Essay Topics (2024 - 2025)

Answer 1 and 2 if applicable. Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between August 2024 and July 2025, please detail your current and planned activities below. If your plans are not confirmed or if they change, please update us later in the cycle via the User Profile: Updates section.

2. If you are a reapplicant to UF COM, please briefly describe your approach to preparing for a new application and specific changes from your previous application.

Section 3​

1. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must “be well cared for” (science) but they must also “feel well cared for” (art). We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called “professionalism.” Toward this end, we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students.In fact, the UFCOM version of the Hippocratic Oath includes the following affirmation. “I will remember with gratitude and humility those whose illness or injury provided examples from which I learned, and, in their honor, I will continue the pursuit of knowledge.”

At the UFCOM, we have many strategies to equip our students to preserve their own humanity and that of their patients. One of the most important is the ability to make connections with and get to know their patients. Frequently such connections become the student’s first taste of the joy of medical practice, a joy that can be a bulwark against burnout. As Dr. Fred Griffin has observed.

“It is physicians’ good fortune to spend their lifework engaged in a profession where—hand in hand with developing proficiency in helping others—they may deepen self-understanding, increase their own humanity, and learn how to grapple with the dilemmas that they too must face in life…When physicians are willing to engage in this process, they are much more likely to find their work meaningful; they are less likely to become “burned out” by the daily impact of the suffering of their patients and of the emotional demands placed on them. This statement is only apparently paradoxical.”

Fred Griffin: Literature and Medicine vol 23 No2 pp280-303

Students at UFCOM regularly write about and discuss encounters with patients that shape their professional identity and help them become better physicians and human beings. Here are two such reflections from our third-year students, each describing interactions where they grew and learned while they were caring patients. Read and reflect on both and then choose one and describe how the writer, in the words of Dr. Griffin, deepened self-understanding and increased their humanity. (525 words max)


2. The profession of medicine has always had an explicit contract with society about our expertise and competence that also includes an important affirmation. Namely, that we will subordinate self-interest to patient interest when the needs of our patients require us to do so.

‍This does not mean we do not take care of ourselves and one another, but it does mean we willingly take on risks to ourselves that many others would not. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought this commitment to light as many medical professionals labored on the front lines caring for the sick despite the potential dangers. In response to these dangers, masks, gowns, gloves and face shields became commonplace to minimize risks of contracting and spreading the virus. While this was a necessary precaution, communication with and connections to our patients suffered.

In the wake of the pandemic, some have advocated increasing emotional distance from patients as a way to protect healthcare professionals from emotional exhaustion. This ethos of “self-protection” manifests itself in demands for strict boundaries with patients and avoiding inherently uncomfortable situations. This approach has troubling harmony with what has been called, the “provider of services” model, where physicians are merely cogs in the healthcare machine and patients are nothing more than consumers of healthcare.

At UFCOM we believe that the human connections we make with patients are both therapeutic and mutually enriching. If we allow the beauty of this art to atrophy, we will only make the landscape of healthcare more barren. Rather than being a solution for burnout then, it will simply make matters worse.

Having said this, we acknowledge the difficulties since we often care for people in the most difficult places of their lives. Being present during these times can be both a source of joy as we help our patients, but can also challenge our own emotional health and resilience. Struggling to make sense of suffering induced by disease, social forces and human agency has brought an occasion for growth among many of us who work in healthcare. It is together in this community of care that we deepen our humanity.

Holocaust survivor and renowned psychiatrist Viktor Frankl, (1905-1997) wrote an account of his time in the concentration camp called, “Man’s Search for Meaning.” It has sold more than 10 million copies in 24 languages and offers profound insights into how finding meaning in suffering sustains us during our darkest times.

In his view self-protection is counterproductive and, only by “self-transcendence” can we find true meaning and purpose in our lives. To quote him, “The more one forgets himself--by giving himself to a cause to serve or another person to love--the more human he is and the more he actualizes himself…self-actualization is possible only as a side-effect of self-transcendence.” This assertion fits our experience and has led us to the belief that focusing on ourselves beyond common sense self-care will be counterproductive in our quest for wellness. We call this the “Paradox of the Self.” Stated briefly,The more I think and worry about myself, my shortcomings, struggles, unfulfilled desires or unwanted circumstances; the more anxious and miserable I will become. While the more I focus my attention outward and live with a graceful self-forgetfulness, the more I can serve others with joy and find fulfillment in the profession.

‍Please give some consideration to this “paradox of the self” and tell us in the space below about experiences where you have seen this principle at work either in your own life, or in the lives of others. (525 words max)

‍

Essay Topics ('23 – '24)

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between August 2023 and July 2024, please detail your current and planned activities below. (250-500 words)
2. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must “be well cared for” (science) but they must also “feel well cared for” (art). We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called “professionalism”. Toward this end we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students.

