Your residency is a critical step on the road to becoming a board-certified physician, and the residency matching process is unsurprisingly competitive. Program directors look for candidates who have demonstrated excellent academic performance, boast a strong academic record as well as great USMLE scores, and are supported by impressive letters of recommendation.
In a pool of well-qualified applicants, practicing physicians point to the personal statement as the perfect opportunity to catch a residency program director’s eye. Read on to learn some of their tips for how to craft a strong residency personal statement.
Physician-approved tips for writing a great residency personal statement
The National Resident Matching Program’s (NRMP) 2021 Program Director Survey indicates that a candidate’s personal statement for residency is among the top five most important criteria program directors consider when reviewing applications.
Many programs begin filtering candidates by USMLE scores, which essentially leaves everyone on a level playing field at that point. You’ll want to craft an eye-catching personal statement to help you stand out in the crowd. Follow these tips for doing just that:
1. Express your individuality
You can demonstrate your academic excellence pretty clearly by offering evidence of a strong medical school performance and a solid USMLE score. But your residency personal statement will offer you the opportunity to give program directors a more complete picture of who you are as an individual.
This essay is a chance to highlight what sets you apart from other applicants, so it’s important to go beyond simply listing your achievements. These items will already be included in your curriculum vitae (CV), so it won’t help admissions committees learn anything new about you.
It’s also smart to ensure that any of the experiences or extracurricular activities you do write about in your personal statement are true interests of yours. Dr. Natasha Sriraman, pediatrician and St. George’s University (SGU) graduate, notes that review committees can tell when you’re not being genuine.
“Don’t do things because you think it’s going to look good,” she advises. “Do things that you’re passionate about.”
2. Demonstrate your interest in the specialty
By the time you reach residency, you should have a solid idea of the medical specialty you’re looking to pursue. With that in mind, it’s a good idea to write about why you’re drawn to that particular specialty when you’re crafting your residency personal statement.
Be sure to do this in a way that is true to your personal passions rather than providing generic, surface-level motivations. For example, Dr. Sriraman says she’s come across too many candidates applying to pediatrics programs who cite their love of working with children. “We all like kids,” she jokes. “That’s not a reason to go into this field of medicine.”
Instead, she suggests sharing an anecdote from an experience you had that influenced your decision to pursue that area of practice. This could be a recent encounter during clinical rotations, a string of interactions with a particular instructor, or even something that happened prior to your time in medical school. As long as you’re able to make a logical connection, review committees are looking to learn how your experiences thus far will contribute to your success as a physician.
3.Address any potential concerns head-on
It can be uncomfortable to feel like you have any sort of blemish on your CV. But rather than shying away from a bad semester or a mysterious gap in your education, you can use your personal statement as an opportunity to elaborate on what was going on in your life at that time.
Putting academic issues or delays into context can make a big difference. It demonstrates that you possess levels of self-awareness and personal responsibility that can actually be pretty crucial when practicing medicine.
>Furthermore, omitting issues in your personal statement doesn’t mean you can avoid addressing them—if you make it to the next phase of the application process, you can expect these topics to come up in your residency interviews. “While it is important to address this gap within your personal statement, I also advise medical students to practice what they’re going to verbally say when asked about the gap during the interview,” Dr. Sriraman says.
4. Be thoughtful about the structure
The Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) helps streamline the process of applying to residency programs, but the user guide is pretty vague about formatting when it comes to the personal statement for residency. As long as you structure your essay with an introduction, a middle section, and a conclusion, how you choose to arrange your personal statement is really up to you. What’s most important is that you’re able to keep your readers interested.
If you’re unsure of where to begin, apply the same approach you would with a paper in high school or college. Create an outline to help organize your thoughts, building a logical progression of ideas and experiences. While the parameters around the structure of your residency personal statement are loose, it is a common best practice to limit it to one page in length.
5. Don’t forget to edit and proofread
It’s often helpful to employ an iterative process when drafting this essay. Start by getting everything out on paper. Then go back and begin whittling your story down to include only the most important pieces.
