Tips for Writing Your Personal Statement

The process for applying to dental school is lengthy and has various components. One aspect of the dental school application is a personal statement. The goal of a personal statement is to get a dental school to become interested in you as a person and want to meet you, moving you into the next step of the process. While it is fantastic to have a high GPA and high DAT scores, many schools want a well-rounded applicant to fill an open position. The personal statement is your opportunity to showcase what makes you unique and shows your personality and interests. 

What to Include In a Personal Statement

A personal statement is a one-page essay that should not exceed 4,500 characters, including spaces. This essay needs to give a clear picture of who you are and why you want to enter into the field of dentistry. This is your opportunity during the application process to be creative and showcase yourself aside from your academic accomplishments. There is no set guideline of points to follow so it is important to follow these tips:

  • Be yourself and don’t use lingo or phrases you would not use in real life

  • Think about if you would be interested in reading your essay

  • Share a moment that led to want a career in dentistry

  • Tell your own story

  • Be thoughtful about how you plan to contribute to the field in the future

  • Ask a friend, family member, mentor, or professor to read, critique and proofread

  • Proofread as well as you can

What to Avoid In a Personal Statement

As mentioned earlier, this is your opportunity to share your voice and why you feel you would be a good candidate. Be sure not to write what you think the application committee would want to read. Keep everything in your perspective and share your personal feelings. Do not write your resume in essay form and do not include portions of your letters of recommendations. Let each part of your application speak for itself. The application committee will see a correlation between the documents, and that will be viewed as a negative. Do not wait until the last moment to write your statement. This is your opportunity to share your voice and story, so give yourself plenty of time to properly formulate your thoughts. Write numerous drafts until you feel comfortable with your words.

If you are not yet at the part of your journey that would require writing a personal statement and are still in the stage of determining your future, we suggest learning more about the scholarship opportunity provided by Dr. Michael Krochak. The next scholarship application period is opening this month, June 2022!

 2023 Scholarship Award Details

The Dr. Michael Krochak Pre-Dental Scholarship was developed to encourage young men and women to enter the field of dentistry. The scholarship helps students pursuing careers in dentistry to meet the rising cost of college tuition. The 2023 award applications will be accepted from June 2022 through January 2023. If you are a college junior or senior enrolled in a U.S. accredited college or university, and are engaged in pre-dental studies with a 3.3 GPA or better by the end of your sophomore year, you are eligible to apply for this one-time $1,000 scholarship. 

Best of luck!

Michael Krochak