‍The exciting advances in our understanding of the biological basis for disease have led to the emergence of a host of targeted therapies and amazing technologies improving the duration and quality of our patients’ lives. The better a physician knows his/her patient, the better decisions they will make together as they approach important healthcare related questions. This so-called shared decision-making model is one key feature of patient centered care. Practicing the art of medicine in this way yields a physician patient relationship (PPR) that is both therapeutic and mutually enriching. However, many of these same technologies have the unintended consequence of separating us from our patients, both literally and figuratively. In addition, the industrialization of medicine and use of electronic health records have led to a decrease in the time physicians spend with their patients further eroding the strength of the PPR.

At the UFCOM, we have many strategies to equip our students to preserve their own humanity and that of their patients. One of the most important is the ability to make connections with and get to know their patients. Frequently such connections become the student’s first taste of the joy of medical practice. In fact, the UFCOM version of the Hippocratic Oath includes the following affirmation. “I will remember with gratitude and humility those whose illness or injury provided examples from which I learned, and, in their honor, I will continue the pursuit of knowledge.”

In our polarized society, the importance of such virtues as humility and gratitude have perhaps never been greater. Over the last two decades, the Greater Good Science Center at the University of California Berkeley has offered strong scientific support for the importance of such virtues as gratitude and humility in human well-being. But it should also be remembered that philosophers and theologians have cherished these virtues for centuries. For example, when mounting a legal defense for a friend, Cicero observed, “while I wish to be adorned with every virtue, yet there is nothing which I can esteem more highly than the being and appearing grateful. For this one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues.” Offering a similar endorsement for the virtue of humility, Augustine of Hippo observed, “Humility is the foundation of all the other virtues hence, in the soul in which this virtue does not exist there cannot be any other virtue except in mere appearance.”

Students at UFCOM regularly write about and discuss encounters with patients that shape their professional identity in important ways. In so doing, we all learn to become better physicians and human beings. Here are two such reflections, by our students, one a poem and the other an essay. Read and reflect on both and then choose one and describe how the writer grew from the experience. Consider the affirmation from the Hippocratic Oath in your response. (250-500 words)

‍3. The profession of medicine has always had an explicit contract with society about our expertise and competence but it also includes an important affirmation. Namely, that we will subordinate self-interest to patient interest when the needs of our patients require us to do so. This does not mean we do not take care of ourselves and one another, but it does mean we willingly take on risks to ourselves that many others would not. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought this commitment to light as many medical professionals labored on the front lines caring for the sick despite the potential dangers.

When we consider medical practice and hence, medical education, one could ask what sorts of virtues or character traits equip young medical professionals for such a noble calling. Many come to mind including courage, compassion, intellectual honesty and integrity. But recently attention has been given to the ability to stay with a task or course even when one is tired, discouraged and the work is daunting and laborious. Terms such as “resilience”, “endurance”, “perseverance”, “determination” or “grit” describe this character trait. Dr. Angela Duckworth has explored this in detail in her book “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance” (Angela Duckworth). Cultivating this virtue, in ourselves and one another, offers a tangible means to lean against the depersonalizing and emotionally exhausting forces at work in healthcare.As physicians, we have the privilege of caring for people who are in the most difficult places of their lives. Being present during these times can be both a source of joy as we help our patients, but can also challenge our own emotional health and resilience. Struggling to make sense of suffering induced by disease, social forces and human agency has brought an occasion for growth among many of us who work in healthcare.

As you grow into your new identity as a physician, you will come face to face with the suffering of other human beings. In fact, we will all have to face our own losses as we go through medical training and practice. Put simply, none of us is exempt from suffering. As the Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe (1930-2013) once observed, “When suffering knocks at your door and you say there is no seat for him, he tells you not to worry because he has brought his own stool.”

Holocaust survivor and renowned psychiatrist Viktor Frankl, (1905-1997) wrote an account of his time in the concentration camp called, “Man’s Search for Meaning”. It has sold more than 10 million copies in 24 languages and offers profound insights into how finding meaning in suffering sustains us during our darkest times.

Below are several quotes from Dr. Frankl that deal with finding purpose and meaning in suffering. After reading and thinking about his insights, chose one or two and tell us about experiences where you have seen these principles at work either in your own life, or in the lives of others.

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”

“If there is a meaning in life at all, then there must be a meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even as fate and death. Without suffering and death, human life cannot be complete.”

“A man who becomes conscious of the responsibility he bears toward a human being who affectionately waits for him, or to an unfinished work, will never be able to throw away his life. He knows the 'why' for his existence, and will be able to bear almost any 'how.'”

