Adversity/Challenge secondary prompt idea help !

[jinjames0]

Hi SDN, I just wanted to know your opinions on my potential adversity/challenge essay topics. Which of these would be a good topic for the prompt?

Adversity/Challenge:
- severe depression in Junior Fall: had suicidal ideation, decided to take a 0 on a genetics exam and left for home to recover, realized the importance of self-care and mental health. I am concerned that Adcoms might see me as irresponsible for not caring about grades or weak for not being able to tough it out (which I disagree with but their call).
- childhood abuse/neglect: moved to the U.S. at age 9 by myself to live with a host family (mom's childhood friend). Some physical and verbal abuse + the pressure to make a life-changing decision (i.e. staying in the U.S. or going back to Korea).This instilled in me a passion to ensure the basic human need to feel heard and understood and also I became passionate about patient informed consent.
- confusing identity as a Korean who grew up in America: learned to be myself instead of trying to fit myself to being one or the other.
- At work, doctor sends all the angry patients my way because I just deal with them very calmly, so maybe use an interaction with one of them? I don't really know if I realized anything other than just being professional with patients and putting personal grudge/feelings aside.

Thank you for taking your time to read my thread !

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[jinjames0]

I'm just adding a reply to move this thread up !

 

[wysdoc]

Your last one sounds like a good challenge essay and could display your kindness in dealing with upset patients and ability to communicate with them calmly

First one you could use on any questions that ask if there were any discrepancies in your academic career (the question may call them "speed bumps" or "road bumps") and then you could explain about not taking the exam. This will leave you open to being questioned about the status of depression/what help are you getting in an interview. Can you discuss it by now?

Second one sounds good for an adversity essay, being somewhat powerless at that age to go back home if you wanted to

 

[jinjames0]

Your last one sounds like a good challenge essay and could display your kindness in dealing with upset patients and ability to communicate with them calmly

First one you could use on any questions that ask if there were any discrepancies in your academic career (the question may call them "speed bumps" or "road bumps") and then you could explain about not taking the exam. This will leave you open to being questioned about the status of depression/what help are you getting in an interview. Can you discuss it by now?

Second one sounds good for an adversity essay, being somewhat powerless at that age to go back home if you wanted to

This was super helpful ! I don't mind discussing my depression. I've learned a lot from the experience.

And it also appears that challenge and adversity are two different topics. Could you elaborate on that a little bit ?

Also, a lot of my stories that I "show" in my secondary responses involve clinical ones because I have 1600+ hours of experience as a medical assistant. Would it be better to show some non-clinical variety in the stories I use as an example/evidence/context?

I hope you have a wonderful day today !

 

[wysdoc]

"Challenge" is usually a situation that you handled or learned how to handle, and talking about it can show that you have the skills you will also use as a doctor.

"Adversity" I would think of as enduring some experiences or conditions that most people don't have to go through.

You can write about clinical or non-clinical examples, whatever you think fits the question best. Maybe you already wrote about that in your primary essays, so if you end up writing about the same experience again you can make some different points about it.

 

[jinjames0]

"Challenge" is usually a situation that you handled or learned how to handle, and talking about it can show that you have the skills you will also use as a doctor.

"Adversity" I would think of as enduring some experiences or conditions that most people don't have to go through.

You can write about clinical or non-clinical examples, whatever you think fits the question best. Maybe you already wrote about that in your primary essays, so if you end up writing about the same experience again you can make some different points about it.

Thank you so much !

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Thank you so much !

Another way of looking at the differences:

Challenge: you have three darts to ain for a target.

Adversity: you face a 30 mph headwind as you are throwing the darts.

 

[jinjames0]

Another way of looking at the differences:

Challenge: you have three darts to ain for a target.

Adversity: you face a 30 mph headwind as you are throwing the darts

Thank you !

 

[jinjames0]

"Challenge" is usually a situation that you handled or learned how to handle, and talking about it can show that you have the skills you will also use as a doctor.

"Adversity" I would think of as enduring some experiences or conditions that most people don't have to go through.

You can write about clinical or non-clinical examples, whatever you think fits the question best. Maybe you already wrote about that in your primary essays, so if you end up writing about the same experience again you can make some different points about it.

Another way of looking at the differences:

Challenge: you have three darts to ain for a target.

Adversity: you face a 30 mph headwind as you are throwing the darts.

Sorry to bother you with another question (or questions) :C But I just thought of one time in high school when I used a stereotype that was often used to depreciate my hard work (i.e. Asians are naturally smart) to win a student council election (i.e. I'm Asian, which means I'm smart, so pick me). Would this be appropriate to discuss in a challenge essay? My only concern is that this is very "high school" and trivial?

Cards on the table, I'm a little bit hesitant to talk about my episodes with angry patients because I don't know what I learned about myself that I already didn't know (to me, this was just a matter of professionalism + best interest of the patient), and the question asks for what I learned about myself. I also don't think my younger self trying to decide if he should stay in the U.S. or return to Korea is something I overcame--but a decision I was forced to make and had to adapt to--and the question asks for a challenge I overcame. I do think my depression is something I overcame and learned about myself. But it sounds like I should generally avoid talking about this (?).

If I talk about my depression, what would Adcoms possibly ask me to share with them ?

 

[chilly_md]

Sorry to bother you with another question (or questions) :C But I just thought of one time in high school when I used a stereotype that was often used to depreciate my hard work (i.e. Asians are naturally smart) to win a student council election (i.e. I'm Asian, which means I'm smart, so pick me). Would this be appropriate to discuss in a challenge essay? My only concern is that this is very "high school" and trivial?

Your concern is accurate. The above is not something I can see answering the prompt well. The one with angry patients is more suitable for the challenge essay, you will have to determine what takeaways you got from that experience. You could discuss your first angry patient since you probably learned more about yourself and the way you approach unfamiliar situations during your early days on the job.

 

[jinjames0]

Your concern is accurate. The above is not something I can see answering the prompt well. The one with angry patients is more suitable for the challenge essay, you will have to determine what takeaways you got from that experience. You could discuss your first angry patient since you probably learned more about yourself and the way you approach unfamiliar situations during your early days on the job.

Thank you @chilly_md for your response !

My first angry patient was actually someone who called the wrong office (i.e. our office) to confirm his appointment for the next day. He got upset and cursed at me when I told him his next appointment with us was actually more than 2 months away. I knew I didn't deserve the disrespect, but I nonetheless acknowledged his frustration and suggested that I check his chart etc. to help him. After I gained enough information about the situation, I reintroduced our office to him and asked if he had called the right office. He apologized and I accepted the apology + confirmed his appt with us (I actually got to screen him to after 2 months lol, it was pretty fun). This definitely helped me discover by ability to remain calm and professional when facing aggression.

Would this be an appropriate response? My concern here is that it didn't take an extensive introspection or training to overcome this situation. I kind of winged it and did what I thought was best and situation turned out well.

I have more dramatic conversations with angry patients involving verbal threats that come more in the future, but I don't think I learned anything new about myself since this happened later.

 

[chilly_md]

You can still discover your ability to remain calm and defuse a situation with later patients. More elaborate verbal threats (from patients who I assume you were right in front of) require more from you than dealing with a frustrated caller who is someplace else. It would definitely be more of a challenge.

 

[jinjames0]

You can still discover your ability to remain calm and defuse a situation with later patients. More elaborate verbal threats (from patients who I assume you were right in front of) require more from you than dealing with a frustrated caller who is someplace else. It would definitely be more of a challenge.

Thank you !