Essay Topics (2024 - 2025)
Individuals share their stories in a variety of ways. While we have set a word limit for each question use as many or as few words as you need to provide a response that is complete.
Question 1: The Larner College of Medicine curriculum emphasizes active in-person participation and peer co-learning which translates into strong clinical practice. This relies on individual students preparing for, and being actively involved in, participatory class sessions. Please share your thoughts on the suitability of active learning for you. You may use any of the points below to guide your response. (Maximum 400 word count).
Question 2: The Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont recognizes that diversity extends beyond chosen and unchosen identities and encompasses an individual’s entire experiences. Diverse environments can promote growth and provide an opportunity for reflection. Reflect on a time you learned something from someone or a group of people who are unlike yourself and how that challenged your preconceptions or biases. How will this experience influence your behavior in the future? (Maximum 400 word count)
Question 3: The Larner College of Medicine has core values that are reflected in our professionalism statement. How has your understanding of what professionalism means evolved over time? Reflect on a personal experience that contributed to your understanding of your own core values. (Maximum 300 word count)
Question 4: What unique opportunities at Larner College of Medicine would be meaningful to you in your education and how do these align with your larger goal of becoming a physician? (Maximum 250 word count).
Question 5: (Optional) Use this space to share any information, not presented elsewhere, that will clarify any aspect of your application. If you are a reapplicant, you may choose to share what you have done since your previous application. (Maximum 250 word count)
Essay Topics ('23 – '24)
1. The Larner College of Medicine curriculum emphasizes active in-person participation and peer co-learning which translates into strong clinical practice. This relies on individual students preparing for, and being actively involved in, participatory class sessions. Please share your thoughts on the suitability of active learning for you. You may use any of the points below to guide your response. (Maximum 400 words)
- Navigating a group learning process.
- Personal contributions to such a learning environment and areas of growth.
- The value of balancing your learning with the teaching of your classmates.
- Any potential challenges to this approach to learning.
2. The Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont recognizes that diversity extends beyond chosen and unchosen identities and encompasses an individual’s entire experiences. Diverse environments can promote growth and provide an opportunity for reflection. Reflect on a time you learned something from someone or a group of people who are unlike yourself and how that challenged your preconceptions or biases. How will this experience influence your behavior in the future? (Maximum 400 words)
3. The Larner College of Medicine has core values that are reflected in our professionalism statement. How has your understanding of what professionalism means evolved over time? Reflect on a personal experience that contributed to your understanding of your own core values. (Maximum 300 words)
4. What unique opportunities at Larner College of Medicine would be meaningful to you in your education and how do these align with your larger goal of becoming a physician? (Maximum 250 words)
5. (Optional) Use this space to share any information, not presented elsewhere, that will clarify any aspect of your application. If you are a reapplicant, you may choose to share what you have done since your previous application. (Maximum 250 words)
Essay Topics ('22 – '23)
1. The Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont recognizes that diversity extends beyond chosen and unchosen identities and encompasses the entirety of an individual’s experiences. Diverse environments can promote growth and provide an opportunity to reflect on preconceptions or biases. Reflect on a time you learned something from someone or a group of people who are unlike yourself. (500 words max)
2. Please reflect on a difficult and challenging non-academic experience you have faced. Include a description of the stressful event, how you dealt with it and what you have learned about others and yourself through this process. (500 words max)
OPTIONAL QUESTIONS:
1. Please use this box to describe how the COVID19 pandemic may have adversely impacted your application. (150 words max)
2. (Optional): Additional Comments (300 words max)
Essay Topics ('21 – '22)
1. Please reflect on a difficult and challenging non-academic experience you have faced. Include a description of the stressful event, how you dealt with it and what you have learned about others and yourself through this process. (max 500 words)
2. The Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont recognizes that diversity extends beyond chosen and unchosen identities and encompasses the entirety of an individual’s experiences. Reflect on a time you learned something from someone or a group of people who are unlike yourself. (max 500 words)
OPTIONAL QUESTIONS:
1. Please use this box to describe how the COVID19 pandemic may have adversely impacted your application. (Max 150 words)
2. Additional Comments (max 300 words)
Essay Topics (’20 – ’21)
1. Please reflect on a difficult and challenging non-academic experience you have faced. Include a description of the stressful event, how you dealt with it and what you have learned about others and yourself through this process.