“Being human always points, and is directed, to something or someone, other than oneself - be it a meaning to fulfill or another human being to encounter. “

4. (Optional) If you think there is any additional information that would help the admissions committee in its review of your application, including any disruptions in your academic/volunteer/work/personal life related to COVID-19, please use the space below. (4000 characters max)

Additional questions

1. *REQUIRED If you are not a legal resident of Florida according to your AMCAS application, write a statement describing your association with the State of Florida below. This statement is required even if you have no ties to the State of Florida. (no apparent word count)

2. (optional) Reflect upon your life experiences, values and/or personal background. Do any or all of these help frame how you envision your future contributions to the health and wellbeing of others as a physician and if so, how? (500 words max)3. There is a page for selecting introversion and extroversion traits/statements but no essay associated with it

‍

Essay Topics '22-'23

‍1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2022 and May 2023, please detail your current and planned activities below. (250-500 words)

2. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must “be well cared for” (science) but they must also “feel well cared for” (art). We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called “professionalism”. Toward this end we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students.

The exciting advances in our understanding of the biological basis for disease have led to the emergence of a host of targeted therapies and amazing technologies improving the duration and quality of our patients’ lives. The better a physician knows his/her patient, the better decisions they will make together as they approach important healthcare related questions. This so-called shared decision-making model is one key feature of patient centered care. Practicing the art of medicine in this way yields a physician patient relationship (PPR) that is both therapeutic and mutually enriching. However, many of these same technologies have the unintended consequence of separating us from our patients, both literally and figuratively. In addition, the industrialization of medicine and use of electronic health records have led to a decrease in the time physicians spend with their patients further eroding the strength of the PPR.

At the UFCOM, we have many strategies to equip our students to preserve their own humanity and that of their patients. One of the most important is the ability to make connections with and get to know their patients. Frequently such connections become the student’s first taste of the joy of medical practice. In fact, the UFCOM version of the Hippocratic Oath includes the following affirmation. “I will remember with gratitude and humility those whose illness or injury provided examples from which I learned, and, in their honor, I will continue the pursuit of knowledge.”

In our polarized society, the importance of such virtues as humility and gratitude have perhaps never been greater. Over the last two decades, the Greater Good Science Center at the University of California Berkeley has offered strong scientific support for the importance of such virtues as gratitude and humility in human well-being. But it should also be remembered that philosophers and theologians have cherished these virtues for centuries. For example, when mounting a legal defense for a friend, Cicero observed, “while I wish to be adorned with every virtue, yet there is nothing which I can esteem more highly than the being and appearing grateful. For this one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues.” Offering a similar endorsement for the virtue of humility, Augustine of Hippo observed, “Humility is the foundation of all the other virtues hence, in the soul in which this virtue does not exist there cannot be any other virtue except in mere appearance.”

Students at UFCOM regularly write about and discuss encounters with patients that shape their professional identity in important ways. In so doing, we all learn to become better physicians and human beings. Here are two such reflections, by our students, one a poem and the other an essay. Read and reflect on both and then choose one and describe how the writer grew from the experience. Consider the affirmation from the Hippocratic Oath in your response. (500 words)

3. The profession of medicine has always had an explicit contract with society about our expertise and competence but it also includes an important affirmation. Namely, that we will subordinate self-interest to patient interest when the needs of our patients require us to do so. This does not mean we do not take care of ourselves and one another, but it does mean we willingly take on risks to ourselves that many others would not. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought this commitment to light as many medical professionals labored on the front lines caring for the sick despite the potential dangers.

When we consider medical practice and hence, medical education, one could ask what sorts of virtues or character traits equip young medical professionals for such a noble calling. Many come to mind including courage, compassion, intellectual honesty and integrity. But recently attention has been given to the ability to stay with a task or course even when one is tired, discouraged and the work is daunting and laborious. Terms such as “resilience”, “endurance”, “perseverance”, “determination” or “grit” describe this character trait. Dr. Angela Duckworth has explored this in detail in her book “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance” (Angela Duckworth). Cultivating this virtue, in ourselves and one another, offers a tangible means to lean against the depersonalizing and emotionally exhausting forces at work in healthcare.

As physicians, we have the privilege of caring for people who are in the most difficult places of their lives. Being present during these times can be both a source of joy as we help our patients, but can also challenge our own emotional health and resilience. Struggling to make sense of suffering induced by disease, social forces and human agency has brought an occasion for growth among many of us who work in healthcare.

As you grow into your new identity as a physician, you will come face to face with the suffering of other human beings. In fact, we will all have to face our own losses as we go through medical training and practice. Put simply, none of us is exempt from suffering. As the Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe (1930-2013) once observed, “When suffering knocks at your door and you say there is no seat for him, he tells you not to worry because he has brought his own stool.”

Holocaust survivor and renowned psychiatrist Viktor Frankl, (1905-1997) wrote an account of his time in the concentration camp called, “Man’s Search for Meaning”. It has sold more than 10 million copies in 24 languages and offers profound insights into how finding meaning in suffering sustains us during our darkest times.

