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10 Dental School Personal Statement Examples

Including key tips for a strong dental school personal statement.

Before you start crafting your own stellar dental school personal statement, you must review some dental school personal statement examples. Why? These sample essays can help you brainstorm and reflect on what you would like to include in your essay. This blog dives into some dental school personal statement examples from our own past successful students, and then our  dental school advisors  will go over our proven strategies to help you create your own from scratch! As you review these examples keep in mind that these are final works and the result of multiple rounds of reviews by our admissions experts as part of our  application review  programs. Writing fantastic statements for dental school requires patience and multiple rounds of revisions before a perfect statement can be written.

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Article Contents 15 min read

Dental school personal statement example #1.

In the final moments of a key game in a hockey tournament, I jumped over the boards and onto the ice without putting my mouth guard back in place. It was attached to my helmet, but I had a chance for the puck, and I took it. Moments later, an opponent’s stick caught me in the face, knocking out my front tooth. Play stopped, and my team found my tooth on the ice. I looked to the bleachers. My mom was already on the phone getting initial instructions from our dentist for saving the tooth. Within 15 minutes, we were outside the clinic as my dentist unlocked the door, despite it being a Saturday night. As I was treated within half an hour, my tooth could be saved by stabilizing it as it healed. Until that moment, I thought of my dentist as someone I only saw every six months; I hadn’t seen her as a critical part of my healthcare team.

I realized from this experience that time is a factor in dental care, and thus a career in dentistry. My tooth was saved because I lived in an urban centre and had immediate access to care, not to mention the continuity of care I’ve had since I was a child. My mother is employed and has good dental coverage, but this is not the case for many. Without timely check-ups, both oral and medical issues that could be detected and prevented can become more serious conditions.

With this awareness, I have for the last 6 years volunteered in two ways. In the time since my hockey accident, I’ve worked with my dentist on a safety awareness campaign for young hockey players and their families, teaching about the necessity of mouth guards, as well as how a quick response to such injuries may help in recovery. I’ve also worked alongside dentists for the Smiling Children Foundation in vulnerable neighborhoods, where dental neglect is not uncommon, and continuity of care is rare. Recently, we set up a mobile clinic in a school, where I record personal information and take a medical history for each child. A young boy, 10 years old, complained of constant headaches and pain in his body. Upon examination, the dentist noticed his gums were dark purple in places and bled easily. Our team alerted a community doctor of a potential immune disorder, and the young boy was diagnosed and treated, returning to good health within months. That day, I learned that oral healthcare is holistic healthcare, and that it is a privilege to support those who may not have time, resources, or access to oral healthcare.

I have had this privilege in what began as dental shadowing and is now part-time employment, where I liaise between patients and insurance companies, manage team schedules, and comfort anxious patients. This might be as simple as holding a hand while the dentist performs the procedure. Or, I might hold a baby while the father sees the hygienist. I’ve learned to read an X-ray accurately, prepare the instruments needed for a procedure, and balance the books. I have been mentored by both a medical and business professional, and I have borne witness to our patients’ high and low points. I have worked hard to understand what goes into growing and maintaining a successful dental practice and feel capable to meet the challenge of the multiple roles required in this dynamic vocation.

It bears mentioning why my first-year grades are not what I’d hoped they would be. I joined a good number of co-curricular clubs with the intention of participating in our campus community and developing my professional skills. By midterm, I realized I had oversubscribed myself. Unfortunately, willpower and desire were not enough. My grades suffered as I tried to manage my responsibilities. By attending time management seminars and learning to manage time rather than be managed by time, I was able retrieve my grades. From 2nd year forward, I’ve maintained a 4.0 GPA while moving up the ranks of student organizations and taking an active role in a research project. Resilience is like a muscle that needs time, exercise, and perseverance to build.

From a sports accident, to volunteer work in an underserved community, to employment in a dental office and an academic career that shows both mistakes and recovery, I have thought carefully about what dentistry is. A dentist is part of a larger healthcare team, and a dentist can often treat not only a single patient over decades, but provide intergenerational care to a family. I aspire to dentistry to accompany my patients through life, 6 months at a time, offering compassionate, whole-person healthcare. (4,497 characters, including spaces)

• Inciting incident: the moment that influenced the student’s outlook on dentistry as a career is highlighted in spades. Seeing the structure here as almost like a story, you’re taking the reader on a journey from point A to point B. For the personal statement, your opening should hook in the reader. This writer does this well.
• Addresses weaknesses: the student mentions how their first-year grades weren’t what they’d hoped for. They acknowledge their faults and briefly outline the circumstances without making excuses before getting into the most important part: what they did to improve or learn from their mistakes. If you’re in a position to use your personal statement as a way to address gaps or inconsistencies, then you can follow the same rule.
• Major experiences are detailed: you need to show the admissions committee that dentistry is the right career for you. The best way to do this is to describe clinical experiences, ideally in a dental setting. The student who wrote this sample described their experiences shadowing, being a part-time employee, and volunteering at a foundation. If you have many experiences like these, don’t simply list them off, but select a few to describe in more depth.

Want some tips for writing a dental school personal statement? Check out this video:

"Ready, Set, Bake,” shouted the host of Bake-Off. I was 16 and a contestant of a televised baking show. Our 6th challenge gave us 3 hours to perfectly bake the most decadent and timing consuming dessert: the mille-feuille – layers of puff pastry, filled with whipped cream and custard, and glazed on top. Despite being the only teenager in a field of contestants ranging from 20-70 years of age, I’d made it through several days of cuts for one of the spots on the show. I wish I could say that my dessert was a masterpiece, but as the timer counted down and I plated it, the filling oozed, and the pastry crumbled. I’d made to the Top Six, but the mille-feuille defeated me and I was asked to hang up my apron. As I reflect on this experience, the solo and team challenges, the practice to get on the show, the mastery needed to gain a top spot, I realize that I’m grateful even for the defeat, because I learned valuable lessons that helped me develop key qualities and skills that are in-line with the core competencies necessary for dentistry, my chosen profession. Both dentistry and competitive baking require innovation and excellence, communication and accountability, and the necessity of precision, focus, and a steady hand.

