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Western University of Health Sciences Secondary Application

Western university of health sciences secondary essay prompts, (if you have updated prompts, please submit them at updatesecondaries.com).

Prompts have been updated November 2023 . (Older essays, if available are below)

• What experience observing a DO solidified your desire/ambition to become an osteopathic physician? (This could be a formal shadowing experience (one-on-one with a physician), scribing, observing your own physician, friend, or family member who is a DO). (500 words)
• If you have not had the opportunity to shadow/observe a DO why is it important to you to become an osteopathic physician? (500 words)
• What was your most memorable community service activity and how did your activity benefit the community? (500 words)
• How does the COMP Mission statement align with your values? (500 words)
• Why do you want to attend COMP? (500 words)
• What does diversity, equity, and inclusion mean to you and why are they important? (500 words)

If yes, briefly describe your role and what skills you gained from participation in the research. (500 words)

Please provide us with the link to the publication or abstract if possible.

• Briefly discuss any extenuating circumstances which you feel are pertinent to your application (poor grades, course withdrawals, lapse in your education, etc.). (500 words)
• If you have not taken any coursework for over 3 years, please explain why and what you have been doing during that period of time. (500 words)
• Are you a transfer applicant? (Yes/No)

Primary Deadline: Usually Around Feb 1st Secondary Deadline : Unknown (Try to turn your secondaries around within two weeks after receiving) Secondary Fee : $65 FAP Waiver : Full Fee Waived Casper Required : Yes PREview Required: No Screens Applications : Yes Accepts Application Updates : Yes/Portal

Western University of Health Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific Mission:

The Mission of the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific (COMP) is to prepare students to become technically competent, culturally sensitive, professional and compassionate physicians who are prepared for graduate medical education, who are lifelong learners, and who will serve society by providing comprehensive, patient centered healthcare with the distinctive osteopathic philosophy. This is accomplished through excellence in curriculum, translational research, service, osteopathic clinical practice and the enhancement of osteopathic graduate medical education.

Western University of Health Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific Vision:

Each class creates their own vision statement. 

Older Essays:

• What experience observing a DO solidified your desire/ambition to become an osteopathic physician? (This could be a formal shadowing experience (one-on-one with a physician), scribing, observing your own physician, friend, or family member who is a DO). (500 Words)
• If you have not had the opportunity to shadow/observe a DO why is it important to you to become an osteopathic physician? (500 Words)
• If you have not had an opportunity shadow/observe a physician, please explain the extenuating circumstances that prevented you from doing so. (500 Words)
• Are you providing a letter of recommendation from a physician? (Yes/No) (500 Words)
• What was your most memorable community service activity and how did your activity benefit the community? (500 Words)
• How does the COMP Mission statement align with your values? (500 Words)
• Why do you want to attend COMP? (500 Words)
• What does diversity, equity, and inclusion mean to you and why are they important? (500 Words)
• Have you participated in research? (yes/no) If yes, briefly describe your role and what skills you gained from participation in the research. Please provide us with the link to the publication or abstract if possible. Did you contribute to the published work as an author/coauthor? (yes/no) (500 Words)
• Briefly discuss any extenuating circumstances which you feel are pertinent to your application (poor grades, course withdrawals, lapse in your education, etc.). (500 Words)
• Are you a transfer applicant? (yes/no) (500 Words)

OTHER SCHOOLS

California health sciences university college of osteopathic medicine secondary application, california northstate university college of medicine secondary application, california university of science and medicine school of medicine secondary application, charles r. drew university of medicine and science/ucla college of medicine secondary application, david geffen (ucla) school of medicine secondary application, kaiser permanente school of medicine secondary application, keck school of medicine of usc secondary application, loma linda university school of medicine secondary application, stanford medicine secondary application, touro university college of osteopathic medicine in california secondary application, university of california, davis school of medicine secondary application, university of california, irvine school of medicine secondary application, university of california, riverside school of medicine secondary application, university of california, san diego school of medicine secondary application, university of california, san francisco school of medicine secondary application, western university of health sciences college of osteopathic medicine of the pacific, search site.

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Western University, Admission Essay Example

Pages: 3

Words: 863

This Admission Essay was written by one of our professional writers.

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My family and a thousand hands have touched my life, enabling me to become the person I am today. My experiences, the adversities that I have overcome, as well as relationships, have facilitated my personal growth and inspired my quest to become a professional nurse. I am a product of my culture, and I look forward to serving my community by working as a professional nurse to address some of the most pressing issues facing those who share my background.

