Make a Statement!
(or, How to Write a Fabulous
Personal Statement)
BUSM
Office of Student Affairs
Summer 2007

The Residency Selection Process
TIMING
STEPS
{
April May
Field
Consider Type June July
Geography August
September
Apply
October
November
Interview
Invitations
December
Interviews
January
Rank February
☺ March

Outline
Purpose of the Personal Statement
Preparing to write
Basic anatomy
What to include, what to omit
Resources
Examples of Personal Statements
Q&A

Purpose of the Personal
Statement
First impression, or “snapshot” of who you
are
Positive focus on who you are and what
you are seeking
Gives residency programs a reason to
want you
Chance to present yourself in a favorable
light

Preparing to Write
Define your audience and purpose
Define your thesis statement
Construct an outline

Thesis Statement
A sentence that explicitly identifies the purpose of
the essay and previews its main ideas
A persuasive assertion, not a statement of fact
Narrow, not broad
Helps both the reader and the writer
OK to revise as you refine your thoughts as you
write
Essay, therefore, is written to support the thesis

Four “A’s” of Success
Attitude
Affability
Availability
Ability

Anatomy of a Personal
Statement
Personal statement has an overall main
theme
Each paragraph has one main focus
Past
Present
Future

The Past
What made you decide to pursue a career
in medicine?
OK to offer specifics to illustrate the thesis
statement

The Present
What led you to choose the field to which
you are applying?
Explain why you think you would be well-
suited to a career in this field

The Future
What are you looking for in an ideal
residency program?
Be specific, but not too specific
What is your vision for your career once
your training is complete? In other words,
dream your 10-year dream

General Tips for Writing
Show yourself as competent but not cocky
or arrogant
Show yourself as compassionate but not
crippled by emotion
OK to illustrate personal and professional
growth as a result of hardships

What to Leave Out
Excessive use of the word “I”
Clichés and tired phrases
Flip, unprofessional language
Vernacular, improper grammar
Spelling mistakes
Who/that, which/that confusion
Information that is better said in your CV
Word repetition

What to Leave Out
Negative statements about other fields
Statements that can be harmful or embarrassing
to family or colleagues
Political and religious opinions
Anything about which you don’t want to be
questioned
General statements about the field (yawn)
Cheesy generalizations – “medicine is an art as
well as a science”
When in doubt, cut it out!

Some Additional Tips
Expect to go through several iterations
before you feel you are done
Spell check and read your PS over and
over again
Read it pretending you know nothing
about yourself
Have a trusted other person read and
critique your personal statement

Even More Advice!
It is much easier to refine and complete a
template than to stare at a blank screen for
hours. Therefore,
Create a document now on your computer
called “Personal Statement”
Put in three words as three separate
paragraphs
Past
Present
Future
Jot down thoughts as they come up
The rest is just editing and is much easier!

Logistical Details
1-page maximum length
Put the words “Personal Statement” at the
top

Resources
Books
Getting Into a Residency: A Guide for Medical
Students, 4th ed. Iserson KV, Tucson AZ,
Galen Press, 1996
First Aid for the Match: Insider Advice from
Students and Residency Directors. Le T,
Bhushan V, Amine C. Stamford CT, Appleton
& Lange, 1997

Resources, cont.
Your friendly Deans and OSA advisors:
Drs. Carr, Alpert, Beazley, O’Bryan, Woodson
Field-specific advisors
A friend with a critical editorial eye
Recent grads