Essay Topics (2024 - 2025)
Questions 3-6 are limited to 2500 characters each.
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The Admissions Committee holistically evaluates a range of student qualities and life experiences that complement demonstrated academic excellence. What unique qualities do you possess that make you uniquely suited to become a physician or physician scientist? How have your individual lived experiences shaped your core values and desire to be a future leader in our profession?
4. Please answer only one of the following three questions:
5. NYU Grossman School of Medicine strives to provide our students with the option of accelerating their medical educational training. In order to guide our curricular efforts to provide additional opportunities for early career exploration for our students, please select up to three residency specialties that are currently of interest to you. Please note that your selection in no way impacts your admissions decision (i.e., there are no right or wrong selections), that it is not binding in any way, and that you may select “Undecided” if you are unsure of your future career path.
6. Please upload your most recent CV, ensuring the CV includes updated publications, abstracts, and presentations. (PDF format)
Essay Topics ('23 - '24)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application. (no limit provided)
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so. (no limit provided)
3. The Admissions Committee holistically evaluates a range of student qualities and life experiences that complement demonstrated academic excellence. What unique qualities do you possess that make you uniquely suited to become a physician or physician-scientist? How have your individual lived experiences shaped your core values and desire to be a future leader in our profession? (2500 characters)
4. Answer one of the three of the following (2500 characters):
- 1. The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?
- 2. Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
- 3. Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider?
5. NYU Grossman School of Medicine strives to provide our students with the option of accelerating their medical educational training. In order to guide our curricular efforts to provide additional opportunities for early career exploration for our students, please select up to three residency specialties that are currently of interest to you. Please note that your selection in no way impacts your admissions decision (i.e., there are no right or wrong selections), that it is not binding in any way, and that you may select “Undecided” if you are unsure of your future career path.
6. (CV Required)
Essay Topics '22-'23
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
Please limit your answer on the following essays to a maximum of 2500 characters each.
3. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU Grossman School of Medicine community? (2500 characters)
4. The ultimate goal of our institution is to produce a population of physicians with a collective desire to improve health for all segments of our society through outstanding patient care, research and education. In this context, where do you see your future medical career and why? If your plans require that you complete a dual degree program, please elaborate here. (2500 characters)
5. Please answer only one of the following three questions (2500 characters):
- The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?- Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
- Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider?
6. NYU Grossman School of Medicine strives to provide our students with the option of accelerating their medical educational training. In order to guide our curricular efforts to provide additional opportunities for early career exploration for our students, please select up to three residency specialties that are currently of interest to you. Please note that your selection in no way impacts your admissions decision (i.e., there are no right or wrong selections), that it is not binding in any way, and that you may select “Undecided” if you are unsure of your future career path.
Essay Topics ('21 – '22)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community? (2500 characters max)
4. Please answer only one of the following three questions:
a. The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?
b. Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
c. Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider?
5. In light of the COVID-19 public health emergency, how do you view your potential role as a frontline healthcare provider? (2500 characters)
Essay Topics ('20 – '21)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU Grossman School of Medicine Community?
4. The ultimate goal of our institution is to produce a population of physicians with a collective desire to improve health of all segments of our society through the outstanding patient care, research and education. In this context, where do you see your future medical career and why? If your plans require that you complete a dual degree program, please elaborate here.
5. Please answer only one of the following three questions:
* The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?
* Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
* Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider?
6. In light of the public health emergency that was the COVID-19 pandemic, how do you view
your potential role as a frontline healthcare provider?
MSTP Prompts:
1. Select 5 faculty you'd like to meet from a drop-down.
2. How many months of full-time research experience have you completed? When estimating this amount, you may convert part-time research into its full-time equivalent. For example, if you conducted part-time research for 1 year for ~50% of the time, this would equal 6 months of full-time research. Please do not include lab experiences associated with a course (e.g., organic chemistry course with lab).
3. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community? (2500 characters max)
Essay Topics ('19 – '20)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The following question is designed to assess the ways in which you embody our institutions core values. Please limit your answer to a maximum of 2500 characters.
4. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community?
MSTP:
1. If invited for an interview, please select faculty with whom you would like to meet. Our training faculty is located on our website at PhD Training Faculty at NYU School of Medicine | NYU Langone Health (5 faculty, dropdown)
2. How many months of full-time research experience have you completed? When estimating this amount, you may convert part-time research into its full-time equivalent. For example, if you conducted part-time research for 1 year for ~50% of the time, this would equal 6 months of full-time research. Please do not include lab experiences associated with a course (e.g., organic chemistry course with lab).
Essay Topics ('18 – '19)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community (2500 characters max)?
4. The ultimate goal of our institution is to produce a population of physicians with a collective desire to improve health of all segments of our society through the outstanding patient care, research and education. In this context, where do you see your future medical career (academic medicine, research, public health, primary care, business/law, etc.) and why? Your answer need not be restricted to one category. If your plans require that you complete a dual degree program, please elaborate here (2500 characters max).
5. Please answer only one of the following three questions (2500 characters max):
The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?
Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, world views and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider?