2. The Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont recognizes that diversity extends beyond chosen and unchosen identities and encompasses the entirety of an individual’s experiences. Reflect on a time you learned something from someone or a group of people who are unlike yourself.
OPTIONAL QUESTIONS:
3. Please use this box to describe how the COVID19 pandemic may have adversely impacted your application.
4. Additional Comments
Essay Topics ('19 – '20)
1. Please reflect on a difficult and challenging non-academic experience you have faced. Include a description of the stressful event, how you dealt with it and what you have learned about others and yourself through this process. (500 words max)
2. The Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont recognizes that diversity extends beyond chosen and unchosen identities and encompasses the entirety of an individuals experiences. Reflect on a time you learned something from someone or a group of people who are unlike yourself. (500 words max).
OPTIONAL QUESTION:
1. Additional Comments (500 words max)
Essay Topics ('18 – '19)
1. Please reflect on a difficult and challenging non-academic experience you have faced. Include a description of the stressful event, how you dealt with it and what you have learned about others and yourself through this process. (500 words max)
2. The Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont strongly values diversity. Larner COM recognizes that diversity extends beyond chosen and unchosen identities, and encompasses the entirety of an individuals experiences. These experiences embody many dimensions that include (but are not limited to) the personal, familial, geographic, intellectual, economic, professional, linguistic, and societal domains. Thus, each and every member of the Larner COM community brings a unique perspective to a shared goal of training compassionate and competent physicians. With this in mind, please reflect on your own diverse experiences and how those will allow you to successfully participate in teams and engage in active learning with your peers at the Larner COM. When composing your response please consider how these experiences impacted your understanding of others and yourself as well as any new insights gained. (500 words max).
OPTIONAL QUESTION:
1. Additional Comments (500 words max)
Essay Topics ('17 – '18)
1. Please reflect on a difficult and challenging non-academic experience you have faced. Include a description of the stressful event, how you dealt with it and what you have learned about others and yourself through this process. (500 word limit)
2. The Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont strongly values diversity. Larner COM recognizes that diversity extends beyond chosen and unchosen identities, and encompasses the entirety of an individuals experiences. These experiences embody many dimensions that include (but are not limited to) the personal, familial, geographic, intellectual, economic, professional, linguistic, and societal domains. Thus, each and every member of the Larner COM community brings a unique perspective to a shared goal of training compassionate and competent physicians. With this in mind, please reflect on your own diverse experiences and how those will allow you to successfully participate in teams and engage in active learning with your peers at the Larner COM. When composing your response please consider how these experiences impacted your understanding of others and yourself as well as any new insights gained. (500 word limit)
Essay Topics ('16 – '17)
1. Diversity Statement: The University of Vermont College of Medicine values diversity as a driver of excellence. We actively seek diversity and inclusion within our academic community of students, faculty, and staff, as well as those we serve through teaching, research, patient care and community engagement. We are committed to building an educational community made up of members with diverse talents, experiences, opinions, and backgrounds. In reflecting on your personal background, talents, opinions and life experiences, how might you contribute to the overall diversity of the UVM COM community (3000 characters maximum?
2. Additional Short Answer Essay Topics: Please write a short response to one of the following prompts. For either question, when composing your essay, please consider the personal growth you experienced, an impact you may have had on others or a transformation you may have experienced
a. In your journey towards a career in medicine, what experience do you think most convinced you that you want to serve others as a physician? (3000 characters maximum)
--OR--
b. There are many different types of teams. Effective teams are composed of people with diverse life experiences and varying viewpoints. Reflect on an experience you have had working on a team. (3000 characters maximum)
Essay Topics ('15 – '16)
1. In reflecting on your personal background, talents, opinions and life experiences, how might you contribute to the overall diversity of the UVM COM community? (1000 characters)
Essay Topics ('14 – '15)
No essays
Essay Topics ('13 – '14)
1. In reflecting on your personal background, talents, opinions and life experiences, how might you contribute to the overall diversity of the UVM COM community?
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