by Cydney Foote
Writing Compelling Activity Descriptions to Boost Your Med School Application
Having worked in admissions for more than two decades, I have read thousands of experience and activity descriptions from applicants to medical schools and schools in healthcare-related fields. Some candidates seem to view this element of their application as less important than their personal statement, writing only cursory descriptions of their tasks. This “job description” approach only tells admissions committees what the job entailed, not how well (or how poorly) the applicant performed. Other applicants fill out only a few of their activity descriptions, leaving admissions committees to wonder what they did with the rest of their time.
Although this part of the application might not seem all that significant, your activity descriptions can actually make or break your chances of acceptance. Descriptions that are confusing and difficult to read, that are superficial or overly cliched, or that reveal impatience, bitterness, or another equally negative emotion will not impress the admissions reader. I recently worked with a reapplicant who wrote that working in a dermatology office had taught her that she did not want to specialize in dermatology. While this was an important personal revelation, it is not necessarily one that the applicant needed to share with admissions committee members – some of whom might be dermatologists!
It can also be quite damaging if you do not have enough activities, if those activities are not described accurately, or if you don’t provide sufficient information about what you did.
The Where, What, Why, and How of Writing Compelling Activity Descriptions
To ensure that your activity descriptions shine, use these four questions to help you formulate your entries:
1. Where did you work or volunteer? (one sentence)
While there’s no need to describe the mission of such well-known organizations as the Red Cross or MEDLIFE, others might benefit from some context – and diving straight into your responsibilities might be confusing without such clarification. So, briefly introduce the organization or company. Describe its location, mission, type, and any other relevant details. For example, is it a Level 1 trauma hospital? A nonprofit organization? A student-run club? Give the adcom a succinct and easy-to-understand, one-sentence introduction to the place you worked or volunteered.
Example: ABC is a volunteer-run free clinic serving Mytown’s Hispanic community.
Example: I provided administrative support to XYZ, a transnational shipping company with 14 ships.
2. What were your responsibilities and accomplishments? (three to four sentences)
As you describe your duties, pay attention to the tone you use. If you say, for example, that you “had to change sheets on hospital beds,” it sounds like you didn’t want to or that you didn’t enjoy or see the value in the task! If you instead say that you “changed sheets immediately after patients were discharged to ensure swift turnaround time and help meet patient care needs,” that demonstrates how you think ahead, take initiative, and support the work of the team and the hospital as well as its patients. Not just what you say but how you say it really matters here.
Many people make the mistake of simply listing their job duties or the lab tests they learned. To stand out from other applicants, include how you went above and beyond your job’s basic requirements. Cover all the ways you participated and assisted others. It’s better to be thorough than to regret not having included more detail after you’ve submitted your application.
Example: In addition to swiftly turning over exam rooms to ensure a smooth patient flow, I created checklists that helped new volunteers prepare rooms for PCPs.
Example: I took the initiative to reach out to neighboring labs to foster a collaborative environment and build research networks, widening research opportunities for our undergraduate students.
3. Why was this activity or experience important to you? Why did you choose it? (two to three sentences)
To fully flesh out your activity descriptions, explain why you wanted to do the work and how it has benefited you. Not only does this provide more insight into who you are as a person, but also it will make writing these descriptions more interesting for you. If you engage in a deeper level of reflection, you might learn something new about yourself or the experience!
Example: After learning ASL to communicate with my cousin, volunteering with the American Society for Deaf Children introduced me to the wider world of deaf culture and revealed my affinity for working with young children.
Example: Working in customer service, I developed partnership-building skills such as listening attentively, using tact and diplomacy to manage upset customers, and adapting quickly to challenging situations in a self-directed environment.
4. Big picture: How did you influence the community you worked with? How did the activity affect your life/career goals? (one to two sentences)
Considering the outcomes of your experience will help you create more thoughtful and elegant conclusions for your activity descriptions. Dive deep here! There could be outcomes you’ve never considered before that have had a truly meaningful impact on you. Some may be related to your decision to pursue medicine or how you hope to practice in the future, and these are fine to include. But don’t feel the need to connect every activity to medicine. Without depth or reflection, these connections can feel forced or superficial.
Example: Our lab processed 10,000 COVID test samples daily, ensuring that people could make informed decisions about quarantining and treatments.
Example: While teaching patients about lifestyle changes that could help decrease their risk of complications, I gained a deeper appreciation for the purpose of primary prevention.
Using these four questions will help you write outstanding activity descriptions that your application reviewers will enjoy reading. If yours are well written, you can inspire and impress everyone who reviews your application.
Accepted can help! Schedule a free consultation with an Accepted expert. We can assist you in creating an admissions strategy that works for your unique situation.
Since 2001, Cydney Foote has advised hundreds of successful applicants for medical and dental education, residency and fellowship training, and other health-related degrees. Admissions consulting combines her many years of creating marketing content with five years on fellowship and research selection committees at the University of Washington School of Medicine. She’s also shared her strategy for impressing interviewers in a popular webinar and written three books and numerous articles on the admissions process.
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