I am not a historian, not a theoretician, not even much of a scholar. Perhaps I could call myself a nurse-patriot. But because of what I am and what I am not, I do not want to be a Nightingale student, to analyze her every word and deed. Let that be the work of others. I just want to believe in and draw strength from my impressions and to let my pride as a nurse take flight on the wings of fragments of her legend.

For me, my wife is an enduring symbol. She is a person with strengths and frailties. She is powerful in her day. She is a nurse for the last 6 years, and throughout our married life, she has been fully active in her profession. My interest in the world of nursing was stimulated by the observation that it approximated a closed social system, making it possible to combine my interests in institutions and in roles.

I have extensive experiences on large complex projects at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). As Project Manager, I have led all phases of project development with full services . I felt that project management experiences would provide me with valuable experience that would help me to decide whether I really wanted to pursue Master in nursing within management field. The preparation and education required to enter the nursing field is considerable, and I wanted to ensure that I was making the right decision for me.

Great teachers and significant scholars provided a marvelous learning environment at UCLA. I feel special indebtedness to certain faculty members for the seeds they planted although they are not the only ones who left their mark on my career. It was a mixture of these influences which made the study of nurses increasingly fascinating to me. Here, I could pursue my initial interest in occupations devoted to service and their legitimation in a success and acquisition-oriented society. At the same time, I saw a laboratory for the study of relationships between institutional and services processes, between ingroup and intergroup realities and between the plot of the play and experiences of the actors.

I also had the opportunity to interact directly with patients at UCLA on several other occasions.  I often functioned as a sympathetic listener for patients and their families. The ability to empathize, to under the struggles faced by the patient and by the patient’s family members, are essential to functioning as a successful nurse.

As a professional nurse, I know that I will be expected to perform many different healthcare services. These will include supporting patients during rehabilitation, development programs for home care, and the performance of evaluation appraisals that assess skills, abilities, and the effectiveness of treatment programs.  By working as a volunteer, I learned a great deal about how to interact with patients and how to determine whether treatments are as effective as they should be.  Furthermore, I saw some of the barriers to patient progress occurring within the patients being cared for within the hospital and I grew to be familiar with recognizing some important risk factors that I would need to deal with as a professional nurse.

Yet, I found the entire process of learning much easier, as I enjoyed greater balance and focus. As a non-traditional student I bring a wealth of experience in working and relating with a diverse population. I am far more self-directed than I was at a younger age, and have a greater desire to serve my community. My career goals have crystallized from my extensive real-world experiences. As the first in my family to attend college, I will continue to push myself toward greater challenges.

Through works, I had always relied on my communication skills. But as I watched cancer patients die at hospital. I came to appreciate the importance of an atmosphere that encourages open communication as well as emotional support for patients.

I believe I would prove to be an excellent student at Western University. With this goal in mind, I am pursuing a Master in Nursing. The desire to become a professional nurse is not a recent aspiration, but rather a result of experiences over my lifetime. Though it has taken me many years, my love of learning and a true intellectual curiosity about medicine has brought me to this application. With a more mature perspective on the demands of the healthcare profession, I am committed to pursuing medicine as a career and finally ready to begin the training I need to act on my conviction. I feel that I possess a familiarity with many off the medical instruments, technical terms and procedures used in the field of occupational therapy.  My empirical knowledge would be best augmented by formal education at Western University.

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• University of Western Ontario Medical School

Western interview invites/regrets 2020

By rmorelan January 22, 2020 in University of Western Ontario Medical School

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6 minutes ago, chrsyjun said: Just wondering - does anyone know if GPA/MCAT was assessed competitively? Or was it solely based on essays?

1 minute ago, hepburnmed said: I would hazard that it wasn't assessed competitively, as I was offered an interview with a 2yGPA of 3.73 

No need to speculate. Western states pre-interview, GPA and MCAT are assessed purely as a cutoff. 3.7, 498 (just meeting cutoffs) is equivalent to 4.0, 528. Past that point, its only your essays that matter. 

https://www.schulich.uwo.ca/med_dent_admissions/medicine/admission_requirements.html  

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DrOtter 7 posts

rmorelan 5 posts

hijkl 4 posts

lakeshore 3 posts

Jan 30 2020

Jan 31 2020

Popular Posts

Britesharpie93.

January 30, 2020

Time Stamp: 8:05 a.m.  Invite/reject: Invite!!!!!!!! My first medical school invite after several application cycles. Still haven't processed it fully.  IP/OOP: OOP  SWOMEN (Y/N): N

helpinghand

Time Stamp: 10:09 Invite/reject: INVITE!!!!! Omg IP/OOP: IP SWOMEN (Y/N): No 2YGPA: 3.95 MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH): 129/127/126 Essays (8/8): I applied not knowing If th

January 26, 2020

I just found this https://prospective.schulichmeds.com/interview-weekends/, with updated info for this cycle and I almost had a tiny heart attack. Next week is gonna be one hell of a ride. 