Once you’re happy with how you’ve articulated your experiences and aspirations, it’s smart to enlist some outside opinions. Having a trusted mentor, instructor, or classmate read through your personal statement can be helpful, as they’re familiar with the inner workings of the medical field.
Seek out feedback from people who know you well but also from some who you aren’t as close with. This can help you collect objective opinions based solely on your writing. And be sure to have any strong writers or editors you know proofread your essay because even the smallest errors could make a big statement about your focus or attention to detail. Students at SGU have the advantage of submitting their personal statements to be edited by physicians who are residency mentors.
6. Give yourself enough time
Given how many elements you need to complete for residency applications, you’ll be doing yourself a huge favor by starting your personal statement with plenty of time to spare. Even if you consider yourself a fast writer, it’s smart to be proactive. In fact, it’s often recommended to spend at least two months working on this essay.
“Between taking exams, finishing your applications, and regular life, you want to give yourself two to three months,” Dr. Sriraman specifies. Giving yourself extra time allows you to progress through the multiple phases of writing and editing without feeling rushed.
Start writing your residency success story
You don’t have to be a seasoned creative writer to pen an effective residency personal statement. With some careful planning, thoughtful phrasing, and a thorough review process, you can write an essay that will make program directors take notice.
Your personal statement for residency could end up being the factor that helps you secure a coveted interview invitation. These face-to-face meetings will be the final stage that allows program directors to determine if you’d be a good fit for their residency positions.
Get ready to put your best foot forward in those conversations by reviewing the advice in our article “Residency Interview Preparation Tips for Medical Students.”
Ready to start your medical school journey?
Are you considering St. George’s University Medical School? If you need any more convincing, just reach out to some graduates or current students. They’re happy to tell you what their experiences were like.
If you feel like SGU could be the right medical school for you, take the next step. Continue your research by visiting our request information page.
*This article was originally published in 2019. It has since been updated to reflect new information.
How to Craft an Excellent MD Residency Personal Statement
Your residency is a critical step on the road to becoming a board-certified physician, and the residency matching process is unsurprisingly competitive. Program directors look for candidates who have demonstrated excellent academic performance, boast a strong academic record as well as great USMLE scores, and are supported by impressive letters of recommendation.
In a pool of well-qualified applicants, practicing physicians point to the personal statement as the perfect opportunity to catch a residency program director’s eye. Read on to learn some of their tips for how to craft a strong residency personal statement.
Physician-approved tips for writing a great residency personal statement
The National Resident Matching Program’s (NRMP) 2021 Program Director Survey indicates that a candidate’s personal statement for residency is among the top five most important criteria program directors consider when reviewing applications.
Many programs begin filtering candidates by USMLE scores, which essentially leaves everyone on a level playing field at that point. You’ll want to craft an eye-catching personal statement to help you stand out in the crowd. Follow these tips for doing just that:
1. Express your individuality
You can demonstrate your academic excellence pretty clearly by offering evidence of a strong medical school performance and a solid USMLE score. But your residency personal statement will offer you the opportunity to give program directors a more complete picture of who you are as an individual.
This essay is a chance to highlight what sets you apart from other applicants, so it’s important to go beyond simply listing your achievements. These items will already be included in your curriculum vitae (CV), so it won’t help admissions committees learn anything new about you.
It’s also smart to ensure that any of the experiences or extracurricular activities you do write about in your personal statement are true interests of yours. Dr. Natasha Sriraman, pediatrician and St. George’s University (SGU) graduate, notes that review committees can tell when you’re not being genuine.
“Don’t do things because you think it’s going to look good,” she advises. “Do things that you’re passionate about.”
2. Demonstrate your interest in the specialty
By the time you reach residency, you should have a solid idea of the medical specialty you’re looking to pursue. With that in mind, it’s a good idea to write about why you’re drawn to that particular specialty when you’re crafting your residency personal statement.
