Example Medical Personal Statement
After leaving school the idea of one day being a doctor seemed like a totally unrealizable dream, in spite of the fact that I have always wanted to put my compassionate nature to use to help people who are suffering. Nevertheless, I chose to dedicate my working life wherever possible to working in the healthcare sector and caring for people. As I have done so, I have come to have more faith in my own abilities and aptitudes. Through working with sick and injured people on a regular basis, I realised that I have the personal skills and the intelligence to succeed as a doctor. Just as importantly, working with patients for several years has only strengthened my commitment to pursuing a career in which I can help people.A few years ago I also returned to education, an experience which I thoroughly enjoyed, to bring my academic skills up to the level required for handling the demands of an undergraduate sciences degree. Through this combination of real-life work experience and formal study, I now feel fully prepared to take a decisive step towards fulfilling my ambition of being a doctor by completing a course that will subsequently allow me to enter medical school.
I believe that the extensive and wide-ranging work experience that I have acquired has given me an in-depth understanding of the many different challenges of life at the front-line of the health sector. Perhaps the most demanding of the posts that I have held is the position of medic in the Royal Air Force, which I have occupied since November 2008. It has been a privilege to combine being able to serve my country with being able to help care for people who have put their lives at risk for the greater good. I have received a significant level of formal medical training through holding this position, backed up by a substantial level of regular experience in tending to servicemen and women. Through the everyday demands of the position and training in areas such as aeromedical evacuations, the role has taught me how to act calmly and do my job professionally whilst working under extreme levels of pressure. I was motivated to work in this role after a work experience placement as a nurse’s assistant in Dublin. Observing the work of doctors and nurses at the hospital filled me with a sense of admiration for their ability to treat patients with empathy and dignity and to work as part of a team.These are characteristics that I have also tried to uphold in my other main healthcare role of working as an administrative and support worker in a wide range of medical facilities through an employment agency. Over the last few years I have worked in NHS hospitals, GP surgeries and a range of specialist units, giving me a breadth of experience of the different settings in which doctors work. I have enjoyed this patient-facing role and the opportunities that it has given me both to offer comfort and assistance to patients, which has greatly improved my communication skills, and to learn about the realities of life in the National Health Service.
I have also enjoyed the academic side of the health care profession. In 2009 I completed an ACCESS course in Health and Human Sciences. The course provided a stimulating and thorough introduction to the core scientific subjects that are necessary for studying biomedical sciences and further healthcare training, and I found the course’s emphasis on their relevance to healthcare work particularly worthwhile. Returning to education with a greater level of maturity and backed by the motivation I acquired through professional life really helped me to make the most of the opportunities that the course offered me. The combination of what I learnt on the course and my working background in the RAF have made me particularly interested in the areas of critical illness and pain management; I look forward to studying these and many other subjects in greater depth at university.
We hope this example Medical personal statement is useful if you are looking for help writing a well structured personal statement of your own.