When in doubt, tell a story!
People often wonder what the most common pitfall is among grad school personal statements. Without a doubt, it’s…
“Smooth As Glass” — How to Write Transitional Sentences Like a Pro
Transitional sentences connect concepts like little bridges throughout your essay. Without them, your essay can feel choppy, disconnected and confusing.
Where to Begin?
You finally have time to sit down and write you personal statement. You know it’s a big deal, but all you can do is stare at that blank white screen helplessly. “Where do I even begin?”
Bad Grades: How to Write Around Them
Do you mention poor academic performance in your personal statement and provide an explanation for the dip? Or do you ignore the topic and hope the admissions team doesn’t worry about it? Our experts weigh in.
Structuring Your Personal Statement with a Strong Backbone
After editing hundreds of essays and speaking with former admissions personnel, here is the basic structure we recommend for a personal statement.
The 3 Things a Great Conclusion Must Do
When writing a personal statement, an amazing conclusion simply has to do three things.
It recaps where you’ve been
It recaps where you are.
It recaps where you are going.
How to Write a Killer Introduction — 4 Tips You Need to Know
Applicants typically have the toughest time writing the introductions of personal statements. You have all this great experience — where to begin? If you find yourself thinking the same thing, these 4 tips are about to change everything:
Read moreShow and tell isn’t just for elementary school anymore – it turns out it can have a HUGE impact on your personal statement.
Read moreBolstering your application by incorporating several, or all, of these suggestions will transform you from numbers and letters on a page into a substantial and competitive candidate.
Dental School Requirements: What’s a Good GPA?
Hey everyone! Ben Frederick here. I asked Kyle Smith (aka @askaDDSstudent) to put together some information on dental school requirements, specifically GPA. There’s a lot of great stuff in this article, so be sure to take a look. Required GPA for Dental School Admission One time. Only once, in the entire process of interviewing, attending 4 years of dental school, applying for associateships, and during my tenure as an associate dentist (almost 6 months as of writing this), have I been asked what my GPA was. The person who asked? A patient during my fourth year of dental school while discussing what my plan was after graduation. Many pre-dental students have asked me over the years what a “good” GPA is. My response is consistently something along the lines of “Your GPA isn’t everything.” A 4.0 is great, but any GPA above the school’s minimum requirements can get you accepted, as long as the rest of your application is competitive (See: -> Creating a Competitive Dental School Application) For those of you who are just dying to see some GPA stats, here are the basics: *The statistics in this image were calculated from data found in the 2014 edition of the ADEA Official Guide to Dental Schools. This publication is an amazing resource that I would definitely recommend to all serious applicants. It contains TONS of specific details and admissions statistics (including GPAs and DAT scores) from each of the US and Canadian dental schools. You can purchase your own digital copy for only $10! Put It In Perspective Now, I’m not discounting the benefits of a...About Me
My name is Ben. I'm a resident physician and I help future medical professionals write great personal statements. If you need help, check out our eBooks and editing services. Let me know if you have any questions. 
