, leadership roles, etc.

For each experience, provide a title, start and end dates, total number of hours, name of organization, location, contact information for a person who can verify your participation (when possible), as well as a brief description. List your experiences in chronological order, as this is how they will appear on your actual application. Please be sure to follow the guidelines for the format and character limit provided by your application service.

Consider the  when writing your experience description. You should use your description to explain how that experience either taught you or allowed you to demonstrate one or several of these competencies.

If applying to allopathic medical school (AMCAS), you should identify at least one and no more than three activities that you consider to be "Most Meaningful." For these experiences, you are allowed an additional 1325 characters to explain why you feel this experience is meaningful.

Your experiences should ideally include only activities you have undertaken post-high school. There may be some exceptions made for on-going experiences, significant awards or achievements related to medicine or similar instances.

After your application material review is complete, you can choose to set up a mock interview. The interview will not only allow the reviewer to see your interview skills and abilities, but will also give you additional practice prior to the application cycle. You should take these interviews seriously and endeavor to prepare by reviewing your application materials, looking over , and practicing with friends, family, or other university professionals.

Career Exploration and Development at ÌìÌì³Ô¹Ï offers mock interview services, which can be scheduled through Handshake. There is more information about mock interviews and a link to schedule a meeting with a career advisor on their website.

If you choose to set up a virtual interview, please be sure to find a quiet, well-lit space with reliable access to WIFI. You should be mindful of your background, keeping it as neutral and distraction-free as possible. You will also need access to a computer or tablet with a camera and microphone. You may want to consider practicing with the virtual platform (Zoom, Microsoft Teams, etc.) prior to the interview, to make sure you have the appropriate access and understand the controls.