Any suggestions about what programs want to hear about in the personal statment?
Each program has an idea of the ideal candidate within the context of their program’s educational emphasis. Therefore, write about your career goals, your strengths, and what attracts you to their “type” of program. This is in addition to a general piece about your interest in and commitment to succeeding in surgical training. Furthermore, including several experiences or personal traits that make you unique and an interesting candidate is important. Ask yourself, “Would I want to seek this person out in a crowd to talk to based upon this statement?” The bottom line is whatever you choose to write about, most surgery programs want to know why you want to be a surgeon, a little about where you see yourself in the future, and some evidence that you are committed to surgery. Remember that the field of surgery is generally pretty conservative. Save the melodramatic stories and infamous quotes for another time. Surgeons are interested in what you have to say, not what Shakespeare said in th