Be sure to do this in a way that is true to your personal passions rather than providing generic, surface-level motivations. For example, Dr. Sriraman says she’s come across too many candidates applying to pediatrics programs who cite their love of working with children. “We all like kids,” she jokes. “That’s not a reason to go into this field of medicine.”
Instead, she suggests sharing an anecdote from an experience you had that influenced your decision to pursue that area of practice. This could be a recent encounter during clinical rotations, a string of interactions with a particular instructor, or even something that happened prior to your time in medical school. As long as you’re able to make a logical connection, review committees are looking to learn how your experiences thus far will contribute to your success as a physician.
3.Address any potential concerns head-on
It can be uncomfortable to feel like you have any sort of blemish on your CV. But rather than shying away from a bad semester or a mysterious gap in your education, you can use your personal statement as an opportunity to elaborate on what was going on in your life at that time.
Putting academic issues or delays into context can make a big difference. It demonstrates that you possess levels of self-awareness and personal responsibility that can actually be pretty crucial when practicing medicine.
>Furthermore, omitting issues in your personal statement doesn’t mean you can avoid addressing them—if you make it to the next phase of the application process, you can expect these topics to come up in your residency interviews. “While it is important to address this gap within your personal statement, I also advise medical students to practice what they’re going to verbally say when asked about the gap during the interview,” Dr. Sriraman says.
4. Be thoughtful about the structure
The Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) helps streamline the process of applying to residency programs, but the user guide is pretty vague about formatting when it comes to the personal statement for residency. As long as you structure your essay with an introduction, a middle section, and a conclusion, how you choose to arrange your personal statement is really up to you. What’s most important is that you’re able to keep your readers interested.
If you’re unsure of where to begin, apply the same approach you would with a paper in high school or college. Create an outline to help organize your thoughts, building a logical progression of ideas and experiences. While the parameters around the structure of your residency personal statement are loose, it is a common best practice to limit it to one page in length.
5. Don’t forget to edit and proofread
It’s often helpful to employ an iterative process when drafting this essay. Start by getting everything out on paper. Then go back and begin whittling your story down to include only the most important pieces.
Once you’re happy with how you’ve articulated your experiences and aspirations, it’s smart to enlist some outside opinions. Having a trusted mentor, instructor, or classmate read through your personal statement can be helpful, as they’re familiar with the inner workings of the medical field.
Seek out feedback from people who know you well but also from some who you aren’t as close with. This can help you collect objective opinions based solely on your writing. And be sure to have any strong writers or editors you know proofread your essay because even the smallest errors could make a big statement about your focus or attention to detail. Students at SGU have the advantage of submitting their personal statements to be edited by physicians who are residency mentors.
6. Give yourself enough time
Given how many elements you need to complete for residency applications, you’ll be doing yourself a huge favor by starting your personal statement with plenty of time to spare. Even if you consider yourself a fast writer, it’s smart to be proactive. In fact, it’s often recommended to spend at least two months working on this essay.
“Between taking exams, finishing your applications, and regular life, you want to give yourself two to three months,” Dr. Sriraman specifies. Giving yourself extra time allows you to progress through the multiple phases of writing and editing without feeling rushed.
Start writing your residency success story
You don’t have to be a seasoned creative writer to pen an effective residency personal statement. With some careful planning, thoughtful phrasing, and a thorough review process, you can write an essay that will make program directors take notice.
Your personal statement for residency could end up being the factor that helps you secure a coveted interview invitation. These face-to-face meetings will be the final stage that allows program directors to determine if you’d be a good fit for their residency positions.
Get ready to put your best foot forward in those conversations by reviewing the advice in our article “Residency Interview Preparation Tips for Medical Students.”
Ready to start your medical school journey?
Are you considering St. George’s University Medical School? If you need any more convincing, just reach out to some graduates or current students. They’re happy to tell you what their experiences were like.
If you feel like SGU could be the right medical school for you, take the next step. Continue your research by visiting our request information page.
*This article was originally published in 2019. It has since been updated to reflect new information.
