What is a personal statement and why is it important?
A personal statement is required when applying to graduate or professional school. When writing a personal statement it is important to follow the guidelines provided by the school or application service. The guidelines will provide a question to be addressed in the personal statement (i.e. “Why do you want to be a physician?”) and also state the maximum length of the document (typically the number of characters or pages). A personal statement serves as an introduction to the admissions committee, but is not a narrative of your resume. It is a story; your story. It should be about the writer and provide insight as to who you are and why you want to be a physician. Through the personal statement students should “show”, not tell who they are and how they arrived at where they are today. Your personal statement will likely be the most difficult writing assignment you’ve ever completed and students should be prepared to write 25 or more drafts before submitting the final version. A Personal Statement Workshop will be offered for PMED students during the spring semester of the junior year. Additional resources regarding writing personal statements can be found online www.creighton.edu/careercenter and in the Career Center library.
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