Both of my parents are dentists. While the influence of their careers on my own access to knowledge cannot be underestimated, I have been deeply cognizant of making an autonomous career decision. That decision is my own, but my parents have admittedly opened unique conversations around ethics, technology, and patient care to me. My earliest memories include attending dental conferences with them and being encouraged to explore the Exhibits Floor, where I learned about the newest dental products and treatments and “test drove” the latest innovations in dentistry. I developed an aptitude for predicting which products and technologies were gimmicks and which would effectively support excellence in patient care. This knack has made me something of an informal consultant for my parents and their colleagues, who value my insights on innovation and efficacy of new treatments.

While technology is at the forefront of change, what remains consistent over time is the importance of communication and accountability to provide excellent patient care. I’ve had the privilege to shadow Dr. Ann Lee, an oral surgeon, over the past 3 years. Among many things, she showed me that inherent in communication is accountability. Many of her patients are children and teens having teeth extracted for orthodontic reasons. The son of a family who had been Dr. Lee’s patients for over a decade arrived for a complicated wisdom tooth extraction. Despite familiarity with the family, the doctor painstakingly reviewed the extraction process to prepare them effectively. The procedure went well in the office; however, on the way home, the boy began haemorrhaging. An artery had been compromised during the surgery. I watched as Dr. Lee packed bone wax around the artery to stem the bleeding. What struck me about this experience was the standard of accountability to which the surgeon held herself, as she communicated with the family by phone, made a house call later that evening on her way home, and remained on-call over the weekend to ensure the safety and healing of the child. The family maintained their trust in Dr. Lee because of her open communication and sense of accountability. I also learned just how fragile and technical dental work is, requiring both dexterity and precision.

Volunteering in a dental brigade in Haiti, Mirlande, 6, taught me about vulnerability and trust. Mirlande was scared and reluctant to open her mouth for her first dental exam. I took her aside and, as she watched, I carved a perfect tooth from soap using dental instruments. I carved slowly and precisely, and then presented her with the gift. She put the tooth in her pocket and then allowed me to clean her teeth. I was immediately struck by the vulnerability of not only soft tissue, but of hearts, as she leaned back and opened her mouth in trust. This moment solidified my decision to become a dentist.

Though the earlier comparison between baking and dentistry is merely an analogy, it is one that suggests I have developed key skills and am aware of the core competencies a dentist must hold to best serve their patients professionally and ethically. Dentistry is my vocation, baking a hobby, but both speak to my investment in excellence, precision, and doing for others.  (4,500 characters, including spaces)

A dental school personal statement is your opportunity to show admissions committees who you are as a person and aspiring dental professional, aside from your CV, GPA, Dental Aptitude Test (DAT) score, and other quantitative data. As any personal statement essay, the dental school personal essay should be a narrative account that gives the admissions committee the opportunity to learn more about you than what can be conveyed in a dry document like a CV or transcript. 

For dental school  ADEA AADSAS  applications, the American Dental Education Association requires an essay of no more than 4,500 characters (including spaces), which must demonstrate your key personal qualities, aspirations, and reasons for pursuing a career in dentistry to the schools to which you are applying. This process isn’t as standardized in Canadian programs, so you’ll need to check the application requirements for the programs and schools to which you are applying to see if a personal statement is required. In doing so, you can also learn whether there are any specific requirements regarding the length of the essay, whether there is a specific prompt to which you must respond in your dental school personal statement, and whether there are any other application requirements.

Want some more personal statement examples? Watch this video:

Writing a Strong Dental School Personal Statement

If you're applying to  dental schools in Canada  or the US, a personal statement, or similar essay, is often required as part of your application package, regardless of whether you're applying through AADSAS or  TMDSAS . It’s important to craft a statement that draws from your experiences, such as your dental school extracurriculars. You can also refer to your dental school application experience examples , or even your dental school letter of recommendation for help. This blog will help you understand the key things you must do (and that you must avoid) in composing your essay, with dental school personal statement examples that demonstrate these strategies, so that you can draft the strongest, most compelling dental school personal statement possible.

1. Tell a story

Ideally, you will craft a story or detail a defining moment that helped you realize why this is the profession you want to pursue. Providing an anecdote or vignette – perhaps an experience you’ve had as a dental patient, an interaction you’ve witnessed as a volunteer or while shadowing a dental care professional, a story about someone you know, etc., – is often a useful way of giving the evaluators a window into your life and motivations.

2. Demonstrate why you’re a “good fit”

Your dental school personal statement should also express why you are a strong candidate and a "good fit" for the school and program, while stirring the interest of your reader. Review our blog,  dental school acceptance rates  to find out which schools are best suited for you. Admissions committees will review hundreds of these personal statements, so draw on the values of the profession and the mission of the institution to highlight your alignment with the vision and goals of this vocation, and do so in a way that is engaging and enjoyable to read. Again, narrative is a great way of doing this – people love stories and are often naturally drawn in by them. Bear this in mind as you begin drafting your essay.

Here are some more tips for writing a dental school personal statement:

3. Be authentic and readable

In your personal statement, you want to present your very best self, emphasizing your genuine passion for the field and your enthusiasm for working in a healthcare profession like dentistry. Don’t try to cram in complicated terminology or jargon, thinking it will make you sound smarter (it won’t – true experts know how to explain their ideas effectively to an audience of non-specialists), and don’t rely on clichés (e.g., “I want to help people” – this is a lovely desire, but it’s over-used and too generic). Use polished prose that represents your genuine voice and reasons for pursuing the profession, and write in a way that will be comprehensible even to those outside this particular specialization. This can take practice. You might go through multiple drafts of your essay before you’re confident in submitting it. If you’re having trouble getting to this point, consider dental school admissions consulting . 