Time Stamp: Jan 30 10:52 am

Invite/reject:  Reject

IP/OOP:  IP

SWOMEN (Y/N):  N

2YGPA:  3.97 

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH):  128/129/132/129

Essays (X/8): 6/8; Ran out of time writing essays and thought I would go the quality over quantity route, not knowing it would hurt my application. Lesson learned!

Time Stamp:  January 30, 10:18AM (MD program), 10:30AM (MD/PhD program)

Invite/reject:  Invite!!

SWOMEN (Y/N):  No

2YGPA:  4.00

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH):  127/128/128/131

Essays (X/8):   8/8 essays. I talked a lot about the skills I have developed across my ECs with specific examples, and about how theses skills apply to different aspects of medicine. For the About You section I wrote about my life before and after getting a diagnosis of ADHD in university, and how this has positively and negatively impacted me and my decision to pursue medicine as a career. I did not fill out the 'gaps/unusual circumstances' section though. 

Time Stamp:  10:05 AM

Invite/reject:  Invite

2YGPA:  ~3.98-4.00

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH):  128/130/126/129

Essays (X/8):   8/8 and the about you

Really surprised. Did not think I was that good of a writer so I thought my essays would be weak. And whew, I just barely made that 126 B/B cut-off, haha.

Time Stamp:  10:05 AM EST

IP/OOP:  OOP

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH):  132/129/132/132

Essays (X/8):  7/8 (!)  I completed the "About You" section with a personal story, but actually didn't do all 8 of the ABS essays. I wanted all of my essays (even though they were a little last minute) to be very pertinent to each category, and felt that a weak 8th might detract. I have no idea if that damaged my application, but luckily I still got an invite.

Time Stamp: 2020/01/30 @ 10:13am

SWOMEN (Y/N):  Y

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH):  130/131/131/132 (524)

Essays (X/8):   8/8 + About You. I pulled an all nighter and did them all the night before (followed by my ABS and then Toronto's essays, lol). I've always been a pretty strong writer, so that probably saved me. I think I had two repeats (so 6 unique activities). I read that each aABS entry is read independently of the rest, so I wasn't too worried about repeating activities (I don't know whether or not this is true, though). I emphasized what I learned from each activity and then at the end wrote a tiny summary on how these skills apply to medicine.

Time Stamp:  9:56am

Invite/reject:  Invite!

2YGPA:  3.91

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH):  129/125/131/130

Essays (X/8):  7 + about you + academic explanations. Put quite a bit of time into them and tried very hard to create unique examples of what I had learned from my experiences. I really elaborated on them, with emphasis on how the skills/lessons will help be succeed in medicine. I didn't re-use any of my activities, thought I had screwed up by not writing 8 essays but I guess not!

ominousmood

Time Stamp:  10:04 AM EST

Invite/reject:  Invite !!!!

2YGPA:  3.90

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH):  128/127/130/127

Essays (X/8):   8/8 - Tried to focus on the core values and choose from a diverse amount of experiences. My ECs are pretty strong (ranked in the 75th-100th percentile for UBC NAQ) and good enough for a Queen's interview two years ago. I personalized the 'About Me' section, but didn't put as much effort into the essays as I should have thinking that it was going to be a long shot that it would decrease to 127. 

This is my very first time interviewing at Western and I am so stoked! If anyone is in the Guelph or Kitchener/Waterloo/Cambridge tri-city area and would like to prep, I'm definitely up for it. Congrats to everyone else on getting an interview invite! To those who got regrets, keep pushing and don't give up on your dreams. This is my 5th cycle applying, and second interview ever, so there is always hope!

Applicant95

Time Stamp: 10:11 AM (yesterday)

Invite/reject: Invite!

SWOMEN (Y/N): N

2YGPA: 3.94

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH): 524 (can't remember breakdown)

Essays (X/8): 8/8 + About You

Time Stamp: 10:53 AM, January 30

Invite/reject: Reject

2YGPA:  3.9ish

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO): 130/129/129

Essays (X/8):  8/8 + About You (looking back, think I should have choosen more unique experiences)

does anyone know if you can update your interview preferences after you've submitted them?

2 hours ago, inkbat said: does anyone know if you can update your interview preferences after you've submitted them?

Yes, i think you just log into the portal and change them then resubmit. 

Semi-related, but do we get some kind of confirmation we have submitted interview requests other than the green text that appears when you click submit?

