My personal statement I used to apply for pharmacology and was accepted
This should be used as an example
DO NOT COPY ANY OF IT - universities are very strict and it will count as plagiarism even by just copying one sentence
My interest first began when a nurse gave me instructions on the correct way to inject my nan with
her methotrexate medication. I was astounded that a small volume of liquid could have such a
widespread effect on the immune system and could somehow target specific areas requiring treatment,
thus opening the door to a previously unexplored career.
Following this, I began work as a pharmaceutical assistant, where I gained experience dispensing
medication and talking to patients. Whilst observing a pharmacist. I learnt to preserve patient
confidentiality, when disposing of patient information in designated areas and distributing medication
to the correct patient. Handling medication led me to inquire about drug research and creation, leading
to my completion of the online course “Birth of a drug” via the Open University. The course
discussed the interactions of noradrenaline with two different alpha receptors and the eventual
development of Doxazosin, causing me to appreciate the systematic processes of elimination via trial
and error and the years of clinical research that occurs in the discovery of medicine.
In addition to this, I attended a lecture titled “DNA and the Omic Revolution” provided by my K+
programme, developing my knowledge of DNA sequencing and the formation of The Human
Genome Project. The lecture also discussed ethical dilemmas surrounding the project and its potential
future ventures, such as: the sequencing of a whole country’s DNA. It was interesting to hear the
effect research has on decisions concerning social issues in the wider world, separate from the
scientific community, which highlighted the importance of the ethical considerations that occur before
research is conducted. In another lecture, the process of X-rays was discussed and the effect of slight
differences in human physiology from one another on the reading. These lectures revealed the reality
of medication: that treatment sometimes fails and that only by doing more research and making more
discoveries can these failures be overcome. A revelation that was seen first hand during my work at a
dementia care home. Dementia and Alzheimer's research, though plentiful, has been slow to discover
any potentially impactful forms of medication, though that may be subject to change with the
licensing of the medication Lecanemab, which aims to slow the progression of cognitive deterioration.
This year I attended summer school at King's College London and completed an assessed research
project titled ’The importance of early diagnosis and how sufficient progress can be assessed’ in
regards to Cancer and achieved a 1st, the highest in my cohort. I attended tutorials discussing the
interventions implemented in the UK, the monitoring metrics used to evaluate the intervention's
success as well as completed independent research on past studies such as ‘The Swedish Two County
Trial’ to support my reasoning. This project allowed me to develop my research skills, teaching me to
validate my sources and extract only the most essential information from them, a skill that will be
beneficial to me down the line.
During the course of my A-Levels, the decreasing effect of antibiotics was discussed. I learnt of the
growing antibiotic resistance amongst different strains of bacteria as a result of mutations in the
bacteria’s genome, leading to available treatment becoming less and less effective. This revealed the
importance of further medical advancements to tackle this development and stop the occurrence of a
global post-antibiotic era.
From providing prescriptions to members of my community, to being a team member in the discovery
of a groundbreaking medicine, this is a force I want to be a part of and I will do anything to get there.
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