4. Express your desired contributions to the field

Quite simply, you need to explain why you will be a good dentist, in both practical terms and in terms of devoting yourself to patient care. You need to show that you know how to become a dentist in terms of skills and experience; there will be other opportunities to address other aspects of your candidacy through things like the dental school manual dexterity question or the multiple mini interview (MMI) collaboration station . For now, answer the following questions: what does it mean to you to dedicate yourself to the profession and to patients? What experiences have you had with the dental profession so far, and how have these impacted you? What are your priorities as an aspiring dentist? Thinking through these questions, while also pointing to concrete experiences or accomplishments that support your responses, will help the committee see not just who you are now, but who you are working to become as you pursue the goal of becoming a dental professional.

Need help with your dental school application? Learn what our students say about our services:

Things to Avoid in a Dental School Personal Statement

Here are some key “don’ts” in composing your dental school personal statement:

1. Don’t summarize your CV

Your personal statement shouldn’t simply repeat information available elsewhere in your application materials. Referring to experiences discussed in those materials, for the purpose of expanding on them or contextualizing them, is fine. Just ensure that you’re actually doing that work and demonstrating the significance of the experience(s) you describe. For example, if your CV indicates that you’ve done volunteer work at a dental clinic or with an organization, it’s totally fine to discuss this volunteer work in your personal statement; however, that discussion must go beyond what is offered in your other application materials. Your dental school personal statement shouldn't be a dry recitation of events in your CV. It should be a persuasive and engaging work that draws on just a few select experiences that epitomize your interests, priorities, and the work you've done so far in working toward becoming a dentist. For example, instead of giving names, dates, and general facts about your experience as a volunteer, you can tell a story of a particularly meaningful accomplishment or interaction, reflecting on how it helped solidify your desire to pursue this career.

2. Don’t dwell on negative experiences

If you’ve overcome challenges or if there are less-than-ideal aspects of your educational experience so far (such as a term where your GPA took a dip), it’s fine to address these in a personal statement essay. However, it is crucial that you reflect on this from a perspective of growth, resiliency, and capacity for improvement, rather than focusing on the negatives. If your grades took a hit one term because of extenuating circumstances, by all means, take some time to explain this, if you think it will be helpful (and it often is). However, the discussion around the circumstances should be minimal – just a set-up for a more substantial discussion of what you learned, how you grew, etc. – and you shouldn’t use this as an opportunity to make excuses. Rather, briefly describe the event, own up to your mistake or misstep (if applicable), and then spend the most time explaining how you addressed the issue, how you moved past it, and why you will be a better future professional for having gone through it.

Probably the biggest mistake students make is to not take the personal statement seriously enough, waiting until just a few days before it’s due to even begin. You must begin early – a strong personal statement essay can take months and numerous revisions to be the best it can possibly be. You need to put a lot of thought into this document, as it is a very important component of your application. This is your chance – and often your only chance – to address the evaluators on a human level, prior to answering  dental school interview questions , including   MMI questions . So, rather than thinking of this as a chore, think of it as an opportunity to demonstrate your best self to the admissions committee. 

4. Don’t submit your dental school personal statement without getting expert feedback

The personal statement isn’t just about what you’ve done, it’s about who you are – what your values are, what your priorities are, what your reasons for pursuing this profession are, and how all of these things align with the discipline and school you are approaching with your application package. Getting expert feedback from those on the “other side” of such applications, those who have gone through the process successfully or those who have been part of admissions committees, will give you incredibly valuable insights into how to make your own personal experiences stand out and work for you most effectively. At this stage of your professional development, you face a wealth of “unknown-unknowns”; i.e., things that you don’t even know to look for or consider, because it's likely that you simply haven’t been exposed to the field or the process long enough or in an official capacity. This can be a considerable hindrance, so don’t try to take on this task alone. Seek out expert feedback, and do so early enough that you can review, revise, and implement any necessary changes to make your dental school personal statement the best it can possibly be.

8 Dental School Personal Statement Examples

Dental school personal statement example #3, dental school personal statement example #4, dental school personal statement example #5, dental school personal statement example #6, dental school personal statement example #7, dental school personal statement example #8, dental school personal statement example #9, dental school personal statement example #10.

• Starting too late. Getting your personal statement right requires multiple edits and revisions. If you start working on your statement too late, you risk running out of time for proper revisions and edits, leaving a rushed, sub-par statement. Remember, your personal statement is a direct reflection of who you are as a person, and who you'll become as a dentist. It's not something that can be, nor should be rushed.
• Showing instead of telling, for example, saying “I'm a great listener” instead of demonstrating that you're a great listener through real examples in your essay.
• Focusing on too many experiences. In general, it's best to discuss 2-3 experiences in your personal statement. You should be able to discuss each experience in-depth, and reflect on what you learned from a particular experience. Too many experiences crammed in doesn't allow you to really expand on each experience and doesn't provide an in-depth analysis of how this experience was transformative on your path to becoming a dentist.
• Listing information that's already found in your application materials. Your personal statement is not a list, instead, it should be a story of your journey to dentistry.
• Jumping around in time. Your personal statement should be in chronological order, beginning with your initial interest in dentistry and evolving to your absolution that dentistry is the right career path for you. Jumping around in time makes for a disjointed essay that will come across as confusing to admissions committee members. In addition, you want to ensure that you utilize strong transitional sentences, as these tie together paragraphs and aid in the overall flow of your essay.
• Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Mistakes and errors in your personal statement are harmful because they tell admissions committees that you're not detail-oriented, you rushed your statement and because of that, you don't really care about it, or their program. Ensure your statement is reviewed multiple times, ideally with a professional's help, to ensure your essay puts your best foot forward and is free from any spelling mistakes and grammatical errors.
• Boasting. While you can certainly highlight a few key accomplishments in your statement, such as finishing at the top of your class or raising money for a good cause, it's important that you are tactful in how you phrase your accomplishments. You always want to be humble, and think about what an achievement means to you and why. Lastly, it's a good idea to reflect on what you learned from your achievements and how that can translate in your career as a dentist.

