How Sample College Admission Essays Can Help You Discuss Relevant Health-related Experiences in Your Essay
If you are a student planning to take up a medical degree in the future, it is very important that you gather as many health-related and research experiences as possible to guarantee your medical school admission. Make sure you capitalize on them when you write your essay for the admissions committee. Of course, as an applicant, you’d want to be the best candidate in the eyes of the admissions committee. So, here are some tips on how to write your essay, emphasizing your health-related experiences, which definitely will help guarantee your school admission.
Highlighting experiences
Highlight your “hands-on” or practical experience on handling real patient-care situations, either in school or in your community. Focus your writing on your previous experiences on the various health fields such as having direct patient contact, working in a hospital or doctor’s office as a receptionist, or working in summer camps for diabetics. Tell them how these experiences allowed you to observe the nature of work of various professionals that make up a health system, which includes the doctors, nurses, support staff and patients.
Clinical, research, and community service experiences, which you may have had, are also very important to highlight especially if they involve direct patient contact. You should aim to list down as many health-related experiences you’ve had as possible, so that you will be a very much potential candidate for admission, as well as be very knowledgeable in preparation for your admission interviews.
You may also include your practical experiences in hospital work such as hot-line or personal counseling, EMT, and lifesaving CPR, which are highly valued by the admissions committee. If you emphasize these, you increase your chances of being accepted to medical school. Since your experiences will indicate your interests in the field of medicine, be unique in laying-out your health-related experiences. You may also highlight a volunteer organization you have joined, such as the volunteer services in hospitals and health-related agencies, where you have participated in. If you have experienced paid jobs for positions such as a Certified Nurse’s Assistant (CNA), Phlebotomist, EMT, and many others, include them as well for they will be an integral part of your evaluation.
Other factors vital for admission
Students should be aware that high grades alone are no guarantee of admission. In recent years, admissions committees have been going beyond reviewing undergraduates’ grades and standardized test scores such as the MCAT, DAT, OAT, and PCAT. Now, they also review an applicant’s character, knowledge of health care, and the depth of commitment to pursuing medicine. Dwell on these factors and you are guaranteed admission.
Most medical school committees also scrutinize for a trace of “leadership” or “organizational ability” in the applicants, looking for any record of health-related participations. So, always remember that the school admission committee will put great value on your record of service. Therefore, make sure you highlight this as well on your essay,not to mention that you have a broad understanding of the human conditions. Again, if you really are decided on pursuing a career in the field of medicine, make sure you qualify for the school admissions committee’s criteria. You should have theneeded level of maturity, participated actively in community service, have experience in healthcare-related fields, be aware of healthcare issues, show human compassion and sensitivity, possess medical ethics and the trait of a logical problem solver. Make sure you clearly write them down on your essay. With these, you are surely on your way to becoming a doctor.
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College admissions committees look for more than just high GPAs and academic excellence in their applicants. Committee members also look for demonstrated dedication, passion, and sense of community in their future students. This is the reason that when you check out sample college admission essays, you’ll see that the well-crafted ones are those that are able to describe how the applicant manages to effectively balance academics and extracurricular activities. One question commonly asked by college applicants is which extracurricular activities would score the most points with admissions committees.
Truth be told, committee members do not look for specific extracurricular activities in applicants’ admissions essays. What they do look for is a certain focus, or field of interest, reflected in the applicant’s chosen organizations and clubs. Contrary to what most students think, simply joining tons of clubs and getting involved in numerous activities will not make them, or their admissions essay, stand out. Being a member in one too many organizations may even have the opposite effect. Because you’re dipping your toes on so many things, this may show lack of dedication and focus. To avoid this, join organizations and engage in school activities that you’re really interested in – whether it be music, sports, writing, theatre, etc.
Aim for leadership, don’t settle for membership
Between an editor-in-chief and columnist for a high school newspaper, the former will obviously score more points with committee members. This is because admissions committees want their students to not only have a sense of community, but also to have the ability to lead when the situation calls for it. As you’ll also see in sample college admission essays, the extracurricular activities you engaged in high school can serve as effective proof of your leadership and organizing skills. Use your admissions essay as a venue to describe in detail how you managed to organize an important event, and get the respect and commitment of your peers.
If you want to get a more concrete idea on how you can write about your extracurricular activities, you can scan the sample college admission essays available online.
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Looking to enter the best colleges and universities in the United States? Here are the five best
historically black colleges and universities (HBCU) that offer excellent education to both men and
women. Learn more about the curriculum, values, and admission requirements of each institution.
Spelman College
Spelman College is a private and independent historically black college for women. It was founded in
1881 and is known for promoting the values of leadership, academic excellence, achievement, and environment development and improvement. Women of all races are invited to join the college so that they may participate in learning the liberal arts and the sciences.
Admission requirements: Common Application, application fee, personal essay, transcripts, SAT or ACT scores, signature page and two letters of recommendation
Howard University
Howard University was founded in 1867 and carries with it until today an academic culture of avid
intellectual pursuit, a diverse student body, and a directed vision of success. Men and women from
different countries are invited to apply to Howard University where they will learn not just about the fields that interest them but also about the sciences and the humanities.
Admission requirements: Application form, scores in standardized tests, transcripts, recommendation letters, admission essays
Morehouse College
Morehouse College is a private all-black men’s college that provides a liberal arts education.
Morehouse College is an avenue for fostering spiritual and humanistic values and for providing a sense of belonging among black male students. A long list of famous people are associated with Morehouse College, which includes Martin Luther King Jr., Maynard Jackson, Donn Clenendon, and Shelton “Spike” Lee.
Admission requirements: Application form, standardized test scores, recommendation letters, transcripts, admission essays
Hampton University
Hampton University is a private institution that is also non-sectarian, non-profit, and co-educational. The university welcomes applicants of all races to date and is recognized for its liberal arts and technical education. Applicants, in addition, may enroll to various post-graduate and professional programs should they choose to.
Admission requirements: Downloadable application forms that also contain checklists of all required application items
Fisk University
Fisk University was founded in 1867 and is popular for its slogan, “Success in D.E.T.A.I.L.S. (diversity, excellence, teamwork, accountability, integrity, leadership, and service).” Some famous people associated with the university are John Hope Franklin, Thurgood Marshall, John W. Work Sr., John W. Work Jr., and John W. Work III.
Admission requirements: Downloadable Common Application that includes a checklist of all enrollment requirements.
Note that most of these colleges will require you to submit admission essays. To write excellent admission essays, it is advisable to view well-written sample college admission essays so that you will have an idea on the topics to write about. Sample college admission essays are special guides for writing and are available online.
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