Common BS/MD Essay Mistakes

Read Time: 3 minutes

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Good afternoon parents and future physicians,

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A critical part of the BS/MD application process is crafting compelling essays that reflect both your unique narrative and exceptional qualities. However, students are not familiar with the writing approach for BS/MD essays and often stumble into common pitfalls. To guide you in your writing process, here are four common mistakes I see with initial essay drafts and how you can avoid them.

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Focusing on Too Many Ideas or Qualities in One Essay

The Mistake: Trying to showcase every achievement and quality in a single essay can overwhelm the reader and dilute your main message. Applicants often believe that more information equals a stronger application, but this approach can make your essay feel cluttered and unfocused.

The Approach: Choose one or two key qualities or experiences to highlight in each essay. Ensure that you have one conceptual thread that connects each paragraph and forms the core essay message. By doing so, you can provide detailed examples and insights that clearly guide the reader to your primary essay message–often being your unique perspective or skills.

Example: Instead of listing every volunteer experience, dive deep into one significant project where you made a tangible impact. Describe the challenges you faced, the steps you took to overcome them, and the 1-3 most relevant skills you developed through this process.

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Using Storytelling Without Purpose

The Mistake: While storytelling can make your essay engaging, I often see students use imagery and elaborate adverbs that add no value to the core message of the essay. While strong essays do have storytelling, students must be careful assessing whether the storytelling adds value to the essay or is just irrelevant ‘fluff.’ Telling a story without a clear purpose can confuse the reader and fail to convey your intended message. For example in the ‘Why Medicine? essay’, some students recount detailed anecdotes that are interesting–but do not directly relate to their motivations for pursuing a career in medicine.

The Approach: Ensure that every story you include serves a clear purpose and aligns with the essay prompt. Your narrative should seamlessly tie into your personal motivations or the qualities that make you a strong student or future professional.

Example: If you choose to tell a story about a patient interaction during your volunteering at a hospital, connect it to how it solidified your desire to become a physician and the empathy you developed through the experience. Unless storytelling details directly contribute to your core message, avoid adding details about the smell and sounds of the hospital simply for dramatic effect.

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Not Using Intentional Transitions to Move the Essay Along

The Mistake: Poor transitions can make your essay feel disjointed and difficult to follow. Jumping from one idea to another without smooth transitions can disrupt the flow of your narrative, leaving the reader struggling to connect your thoughts.

The Approach: Use intentional transitions to guide the reader through your essay. Each paragraph should logically flow from the previous one, building a cohesive and compelling narrative. Transitions can be as simple as a few words or phrases that connect ideas and maintain the essay’s momentum. I advise students to write out their transitions before they even start their draft, and then review their transitions to ensure they effectively connect the ideas before and after. Never take transitions for granted.

Example: Use transitional phrases like “Building on this experience…” “This led me to…” or “Another instance where…” to connect your paragraphs and maintain a clear, logical progression. Most importantly, ending your paragraphs with reflective statements that show your takeaways is an incredibly effective way to ensure a cohesive essay that guides the reader to your core message.

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Losing Track of the Prompt’s Question in Supplemental Essays

The Mistake: Supplemental essays often come with specific prompts that require focused responses. A common mistake is straying from the prompt and writing a generic essay that does not directly address the question asked. This can make it seem like you are not paying attention to the requirements or lack the ability to follow directions–but more importantly, you are missing the hint the school is giving you to tell them what they want to hear.

The Approach: Before you start writing, read and reread the prompt to understand exactly what it is asking. Your essay structure can be creative, but the core message must come back to the prompt. Start by creating an outline that directly addresses each part of the question. If you read over your essay and cannot find an answer to the original prompt, you know it’s time to revise accordingly.

Example: If a prompt asks about what you enjoy in your free time, actually reflect on the activities you choose to pursue in your free time. While there are nuances to essay prompts and what schools are looking for in your response, you should focus on the prompt as it is written for specific supplemental questions like these–while still using your unique voice.

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By avoiding these common mistakes and focusing on clear, purpose-driven writing, you can prepare strong application essays. Remember, your aim is to present a cohesive and compelling narrative that highlights your unique strengths and motivations, making this clear to the admissions committee.

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Yours in success,

Rishi Ray

Outperform BS/MD Coaching

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You can schedule a free 15-minute BS/MD applicant evaluation session at any time to get started identifying where your son or daughter stands and what next steps are best for their BS/MD applications.

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