While the majority of your personal statement should be about you - your experiences and how they relate to your decision to pursue dentistry, you can certainly include information relating to another person. For example, you could mention a family member's struggle with a disease, a patient's story, or a conversation with a dentist. As long as you circle back to why this story is significant in your pursuit of dentistry, what you learned from the experience or even how an experience changed your point of view.

Your personal statement must adhere to the ADEA's character count of 4500 characters, including spaces. However, this doesn't mean that you must include this many characters. As long as your essay is below the count, it's most important that you focus on creating a powerful, in-depth essay that proves to the admissions committee why you want to be a dentist and why you would be suitable for a career in this field, then it's perfectly acceptable.

Your personal statement is one of the most important aspects of your entire dental school application. It will serve as your introduction to admissions committees – letting them know who you are a person, who you are as a candidate, and essentially, that you're suitable for a career in dentistry. A poorly crafted personal statement can result in rejection from dental school, so it's essential that your statement is both engaging and memorable to secure you an invitation to interview.

No, remember, this information will be included elsewhere in your application, so it's not suitable to include this in your personal statement.

• Brainstorm ideas.
• Create an outline.
• Focus on body paragraphs first using a maximum of 3 experiences.
• Ensure you SHOW what you learned (don’t tell) by using examples.
• Write your conclusion.
• Write your introduction last.
• Attention-grabbing introduction: Not just a thesis statement, but something interesting to draw the reader in, like a quote or a story.
• Transitions: These should lead from one paragraph to the next, creating flow. Use linking words such as however, additionally, also, next, etc.
• Strong examples: This way you are showing, not telling.
• Clear and direct language: Your language does not have to be fancy, what's most important is that it's easy to read and follow. For example, “utilize” is one of the most over-used words in academic essays and “use” works just as well.
• Conclusion: This should summarize your main points, but also leave the reader with a compelling closing sentence that makes them want to find out more about you. For example, include a call back to your opening anecdote and highlight how far you have come.

Dental school personal statement editing, just like medical school personal statement editing , is very important. Begin by writing the BEST first draft you can and then begin your edit. Don’t write something of average quality, half-done, or way over the character limit. Trying to work from these copies will only create confusion and delays. Next, you should read your essay out loud to yourself sentence by sentence to ensure it flows well and to catch any grammatical errors. Each sentence should be contributing to the overall point. If you find yourself repeating your thoughts in multiple forms, think about paring your sentences down. Quality is more important than quantity.

Next, repeat this process 2-3 times. Resist the urge to keep tinkering over and over again. There are multiple strong ways to word sentences and express your thoughts. There are probably even multiple experiences you could highlight and have an equally strong personal statement. However, obsessing over each sentence and word once you have written a strong statement will just lead to changing too many things, delays, you feeling nervous, and sometimes even a weaker essay than you started with!

Yes, you can definitely mention experiences in your personal statement that are non-academic or not related to dentistry. A strong experience to mention should be one that taught you important skills and that influenced your decision to pursue dentistry. Personal experiences can also have a strong influence on which profession you pursue, so you can definitely mention non-academic experiences.

It’s certainly normal to want input from others when we are crafting personal statements. A strong reviewer is one who has experience and expertise with professional school applications and has helped other students before. For example, someone with an advanced degree like a practicing dentist or other professional. Even though you may feel tempted to ask friends and family, you may want to refrain from this, as they are often invested in your success and may find it hard to be objective.

Try to find someone who does not know you so well so they can give objective guidance. The other thing you want to avoid is having “too many chefs in the kitchen.” Too many different people reviewing your statement is only going to pull it in too many different directions, ultimately leading to confusion and even more delays. And again, some students might feel more comfortable using a dental school admissions consulting service for this aspect of their application.

Just like you would address this during an interview, your statement can address areas of concern by following these steps:

• Take responsibility.
• Explain mitigating factors.
• Don't make excuses.
• Share strategies for what you learned and how you would avoid a situation like this in the future. 
• Make sure you end on a positive or proactive note.

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Have a question ask our admissions experts below and we'll answer your questions.

Yutika Maharaj

Hi there Do you have any sample personal statements for a foreign trained dentist applying to ADEA PASS and ADEA CAAPID. Thanks

BeMo Academic Consulting

Hi Yutika! Thanks for your comment. As an international applicant, your personal statement should follow the same structure and contain pertinent info about yourself and your application. Use these samples to construct your own, unique narrative!

It is remarkable, very good information

Thanks, Code!

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College of Dentistry

How to craft a winning personal statement for dental school application.

Have you put some thought into how you will write your personal statement for application? How will you stand out among the hundreds of other applicants?

With over 11,000 potential candidates applying annually to US dental schools, competition has never been stronger. Above average DAT scores and GPAs aren’t good enough anymore to truly stand out. 

That's why Helen Yang, DMD, a Harvard Dental School graduate and current endodontics resident at UIC, has written a  new book to help applicants become more successful.

In her new book, Your Essential Guide to Dental School Admissions: 30 Successful Application Essays and Collective Wisdom from Young Dentists , Dr. Yang and collaborators offer a holistic strategy for a winning dental school application. The second half of the book focuses on the personal statement and consists of 30 essays written by dental students across the country.

With a background serving on Harvard Dental School’s admissions committee and working in admissions counseling, Yang offers an invaluable and highly beneficial perspective.

“I looked at what kind of books were already out there. They tended to be written by a single person, so just featuring one person’s experience. Also, they focused a lot on the statistics of getting into dental school, Yang explained, as her inspiration for writing this book.

