The purpose of your admission essay is to help you land a spot in your dream school. One way for you to come up with an effective essay is to make it stand out and avoid cliches. Using cliches will create a bad impression on your essay readers. They might think that you are too lazy or that you lack the creativity to come up with something original and unique. After all, admission essay readers will have to go through hundreds of essays during the application period; they want something that will grab their attention and make them more curious about a certain applicant. For tips on what cliche statements to avoid when writing your personal statement for medical school, read on.
Cliches commonly used in med school admission essays: I can make a difference
This is surely a laudable statement, but the admissions officers have probably read millions of essays that contain this statement. You do want to make a difference by becoming a doctor, but make sure that you state it in another way. Be original and creative. What the readers want are details and your meaningful experiences, and not hackneyed phrases.
Cliches commonly used in med school admissions essays: I know what it is to triumph over adversity
As another example of a cliche, this statement should definitely be avoided when writing your personal statement for medical school. Instead of saying this, why don’t you just narrate a life experience that basically implies that you know what it is to triumph over adversity? An example is getting fired from a job and bouncing back from depression. By including personal experiences, you are giving your readers a glimpse of your personality.
One way to avoid cliches is to come up with a creative way of telling your story. You can also try to find a different angle to your story to make sure it stands out from the rest. To help you out, you can read free sample personal statements online and see what other cliches you need to avoid.
Related questions:
1. Why is a cliche bad on the admission essay?
2. What is one example of a cliche found on medical application essays?
3. How can we avoid using the cliches?
