Question about Personal Statement and talking about the area you want to focus on.

[searlese]

I am writing my personal statement and what made me make the decision to become a PA was my volunteering experience in a children's hospital and I am almost 100% positive I want to do pediatrics. My question is do I add that into my PS or will that put me at a disadvantage if I talk about the department I want to work in?

[Just Steve]

Depends if your school has a particular niche. My school focuses on rural primary care. Being a peds devotee may not have worked in my advantage

[rev ronin]

Ah, rural primary care IS a lot of peds, Steve... where else do kids go when there's no pediatrician per se?

 

Yes, I would advise the OP to be as truthful and forthright as possible--don't just make something up because you want to mold yourself to match a particular program. If something inspired you to become a PA, the honest exposition of that development carries far more weight and authenticity than any sort of telling them what you think they want to hear. Be yourself, be convincing, be bold, and be articulate!

[Just Steve]

There is a huge difference between a rural family practice clinic and a dedicated pediatric hospital. Convincing one's self that they are comparable is delusionary.

[rev ronin]

Oh, no question about it. But within any specialty lies a wide array of options and practice settings. Speaking from my own rotation experience, I had barely more pediatric patients in my suburban family med rotation (1/week) than I did in my adult internal medicine rotation (1/six weeks), which was a big change from my rural family med rotation (15-20/week). Didn't get to work in any pediatric hospitals, so I have nothing to compare there.