About half of the book is devoted to crafting a compelling personal statement, because “the personal statement of all the things in the application plays such a big role in making the applicant seem like a real human being.”

“I wanted it to have a strong emphasis on the human aspect of getting into dental school. How can I present myself as a more interesting applicant, and what are the admissions officers looking for?

"The book really focuses on how to make yourself seem more interesting, more human and more like a valuable member of the community. I think that’s what really makes people stand out.”

Four key components of getting into dental school.

Each of the four chapters covers a different key aspect of getting accepted into dental school.  These aspects of the admissions process are explored in detail in Yang’s practical and inspiring guide for dental school admissions.

1. Assemble an Outstanding Application. Creating an application package that is so compelling that it can’t possibly be ignored. This means going beyond application prerequisites  such as competitive GPA, required coursework, and dentist shadowing .

2. write a winning personal statement. retaining individuality and standing out from the deluge of applications with the personal statement. structuring it for success and individuality., 3. ace the interviews. successfully preparing for and dominating the dental school interview..

RELATED:  How to Prepare for the Dental School Interview

4. Map Your Road to Dental School. Deciding on worthwhile extracurriculars and hobbies. Making a seamless and successful transition to dental school.

RELATED:  Roadmap to Dental School  

Succeeding with the Personal Statement

The personal statement is crucial in terms of presenting your individuality as part of the dental school application. It helps admissions representatives understand who you are, your unique experiences and why you chose to become a dentist. Despite it's importance, there is often great uncertainty regarding how it should be structured, what it should focus on, and how to make the best use of it to stand out.  

From ADEA Go Dental:  What is the personal statement for?

Your personal statement is a one-page essay (not to exceed 4,500 characters, including spaces, carriages, numbers, letters, etc.) that gives dental schools a clear picture of who you are and, most importantly, why you want to pursue a career in dentistry.

Read more @ ADEA Go Dental

Given how important the personal statement is to a successful application, Yang dedicated the entire second half of her book to it. In this section, 30 successful traditional and non-traditional dental students from diverse backgrounds share the personal statements they used to gain admission into a top school of choice.

These students crafted personal statements that genuinely impressed admissions committees and got them into dental school – the exception, not the norm.

 “We got over 50 submissions [for personal statements]. They were all very good. I worked with a team of eight other young dentists to distribute them, had them blinded, and had each essay critiqued and ranked based on quality of writing, how substantial the essays were and how effective they were.”

This process ultimately resulted in 30 top selections. Yang never thought she would get the submissions needed to fulfill the project, but the interest of young dentists to share their statements and help others was clear.

The personal statements showcase helpful examples of what works, and more importantly, expert feedback on why they worked. They offer practical guidance on how to present a story and background to gain an edge in one of the most competitive admissions processes out there.

“When I talk to pre-dental students, most people don’t think of themselves as unique or interesting or impressive. They are like ‘my grades are average, my stats are average. How on earth do I stand out?”

It’s a very common problem, but Yang recognizes that every applicant has something genuinely worthwhile to share, “The first thing I do when I meet with any pre-dental student is I get them to talk about themselves. From that, you can tell that everyone has a unique story that no one else has.

So even though they may not feel special because they lived with that their whole life, you can say ‘Look, no one else has your story. If you can wisely tell that story, that would make you seem different and more outstanding than other applicants.’”

Dr. Yang holds little back in this thorough book. She provides an unadulterated and authentic account of what it takes to thrive in the admissions process, present a compelling story and individuality, and plan for the long-term commitment that a career in the field demands.

Dr. Yang exudes a genuine passion for helping pre-dental students accomplish their dreams. Her book is an invaluable resource that has culminated from her years of experience in dental admissions and her desire to offer a more holistic strategy than the formulaic types of admission tips that are often seen.

Available on Amazon Now

The book has received highly positive reviews since its recent release in 2018.

Your Essential Guide to Dental School Admissions is available in softcover for $14.99 and Kindle for $9.99 on Amazon .

Get ready for dental school, get the information you need to begin your journey into an outstanding career in dentistry today.

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Dentistry Personal Statement Examples

Last updated: 05/10/2022

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The personal statement is changing to a series of free text questions for 2026 entry onwards, however it remains unchanged for 2025 entry. Keep an eye on our live updates page for guidance on these changes.

Writing a dentistry personal statement that you’re proud of is hard.

Many students struggle to boil down their skills and experiences to just 4,000 characters and it is tricky to know where to focus. 

Example statements are a great way to gain this insight.

In this article, we cover the following:

• Strong and weak dentistry personal statements 
• A breakdown of other peoples’ successes and mistakes
• Ideas for what to include in your own personal statement 

Once you've read this, check out dental interview questions to build on what you've learnt.

For an overview of personal statement writing, read our Personal Statement Guide for Medical and Dental Schools . This is essential reading and goes further than just examples!

Strong personal statement example

“I first became interested in studying dentistry between the ages of 12 and 15, when I visited my local dentist frequently to get my braces checked and tightened. 

I talked with her at length about the nature of her job and was struck by the huge impact she could have on the people she met daily. 

She actively improved the quality of life of every patient she encountered, and had to astutely apply scientific principles in a social setting in order to make patients feel at ease and achieve the best results. I was truly inspired by this experience and decided to investigate dentistry as a career.

In order to deepen my insight into the profession I carried out a week’s work experience in a local dental hospital. I saw how dentists of every stage were keen to learn, constantly assessing their performance and striving to improve. 

This drove home the importance of self-awareness and constant reflection, but also introduced me to the idea of lifelong learning which is something I find particularly attractive. 

During this placement I also took my first look inside a patient’s mouth and observed dentists constructing bridges, veneers and crowns. This exposed me to the aesthetic side of dentistry - a dentist not only aims to alleviate pain but can engage with the more cosmetic aspect of healthcare, something that most medical specialties cannot match. 

