Tag: personal statement

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Non-Traditional Student: A Disadvantage For Radiology Residency Application?

non-traditional

Non-Traditional Student Question:

 Hello, Dr. Julius!

My question is regarding the perception of non-traditional medical students during the radiology residency match process. I am a current MD student who is ten years older than the average admission statistic for my school with class rank and scores well within the published ranges for a successful match. Should I expect my non-traditional status to be an extra hurdle during residency interviews? If so, what advice can you offer to help ease residency directors’ concerns? Also, would you recommend addressing it in my personal statement?

Your thoughts on the subject would be much appreciated!

Regards,

Non-Traditional Student

 

Answer:

From my experience and I believe from most program directors’ experiences, your older age will be a plus at application time. I have found that non-traditional applicants tend to be more mature, precisely know what they want, and are more conscientious than their younger peers. Additionally, they tend to become less distracted by the minutia of a residency and are more goal-driven. You should never apologize for your additional years of wisdom. Instead, embrace it.

When you write your personal statement, you should expound on your vast experiences that a younger resident does not have. Remember, also, to check out my blog called How To Create A Killer Radiology Personal Statement. Honestly, though, I would not worry about your age either when you write your personal statement or at the interview time. If this was an average job on the street, age could be a detriment. But, in the world of radiology,  it is a plus, not a minus!

 

Respectfully,

Barry Julius, MD

 

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The Fellowship Personal Statement- What’s The Deal?

fellowship personal statement

After the popularity of my initial article called How To Write A Killer Radiology Personal Statement, I’ve had multiple requests to write a post on How To Create A Fellowship Personal Statement. Now, I have to admit that there are lots of similarities between the two. And, many of the same writing techniques still hold. So, I would recommend that you click on the link above to remind you of some of the basics. However, you will find a few unique differences that I will share. Let’s have at it!

The Fellowship Personal Statement- Does It Matter?

Well, to start with, even though personal statements tend to be one of the least critical parts of the application, they are a bit more important in fellowship. Why? First and foremost, fellowship directors have fewer data points than residency directors. For instance, applicants may have a Deans letter and USMLE scores, but they are out of date. And, extracurriculars do not play as significant a role in the fellowship application since residents do not have as much time. Moreover, core examination results do not change the equation at all because they come back too late.

So, what’s left? The application, recommendations, interviews, and then, finally, the personal statement. So, by the sheer decreased numbers of relevant items to peruse, you will notice that the personal statement must play a more substantial role in the decision for fellowship.

To balance that out, however, most radiology fellowships, currently, are less competitive than the same application to residencies. Of course, that statement probably does not include some select programs such as the independent interventional radiology fellowships. But for most applications, if you take the higher weighting and the less competitive nature of fellowships, both factors probably cancel themselves out.

Finally, it’s not just my words. Instead, it comes directly from the mouth of several fellowship directors that I know. Most do not put too much stake in the personal statement. (Similar to residency directors!)

So, what’s the take-home point of all this? Well, even though marginally more influential, the personal statement still has little sway on most fellowship applications.

OK. How Should The Fellowship Personal Statement Differ From Residency?

Now that we got that brief introduction out of the way, here is the million-dollar answer to the question. And, it is rather simplistic. In addition to all the general recommendations for a residency personal statement, you need to add why you are specifically interested in this particular fellowship. And, you should also incorporate the reasons and motivations for you to select a fellowship in this area.

Unlike the residency personal statement, you want to rely less on extracurriculars and more upon your experiences in residency, not medical school. And, unless they pertain directly to the fellowship, your statement should not emphasize the motivations that initially led you to go to medical school or residency. Of course, however, if you continued to pursue an impressive extracurricular or motivation that began before residency and is relevant to your fellowship, you can add it.

What should you add to show your interest in your fellowship? It could be a radiofrequency ablation device if you want that fellowship. Maybe, you secretly desire to interview patients and miss close patient contact as a mammographer. Or, it could be your love for untangling wires and hoses as former electrician or plumber (notice the touch of lousy humor- that can be a useful tool!) Whatever you choose, you need to make it specifically known why you have decided upon this career path. And, show not tell why you have made that decision.

Where Does This Information Belong?

If you click on the following template link (Fellowship Personal Statement Template), notice that in the first section, you have the “hook” to reel that program director into your application. (That still counts!) Well, you need to apply the reasons you are interested in radiology to this first paragraph. Makes sense, right? Get to the point!

The Fellowship Personal Statement- Not So Hard Right?

To make a great fellowship personal statement, all it takes is a few steps. First, take a look at my Fellowship Personal Statement Template and the link to How To Write A Killer Radiology Residency Personal Statement. It’s an excellent summary if I say so myself!  Then, make sure to add your specific motivations for fellowship in your first paragraph. And, finally, explain any other extracurriculars or specifics during your residency that may be relevant to your fellowship. There you have it. Now, you have the system that you will need to make that exceleent fellowship personal statement!