Below are several quotes from Dr. Frankl that deal with finding purpose and meaning in suffering. After reading and thinking about his insights, choose one or two and tell us about experiences where you have seen these principles at work either in your own life, or in the lives of others. (500 words):

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”

“If there is a meaning in life at all, then there must be a meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even as fate and death. Without suffering and death, human life cannot be complete.”

“A man who becomes conscious of the responsibility he bears toward a human being who affectionately waits for him, or to an unfinished work, will never be able to throw away his life. He knows the 'why' for his existence, and will be able to bear almost any 'how.'”

“Being human always points, and is directed, to something or someone, other than oneself - be it a meaning to fulfill or another human being to encounter."

4. (Optional) If you think there is any additional information that would help the admissions committee in its review of your application, including any disruptions in your academic/volunteer/work/personal life related to COVID-19, please use the space below. (750 word limit)

‍

Essay Topics ('21 – '22)

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2021 and May 2022, please detail your current and planned activities below. (250-500 words)

2. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must “be well cared for” (science) but they must also “feel well cared for” (art). We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called “professionalism”. Toward this end we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students.

The exciting advances in our understanding of the biological basis for disease have led to the emergence of a host of targeted therapies and amazing technologies improving the duration and quality of our patients’ lives. The better a physician knows his/her patient, the better decisions they will make together as they approach important healthcare related questions. This so-called shared decision-making model is one key feature of patient centered care. Practicing the art of medicine in this way yields a physician patient relationship (PPR) that is both therapeutic and mutually enriching. However, many of these same technologies have the unintended consequence of separating us from our patients, both literally and figuratively. In addition, the industrialization of medicine and use of electronic health records have led to a decrease in the time physicians spend with their patients further eroding the strength of the PPR.

At the UFCOM, we have many strategies to equip our students to preserve their own humanity and that of their patients. One of the most important is the ability to make connections with and get to know their patients. Frequently such connections are the first time students taste the joy of medical practice. A second grows from cultivating a grateful heart by attending to the many blessings in our lives rather than focusing on what is wrong. There is now a strong scientific basis for the importance of gratitude but the ancients knew this from experience. For example, when mounting a legal defense for a friend, Cicero observed, “while I wish to be adorned with every virtue, yet there is nothing which I can esteem more highly than the being and appearing grateful. For this one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues.” A third is dedicated time to reflect individually and with colleagues upon one’s developing understanding of the profession.‍

Here are two such reflective essays from UFCOM students during their third year internal medicine clerkship which you should read carefully. One student sees each connection to a patient as like the individual brush strokes of an artist and the other sees gratitude in a patient with an incurable illness and is moved to gratitude in her own life. Reflect on both essays and then choose one and describe how the student grew from the experience. Then explain what you learned as a result of your reflection and how the lesson(s) will influence your future patient physician relationships.

3. The profession of medicine has always had an explicit contract with society about our expertise and competence but it also includes an important affirmation. Namely, that we will subordinate self-interest to patient interest when the needs of our patients require us to do so. This does not mean we do not take care of ourselves and one another, but it does mean we willingly take on risks to ourselves that many others would not. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought this commitment to light as many medical professionals are laboring on the front lines caring for the sick despite the potential dangers. When we consider medical practice and hence, medical education, one could ask what sorts of virtues or character traits equip young medical professionals for such a noble calling. Many come to mind including courage, compassion, intellectual honesty and integrity. But recently attention has been given to the ability to stay with a task or course even when one is tired, discouraged and the work is daunting and laborious. Terms such as “resilience”, “endurance”, “perseverance”, “determination” or “grit” describe this character trait. Dr. Angela Duckworth has explored this in detail in her book “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance” (Angela Duckworth).

However, great concern has been raised by the 2018 book, The Coddling of the American Mind (The Coddling of the American Mind). In it, Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff, argue that modern trends in parenting, higher education and society are undermining development of these traits making them rarer and hence all the more important as we choose the future physicians for our society.

Below are a series of quotes related to this subject. Please read them, reflect on them and tell us about the places in your own life you have shown grit and perseverance.

a. “Do the things that interest you and do them with all your heart. Don't be concerned about whether people are watching you or criticizing you. The chances are that they aren't paying any attention to you. It's your attention to yourself that is so stultifying. But you have to disregard yourself as completely as possible. If you fail the first time then you'll just have to try harder the second time. After all, there's no real reason why you should fail. Just stop thinking about yourself.” -Eleanor Roosevelt, You Learn by Living: Eleven Keys for a More Fulfilling Life

b. “As soon as possible, experts hungrily seek feedback on how they did. Necessarily, much of that feedback is negative. This means that experts are more interested in what they did wrong—so they can fix it—than what they did right. The active processing of this feedback is as essential as its immediacy.” -Angela Duckworth, Grit

c. “...grit grows as we figure out our life philosophy, learn to dust ourselves off after rejection and disappointment, and learn to tell the difference between low-level goals that should be abandoned quickly and higher-level goals that demand more tenacity. The maturation story is that we develop the capacity for long-term passion and perseverance as we get older.” -Angela Duckworth, Grit: Passion, Perseverance, and the Science of Success

