UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine Secondary Essay Prompts
These are the secondary application essay prompts for University of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine. To put your best foot forward and maximize your chance of an interview invitation, visit our secondary application editing page.
about University of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine
Secondary Deadline: 15 days from the date and time of the email invitation received by the applicant
Secondary Fee: $95
FAP Waiver: Yes
CASPer Required: No
PREview Required: Yes
Screens Applications: Yes
Accepts Application Updates:
Mission
To improve health and healthcare, UCLA will:
- Create world leaders in health and science
- Discover the basis for health and cures for disease
- Optimize health through community partnerships
- Heal humankind one patient at a time
Values
- Excellence and Integrity
- Discovery and Innovation
- Service and Respect
- Teamwork and Compassion
2024-2025
1. At the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, students are provided with curriculum and experiences enabling them to become an “Outstanding Physician, AND…,” dedicating themselves to important societal missions. What missions do you want to embrace? What have you done toward your missions? 2. Respond to the following and indicate how these areas of experience have impacted your progress toward your future career goals in relation to becoming an “Outstanding Physician, AND…”.
- A. Describe your most unique leadership, entrepreneurial, or creative activity.
- B. Describe your most important volunteer work and why it was meaningful.
- C. Describe your most scholarly project (thesis, research or field of study in basic or clinical science or in the humanities) and provide the total number of hours, dates and advisor.
3. Describe how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted your pathway to medical school. Include any academic, personal, financial or professional barriers, as well as other relevant information.
4. Did you experience or are you anticipating time between graduating from college and matriculating into medical school? Yes/No
If you answered “Yes” to question 4, describe the activities in which you participated or are planning to participate. Examples include additional schooling, employment, or caring for a loved one.
5. Do you identify as being part of a group that has been marginalized (examples include, but are not limited to, LGBTQIA, disabilities, federally recognized tribe) in terms of access to education or healthcare? Yes/No
If you answered “Yes” to question 5, describe how this inequity has impacted you or your community and how educational disparity, health disparity and/or marginalization has impacted you and your community.
6. Are you re-applying to DGSOM?
Special Programs/Pathways, if applicable:
Global Heath Equity Pathway Application Questions
1. Please describe why you are interested in the Global Health Equity Pathway and any experiences that have informed your decision to apply for this Pathway.
2. How do you think participation in the Pathway will contribute to your future career plans and career development?
3. What additional skills would you like to develop as part of the Pathway? What strengths do you currently have that may contribute to a global health or health equity project? (i.e., language, writing skills, advocacy work, monitoring and evaluation experience, data management/cleaning/analysis, website development, etc.)
4. What are the major challenges you might face as medical student working in global health or health equity? How might you overcome these challenges?
5. Optional question: Please let us know if you have a mentor or organization with whom you would be excited to work as part of the Pathway and why you would like to work with this individual and/or organization. Mentors and organizations may be affiliated with DGSOM/UCLA or may be pre-existing relationships you developed prior to medical school. Note that you are not expected to have a DGSOM mentor and/or partner organization identified prior to arrival at DGSOM.
Urban Health Equity Pathway Questions
1. Please describe how your experience, community and family background impact your understanding of medically underserved/under-resourced communities.
2. Other than healthcare access, what are some of the most important health care issues confronting medically underserved/under-resourced and vulnerable communities? How would you address them?
2023-2024
1) At the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, students are provided with curriculum and experiences enabling them to become an “Outstanding Physician, AND…,” dedicating themselves to important societal missions. What missions do you want to embrace? What have you done toward your missions?
2) Respond to the following and indicate how these areas of experience have impacted your progress toward your future career goals in relation to becoming an “Outstanding Physician, AND…”
A-Describe your most unique leadership, entrepreneurial, or creative activity.
B-Describe your most important volunteer work and why it was meaningful.
C-Describe your most scholarly project (thesis, research or field of study in basic or clinical science or in the humanities) and provide the total number of hours, dates and advisor.
3) Describe how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted your pathway to medical school. Include any academic, personal, financial or professional barriers, as well as other relevant information.
4) Did you experience or are you anticipating time between graduating from college and matriculating into medical school? If yes; Describe the activities in which you participated or are planning to participate. Examples include additional schooling, employment, or caring for a loved one.
