Medical School Archives

A cartoon illustrating a 'Frankenstein Essay' scenario. A student holding a disjointed essay with visible seams and patches, resembling Frankenstein's monster. Surrounding the student are a roommate, a professor, a premed advisor, a friend, and a parent, all giving conflicting advice. The student looks confused and overwhelmed. The background includes a messy desk with books, notes, and a laptop.

How to Get Advice for Your Personal Statement

Obviously, you want to get advice from someone who writes well, can be frank with you, and has some understanding of the field to which you are applying. If you choose to get advice from...

A diverse group of students engaging in a lively discussion in a college setting, representing various ethnicities, genders, and backgrounds, highlighting their unique identities and perspectives.

Ten Tips for Writing a Powerful Diversity Essay

Perhaps no part of college or graduate school applications confuses people more than the diversity statement. Since we began helping applicants in 2008, Gurufi has helped hundreds of candidates craft compelling diversity statements, but so...

A stressed graduate student sits at a cluttered desk with papers, scholarship applications, and a laptop. The student is holding a pen and jotting notes on a notecard, with symbols of leadership, community involvement, and achievements in the background, including a trophy, a community service medal, and a graduation cap. A thought bubble shows images of dollar signs and a graduation gown.

Three Tips for Scholarship Essays

At Gurufi, we know that getting in is often only half the battle! Paying for it can be just as -if not more- stressful as applying. With the average cost of graduate school starting at...

A cartoon of a stressed-out student sitting at a cluttered desk with a laptop, books, papers, and a coffee cup, showing a worried expression with a thought bubble containing 5300 characters, a doctor, a hospital, and a ticking clock.

Ten Mistakes to Avoid in Your Medical School Personal Essay

5300 characters. That’s all you have. After years spent taking demanding prerequisites, stuffing your CV full of volunteer, research, and clinical experiences, and studying for months for the MCAT, you have 5300 characters -about 700...

A cartoonish illustration of a happy medical residency applicant being interviewed by other doctors in a cheerful and positive setting.

How to Write a Medical Residency Essay

This time of year, our editors and consultants at Gurufi work with scores of clients applying for medical residency and fellowship positions. These essays differ in important ways from your medical school personal statement, primarily...

College-aged student handing over CV and personal statement to a smiling professor in a colorful cartoon office setting, with books, laptop, and certificates in the background.

Ten Tips for Getting a GREAT Letter of Recommendation

In the competitive world of applications—whether for college, graduate school, or a new job—a strong letter of recommendation can be a deciding factor in your favor. At Gurufi, where we specialize in personal statements, CVs,...

A four-panel cartoon illustrating the journey of a medical school applicant. In the first panel, a weary student stands at the start of a long, winding path carrying a heavy backpack filled with books, a laptop, and papers. In the second panel, the student, looking even more exhausted, reaches a point where the path splits into multiple smaller paths. In the third panel, the student sits on a rock, looking at a map while a mentor figure offers a bottle and smiles encouragingly. In the fourth panel, the student appears confident and focused, writing on a laptop with papers spread out around them.

How to Build Powerful Med School Secondaries

Here at Gurufi, we spend much of the late summer and early fall working with hundreds of clients to perfect their medical school secondaries. In my experience, at this point, applicants are quite exhausted by...

applicant preparing his medical school application

Mistakes to Avoid When Planning Your Personal Statement, Secondaries, and Work & Activities

Of all the graduate and professional schools, medical school has the most onerous admissions process. Between MCATs, science prerequisites, personal statements, and secondaries, it can certainly feel overwhelming. In the 15 years we’ve been helping...

Applicant preparing their Work &Activities section for their AMCAS medical school application

Mistakes to Avoid on Your AMCAS Work & Activities Section

Every year, our editors at Gurufi help scores of candidates earn admission to their dream medical school. In the fifteen years I have been helping applicants, I have noticed that far too many applicants don’t...

The Role of Authenticity In Personal Statements

In my eighteen years of helping people earn admission into their dream schools, two kinds of applicants are quite common. The first type sees their application as merely a means to an end. They want...