OPTIONAL QUESTION:

1. If you think there is any additional information that would help the admissions committee in its review of your application, including any disruptions in your academic/volunteer/work/personal life related to COVID-19, please use the space below. (750 words)

‍

Essay Topics (’20 – ’21)‍

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2020 and May 2021, please detail your current and planned activities below. (250-500 words)

2. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must “be well cared for” (science) but they must also “feel well cared for” (art). We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called “professionalism”. Toward this end we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students.

The exciting advances in our understanding of the biological basis for disease have led to the emergence of a host of targeted therapies and amazing technologies improving the duration and quality of our patients’ lives. The better a physician knows his/her patient, the better decisions they will make together as they approach important healthcare related questions. This so-called shared decision-making model is one key feature of patient centered care. Practicing the art of medicine in this way yields a physician patient relationship (PPR) that is both therapeutic and mutually enriching. However, many of these same technologies have the unintended consequence of separating us from our patients, both literally and figuratively. In addition, the industrialization of medicine and use of electronic health records have led to a decrease in the time physicians spend with their patients further eroding the strength of the PPR.

At the UFCOM, we have many strategies to equip our students to preserve their own humanity and that of their patients. One of the most important is the ability to make connections with and get to know their patients. Frequently such connections are the first time students taste the joy of medical practice. A second grows from cultivating a grateful heart by attending to the many blessings in our lives rather than focusing on what is wrong. There is now a strong scientific basis for the importance of gratitude but the ancients knew this from experience. For example, when mounting a legal defense for a friend, Cicero observed, “while I wish to be adorned with every virtue, yet there is nothing which I can esteem more highly than the being and appearing grateful. For this one virtue is not only the greatest, but is also the parent of all the other virtues.” A third is dedicated time to reflect individually and with colleagues upon one’s developing understanding of the profession.

Here are two such reflective essays from UFCOM students during their third year internal medicine clerkship which you should read carefully. One student sees each connection to a patient as like the individual brush strokes of an artist and the other sees gratitude in a patient with an incurable illness and is moved to gratitude in her own life. Reflect on both essays and then choose one and describe how the student grew from the experience. Then explain what you learned as a result of your reflection and how the lesson(s) will influence your future patient physician relationships. (500 Words)

3. The profession of medicine has always had an explicit contract with society about our expertise and competence but it also includes an important affirmation. Namely, that we will subordinate self-interest to patient interest when the needs of our patients require us to do so. This does not mean we do not take care of ourselves and one another, but it does mean we willingly take on risks to ourselves that many others would not. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought this commitment to light as many medical professionals are laboring on the front lines caring for the sick despite the potential dangers. When we consider medical practice and hence, medical education, one could ask what sorts of virtues or character traits equip young medical professionals for such a noble calling. Many come to mind including courage, compassion, intellectual honesty and integrity. But recently attention has been given to the ability to stay with a task or course even when one is tired, discouraged and the work is daunting and laborious. Terms such as “resilience”, “endurance”, “perseverance”, “determination” or “grit” describe this character trait. Dr. Angela Duckworth has explored this in detail in her book “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance” (Angela Duckworth).

However, great concern has been raised by the 2018 book, The Coddling of the American Mind (The Coddling of the American Mind). In it, Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff, argue that modern trends in parenting, higher education and society are undermining development of these traits making them rarer and hence all the more important as we choose the future physicians for our society.

Below are a series of quotes related to this subject. Please read them, reflect on them and tell us about the places in your own life you have shown grit and perseverance. (500 Words)

a. “Do the things that interest you and do them with all your heart. Don't be concerned about whether people are watching you or criticizing you. The chances are that they aren't paying any attention to you. It's your attention to yourself that is so stultifying. But you have to disregard yourself as completely as possible. If you fail the first time then you'll just have to try harder the second time. After all, there's no real reason why you should fail. Just stop thinking about yourself.” -Eleanor Roosevelt, You Learn by Living: Eleven Keys for a More Fulfilling Life

b. “As soon as possible, experts hungrily seek feedback on how they did. Necessarily, much of that feedback is negative. This means that experts are more interested in what they did wrong—so they can fix it—than what they did right. The active processing of this feedback is as essential as its immediacy.” -Angela Duckworth, Grit

c. “...grit grows as we figure out our life philosophy, learn to dust ourselves off after rejection and disappointment, and learn to tell the difference between low-level goals that should be abandoned quickly and higher-level goals that demand more tenacity. The maturation story is that we develop the capacity for long-term passion and perseverance as we get older.” -Angela Duckworth, Grit: Passion, Perseverance, and the Science of Success

