University of Toronto Medical School: Past Essay Questions
Why read past essay questions?
If you’re applying to The University of Toronto’s (U of T) MD Program this year, you’re probably itching for them to release their updated essay questions! Although U of T usually releases new questions every July, reading through their past essay questions can help you brainstorm ideas by helping you gain an understanding of some of the themes they’ve tested in the past.
What exactly are they looking for?
4 Clusters of professional competencies
According to the U of T MD program website, these “brief personal essays” are part of the assessment of the school’s non-academic requirements. Within this category of requirements, they’re essentially looking to see that you have displayed evidence of four clusters of professional competencies:
Professional
Communicator/Collaborator/Manager
Advocate
Scholar
The CanMEDS Framework
If you’re wondering where you may have seen these clusters before, you’re probably thinking of the CanMEDS framework! The U of T website directly states that their 4 professional clusters are actually based off of the CanMEDS framework. If you’re applying to medical school this year, understanding this framework is crucial as all schools in some way, shape or form will be looking out for evidence that you’ve demonstrated these competencies in the past or have the capacity to develop them (e.g., the medical expert role).
The CanMEDS roles: professional, communicator, collaborator, leader, health advocate, scholar & medical expert.
Source: The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
U of T Medical School Past Essay Questions by Major Theme:
When reviewing U of T’s previous medical school essay questions, we definitely were able to pick up on some major themes. Understanding what themes have been tested in the past will set you up for success as you reflect on the CanMEDS roles, Toronto’s professional clusters and how your lived experience might help you demonstrate these qualities through your writing. In short, the 3 broad categorized we have identified are:
Current events
Self reflection
Interpersonal skills & emotional intelligence
Past questions on current events:
The use of artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to replace or assist humans in our daily lives. The basis of artificial intelligence are the complex algorithms that drive the technology. In your opinion, what values, ethical and societal implications should be considered when developing such algorithms for assessing applicants to medical school?
The COVID-19 pandemic imposed obligatory changes in all our lives. What have you learned and how has this changed you as a person? Are there ways that you adapted that you would keep going forward?
Privilege and oppression – what do these concepts mean to you?
Describe what you view as the biggest benefits and the biggest challenges in how we communicate with one another since the introduction of social media?
Presenting one’s opinion in the media can be dangerous. In today’s world, instant responses via mainline media and social media can be harsh, critical and hurtful. Social media shouting at each other seems to have become the norm, rather than a thoughtful, respectful conversation. As a leader of a social advocacy group, you have to make an announcement that you know will be unpopular with some members of your group and/or members of the larger community. How would you handle an ensuing social media storm?
A recent UN News post states, “Unreliable and false information is spreading around the world to such an extent, that some commentators are now referring to the new avalanche of misinformation that’s accompanied the COVID-19 pandemic as a ‘disinfodemic’.” What would you do to address the increasing ‘disinfodemic’?
How does technology impact interactions and/or collaborative relationships among healthcare professionals?
Describe an example of injustice that matters to you. How would a career in medicine allow you to better advocate in similar circumstances?
Past questions on self reflection:
Provide an example of a time when undertaking critical analysis changed the way you considered an issue.
How have you used your resilience and coping mechanisms to make the most informed and rational decisions when faced with difficult circumstances?
What type of feedback do you prefer to enhance your learning in and outside of academic environments? Why?
Failure is an essential part of the learning process. Discuss a recent setback you experienced and overcame. What resources and/or tools helped you overcome this failure?
Describe an instance where you were obliged to take a course or other educational activity that you would not normally have taken. What did you learn from that experience?
What is your preferred style of learning? How has this impacted your educational development?
Describe someone who you have interacted with who you feel is a talented teacher. What characteristics does this person embody and how have you tried to adopt these qualities through your own actions?
Past questions on interpersonal skills & emotional intelligence:
The Russian poet Marina Tsvetaeva said: “it isn’t that you need time to think, you need time to feel.” How does this statement connect with your future career in the field of medicine?
What is the purpose of a mentoring relationship? What are the 3 most important elements of a mentoring relationship? Discuss a mentoring situation that you experienced in relation to these qualities
Dr. Danielle Ofri contends that “the single most powerful diagnostic tool remains the doctor/patient conversation, which can uncover the lion’s share of illnesses. But often the difference between what patients say and what doctors hear is vast”. Discuss and propose a solution.
Discuss the role of listening in cross-cultural communication to better understand the perspectives of people of different backgrounds.
“Reducing the economic gap may be impossible without also addressing the gap in empathy.” ― Daniel Goleman. Why is this the case? How might healthcare professionals advocate to help reduce these gaps?
Uncomfortable conversations, although difficult and even hostile at times, are not necessarily unsafe ones. Do you agree or disagree? Discuss a time where you had to partake in such an uncomfortable conversation and how you handled it.
There are many relationships that have an inherent power imbalance, such as teacher/student, physician/patient, or police officer/citizen. Describe a situation where you have experienced a power imbalance and what it taught you.
Tell us about a time when you had to work with instructions/information that were in conflict with your core values.
Connectors, according to Malcolm Gladwell, are the people in a community who know a large number of people and who are in the habit of making introductions that bring groups of people together for a common function or purpose. Gladwell attributes the social success of “Connectors” to the fact that “their ability to span many different worlds is a function of something intrinsic to their personality, some combination of curiosity, self-confidence, sociability, and energy.” Tell us about such a time in your life you were a connector. Did it come naturally to you, and if not, how did you overcome your hesitations?
