UNSW UNSW Medicine: Direct Application Advice and Discussion

[GottaGo]

Hi everyone,

I'm just getting started on this UNSW direct application for undergraduate medicine, and I was wondering if anyone had any advice for the life experience section? I understand that it doesn't play a role in offer placement, but it may be used in interviews.

Cheers
- Peter

 

[chinaski]

Hi! Does anyone have any tips on what to write for the UNSW medicine application questions?
Questions being:

In 30 words or less, tell us who you are? (30 words)

Describe the most important thing you have done in the past 2 years. Whys was it so important? (50 words)

Outline some experiences you would like to have in the next 10 years? (50 words)

Apart from your parents or guardians, identify the person who contributed the most to your success in life to date. In what way did they contribute? (40 words)

What makes you an outstanding candidate for our medical programme? (30 words)

Concluding statement (20 words)

Only you know the answers to these questions. I'm not really sure how you expect strangers on the internet to tell you what to write in response to them?

 

[ucatboy]

Hi! Does anyone have any tips on what to write for the UNSW medicine application questions?
Questions being:

In 30 words or less, tell us who you are? (30 words)

Describe the most important thing you have done in the past 2 years. Whys was it so important? (50 words)

Outline some experiences you would like to have in the next 10 years? (50 words)

Apart from your parents or guardians, identify the person who contributed the most to your success in life to date. In what way did they contribute? (40 words)

What makes you an outstanding candidate for our medical programme? (30 words)

Concluding statement (20 words)

Seconding chinaski, it's a stupid idea to ask on the internet for "perfect" or "model" answers, one of the many reasons being there simply isn't one. Just so you know, these questions are not marked, they only serve to provide the interviewers with a bit of info about you so they can tailor the interview and better explore your interests and experiences. You can choose to either a. provide honest, meaningful responses to have a chill and laid back interview or b. write something generic and superficial like "I've AlWayS BeEN pasSioNAtE abOUT mEDIcine SInCe a YouNg AGe" and get grilled about it in the interview. Your choice

 

[chezpopcorn]

For my interview last year, they didn’t bring up my responses at all and from talking to the people in my cohort, we all got the same set of interview questions so don’t worry too much about it!

 

[A1]

For my interview last year, they didn’t bring up my responses at all

They could check behind your back whether what you say in the interview jells with what you wrote earlier. One way to detect if you've been coached to answer in certain ways

 

[Nardwuar]

Hi! Does anyone have any tips on what to write for the UNSW medicine application questions?
Questions being:

In 30 words or less, tell us who you are? (30 words)

Describe the most important thing you have done in the past 2 years. Whys was it so important? (50 words)

Outline some experiences you would like to have in the next 10 years? (50 words)

Apart from your parents or guardians, identify the person who contributed the most to your success in life to date. In what way did they contribute? (40 words)

What makes you an outstanding candidate for our medical programme? (30 words)

Concluding statement (20 words)

mate to be quite honest with you i don't think it matters too much. Even the interview to a lesser degree is more about whether you see likeable compared to whether your answers are amazing.

 

[cocodreams]

How important are the 'life experiences' questions in the direct UNSW application? The information is passed onto the interviewers so what are some recommendations/tips on answering them? Thanks

 

[chezpopcorn]

How important are the 'life experiences' questions in the direct UNSW application? The information is passed onto the interviewers so what are some recommendations/tips on answering them? Thanks

The importance is a bit uncertain in the context of the interview as all applicants are asked the exact same set of questions. Just be genuine + showcase the best version of yourself as well as your suitability for medicine as you would for other written applications and interviews

 

[denosawr]

Only you know the answers to these questions. I'm not really sure how you expect strangers on the internet to tell you what to write in response to them?

I know I'm late... but personally, I just wrote some responses in which I tried to highlight my commitment to my local/school community and other qualities which I'd bring to medicine, similarly to what I'd do in an interview. However, I don't think it's all too important, especially given the word count.