10 hours ago, rawshrimp said: Yes, i think you just log into the portal and change them then resubmit.  Semi-related, but do we get some kind of confirmation we have submitted interview requests other than the green text that appears when you click submit?

I submitted this morning and all I got was the confirmation in green text, no email or anything! 

Time Stamp: January 30 2020, 10:04 AM

Invite/reject: Invite

2YGPA: 3.82

MCAT (CHEM/CARS/BIO/PSYCH):  128/127/128/126

Essays (X/8):   8/8

Applicant1995

Has anyone who is interviewing at Western received their interview date-time confirmation email yet? (The initial email said they would be sent on Wednesday, February 5, but I still have yet to receive mine. I inputed my preferences on Jan 30 and got the green message.)

5 minutes ago, Applicant1995 said: Has anyone who is interviewing at Western received their interview date-time confirmation email yet? (The initial email said they would be sent on Wednesday, February 5, but I still have yet to receive mine. I inputed my preferences on Jan 30 and got the green message.)

I’m still waiting!

I tried logging into the system and they won't even let me in anymore .... didn't get email either.

I just called the admissions office and they told me the emails will be sent out later today.

• hijkl and MD_Dream97

I received it as well and I got my first choice.

Do you guys know what the most popular dates and times are? Just curious. I would assume the later dates and probably in the afternoon?

hopefullythisworks

I was given my 5th choice (the first Sunday), which I was a bit surprised about as I had all the times on the first Saturday as my top four choices. If anyone is looking to trade (is this possible?) with a time on Saturday Mar. 7, let me know! I'm definitely interested. 

Hey everyone - do we just need to get to the interview 30 minutes before and then leave right after? As in, there are not other commitments during the day?

19 minutes ago, rawshrimp said: Hey everyone - do we just need to get to the interview 30 minutes before and then leave right after? As in, there are not other commitments during the day?

the schedule is here I believe (correct me if I am wrong ha)

https://prospective.schulichmeds.com/interview-weekend-schedule/

• 3 weeks later...

Congratulations to everyone that has received an interview and good luck! I am a student with disabilities considering applying to Western via their Access Pathway. Has anyone here applied on that basis and received an interview or been accepted to Schulich? Thank you all! 

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Autobiographical Sketch & Personal Statement

The Autobiographical Sketch & Personal Statement provides you with an opportunity to share your story and highlight what makes you unique. If you applied in a previous year, this information must be resubmitted.

The Autobiographical Sketch & Personal Statement is due by 4:30 p.m. ET on November 1, 2023 .  You can begin completing this form prior to being assigned an OUAC number.  Prior to final submission, please ensure you include your OUAC number.

It is your responsibility to ensure that the information provided is truthful, complete and correct. The Schulich Admissions Office reserves the right to verify the information provided. If the information in your Autobiographical Sketch or Personal Statement is determined to be false or misleading, concealed or withheld, or written by a third party, at the discretion of the University your application could be invalidated. This could result in its immediate rejection or in the revocation of an offer of admission or registration at the University.

BEFORE submitting this form :

• Pay careful attention to the character limits if you are copying your responses into the Personal Statement fields. Slight variations in the definitions of how words are counted can occur between other programs and the character count in this form.
• You may partially complete and save the form, to finish and submit at a later date. If you choose this option, you will receive an email from [email protected] containing a link to the saved form. Click the link to re-access the saved form. If you do not receive this email in your Inbox, please also check Junk and Spam folders.

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The Personal Information on this form is collected under the authority of the University of Western Ontario Act, 1982. The information is collected for the purpose of identification and document matching. For further information about this collection, please contact the Admissions Office by email at [email protected] .

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Case Western & Cleveland Clinic Medical School Secondary Essay Prompts

• Cracking Med School Admissions

There are two sets of Case Western secondaries: 1) Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and 2) Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine (CCLCM). Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine (both CWRU and CCLCM) admits students who are strong in academics and research. Submitting an OUTSTANDING Case Western secondaries are vital to receiving an acceptance. It’s important to discuss your research clearly   in your Case Western secondary essays. 

**Case Western changed its secondary essay prompts for the 2023-2024 cycle.** We would not recommend pre-writing this secondary because the prompts might change again this upcoming 2024-2025 application cycle.

Our Cracking Med School Admissions team has a track record of helping several of our mentees receive acceptances to Case Western year after year. We can help you next! We want to stress that submitting a strong Case Western secondary application is crucial and we can help you through our secondary essay editing packages . 

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Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2023 - 2024

Case western reserve university secondary essay prompts.