 

 

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Radiology Personal Statement Mythbusters- Five Common Misconceptions About Radiologists

Since I started work on my radiology program’s admissions committee in 2009, every year, I notice a significant disconnect between the medical student impression of what radiologists do and the actual day to day work of the radiologist. The radiology personal statement is a shining example of this truth. In this post, I will debunk many of the myths espoused in the personal statement about what we do daily (Just like the real Mythbusters– this is going to be fun!!!). Let us begin…

Where’s Waldo?

Out of the thousands of personal statements I have reviewed, many use the Where’s Waldo analogy in one form or another. If I see another personal essay with a resemblance to Where’s Waldo?, I will scream very loudly!!! All kidding aside (I’m not kidding!): The Where’s Waldo analogy is one part of the radiology job that is not understood by many applicants.

So, what is it that a radiologist does? First and foremost- we read films and lots of them. Film reading heavily leans upon pattern recognition. And that is what we do. We use search patterns and compare our visual databank to the thousands upon thousands of images, we have already seen.

How does that differ from Where’s Waldo? In Where’s Waldo, the scenes typically change on each page, and you are expecting to find the same Waldo character in a sea of miscellaneous extraneous information. For the radiologist, the scene is usually the same, whether it is a chest x-ray or a CT scan or even a Brain MRI. And, the findings can vary widely in any given film. You may find a pneumothorax or a herniated bowel loop or an infarct. However, you are not looking for one specific thing. You are looking for everything. This general search for everything is very different from finding one Waldo, who is always going to have the same appearance. The analogy does not hold very well!

The One Fascinating Case

A personal statement will often talk about one fascinating case and how that led the applicant to the decision of choosing radiology as a career (I am sick of this conclusion!). Why does this point demonstrate so little insight into the day to day practice of radiology? Sure, every once in a while, something is fascinating- perhaps it is a bezoar or a sporadic tumor. And, sure, it is excellent to perseverate on that case. But in reality, although exciting, these cases take up less than .01 percent of the radiologist’s work. You have to expect to pick up thousands of normals, normal variants, and common findings before picking up one of these rare zebras. When I hear that an applicant is choosing radiology for the one fascinating case, it does not show a good understanding of our day to day work!

The Family Member Saved By A Radiology Finding

Sure, every once in a while, the radiologist is the hero. We discover an occult aneurysm, unexpected appendicitis, or early breast cancer. Maybe the radiologist has picked something up in your relative to save the day and has been credited. But in reality, how often does that occur? Not that often! In reality, it is pretty darn unusual. If you want to save lives daily and get the credit, go into trauma surgery!!!

In general, radiologists have to be pretty humble because rarely are we showcased as an example of the medical profession for all to see. Usually, the doctors on display are the surgeons, internists, ob/gynecologists, or almost every other medical specialty. Don’t go into radiology to expect the glory of saving patients. We are usually behind the scenes!!!

The Diagnostic Dilemma

Many personal statements will describe when a radiologist went through a case and came up with an incredible on-target well thought out differential diagnosis. And, the applicant will point out that they want to go into radiology to make incredible interpretations. In reality, I also love a well thought out differential diagnosis in a compelling case. Unfortunately, most studies are not in the category of the intriguing differential diagnosis. Final interpretations are usually mundane and limited. Don’t expect to go into radiology to become the next House, MD, every hour of every day!

The Isolated Radiologist

What is the last thing that we want to hear as radiologists? That we spend an excessive amount of time in an isolated dark room, not speaking to others for hours. Yet, many personal statements assume that we rarely come in contact with others and only plug away at the films. Although there are probably a few radiologists out there like that, it is usually the opposite. I can’t tell you how many days, there is a constant bombardment with technologist questions, physician consults, nursing issues, and more. Please get your facts straight before putting it in writing a personal statement!!!

Busting Myths And The Final Truth About The Personal Statement

The good news: After all these false assumptions in many of these personal statements and the thousands of personal essays that have come across my desk, very rarely does one spur me to change a radiology residency applicant’s disposition on the final rank list. I usually give these personal statements a pass because I understand it isn’t easy to comprehend what a radiologist does without stepping in our shoes.

On the other hand, if I had to give you one piece of advice as one of the leading players in the application process at our institution, make sure you are not one of the chosen few who write a personal statement that influences our final decision. These are the personal statements with bizarre and sometimes scary thought processes and conclusions. The outcome of these weird personal statements is not usually positive! (meaning DO NOT RANK) So, stay away from the impulse to write something too unusual/different. We typically use the personal statement to weed out potentially psychotic behavior, not as a tool to make the final rank list.

So, as long as you don’t write something overly bizarre, I wouldn’t worry about this part of the application too much. Just make sure to avoid the basic grammatical and spelling errors. And, most importantly, don’t try to rock the boat!!!