Experiences

Tips for Completing the Experiences Section:

General

• The Experiences section should be a genuine reflection of who you are as an applicant. Programs read the application to get to know you. Consider this section as a complete set. Your experiences—along with your personal statement, letters of recommendation, and key traits—should present a complete picture of you as both an applicant and a person.
• Prior to completing this section, consider doing some self-reflection to identify your personal mission/brand, what you are passionate about, what motivates you, and what your core values are as a physician. Then, list your experiences and consider how they fit within your personal identity.
• Use this section to demonstrate your character and to highlight desired qualities such as teamwork, communication, adaptability, or commitment to patient care.
• Your Experiences should complement other areas of your application. There may be recurring themes within the experiences, personal statement, and noteworthy characteristics sections. Avoid redundancy.
• When describing an experience, remember that honesty is always the best policy.
• Selecting a “Primary Focus Area” or “Key Characteristic” may be helpful in characterizing the experience, however, if these do not apply to a particular experience it is okay to leave them blank.
• Include all relevant experiences, regardless of specialty. For example, if you want to demonstrate your passion for advocacy describe past experiences advocating for women and children, even if you are applying to internal medicine.
• While most experiences will be from your time in medical school, you may include experiences that occurred prior as well. Consider including these if they are meaningful and help to tell your story.
• Avoid topics you don’t feel comfortable talking about in an interview.
• Proofread this section carefully. We recommend having someone (e.g. family, friend, advisor) review these before submitting.

All, some, or none?

• We suggest using all 10 or 12 experiences, although quality is better than quantity. If you have fewer than 10 experiences, consider whether additional educational, service, or research opportunities may contribute to your narrative. Some things to consider: Complete a micro-credential course through the UMB Learning Institute; Identify volunteer opportunities through the UMB Intercultural Center, Join a professional society, or Contribute to a research project that is already in progress.  
• If you have more than 10 or 12 experiences, consider combining multiple experiences with a similar theme into one meaningful entry.
• Many students will include their pre-clerkship elective as one of their experiences.
• Clinical experiences, e.g. electives, sub-internships, or away rotations may be included at a student’s discretion, but we generally do not recommend inclusion since this information is included in the MSPE and transcripts and may be redundant.

Applicants may identify up to 10 or 12 experiences (depending on application system) that communicate who they are, what they are passionate about, and what is most important to them.

For each experience, applicants can provide:

• Identify an experience type as applicable
• Descriptive information
• Briefly describe major activities and responsibilities
• Tag with “Primary Focus Area” or “Key Characteristic”

Most Meaningful: ERAS

Most important: ResidencyCAS

Applicants may select up to three most meaningful experiences from the 10 or 12 selected experiences. Includes a 300-character reflection of the experience to explain why it was meaningful.

Impactful Experience: ERAS

Optional Reflective Statement: ResidencyCAS

This optional section allows applicants to share impactful experiences (e.g., Family background, financial background, community, educational experiences, or other life circumstances) that have had a significant impact on their journey to residency.  

This section is generally intended for applicants who have overcome challenges or obstacles either during medical school or at any point in time. It is not required, just over half of applicants complete this section.

If you are considering, we encourage you to speak with an OSA or Specialty Advisor and have someone review your entry prior to submission.