5) Do you identify as being part of a group that has been marginalized (examples include, but are not limited to, LGBTQIA, disabilities, federally recognized tribe) in terms of access to education or healthcare? If yes; Describe how this inequity has impacted you or your community and how educational disparity, health disparity and/or marginalization has impacted you and your community.
2022-2023
2021-2022
1. At the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, students are provided with curriculum and experiences enabling them to become an “Outstanding Physician, AND…,” dedicating themselves to important societal missions. What missions do you want to embrace? What have you done toward your missions? (800 characters)
2. Respond to the following and indicate how these areas of experience have impacted your progress toward your future career goals in relation to becoming an “Outstanding Physician, AND…”
A-Describe your most unique leadership, entrepreneurial, or creative activity. (800 characters)
B-Describe your most important volunteer work and why it was meaningful. (800 characters)
C-Describe your most scholarly project (thesis, research or field of study in basic or clinical science or in the humanities) and provide the total number of hours, dates and advisor. (800 characters)
3. Describe how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted your pathway to medical school. Include any academic, personal, financial or professional barriers, as well as other relevant information. (800 characters)
4. Do you identify as being part of a group that has been marginalized (examples include, but are not limited to, LGBTQIA, disabilities, federally recognized tribe) in terms of access to education or healthcare?
-Describe how this inequity has impacted you or your community and how educational disparity, health disparity and/or marginalization has impacted you and your community. (800 characters)
2020-2021
2. What has been the one most unique leadership, entrepreneurial or creative activity in which you participated? (800 char)
3. What has been the one most important volunteer work you have done and why was it meaningful? (800 char)
4. Has there been or will there be a gap between achieving your last degree (baccalaureate or other degrees post baccalaureate) and the expected time of medical school matriculation? (300 char to explain if yes)
5. What is the one most important honor you have received? Why do you view this as important? (300 char)
6. What has been your most scholarly project (thesis, research or field of study in basic or clinical science or in the humanities)? Describe one and give number of hours, dates and advisor. (300 char)
7. Describe a problem in your life. Include how you dealt with it and how it influenced your growth. (500 char)
8. Please list any major paid work experience during or since college. (4000 characters per work experience)
9. Is there any hardship to which you would like the committee to give special attention in evaluating your application? (500 char)
10. Where do you see yourself post-graduate education? What experiences have led you to this goal? (500 char)
11. Describe how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted your pathway to medical school. Include any academic, personal, financial or professional barriers, as well as any other relevant information.
2019-2020
1. Describe your involvement in the one most important non-academic activity in your life. (800 char)
2. What has been the one most unique leadership, entrepreneurial or creative activity in which you participated? (800 char)
3. What has been the one most important volunteer work you have done and why was it meaningful? (800 char)
4. Has there been or will there be a gap between achieving your last degree (baccalaureate or other degrees post baccalaureate) and the expected time of medical school matriculation? (300 char to explain if yes)
5. What is the one most important honor you have received? Why do you view this as important? (300 char)
6. What has been your most scholarly project (thesis, research or field of study in basic or clinical science or in the humanities)? Describe one and give number of hours, dates and advisor. (300 char)
7. Describe a problem in your life. Include how you dealt with it and how it influenced your growth. (500 char)
8. Section to enter major work experiences, with 4000 char. to explain each experience.
9. Is there any hardship to which you would like the committee to give special attention in evaluating your application? If yes: Please explain. Include any geographic, language, economic, academic, physical, or mental factors: (500 char)
10. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? What experiences have led you to this goal? (500 char)
Prime:
Each prompt has a 2,000 character limit
11. What is the most important social issue confronting the health of disadvantaged communities and what would be your first steps to address this issue?
12. In what way will graduating from UCLA PRIME and obtaining a master’s degree enhance your career in health care or health services for disadvantaged communities? (If you are considering a specific master’s degree (e.g. MPP, MPH, MBA, etc.), please incorporate your graduate degree plans or aspirations into your answer)
13. Describe the manner in which your experiences demonstrate your understanding of, and commitment to, underserved communities.
14. What are your greatest strengths and your greatest challenges as you approach medical school?
15. What is your most memorable experience as it relates to working with vulnerable populations?
2018-2019
1. Describe involvement in the ONE most important non-academic activity that has been important in your life? (800 char)
Think of an experience which taught you a lesson and helped you grow as a person outside of academics. This may be your biggest hobby or pastime outside of work such as sports or music. Paint a picture, perhaps by describing a memorable or poignant experience with one of these pursuits. This will make it more unique and let it stand out from the crowd.