OPTIONAL QUESTION:

1. If you think there is any additional information that would help the admissions committee in its review of your application, including any disruptions in your academic/volunteer/work/personal life related to COVID-19, please use the space below. (750 words)

‍

Essay Topics ('19 – '20)‍

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2018 and May 2019, please detail your current and planned activities below. Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

2. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must be well cared for (science) but they must also feel well cared for (art). Indeed, the late physician, writer and ethicist, Dr. Edmund Pelegrino affirms both the science and art of medicine. But when discussing the nature of the physician/patient relationship he says the following, The act specific to medicine, that which makes it medicine and thereby distinguishes it from both science and art, is the decision about what is right and good for a particular patient now, with this set of needs, arising out of this particular illness¦It is the practical decision, taken in the best interest of a particular person, not in the interest of new knowledge, of society or of the physician. We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called professionalism. Toward this end we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students.

The exciting advances in our understanding of the biological basis for disease have led to the emergence of a host of targeted therapies and amazing technologies improving the duration and quality of our patients lives. The better a physician knows his/her patient, the better decisions they will make together as they approach important healthcare related questions. This so-called shared decision-making model is one key feature of patient centered care. Practicing the art of medicine in this way yields a physician patient relationship (PPR) that is both therapeutic and mutually enriching. However, many of these same technologies have the unintended consequence of separating us from our patients, both literally and figuratively. In addition, the industrialization of medicine and use of electronic health records have led to a decrease in the time physicians spend with their patients further eroding the strength of the PPR. At the UFCOM, we have numerous strategies to equip our students to preserve their own humanity and that of their patients. As students make connections with and get to know their patients, they begin to experience the joy in medical practice. They also have the chance to consider ways that the forces mentioned above can rob a physician of that joy. As they share their stories, they encourage one another to make deliberate choices to preserve what we might call the heart or soul of the profession. Read these reflections from two third year students, one about a memorable encounter with a patient and the patients daughter and the second a very moving poem where a student explores the importance of taking time to be quiet and alone despite the busyness of our lives. She also considers the potentially dark consequences of neglecting this important practice. After reading and reflecting upon them, write an essay about what you will do to never lose the human side of yourself, treat your future patients as you would a family member, and thereby preserve the soul of medicine. (500 words)

3. Many hours in medical school are appropriately spent pursuing knowledge and skills needed to practice medicine. Medical students must master an enormous amount of information, synthesize it into a workable understanding of the human body, and then discern the best way to translate such knowledge into decisions with individual patients. However, governing this process are larger philosophical questions such as, What does it mean to be human? In his 1748 work, Man as Machine, French physician and philosopher Julien Offray de La Mettrie argues that humans are nothing more than complex animals. In contrast, many others would suggest there are psychological, social, emotional and spiritual dimensions to being human that are no less important than the biological, and perhaps even more important. Whatever our answers to these questions, those answers will have an impact on what we think it means to be a healthy human.

Below are two brief quotations, one from the Greek philosopher Plato and the other from Sir William Osler (1849-1919), widely regarded as one of the fathers of modern medicine. Read and reflect upon them and then choose one for an essay. Please address whether or not you agree with the author, why you do or do not, and how your conclusion might affect the way you practice as a physician. (500 words)

a. Variability is the law of life, and as no two faces are the same, so no two bodies are alike, and no two individuals react alike and behave alike under the abnormal conditions which we know as disease. -William Osler

b. The greatest mistake in the treatment of diseases is that there are physicians for the body and physicians for the soul, although the two cannot be separated. -Plato

‍

Essay Topics ('18 – '19)‍

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2018 and May 2019, please detail your current and planned activities below. Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

2. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must be well cared for (science) but they must also feel well cared for (art). Indeed, the late physician, writer and ethicist, Dr. Edmund Pelegrino affirms both the science and art of medicine. But when discussing the nature of the physician/patient relationship he says the following, The act specific to medicine, that which makes it medicine and thereby distinguishes it from both science and art, is the decision about what is right and good for a particular patient now, with this set of needs, arising out of this particular illness¦It is the practical decision, taken in the best interest of a particular person, not in the interest of new knowledge, of society or of the physician. We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called professionalism. Toward this end we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students.