MSTP:
1. Drop downs to choose 5 faculty with whom you could see yourself working with in the future.
Space to put how many hours of full-time research you've done. From the form:
2. How many months of full-time research experience have you completed? When estimating this amount, you may convert part-time research into its full-time equivalent. For example, if you conducted part-time research for 1 year for ~50% of the time, this would equal 6 months of full-time research. Please do not include lab experiences associated with a course (e.g., organic chemistry course with lab).
3 YR MD Tertiary:
The Three-Year MD Pathway provides an accelerated track for a select group of eligible students. All students graduating from the Three-Year MD Pathway will be offered acceptance into the NYU Langone Medical Center residency program they selected at the time of admission by way of the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP).
You can apply to the Three-Year MD Pathway at any time during your initial application to medical school. The application deadline is November 15, 2018 at 11:59 PM EST. That said, your application will only be reviewed by the admissions committee and the residency programs if you are first accepted into the Four-Year MD Pathway.
Please note that we have an additional entry point into the Three-Year MD Pathway. Should you decide you are not ready to enter the pathway at this time, we have provided our matriculated first year medical students with the opportunity to opt into the Three-Year Pathway in available residency programs towards the end of their first year of medical school at NYU.
Finally, we are piloting an addition to our Three-Year MD Pathway for those applicants to medical school who already have a PhD and wish to obtain their MD to facilitate their research endeavors. This Three-Year PhD-MD Pathway is linked to research-focused residency tracks in some of our residency programs and provides unique benefits to those who wish to develop tomorrows biomedical discoveries as our future physician scientists.
1. Please select the residency program you wish to apply to:
2. Please describe your motivation for pursuing a residency, detailing how past experiences have shaped your desire to pursue this career path. (2500 char)
3. What do you believe the three most important qualities are that make for not only a successful resident, but ultimately an ideal physician in this field? (2500 char)
Essay Topics ('17 – '18)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The following questions are designed to assess ways in which you embody our institutions core values. Please limit each answer to a maximum of 2500 characters.
4. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community?
5. The ultimate goal of our institution is to produce a population of physicians with a collective desire to improve health of all segments of our society through the outstanding patient care, research and education. In this context, where do you see your future medical career (academic medicine, research, public health, primary care, business/law, etc.) and why? Your answer need not be restricted to one category. If your plans require that you complete a dual degree program, please elaborate here.
6. Please answer only one of the following three questions:
The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?
Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider?
Essay Topics ('16 – '17)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential.
4. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community?
5. The ultimate goal of our institution is to produce a population of physicians with a collective desire to improve health of all segments of our society through the outstanding patient care, research and education. In this context, where do you see your future medical career (academic medicine, research, public health, primary care, business/law, etc.) and why? Your answer need not be restricted to one category. If your plans require that you complete a dual degree program, please elaborate here.
6. Please answer only one of the following three questions:
The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?
Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider?
Essay Topics ('15 – '16)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The following questions are designed to assess ways in which you embody our institutions core values.
4. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community? (2500 char)
5. The ultimate goal of our institution is to produce a population of physicians with a collective desire to improve health of all segments of our society through the outstanding patient care, research and education. In this context, where do you see your future medical career (academic medicine, research, public health, primary care, business/law, etc.) and why? Your answer need not be restricted to one category. If your plans require that you complete a dual degree program, please elaborate here. (2500 char)
6. Please answer only one of the following three questions:
The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you? (2500 char)
Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences? (2500 char)
Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider? (2500 char)
Essay Topics ('14 – '15)
1. If applicable, please comment on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere on your application.
2. If you have taken any time off from your studies, either during or after college, please describe what you have done during this time and your reasons for doing so.
3. The following questions are designed to assess ways in which you embody our institutions core values. Please limit each answer to a maximum of 2500 characters.
4. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community?
5. The ultimate goal of our institution is to produce a population of physicians with a collective desire to improve health of all segments of our society through the outstanding patient care, research and education. In this context, where do you see your future medical career (academic medicine, research, public health, primary care, business/law, etc.) and why? Your answer need not be restricted to one category. If your plans require that you complete a dual degree program, please elaborate here.
6. Please answer only one of the following three questions:
The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?
Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider?
Essay Topics ('13 – '14)
1. The Admissions Committee uses a holistic approach to evaluate a wide range of student qualities and life experiences that are complementary to demonstrated academic excellence, strong interpersonal skills and leadership potential.
2. What unique qualities or experiences do you possess that would contribute specifically to the NYU School of Medicine community?
3. The ultimate goal of our institution is to produce a population of physicians with a collective desire to improve health of all segments of our society through the outstanding patient care, research and education. In this context, where do you see your future medical career (academic medicine, research, public health, primary care, business/law, etc.) and why? Your answer need not be restricted to one category. If your plans require that you complete a dual degree program, please elaborate here.
4. Please answer only one of the following three questions:
The most meaningful achievements are often non-academic in nature. Describe the personal accomplishment that makes you most proud. Why is this important to you?
Conflicts arise daily from differences in perspectives, priorities, worldviews and traditions. How do you define respect? Describe a situation in which you found it challenging to remain respectful while facing differences?
Describe a situation in which working with a colleague, family member or friend has been challenging. How did you resolve, if at all, the situation as a team and what did you gain from the experience that will benefit you as a future health care provider? Characters: 2500