I organised a number of work experience placements in local dental surgeries, and throughout my shadowing was struck by the bonds dentists formed with their patients. They often had to utilise great communication skills and empathy to calm down or reassure anxious patients, and they worked hard to build up a rapport with everyone who entered the surgery. This encouraged patients to attend checkups more frequently and be more open about their worries, thereby improving the quality of care they received. 

As a result of my reflection on these experiences, I took up weekly volunteering in a local care home and reading to children in the dental hospital. These opportunities helped me become a far better communicator, as many of the residents of the care home were elderly or suffered from dementia meaning I had to adopt different visual or verbal strategies to get my message across. Many of the young patients in the dental hospital felt lonely and nervous, and by empathising with them I was able to help them relax and focus on the positives.

Outside academia, I play water polo and run in my school’s athletic team. Both of these sports have helped me become a better team player and I’ve learned that you can always achieve the best results by working efficiently in a team rather than going it alone. 

I am a particularly ambitious sportsperson and I’ve received the Most Valuable Player award in my waterpolo league for three years running, and have been a captain for four. 

As a captain, I am a decisive leader; In the heat of a match it’s important for me to make snap decisions and for my teammates to trust me. However, out of the pool I take every view into account and try to make sure that everyone has been heard and feels involved. 

I also try to identify the strengths and weaknesses of everyone in the team - myself included - so that we can play to our strengths in matches and work on our weaknesses in training.  

I think that the ambition, teamwork and leadership I’ve demonstrated through my sports will serve me well as a dentist, allowing me to work efficiently with others while constantly striving to improve personally. My participation in these sports has also allowed me to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

Becoming a dentist would allow me to have a truly positive effect on the people I work with, while also challenging me and ensuring I’m always learning and improving. I believe that my work experience, volunteering and extracurricular activities have provided me with the skills and insight necessary to become an empathetic and effective dentist.”

Strong personal statement analysis

This example displays many characteristics of a good personal statement. 

• Well structured.
• The candidate comes across as well-rounded and motivated, without appearing arrogant.
• There are some minor areas that could be improved, but overall we think that this personal statement would impress university assessors.

Introduction

• The introduction uses an anecdote to illustrate the candidate’s interest in dentistry. This is a good way to show how your interest in dentistry might have started, but it wouldn’t be suitable to write that you decided to apply to dentistry simply because you liked seeing your dentist as a child. The candidate doesn’t fall into this trap, and makes sure to highlight that this experience only inspired them to do further investigation into the career.
• The candidate goes on to describe how they deepened their insight in the main body paragraph, adding cohesiveness.
• The candidate also demonstrates some good insight into dentistry by discussing the unique blend of social skills and scientific knowhow required by dentists.

Main body paragraphs 

• Variety - the candidate’s three main body paragraphs discuss some of their work experience placements, volunteering roles and extracurricular interests. 
• Quality over quantity - they focus far more on individual experiences while going into more detail, and avoiding lists (although they witnessed a huge number of things during a week of work experience, they choose to focus on a couple of key experiences).
• Insight - the statement demonstrates insight into the profession on multiple occasions. They talk about the prominence of lifelong learning, the aesthetic/cosmetic side of dentistry, and how building a rapport with patients can lead to better outcomes.

Re-read the example, consider how the candidate: 

• Reflects on their experiences 
• Built on their experience
• Demonstrates relevant skills
• Demonstrates that they are ready for the challenges inherent in dentistry

Conclusion 

• Short, brief, and succinct. It doesn’t introduce any new information.
• The candidate doesn’t really speak enough about why they chose to study dentistry over medicine. They mention the dual focus on health and cosmetics, but could mention some other factors as well - for example, the fact that dentistry is more specialised from the start of the degree than medicine.
• They could show some more awareness of current news in the dental world.
• The candidate could also speak a little more about the challenges dentists face in the workplace and how they would cope.
• Discussion of paid employment would also have been beneficial.

Find more in-depth advice, tips and examples in our Personal Statement Course .

Weak personal statement example

“Dentistry has fascinated me from a very early age, as to me it seems like the perfect combination of practical and mental challenges. This has become even stronger since my brother found work as a dentist, having recently graduated from manchester University.

For the past 4 years, I’ve been looking after a local elderly lady who sometimes struggles to go shopping or carry out her daily tasks. This has helped me appreciate the satisfaction one can gain from helping others, and inspired me to pursue a career which will allow me to improve the lives of those around me - like dentistry!

As a result of my interest in medicine, I studied biology, physics and maths at A-Level. 

I’ve also carried out a variety of work experience placements over the years. During my GCSEs, I spent a week volunteering in a local NHS surgery, which exposed me to some of the challenges dentists face; they were often overworked, and had to deal with frustrated and anxious patients on a daily basis. 

I really enjoyed this experience, so I decided to take on another two week block at a dental hospital . While I was there, I shadowed receptionists, helping them to book appointments and organise the dentists’ timetables. I also managed to see dentists make diagnoses and watch a huge range of different dental procedures, from regular checkups to fillings and root canals. I spent time in the in-house dental laboratory, and was taken through the construction of veneers, crowns and bridges. I was also able to shadow dentists over a whole day in their life, seeing the admin and meetings they had to trudge through on top of the more exciting clinical work.

In my free time I enjoy playing the violin and listening to music. I am also a dedicated member of a number of sports teams, including basketball, tennis and hockey. I am proficient at both individual and team sports, showing that I can work well with others, but also self-motivate and set my own targets. 

I also enjoy watching films and socialising with my friends. More recently, I’ve really enjoyed keeping up with current dental news by reading the Journal of Dental Research and my brother’s old copies of the British Dental Journal.

Looking to the future, my great ambition is to work within the dentistry profession, where I believe I could have a really positive impact on the lives of the patients I work with. 