• The most successful medical students at our school are generally those who are intrinsically motivated, self-directed learners. Think of a time when you had to pursue a goal without clear external direction. Describe your approach and any new knowledge, perspectives, or skills that you acquired. (1,000 character limit)
• Based on your current maturity and wisdom, reflect upon an experience from the past few years that you would handle differently today. (1,000 character limit)
• Did you take a gap year(s)? Yes or No? If Yes : If you are taking time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation, please tell us what you are doing during this gap, and why. (1,000 characters max)
• Optional – Research/Scholarly Work: One of the four pillars of the Western Reserve2 Curriculum is Research and Scholarship. Although research is not a prerequisite requirement for the University Program, if you have participated in research or another scholarly project, please tell us about it. Describe your experience, including the question you pursued and how you approached it, your results and interpretation of the results, and most importantly, any thoughts about what this experience meant to you. Remember that research is broad-based and can include such projects as a senior capstone or a thesis and can include both medical and non-medically-related investigations. If you have not completed research/scholarly work, you will be able to indicate this in a radio button embedded within this response. (3,500 character limit)   Note that if you are applying to both the University Program and the CCLCM, the research response will default to the CCLCM required response – see below.
• Optional – Additional Information Response:   Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee that may not be captured in the rest of your application? (2,000 character limit)

Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine Secondary Essay Prompts

• Greatest Challenge Essay:  The admissions committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience and what you learned about yourself as a result. (2,000 character limit)
• Research Essay:   Please tell us about ONE research project to which you made a significant contribution. In your essay, describe your role on the project, the hypothesis of your research and whether you contributed to hypothesis generation, why the methods were selected to answer that hypothesis, your results, and interpretation of your results with respect to future findings. In addition, please briefly share your motivation for pursuing this research project and reflect on how this experience affected your future career goals. (3,500 character limit)
• Career Essay:  What does your ideal career entail fifteen years after medical school graduation? (1,000 character limit)
• Gap Year(s) if applicable:  If you are taking time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation, please tell us why you made this decision and what you will be doing or have done during this gap time. (1,000 character limit)
• OPTIONAL – Additional Information Response:   Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee that may not be captured in the rest of your application? (2,000 character limit)

Case Western MSTP Secondary Essay Prompts

• Based on your current maturity and wisdom, reflect upon an experience from the past few years that you would handle differently today. (1,000 character limit) 
• PhD Advisor:  What do you look for in a PhD advisor, and who at CWRU would interest you? (800 character limit)
• Area of Interest:  What is your specific interest in the MSTP at CWRU? (800 character limit)

Tips to Answer Case Western Secondaries

Case Western Secondaries Pre-Writing Guidance: Because the Case Western secondary changed a lot in the previous cycle, we recommend students to NOT pre-write their Case Western secondaries this year.

Read our Cracking Med Secondary Essay Workbook and Examples  to help you with all your secondary essays!

Case Western Secondary Application Tip #1: Answer as many questions as possible on your Case Western secondaries. Our Cracking Med School Admissions team does not view Case Western Medical School secondary essays as optional. For the optional essay about the COVID-19 pandemic, incorporate your personal experiences as well as healthcare current issues you noticed throughout the COVID pandemic. We have an entire healthcare current events blog post here , where you can read more about healthcare disparities and COVID-19 .

Case Western Secondary Application Tip #2: For the question, “Based on your current maturity and wisdom, reflect upon an experience from the past few years that you would handle differently today” and “ The admissions committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience and what you learned about yourself as a result ” make sure you clearly discuss what the challenge was and how you overcame this. Common mistakes students make include:

• Talking about a topic that is too common among premed students, such getting a “C” in organic chemistry.
• Not providing enough context about the challenge they faced.
• Not discussing how they overcame the stressful situation.

Many of our Cracking Med School Admissions students write about challenges they had in their research projects for this question. If you have questions about whether your topic is a good topic to write about, send Dr. Mediratta and Dr. Rizal a question through our contact form below. 

Case Western Secondary Application Tip #3: Remember, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine LOVES students who have been engaged with research. Even if the research essay is optional, you definitely HAVE TO answer it!

Furthermore, for the research question, you must describe your research clearly. You are not only judged on your actual research endeavors, but you are also judged on how well you can communicate your research. This is a great secondary application to get our help through secondary essay editing !

Case Western Secondary Application Tip #4: Don’t forget to incorporate a little bit about “Why Case Western Med” throughout your Case Western secondaries. You can definitely write more “Why Case Western” in the optional essay, “ Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee that may not be captured in the rest of your application? ” Talk about projects and research you want to do at Case Western.

