"Learning to adapt, medicine studies" - Strengths and Weaknesses essay -- Penn State

I'm not sure if I answered the question well and if it's clear enough what my strength and weakness are. I've spent so long on this essay, I really hope my point is being portrayed clearly enough. Any suggestions are welcome and I appreciate anyone taking the time to read this! Thanks you!

Describe what you think your strongest qualities are, as well as weaknesses that you would like to improve upon.

My mother, an architect turned software professional, has always taught me that it is never too late to pursue one's dreams. I have witnessed a manifestation of this sentiment in her life, as she transitioned from the profession encouraged by her father to one that she felt would fulfill her own aspirations. As a result she taught me to live in the moment, to follow my impulses, and to have faith that, in the end, fate would guide me to my calling.

Conversely, I chose to plan my own future vigilantly. I have faith in what my future brings, solely from my careful contemplation of each step of the way. When an obstacle presents itself, I experience an initial panic, only to be overcome with lists and deadlines that lead me to the structured mindset vital for success. Accordingly, I am able to tackle a challenge and revel in the euphoria of conquering it.

As each year of my secondary education progressed, I learned to incorporate more commitments into my limited time. By my junior year, I was balancing six AP and Honors classes, a part-time job, the pressures of the looming college process, and numerous volunteer experiences. I have emerged adept at managing each undertaking and its accompanying stress with the sanctuary of a schedule.

With such rationality, I perceive my future. I have thoroughly investigated the field of medicine, the lifestyle of its professionals, and the demanding process of becoming one, before concluding that it is the only profession right for me. I recognize that my future consists of training for the MCAT, matriculating to medical school, participating in Match Day, uplifting my roots to a hospital where I will complete my residency, and building my professional career from there. This is a journey with which I am now familiar; therefore I am comfortable within its confines. Should my life play out the way I planned it as a teenager, my prudence has served me well.

However, I am bound to encounter apprehension with each twist and turn of the journey. I find myself to be easily distressed by the unexpected. So far, rigidity has held dominance in my life, most often as a resource. But in the future, I know that along with my strengths, resilience is essential to undertake the academic rigors that lie ahead. I hope to finally incorporate part of my mother's advice in my own outlook: her flexibility. Learning to adapt according to what lies in the immediate future takes great strength, and it is a quality that I feel my mother has been justly promoting all along.

i like how you portray your rigidity as both a weakness and strength. When i read it however i feel that it comes off as more weakness than strength. you often say how you always do this or always act like this. when really you should say how you also have not only the idea of flexibility from your mom(which i love btw) but also that you have the ability to be flexible and how you strive to have a happy medium between the two. You could possibly add an experience of how you went on a limb and that it worked out for you and how you need both rigidity and flexibility. other than that i really liked it!

hope this helps and good luck!

This is very well written. I have only looked at the first 2 paragraphs, and already I needed to pause and give you a compliment. I think you have a great theme, and a good word to use in this essay is "methodical." You are a methodical thinker.


Excellent! And the way you acknowledged the importance of flexibility at the end is great, too. I don't think I could have come up with a better way to approach this essay.

...comfortable within its confines. ---good use of words here...

Here is a tricky use of verb tense that I'll correct for you:
Should my life play out the way I planned it as a teenager, my prudence has will have served me well.

:-)