The exciting advances in our understanding of the biological basis for disease have led to the emergence of a host of targeted therapies and amazing technologies improving the duration and quality of our patients lives. The better a physician knows his/her patient, the better decisions they will make together as they approach important healthcare related questions. This so-called shared decision-making model is one key feature of patient centered care. Practicing the art of medicine in this way yields a physician patient relationship (PPR) that is both therapeutic and mutually enriching. However, many of these same technologies have the unintended consequence of separating us from our patients, both literally and figuratively. In addition, the industrialization of medicine and use of electronic health records have led to a decrease in the time physicians spend with their patients further eroding the strength of the PPR. At the UFCOM, we have numerous strategies to equip our students to preserve their own humanity and that of their patients. As students make connections with and get to know their patients, they begin to experience the joy in medical practice. They also have the chance to consider ways that the forces mentioned above can rob a physician of that joy. As they share their stories, they encourage one another to make deliberate choices to preserve what we might call the heart or soul of the profession. Read these reflections from two third year students, one about a memorable encounter with a patient and the patients daughter and the second a very moving poem where a student explores the importance of taking time to be quiet and alone despite the busyness of our lives. She also considers the potentially dark consequences of neglecting this important practice. After reading and reflecting upon them, write an essay about what you will do to never lose the human side of yourself, treat your future patients as you would a family member, and thereby preserve the soul of medicine. (500 words)

3. Many hours in medical school are appropriately spent pursuing knowledge and skills needed to practice medicine. Medical students must master an enormous amount of information, synthesize it into a workable understanding of the human body, and then discern the best way to translate such knowledge into decisions with individual patients. However, governing this process are larger philosophical questions such as, What does it mean to be human? In his 1748 work, Man as Machine, French physician and philosopher Julien Offray de La Mettrie argues that humans are nothing more than complex animals. In contrast, many others would suggest there are psychological, social, emotional and spiritual dimensions to being human that are no less important than the biological, and perhaps even more important. Whatever our answers to these questions, those answers will have an impact on what we think it means to be a healthy human.

Below are two brief quotations, one from the Greek philosopher Plato and the other from Sir William Osler (1849-1919), widely regarded as one of the fathers of modern medicine. Read and reflect upon them and then choose one for an essay. Please address whether or not you agree with the author, why you do or do not, and how your conclusion might affect the way you practice as a physician. (500 words)

a. Variability is the law of life, and as no two faces are the same, so no two bodies are alike, and no two individuals react alike and behave alike under the abnormal conditions which we know as disease. -William Osler

b. The greatest mistake in the treatment of diseases is that there are physicians for the body and physicians for the soul, although the two cannot be separated. -Plato

‍

Essay Topics ('17 – '18)‍

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2017 and May 2018, please detail your current and planned activities below. (250-500 words)

2. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must be well cared for (science) but they must also feel well cared for (art). Indeed, the late physician, writer and ethicist, Dr. Edmund Pelegrino affirms both the science and art of medicine. But when discussing the nature of the physician/patient relationship he says the following, The act specific to medicine, that which makes it medicine and thereby distinguishes it from both science and art, is the decision about what is right and good for a particular patient now, with this set of needs, arising out of this particular illness¦It is the practical decision, taken in the best interest of a particular person, not in the interest of new knowledge, of society or of the physician. We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called professionalism. Toward this end we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students. Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

3. Using the links provided, please read https://apply.med.ufl.edu/Applicant/Application/Section3Essays.pdf two essays written by University of Florida College of Medicine students as part of their clinical rotations. One tells the story of a students experience giving Bad News to a patient and her family with his attending physician. The second uses the wear and tear of the The White Coat as a way to reflect upon what lessons she learned during the third year of medical school. Pick one of these and tell us what attributes of a good physician you would like to emulate are highlighted in these accounts. Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

4. As part of graduation from medical school students at most institutions recite a version of the https://apply.med.ufl.edu/Applicant/Application/HippocraticOath.pdf Hippocratic Oath. This oath dates back to the 5th century and is one of the earliest declarations that a physician will seek the primacy of patient interest in all matters. Similar themes were echoed by the 12th century physician/scholar Moses Maimonides in his famous prayer, ¦Inspire me with love for my art and for Thy creatures. Do not allow thirst for profit, ambition for renown and admiration, to interfere with my profession, for these are the enemies of truth and of love for mankind and they can lead astray... Our admissions mission reads as follows,"We desire to recruit and matriculate the brightest students who are intellectually curious, have a strong work ethic and a deep commitment to humanism and service. In so doing we will train the next generation of caring, compassionate, and culturally competent medical professionals, be they practitioners, researchers and/or teachers."These wonderful ideals are not simply skills to learn, but assume that physicians are virtuous and that their practice grows naturally from these virtues; which raises a question. What are the most important virtues of a physician and how can they be nurtured or undermined? Please consider this question and offer us your thoughts below. Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

‍

Essay Topics ('16 – '17)

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2016 and May 2017, please detail your current and planned activities below. (250-500 words)