• Read our blog post  Why this Medical School? Secondary Essay Example

Case Western Secondary Application Tip #5: Have questions about how you can stand out on your Case Western Med secondaries? Contact us below. Need editing help on your secondary? We can help you through our secondary essay packages . 

[ Read more secondary essay tips:  Washington University in St. Louis , Stanford , Northwestern , University of Chicago ]

Your medical school application Coaches, Mentors, & Cheerleaders

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Rachel Rizal, M.D.

Changing the trajectory of people’s lives.

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Medical School Stanford School of Medicine

Residency Harvard, Emergency Medicine

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Rishi Mediratta, M.D., M.Sc., M.A.

Advising students to attend their dream schools.

Undergraduate Johns Hopkins University, Phi Beta Kappa

Residency Stanford, Pediatrics

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Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2022 – 2023

• The Admissions Committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience, how you handled the uncertainty or stress, and what you learned about yourself as a result. (3,500 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• (Optional) The past year has reflected an unprecedented time in world history, and we are aware that many have experienced significant disruptions in numerous aspects of their lives. Please use the text field below to share with us how you may have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including academic, financial, medical disruptions, etc. If medically-related or patient-based experiences were interrupted, tell us how you were able to explore these areas in alternate ways. (3,500 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• Did you take a gap year(s)? Yes or No? If Yes : If you are taking time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation, please tell us what you are doing during this gap, and why. (1,000 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• One of the four pillars of the Western Reserve Curriculum is Research and Scholarship. Although research is not a prerequisite requirement for the University Program, if you have participated in research or another scholarly project, please tell us about it. Describe your experience, including the question you pursued and how you approached it, your results and interpretation of the results, and most importantly, any thoughts about what this experience meant to you. Remember that research is broad-based and can include such projects as a senior capstone or a thesis and can include both medical and non-medically-related investigations. Please limit your response to 1 page (3,500 character recommendation), and leave a blank line between paragraphs.
• Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee that may not be captured in the rest of your application? (3,500 characters)

Case Western Secondary Application Optional Questions

• If you took coursework that was Pass/No Pass due to pandemic disruptions for for 2019-2020 and/or 2020-2021 academic years, please list the courses below.

Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2021 – 2022

• One of the four pillars of the Western Reserve Curriculum is Research and Scholarship. Although research is not a prerequisite requirement for the University Program, if you have participated in research or another scholarly project, please tell us about it. Describe your experience, including the question you pursued and how you approached it, your results and interpretation of the results, and most importantly, any thoughts about what this experience meant to you. Remember that research is broad-based and can include such projects as a senior capstone or a thesis and can include both medical and non-medically-related investigations. Please limit your response to 1 page (about 3,500 character recommendation), and leave a blank line between paragraphs.

Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2020 – 2021

• The past few months have reflected an unprecedented time in world history, and we are aware that many have experienced significant disruptions in numerous aspects of their lives. Please use the text field below to share with us how you may have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including academic, financial, medical disruptions, etc. It would also be helpful for us to know if any of your planned experiences in shadowing, volunteering, research, employment, or other activities have been suspended due to the pandemic. (3,500 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• If you were working on a small group project and you thought that another student wasn’t carrying his/her load, how would you handle it? (300-1000 characters recommendation – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee that may not be captured in the rest of your application? This optional response will only be considered by the University Program. (3,500 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• One of the four pillars of the Western Reserve2 Curriculum is Research and Scholarship. Although research is not a pre-requisite requirement for the University Program, if you have participated in research or another scholarly project please tell us about it. Describe your experience, including the question you pursued and how you approached it, your results and interpretation of the results, and most importantly, any thoughts about what this experience meant to you. Remember that research is broad-based and can include such projects as a senior capstone or a thesis and can include both medical and non-medically-related investigations. (3,500 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• How will you contribute to the diversity and inclusion mission of our medical school?  (1,000 character recommendation)

Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2019 – 2020

• (Required)  The admissions committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience and what you learned about yourself as a result. (3,500 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• (Required)  Please describe the hypothesis of your research, why the methods were selected to answer that hypothesis, your results and interpretation of your results with respect to future findings. In addition, please briefly share your motivation for pursuing this research project and reflect on how this experience affected you. If you have not participated in research or scholarly work, please indicate so in the text area below.
• (Required)  If you were working on a small group project and you thought that another student wasn’t carrying his/her load, how would you handle it? (300-1000 characters recommendation – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• (Required for College Program) Areas of Improvement Essay: Each year our students target for themselves areas of improvement. Other than the acquisition of new knowledge, what personal area do you think you have that could use strengthening? Design a plan as to how you could improve it. (1,000 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• (Required for College Program) Criticism and Feedback Essay: Tell us about a time when you received unexpected criticism or negative feedback. How did you react? What did you do? (1,000 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• (Required for College Program) Career Essay: How do you see your career ten years from now?  (1,000 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• (Required for College Program) Teaching Essay: When were you challenged to teach, coach, or mentor others to learn a new skill or improve an old one? Please describe how it went and what you learned from the experience. (1,000 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• (If Applicable) Gap Year Essay: Did you take a gap year? If you are taking time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation, please tell us in no more than four sentences what you are doing during this gap, and why.

