Life happens. And life happens to everyone, premedical students included. Unfortunately, often the things that come up can be detrimental to a premed on the path to becoming a doctor.
Regardless of the situation, it’s important to accurately assess your motivations and drive for becoming a physician. If you’re certain that medical school is the right path, it’s crucial to own and improve upon any deficiencies.
Below are three hypothetical applicant scenarios where hardship or illness played a part in the student’s application prospects. Use these scenarios as a guide if you find yourself in a similar situation.
Applicant A was diagnosed with a serious medical illness during the spring semester of his sophomore year of college. After the diagnosis, his grades suffered and his GPA dropped. In addition, he had to take a leave of absence from school while working toward a full recovery.
Applicant B had financial limitations and had to work full time during school to support herself. She subsequently did not have time to devote to the traditional premed extracurricular activities, such as clinical work, shadowing, etc.
[Read: Physician or Doctor Shadowing — What Medical School Applicants Should Know]
Applicant C had a family emergency and had to return home out of state to stay with her family there. She had to take a break from college and later enroll in a different institution to finish her undergrad degree.
Medical school admissions committees have encountered all of these scenarios. Although they can seem difficult to overcome, there are specific steps these applicants and those who encounter similar situations can take to overcome their deficiencies.
Take an honest assessment of your situation. It’s important to have an introspective conversation with yourself about how much you want to be a doctor and what you are willing to commit in order to make the path successful.
If, at the end of the day, you are certain that you want to become a physician, then take ownership of your deficiencies. Whatever you went through, do not deny or try to skirt around those negative circumstances.
[READ: Overcoming Adversity: How to Stress Your Experiences When Applying to Medical School]
Give context to your situation on your application. You need to explain what happened, but more importantly, explain how you have become a stronger, more capable applicant and person from the circumstances.
Let’s use Applicant A as an example. Although this applicant doesn’t have to disclose the specifics of his medical condition in his application, he should mention the circumstances and how they affected his academics. He should also discuss how, although difficult, he has improved his capabilities by building desirable attributes such as resilience and determination.
Thoroughly evaluate your application to see what can be improved. Sometimes, having an adviser or professor look things over can really help.
Maybe you need to increase your GPA. Maybe you need to take a gap year in order to spruce up your extracurricular activities. It’s important to take the necessary time needed to truly improve upon your deficiencies to be a better applicant in the future.
[READ: Most Common Reasons Medical School Applicants Get Rejected]
In the case of Applicant B, for example, she may want to consider taking a year off school and devote her time to extracurricular activities. Since she has to work, she may consider working as a medical scribe or a research coordinator in order to get involved in a clinical activity while still supporting herself. That way, when she does apply, she will be a more well-rounded applicant with plenty of relevant experience for medical school.
Get help. Becoming a doctor is a long and difficult path. It is acceptable to ask for help from advisers, family and friends.
In order to be successful on this path, it’s crucial that you take care of yourself. Find a balance between working toward your goals and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Having others help and support you will allow greater time to devote to your academics and activities while honing your strengths in becoming a physician.
More from U.S. News
What to Know About Applying to Medical School Later in Life
How to Decide Where to Apply to Medical School
Pros, Cons of Applying to Medical School After Your Third Year of College
How to Make Up for Medical School Application Deficiencies originally appeared on usnews.com