 

[hadimuha]

How do I answer the 'tell me about yourself' question on the UNSW application? I want a non generic response, how could I go about this?

 

[Miata]

How do I answer the 'tell me about yourself' question on the UNSW application? I want a non generic response, how could I go about this?

Well there's not really a 'right' answer to this question (or any of the questions in the application for that matter). Plus, if you read the fine print, they don't use those responses to determine if you're a successful applicant or not. At most, they may just be used for topics for your interview, I presume.

Since the word limit for this question is only 30 words, you can't really write much in your response either. I actually just submitted my application a couple of hours ago too, and in my response, I just stated where I'm from (since I moved here from a different country a couple of years back) and some of my favourite hobbies. Hope this helps

 

[medpharmed]

Hi, how do I answer the "What makes you an outstanding candidate for our Medicine Program?" for the unsw application? Do I talk about my qualities like being hard working?

 

[chinaski]

Hi, how do I answer the "What makes you an outstanding candidate for our Medicine Program?" for the unsw application? Do I talk about my qualities like being hard working?

There is no cookie-cutter generic "correct" answer to that question. How you respond is dependent on your individual qualities and motivation as a candidate - something to which obviously only you can attest (not strangers on the internet).

 

[medpharmed]

There is no cookie-cutter generic "correct" answer to that question. How you respond is dependent on your individual qualities and motivation as a candidate - something to which obviously only you can attest (not strangers on the internet).

okay thanks!

also would I have to talk about why specifically their medicine program?

 

[chinaski]

Perhaps, if it was a factor that influenced your decision to apply to that school.

 

[seasonscalls]

Hi, is anyone willing to provide general feedback on my UNSW written application? It's quite short and will probably take no more than 5 minutes. If you are willing to provide feedback please shoot me a message. Additionally if asking for help in your application is against forum rules please notify me and I will delete this post.

Thanks in advance

 

[MyHeadee]

Does anyone know what points would be best to raise up for a UNSW 600 word response for the following question (I know its meant to be personal and you obviously dont know me, or my experiences to from a 'model' response, but I'm just struggling with interpreting the 2nd part of the question.
"Please provide a statement outlining your links with your local rural community and why you are suitable to apply through the Rural Entry Scheme."

For the second part, I've written:
- Suitable because my town is an RRMA 4 area? (idk what else to write about the suitability for rural entry scheme, is there anything other than the fact that i just...live in a rural area? The extent to which they write about the rural entry scheme eligibility on the UNSW website just involves being from a rural area lol, thats about it).

Any help would be appreciated, thank you.

 

[dotwingz]

Sure your eligible for the rural scheme, but in the end whats the point of the rural entry scheme? Pro-tip: Its to get doctors graduated who would want to work in rural areas. UNSW wants to hear that.

Talk about your town, the issues it faces in medicine and healthcare, and what you think you would do to change that. What did you see the issue was in the Aboriginal populations of your area? How are their issues exacerbated by living in a rural area? Talk about the environments of the small town and how you refined those relationships through years of sports, to the point where you actively contributed to it by teaching younger kids.

They wanna see someone whos aware of the issues rural communities face, and are engrained into these communities so they will go back and be part of the solution that help fixes it. That whats makes you a 'suitable' candidate

 

[MyHeadee]

Sure your eligible for the rural scheme, but in the end whats the point of the rural entry scheme? Pro-tip: Its to get doctors graduated who would want to work in rural areas. UNSW wants to hear that.

Talk about your town, the issues it faces in medicine and healthcare, and what you think you would do to change that. What did you see the issue was in the Aboriginal populations of your area? How are their issues exacerbated by living in a rural area? Talk about the environments of the small town and how you refined those relationships through years of sports, to the point where you actively contributed to it by teaching younger kids.

They wanna see someone whos aware of the issues rural communities face, and are engrained into these communities so they will go back and be part of the solution that help fixes it. That whats makes you a 'suitable' candidate

Awesome, Thank you so much !

 

[medpharmed]

does it matter what we put for the concluding statement in the unsw application?