2. What has been the ONE most unique leadership, entrepreneurial or creative activity in which you participated? (800 char)
This can be a difficult question to answer as the question asks for a unique leadership experience. First, brainstorm to see if you can think of an unconventional experience to answer this question. For example, one applicant wrote about a summer in his youth when he lead a group of his friends in building a full-length 18 hole golf-course on an enormous dirt lot by his home. The team designed the layout of the course, cleared areas to create “greens” on the dirt, dug holes for the cup, etc. This was very unique was to show ingenuity and leadership. If unable to think of such an experience, make sure you think of a unique angle as to how your more conventional experience helped you grow. Honesty is always the best policy.
3. What has been the ONE most important volunteer work you have done and why was it meaningful? (800 char)
Consider past experiences which are non-medical in nature, such as volunteer work with children or homeless populations. Using a non-medical experience may allow you to focus on humanism and compassion which is a universal virtue, not specific to medicine. Focus on how this has made you a more empathetic and compassionate person, which will help you help your future patients.
4. Has there been or will there be a gap between achieving your last degree (baccalaureate or other degrees post baccalaureate) and the expected time of medical school matriculation? (yes or no). If yes, please explain. (300 char)
If you had a gap year before medical school, describe the experiences you had during that time. Either an essay or a list is a reasonable approach to this questions, but essays tend to be more elegant and allow you to show off your writing skills more. Lists read more like a CV. For each experience, explain how this helped you grow and become a better medical school candidate, which should be the goal of the gap year in the admission committee’s eyes.
5. What is the ONE most important honor you have received? Why do you view this as important? (300 char)
Brainstorm your personal accomplishments/honors which were most formative. Ideally you do not want to just describe a simple victory or triumph, but something which helped you grow and taught you a lesson. Think of a scenario in which you overcame particular adversity to achieve something. Succeeding over a personal challenge will be more poignant than beating a foe, for example. Tie the experience to what lesson it taught you and what skill or trait you gained that makes you a stronger person. Be humble; do not emphasize our tout your personal excellence.
6. What has been your most scholarly project (thesis, research or field of study in basic or clinical science or in the humanities)? Describe one and give number of hours, dates and advisor. (300 char)
Choose the scholarly project which was most substantial. Describe in detail your role, level or involvement, and outcomes of your work (publication, presentation, etc). Also talk about what the experience taught you and what skills you gained.
7. Describe a problem in your life. Include how you dealt with it and how it influenced your growth. (500 char)
Choose this experience wisely. Avoid choosing something which makes you sound like a victim, as this can reflect poorly. If talking about personal or family hardship, describe how it was a challenge but focus on what it taught you and how you overcame it. The lesson learned is key.
8. Section to enter major work experiences. (4000 char to explain each experience)
Similar to the scholarly project question above, describe your role in detail. Choose and describe one lesson or strength you gained from the experience.
9. If there is any hardship to which you would like the committee to give special attention in evaluating your application, then check the box labeled ‘Hardship’ and briefly explain why you are indicating a hardship. Include any geographic, language, economic, academic, physical, or mental factors. (500 char)
Do not feel compelled to answer this question if you cannot think of a good reason to. Do not let this overlap with the “describe a problem” question above. Again avoid sounding like a victim and focus on the personal strengths gained and lessons learned.
10. Where do you see yourself post-graduate education? What experiences have led you to this goal? (800 char)
This is a common question which also may be asked on interviews. You will need to introspect and be prepared for this one. Consider your career goals. Do you plan to be a full-time clinician or do some research as well? Are you interested in global health and medical work abroad? Do you see yourself performing community outreach here in the US? Be realistic but optimistic. You are not bound to your answer so it is ok to have reasonable but lofty goals. Make sure to focus mainly on your career in medicine. Detailing your goals in other professional spheres (if you have them) does not necessarily show your strength as a potential doctor.
2017-2018
The secondary application essay prompts from this medical school application cycle are the same as above.
2016-2017
The secondary application essay prompts from this medical school application cycle are the same as above.
Disclaimer: The information on this page was shared by students and/or can be found on the medical school’s website. Med School Insiders does not guarantee the accuracy of the information on this page.
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