In Hope in the Dark, Rebecca Solnit writes, “Hope locates itself in the premises that we don’t know what will happen and that in the spaciousness of uncertainty is room to act… It’s the belief that what we do matters even though how and when it may matter, who and what it may impact, are not things we can know beforehand.” How can you relate Solnit’s quote to your life experiences?
Physician and author Abraham Verghese argues that the most important innovation to come in the medical profession in the next 10 years is human touch. Discuss.
Health care today combines both technical and personal aspects of care. Describe how you envision the balance of technology and compassion in physician‐patient relationships?
Describe an experience you had working on a committee or group with members from diverse backgrounds. How was the leader of the group chosen? Is there an essential characteristic for leaders of such groups? Why?
Please describe an experience, an event or an encounter with an individual or group which led to your directly intervening to help others or to taking some action.
U of T Medical School Past Essay Questions (reverse chronological order):
The use of artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to replace or assist humans in our daily lives. The basis of artificial intelligence are the complex algorithms that drive the technology. In your opinion, what values, ethical and societal implications should be considered when developing such algorithms for assessing applicants to medical school?
The Russian poet Marina Tsvetaeva said: “it isn’t that you need time to think, you need time to feel.” How does this statement connect with your future career in the field of medicine?
The COVID-19 pandemic imposed obligatory changes in all our lives. What have you learned and how has this changed you as a person? Are there ways that you adapted that you would keep going forward?
What is the purpose of a mentoring relationship? What are the 3 most important elements of a mentoring relationship? Discuss a mentoring situation that you experienced in relation to these qualities
Privilege and oppression – what do these concepts mean to you?
Describe what you view as the biggest benefits and the biggest challenges in how we communicate with one another since the introduction of social media?
Dr. Danielle Ofri contends that “the single most powerful diagnostic tool remains the doctor/patient conversation, which can uncover the lion’s share of illnesses. But often the difference between what patients say and what doctors hear is vast”. Discuss and propose a solution.
Provide an example of a time when undertaking critical analysis changed the way you considered an issue.
Discuss the role of listening in cross-cultural communication to better understand the perspectives of people of different backgrounds.
How have you used your resilience and coping mechanisms to make the most informed and rational decisions when faced with difficult circumstances?
What type of feedback do you prefer to enhance your learning in and outside of academic environments? Why?
“Reducing the economic gap may be impossible without also addressing the gap in empathy.” ― Daniel Goleman. Why is this the case? How might healthcare professionals advocate to help reduce these gaps?
Uncomfortable conversations, although difficult and even hostile at times, are not necessarily unsafe ones. Do you agree or disagree? Discuss a time where you had to partake in such an uncomfortable conversation and how you handled it.
There are many relationships that have an inherent power imbalance, such as teacher/student, physician/patient, or police officer/citizen. Describe a situation where you have experienced a power imbalance and what it taught you.
Failure is an essential part of the learning process. Discuss a recent setback you experienced and overcame. What resources and/or tools helped you overcome this failure?
Tell us about a time when you had to work with instructions/information that were in conflict with your core values.
Connectors, according to Malcolm Gladwell, are the people in a community who know a large number of people and who are in the habit of making introductions that bring groups of people together for a common function or purpose. Gladwell attributes the social success of “Connectors” to the fact that “their ability to span many different worlds is a function of something intrinsic to their personality, some combination of curiosity, self-confidence, sociability, and energy.” Tell us about such a time in your life you were a connector. Did it come naturally to you, and if not, how did you overcome your hesitations?
Presenting one’s opinion in the media can be dangerous. In today’s world, instant responses via mainline media and social media can be harsh, critical and hurtful. Social media shouting at each other seems to have become the norm, rather than a thoughtful, respectful conversation. As a leader of a social advocacy group, you have to make an announcement that you know will be unpopular with some members of your group and/or members of the larger community. How would you handle an ensuing social media storm?
Describe an instance where you were obliged to take a course or other educational activity that you would not normally have taken. What did you learn from that experience?
In Hope in the Dark, Rebecca Solnit writes, “Hope locates itself in the premises that we don’t know what will happen and that in the spaciousness of uncertainty is room to act… It’s the belief that what we do matters even though how and when it may matter, who and what it may impact, are not things we can know beforehand.” How can you relate Solnit’s quote to your life experiences?
A recent UN News post states, “Unreliable and false information is spreading around the world to such an extent, that some commentators are now referring to the new avalanche of misinformation that’s accompanied the COVID-19 pandemic as a ‘disinfodemic’.” What would you do to address the increasing ‘disinfodemic’?
Physician and author Abraham Verghese argues that the most important innovation to come in the medical profession in the next 10 years is human touch. Discuss.
How does technology impact interactions and/or collaborative relationships among healthcare professionals?
Describe an example of injustice that matters to you. How would a career in medicine allow you to better advocate in similar circumstances?
What is your preferred style of learning? How has this impacted your educational development?
Health care today combines both technical and personal aspects of care. Describe how you envision the balance of technology and compassion in physician‐patient relationships?
Describe an experience you had working on a committee or group with members from diverse backgrounds. How was the leader of the group chosen? Is there an essential characteristic for leaders of such groups? Why?
Please describe an experience, an event or an encounter with an individual or group which led to your directly intervening to help others or to taking some action.
Describe someone who you have interacted with who you feel is a talented teacher. What characteristics does this person embody and how have you tried to adopt these qualities through your own actions?
How we can help.
We hope this blog post has been helpful in preparing you for when U of T’s MD program does eventually release their updated personal statement prompts for the upcoming application cycle. Once you’re ready to meet one-on-one with one of our consultants, we’d love to help you brainstorm ideas for how you can most effectively incorporate your experiences into your personal statements. Best of all, it’s free! Just head on over to the “free consultation” tab and book your appointment with us today!