(Optional) Additional Information Essay: Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee? This optional response will only be considered by the University Program.

Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2018 – 2019

• The admissions committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience and what you learned about yourself as a result. (3,500 characters max – leave blank line between paragraphs)
• Did you take a gap year? Yes or No? If you are taking time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation, please tell us in no more than four sentences what you are doing during this gap, and why.

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Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2017 – 2018

• The Admissions Committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience and what you learned about yourself as a result. (3,500 characters max)
• Please describe the hypothesis of your research, why the methods were selected to answer that hypothesis, your results and interpretation of your results with respect to future findings. If you have not participated in research or scholarly work, please indicate so in the text area below (3,500 characters max)
• If you were working on a small group project and you thought that another student wasn’t carrying his/her load, how would you handle it? (1,000 characters max)
• (Optional) Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee? This optional response will only be considered by the University Program.

Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2016 – 2017

• (Optional) One of the four pillars of the Western Reserve Curriculum is Research and Scholarship. Although research is not a pre-requisite requirement for the University Program, if you have participated in research or in another scholarly project please tell us about it. Describe your experience, including the question you pursued and how you approached it, your results and interpretation of the results, and most importantly, any thoughts about what this experience meant to you. Remember that the definition of research is broadly-based and can include such projects as a senior capstone or a thesis, and can include both medically and non-medically-related investigations. (3,500 characters max)
• If you were working on a small group project and you thought that another student wasn’t carrying his/her load, how would you handle it?  (1,000 characters max)
• (Optional)  Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee? This optional response will only be considered by the University Program.

Case Western Medical School Secondary Application Essay Prompts: 2015 – 2016

Case western medical school secondary application essay prompts: 2014 – 2015.

• The Admissions Committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience and what you learned about yourself as a result.  (3,500 characters max)
• Please describe the hypothesis of your research, why the methods were selected to answer that hypothesis, your results and interpretation of your results with respect to future findings. If you have not participated in research or scholarly work, please indicate so in the text area below  (3,500 characters max)

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August 29, 2022

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Secondary Application Essay Tips [2022-2023]

Case Western is located in Cleveland, Ohio with four teaching hospitals in the area and a student run clinic. They are ranked #24, for research and #71 for primary care by U.S. News and World Reports . They accept 155 students each year. Classes are pass/fail in the first two years. Students are placed in one of four advising societies and maintain involvement throughout all four years. They have IQ (inquiry) teams of eight to nine students, that discuss two cases, three times a week with a faculty member. Teamwork is built into the curriculum. It focuses on four themes: research and scholarship, clinical mastery, leadership and civic professionalism. For more information about their curriculum, check out case.edu/medicine/admissions/programs/university-program/curriculum and our podcast interview with Dr. Lina Mehta, Associate Dean for Admissions at Case Western Reserve University College of Medicine . 

This school is looking for students who are well rounded in all of these areas: scholarship, interpersonal communication skills, leadership, teamwork and community service. Less than 20% of accepted applicants are in-state, making this medical school attractive to out-of-state applicants.

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine 2022-23 Essay Questions

Cwru essay #1: greatest challenge response.

The admissions committee is interested in gaining more insight into you as a person. Please describe a significant personal challenge you have faced, one which you feel has helped to shape you as a person. Examples may include a moral or ethical dilemma, a situation of personal adversity, or a hurdle in your life that you worked hard to overcome. Please include how you got through the experience, how you handled the uncertainty or stress, and what you have learned about yourself as a result. Please limit your response to 1 page (about 3,500 characters), and leave a blank line between paragraphs.

Given the size of this character limit, you have space for a short essay. Start by making a list of obstacles that you have overcome . 

Choose to tell the story of an event or experience that has had the biggest impact on your identity. A one-time event would be a strategic choice if it had long term effects on you and your development. There are many different topics that would work well for this essay, like traveling to a different country, having a unique life experience, or making a difficult decision that had major consequences. Introduce the idea in the first paragraph. Give background on the situation or event in the second paragraph. Use the third paragraph to explain “how you got through the experience.” In the fourth paragraph, you can detail what you learned. In the conclusion, look at the bigger picture. How did the event have an impact on your life, identity and/or career path? Conclude positively, even if the only positive outcome is in having deeply learned something about yourself, about teamwork, about problem-solving, about inequity and equity. 

