If you are thinking to apply to a top medical school and are serious about pursuing a career in medicine, pay close attention to your social media presence. Put your best efforts to make a positive impression on admission officials by creating a strong online presence.
Remember, medical school admission is a tedious process. Your preparation for medical school admission starts from securing impressive grades, stellar MCAT score, participating in extracurricular activities, obtaining strong letters of recommendation and getting some physician shadowing experience. One thing that matters most is your social media presence that can make or break your chances of acceptance.
The use of social media usage is vastly expanding. Today’s students are more tech-savvy than ever before. They love to share everything about their personal life on social media. But sadly, many applicants are not fully aware that their online presence can hurt their medical school chances. Social media, if used right can make you an impressive candidate for the top medical university.
If you are all set to apply for Premedical Sciences Program or MD Program in the upcoming Summer Session 2019, it is important to be aware that your social media presence can have a great impact on your chances of acceptance. So, you should make every possible effort to make a positive impression on admissions committees.
Do Medical School Admissions Committees Use Social Media to Research Applicants?
Admission officers look through the profiles of applicants to uncover the reasons to accept the candidate. It is like an informal background check that helps decide them to make the admission process faster. According to a survey conducted in 2013, more than 9% of medical school admission officers checked applicants’ social media profiles at the time of reviewing their applications. More than 50% of admission officers felt that unprofessional content on an applicant’s social media account could hurt their medical school chances. In addition, 4% shared that they rejected the application based on the social media presence of the applicants. Therefore, it is highly recommended to manage your social media accounts to ensure your acceptance carefully.
Here are some important considerations every medical school applicant should keep in mind about social media usage before applying to a medical school.
What type of Posts Could Hurt Your Image?
Keep in mind that you are preparing for applying to one of the best Caribbean medical schools where professionalism is the critical aspect of the curriculum. Medical school admissions committees want to ensure that they recruit highly intellectual students who maintain a high standard of professionalism in medical school and beyond. To create a positive professional look, it is advised to share informative content related to medicine and healthcare. It shows that you stay current on the latest trends and knowledge in the field of medicine. You can publicly display all your academic achievements, projects awards and volunteer work experience that can make your profile stand out.
What Type of Content You Should Avoid Posting?
Don’t let your social media profiles to endanger your medical school acceptance. Avoid posting pictures and text related to alcohol, sexual behaviors, drugs, and content relating to surgery and patients. Posting this type of content can badly affect your reputation and decrease your chances of acceptance.
Does It Make Sense to Set Your Profile to Private?
Whether it’s Facebook or Instagram, leaving your profile settings public can affect your online reputation. As a medical school hopeful, it is recommended to make your social media accounts private. It will help you to hide all your photos, videos, posts, tags and check-ins.
Delete Unprofessional Posts
If you think your profile has some crazy pictures, strong political or religious views or spammy posts, delete them right away. Medical school admission committees can examine your social media profiles to view your content, and if they find anything unprofessional, it can hinder your acceptance. Don’t delay and immediately delete anything that might be potentially harmful.
Deactivating Your Accounts is NOT a Good Idea
Stop using or deleting all your social media accounts, just because medical school admissions committees will view your profile is not a sensible option. Many medical schools encourage students to use social media as it is a great way to enhance class cohesion, promote learning and stay up-to-date with the latest information. Instead of deleting your all social media profiles, you can adjust your privacy settings and post professional content. If there is any doubt, it is safer not to post a particular image, status or video.
Final Thoughts
You are preparing yourself for the most difficult process, don’t ruin your chances of becoming a successful candidate by posting pointless, stupid and offensive posts on social media. Medical school admission officers usually review social media profiles of aspiring applicants to make sure they are the perfect fit for their university. If they find anything unprofessional, you won’t get a chance of getting in. By following these easy tips, you can avoid any social media-based rejections and bolster your chances of getting a spot in a top medical university.