My work experience has set me up well to succeed, and I feel I have the desire and commitment to stick the course and become a successful yet empathetic dentist”

Weak personal statement example analysis

• Likely not to score well
• It isn’t nearly long enough (2520 characters) 
• It hasn’t been proofread and contains errors
• Did the candidate genuinely want to study dentistry from a young age? If it is true, it implies that they made this important decision based on an emotional impulse as a child.
• Being inspired to go into dentistry just because your sibling did is also not recommended. Just because it was right for them doesn’t make it right for you. 
• The mention of helping an elderly neighbour is good, but too brief. This is a great experience to reflect on and use to demonstrate both your motivations to study dentistry and your suitability for a caring role.
• At no point in the statement does the candidate explain why another caring profession wouldn’t be just as suitable for them. 
• There’s no mention of anything particularly specific to dentistry.

Main body paragraphs

• The first paragraph follows a list, with the candidate demonstrating that they have a real range of work experience placements (which is good) but without going into sufficient detail.
• There is very little reflection throughout these paragraphs. The candidate clearly has a good breadth of experience but can’t really explain anything they learned from it.
• They demonstrate very few relevant skills throughout the statement. They should talk more about how each experience they’ve had has improved them, either by helping them develop or demonstrate key skills that dentists need. Then, they should explain why dentists need these skills in the first place. 
• Describing the dentist’s admin and meetings as a ‘trudge’ and clinics as ‘exciting’ isn’t wise. This may be the case, but the reality is that dentists do spend a lot of their time writing notes, filling out paperwork and liaising with other healthcare professionals. If you find this particularly boring you either won’t be able to handle the job in the first place, or you’ll cut corners and thereby put patients at risk.
• There’s no mention of the importance of a work-life balance when talking about how they relax.
• It is crucial not to lie in your personal statement. It is possible that they do 'really enjoy' reading dental journals, but it is likely that your interviewers will latch onto this and quiz you repeatedly on it. 

However, it is worth mentioning the things these main body paragraphs do well:

• There is some reflection on the challenges faced by dentists, which will reassure the assessors that the candidate does have some insight and can reflect on their experiences.
• The candidate discusses the skills they demonstrated through their sports which is exactly the right thing to do. The only thing they’re missing is a linking of this to dentistry.

The Ultimate Guide to Studying Dentistry in the UK

• Remains brief and concise while summarising the rest of the statement and finishing with a strong, confident claim. 
• It is better to show “desire and commitment” to the profession earlier in the statement before introducing it in the conclusion. 
• Saying that work experience will set you up well for a career in dentistry is simply not true. Watching a couple of weeks’ worth of dental procedures will not make you a better dentist later in life. It is the reflection on those experiences that assessors are looking for.

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• About ADEA GoDental
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Is dentistry right for you, need for diversity, preparing for dental school, the admissions process, application to dental school, 2024–25 application cycle updates, application instructions, refund policy, re-applicants, school-specific deadlines, dental school interview, new student video stories, customer service, cost of attendance, financing options, educational debt, applying for aid, international students, practice or residency, advanced dental education programs, practice options, advanced education in general dentistry, hear from practitioners, words from your peers, financial aid advice, advice from admissions officers, tips from current d.d.s./d.h. students, health professions advisor views, upcoming events, enrichment programs calendar, past events, writing a personal statement for your dental school application.

The personal statement is one of the most important parts of the ADEA AADSAS ® (ADEA Associated American Dental School Application Service) application. It gives a dental school’s admissions committee the opportunity to assess your motivations and decide if you will be extended an invitation to interview. Often, it takes a long time to write it, and individuals may feel lost on how to approach it. I will help guide you on the path to successfully writing an effective personal statement. 

You should be very clear on the statement’s purpose. Apart from being clear on the dental or dental hygiene program and/or university’s mission focus, you should also be aware of and communicate what you want to achieve by becoming a health care provider. Ask yourself these questions:

• What drives you to be a dentist or dental hygienist?
• What will you achieve by becoming a dentist or dental hygienist?

These questions are important and should be answered within the personal statement. If you have clear answers, you will have a clear vision of the content of your personal statement’s purpose.

The next step is to define the content before you start writing the essay. It should revolve around your personal story, which could start from anywhere you like. For example, you could start when you chose to pursue this profession, or you can start from the present and explain how you’re investing time in and outside of school into building yourself into a better future dentist or dental hygienist. The beginning should be impactful , but do not sit on the beginning statement too long. Rereading and editing will help you get there. Sometimes, you might need to write the whole essay to identify a clear beginning statement.

After a decent beginning, focus on the rest of the story. Remember, it is a personal statement and it should be personal. Convey your story in an interesting manner. Project your personality. The admissions committee knows your GPA and have your CV/resume. What they want to know is who you really are. Add anecdotes from the journey that brought you to dentistry/dental hygiene. Add experiences from your personal life that highlight certain qualities essential to being a successful health care provider. If there were any dentists that you admired, shadowed or worked for who encouraged you to follow suit into dentistry, make sure you highlight the characteristics you admired in them.

Concluding statements are important, too. There should be a delightful epilogue to your essay summarizing the intent, while throwing light on the future and how completing the dental program will put you in a better position to help the community overall.

Use of Language

Judging the quality of your grammar is not the admissions committee’s goal when they read personal statements, but it serves to your advantage if you are meticulous with the words you choose. Certain avoidable grammatical or syntax errors may shift the focus of the reader from the message to the mistakes. It is important to reread and edit out such mistakes. Doing so also conveys your sincere efforts toward making a successful application.

Sentence structure is also important in making a script that flows well and keeps the reader’s attention. Small, interrupted sentences may not allow the reader to follow your thoughts through the punctuation marks, while long, complicated sentences may leave the reader stranded and confused with no closure. We often do not realize these mistakes as we write because the focus is not on sentence structure but on the content. Make sure you go back and read the essay thoroughly to make it easy for others to read. Follow up by using the most suitable conjunctions and transitional words and phrases.