2. The medical profession is frequently described as being both a science and an art. One could summarize this by saying that patients must be well cared for (science) but they must also feel well cared for (art). Indeed, the late physician, writer and ethicist, Dr. Edmund Pelegrino affirms both the science and art of medicine. But when discussing the nature of the physician/patient relationship he says the following, The act specific to medicine, that which makes it medicine and thereby distinguishes it from both science and art, is the decision about what is right and good for a particular patient now, with this set of needs, arising out of this particular illness¦It is the practical decision, taken in the best interest of a particular person, not in the interest of new knowledge, of society or of the physician. We work to teach our students not only the scientific principles of medicine, but also the core values of medicine, often called professionalism. Toward this end we keep patients at the center of our education and often reflect on their stories with our students. Using the links provided, please read https://apply.med.ufl.edu/Applicant/Application/Section3Essays.pdf two essays written by University of Florida College of Medicine students as part of their clinical rotations. One tells the story of a students experience giving Bad News to a patient and her family with his attending physician. The second uses the wear and tear of the The White Coat as a way to reflect upon what lessons she learned during the third year of medical school. Pick one of these and tell us what attributes of a good physician you would like to emulate are highlighted in these accounts. (250-500 words)

3. As part of graduation from medical school students at most institutions recite a version of the https://apply.med.ufl.edu/Applicant/Application/HippocraticOath.pdf  Hippocratic Oath. This oath dates back to the 5th century and is one of the earliest declarations that a physician will seek the primacy of patient interest in all matters. Similar themes were echoed by the 12th century physician/scholar Moses Maimonides in his famous prayer, ¦Inspire me with love for my art and for Thy creatures. Do not allow thirst for profit, ambition for renown and admiration, to interfere with my profession, for these are the enemies of truth and of love for mankind and they can lead astray... Our admissions mission reads as follows, "We desire to recruit and matriculate the brightest students who are intellectually curious, have a strong work ethic and a deep commitment to humanism and service. In so doing we will train the next generation of caring, compassionate, and culturally competent medical professionals, be they practitioners, researchers and/or teachers." These wonderful ideals are not simply skills to learn, but assume that physicians are virtuous and that their practice grows naturally from these virtues; which raises a question. What are the most important virtues of a physician and how can they be nurtured or undermined? Please consider this question and offer us your thoughts below. (250-500 words)

‍

Essay Topics ('15 – '16)

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2013 and May 2014, please detail your current and planned activities below. (250-500 words)

2. In the practice of medicine, we have the amazing privilege to not only help our patients, but also to learn from them in very unexpected ways. Read the following 2 essays, written recently by students at the University of Florida College of Medicine. In the first, a student had a major impact on a young patient on the pediatric surgery service. In the second, the student describes her care for a non-compliant patient. Both made a difference in their patients and both changed and grew through the experience. Pick one, and describe the skills of the author that you notice and think are helpful, then describe how one or both of these stories relate to the kind of physician that you want to be. (250-500 words)

3. Consider three areas of integrity: personal, professional, and intellectual. Using an example, describe how these areas may be interrelated. In your response include why the connection between these areas is significant. (250-500 words)

‍

Essay Topics ('14 – '15)‍

Same as last year.

‍

Essay Topics ('13 – '14)

1. If you are not a full-time student during this application cycle, in particular at any time between September 2013 and May 2014, please detail your current and planned activities below. Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

2. At the core of our profession are attributes sometimes called the three Cs; Competence (clinical excellence), Caring (a genuine desire to help others or other centeredness) and Character (personal integrity and honesty). In order to grow in these areas, the best practitioners are able to reflect upon who they are as individuals (self-assessment) and allow these insights to shape how they develop as physicians. The relationships we develop with patients and colleagues are among the most rewarding aspects of being a physician and provide the theatre in which the three Cs are both learned and practiced. We therefore have two short essay questions designed to help you explore these important topics. The first deals with self-assessment, and the second deals with the experiences of two UF medical students facing the loss of a patient and its impact on them as young doctors.

Read the following description of introversion and extraversion from the Myers-Briggs foundation website. Most people, while seeing themselves to one degree or another in each description, are inclined towards either being introverted or extroverted. Both groups make wonderful physicians, but each personality type has some inherent strengths and weaknesses which need to be appreciated as individuals develop into practicing physicians. Do you see yourself as more of an extravert or an introvert and how will this impact how you learn to communicate with patients and colleagues? Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

3. In the practice of medicine, we have the amazing privilege to not only help our patients, but also to learn from them in very unexpected ways. Read the following 2 essays, written recently by students at the University Of Florida College Of Medicine. In the first, a student had a major impact on a young patient on the pediatric surgery service. In the second, the student describes her care for a noncompliant patient. Both made a difference in their patients and both changed and grew through the experience. Pick one, and describe the skills of the author that you notice and think are helpful, then describe these stories relate to the kind of physician that you want to be. Please limit your response to 250-500 words.

Read the essays https://apply.med.ufl.edu/Applicant/Application/UFCOM_Essays.pdf here.

4. Consider three areas of integrity: personal, professional, and intellectual. Using an example, describe how these areas may be interrelated. In your response include why the connection between these areas is significant. (500 words):

5. Additional Info Essay (500 words):