This prompt is a testament to your character or to your growth .

CWRU essay #2

Optional Responses For All Applicants:

• COVID-related Disruptions Response The past few years have reflected an unprecedented time in world history, and we are aware that many have experienced significant disruptions in numerous aspects of their lives. You may use the text field below to share with us how you may have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including academic, financial and medical disruptions, etc. If medically-related or patient-based experiences were interrupted, please tell us how you were able to explore these areas in alternate ways. Please limit your response to 1 page (about 3,500 characters), and leave a blank line between paragraphs.
• COVID-related Coursework Response If you took coursework that was Pass/No Pass due to pandemic disruptions for 2019-2020 and/or 2020-2021 academic years, please list the courses below.
• Gap Year Response Did you take a gap year(s)? Yes or No. If Yes: If you are taking time off between college graduation and medical school matriculation, please tell us what you are doing during this gap, and why. Please limit your response to no more than 1000 characters, and leave a blank line between paragraphs .

Nearly all applicants had to adapt to changes in their education, community work, and academic plans. When writing the short essay (#1), tell the personal story if you and your family were personally affected by COVID-19 . 

If you choose to tell a story about how you lost shadowing opportunities, volunteer experiences or research opportunities, be certain to focus the story on the unforeseen new opportunities you sought and found. If you were an essential worker, tell this story. If you volunteered at a COVID-19 vaccination center, tell that story. 

University Program (4 yr. MD) Applicants:

Optional: 1. One of the four pillars of the Western Reserve2 Curriculum is Research and Scholarship. Although research is not a prerequisite requirement for the University Program, if you have participated in research or in another scholarly project, please tell us about it. Describe your experience, including the question you pursued and how you approached it, your results and interpretation of the results, and most importantly, any thoughts about what this experience meant to you. Remember that research is broad-based and can include such projects as a senior capstone or a thesis, and can include both medical and non-medically-related investigations. If you have not completed research, please indicate that in the text box below. Please limit your response to one page (about 3,500 characters), and leave a blank line between paragraphs. – Note that if you are applying to both the University Program and the CCLCM, the research response will default to the CCLCM required response. 2. Additional Information Response: Is there any further information that you wish to share with the Admissions Committee that may not be captured in the rest of your application? Please limit your response to 3,500 characters.

This prompt also provides the structure for your response. If you are writing about one major research experience, in the introduction explain the basics of the project and your role. In the second paragraph, provide a detailed description of the project and the research question. For the third paragraph, discuss how you “approached it.” In the fourth, explain the outcomes and any interesting developments in the data for the project. Last, you can use the conclusion to share the overall impact the research had on you.

If you participated in several research projects, you might use this space with a chronological list, most recent research first, with each sub-entry mirroring the prompt expectations. This way, you will cover each project in detail in exactly the same format.

Keep in mind that since 2018, 93-98% of accepted students at Case Western Reserve University SOM had research experience. If you don’t have research experience, then make the case in the secondary Essay #2 that you will be heavily involved in research. Otherwise, be prepared to update the school on research activity at a later date, at the very least.

Has this blog post helped you feel more confident about approaching your Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine secondary application? We hope so. It’s our mission to help smart, talented applicants like you gain acceptance to your top choice medical school. With so much at stake, why not hire a consultant whose expertise and personalized guidance can help you make your dream come true? We have several flexible consulting options— click here to get started today !

Applying to CWRU? Here are some stats:

CWRU School of Medicine average MCAT score: 518

CWRU School of Medicine average GPA: 3.83

CWRU School of Medicine acceptance rate: 5.9%

U.S. News  ranks CWRU #24 for research and #71 for primary care.

Check out the Med School Selectivity Index for more stats.

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine 2022-23 application timeline

Source:  CWRU website

Dr. Mary Mahoney, PhD, is the medical humanities director at Elmira College and has more than 20 years of experience as an advisor and essay reviewer for med school applicants. She is a tenured English professor with an MFA in creative writing from Sarah Lawrence College and a PhD in literature and writing from the University of Houston. For the past 20 years, Mary has served as a grad school advisor and essay reviewer for med school applicants.  Want Mary to help you get Accepted? Click here to get in touch!

Related resources:

• The Ultimate Guide to Secondary Essay Questions from Top Med Schools
• 3 Reasons Why Writing About Overcoming Obstacles Strengthens Your Application Essays
• Interview with Dr. Lina Mehta, Associate Dean for Admissions at Case Western

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