Give yourself plenty of time for the writing process. Always try to start the personal statement early and do not leave it for last. Take a day off, sleep well, focus and write the first draft of the personal statement. At this point, do not think of the word limits and grammar—simply put your heart on paper and then, forget about it. Reread and edit it, afresh. Repeat the process three to four times and then seek help from an advisor or your friends and family. Let at least three to four trusted people read it and ask them to give their opinions and criticisms. Make sure they understand what you are trying to convey in the first place, then consider all their suggestions. Make edits per your liking and, at this stage of editing, lock down the major content of your essay. If your reviewers’ suggestions are contrasting and confusing, it is okay to make two separate drafts and elect to use the one that appeals to you the most. Edit and re-edit the draft you like the best and ask the reviewers to review the new version(s) again. You can always get new people to review it as well.

After you are happy with the content, focus on the language and presentation. Ask the reviewers to read it again and submit it after you feel confident about it. While taking suggestions from others, remember it is your personal statement, so stay true to yourself and do not sway from being yourself to impress others.

Good luck! 

About Anirudha Agnihotry, B.D.S., D.D.S.:

Anirudha Agnihotry, B.D.S., D.D.S.

General Dentist/Clinical Researcher

Private Practice, California

Dr. Agnihotry graduated from Manipal College of Dental Sciences with a Bachelor's in Dental Surgery (B.D.S.) degree in 2012. After a one-year clinical internship, he joined the faculty in the Operative Dentistry and Endodontics Department in Mahatma Gandhi Dental College, where he also maintained a faculty practice. After that, he moved to Divya Jyoti College of Dental Sciences and Research in the Public Health Dentistry. There, Dr. Agnihotry worked setting up community outreach clinics and school oral health programs as well as training dental students. In 2014, Agnihotry moved to the United States and completed a post-graduate certificate training in Restorative Dentistry and following that, worked as a researcher in the same department at the University of California, Los Angeles. After that, he enrolled in an intense accelerated program to obtain his Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S.) degree in two years, graduating in 2018. He is currently practicing general dentistry in California.

Dr. Agnihotry has been in dentistry for 12 years, as a student and a teacher at times. He has published 12 international scientific research papers, presented in international conferences, is a referee for six international scientific journals and has also written a textbook chapter. His focus is patient-centered outcomes and secondary research with clinical outcomes in focus. Apart from dentistry, he enjoys swimming, playing squash, running, biking, barbecuing and takes a keen interest in all art forms.

• Dental Hygiene
• Community Health
• Dental School
• Post-doctoral Education
• Summer 2022
• Spring 2022
• Winter 2020
• Spring 2020
• Summer 2018

Writing a Winning Dental School Personal Statement

Learn the art of crafting an irresistible personal statement, a key element in the dental school application process. Discover the essential steps and techniques to create a captivating narrative that impresses admissions committees and showcases your unique qualities and aspirations.

Posted September 14, 2023

Featuring Ellen W.

Dental School Application Next Steps: Ask Me Anything

Starting thursday, september 12.

8:00 PM UTC · 30 minutes

Table of Contents

If you're planning on applying to dental school, then you'll need to have a strong and compelling personal statement. Not only is this statement your chance to highlight your unique qualities and experiences as they relate to dentistry, but it's also a way to demonstrate your passion for the field and your dedication to pursuing a career in dentistry. In this article, we'll be discussing what it takes to write a winning dental school personal statement and how to make your application stand out.

An Introduction to Crafting a Compelling Dental School Personal Statement

First things first, let's start with the basics. Your personal statement is a one-page essay in which you have the chance to tell the admissions committee who you are and why you want to pursue a career in dentistry. This essay is a critical part of your dental school application and will be evaluated alongside your academic record, letters of recommendation, and any other supplemental materials.

When crafting your personal statement, it's important to keep in mind that the admissions committee is looking for more than just a list of your accomplishments and experiences. They want to see your personality shine through and get a sense of your passion for dentistry. This is your opportunity to showcase your unique perspective and explain how your experiences have led you to pursue a career in dentistry.

It's also important to remember that your personal statement should be well-written and free of errors. Take the time to proofread and edit your essay, and consider having someone else read it over as well. A polished and professional personal statement can make a big difference in the eyes of the admissions committee.

Understanding Your Purpose

The purpose of your personal statement is to demonstrate to the admissions committee that you have the qualities and experiences necessary to succeed in dental school and in a career as a dentist. You should use this essay to showcase your personal attributes, your relevant experiences, and your passion for the field of dentistry.

It is important to note that your personal statement should not simply be a list of your achievements and experiences. Admissions committees are looking for applicants who can reflect on their experiences and demonstrate how they have grown and developed as a result. Your personal statement should tell a story about who you are and why you are passionate about pursuing a career in dentistry. It should also highlight any unique perspectives or experiences that you bring to the table, such as a background in a related field or a commitment to serving underserved communities.

Identifying Your Unique Qualities and Experiences to Highlight

To stand out in your application, you'll need to highlight your unique qualities and experiences. Think about what sets you apart from other applicants and consider how those qualities or experiences demonstrate your potential as a dental student and future dentist. Brainstorming these qualities can help you craft a more impactful and memorable essay.

One way to identify your unique qualities and experiences is to reflect on your personal and professional background. Consider your upbringing, cultural heritage, and life experiences that have shaped your values and perspectives. These can provide insight into your character and motivations for pursuing a career in dentistry.

Another approach is to think about your academic and extracurricular achievements. What have you accomplished that demonstrates your leadership, teamwork, or problem-solving skills? How have you contributed to your community or made a positive impact on others? These experiences can showcase your potential as a well-rounded and compassionate dental professional.

Tips for Crafting an Engaging Introduction to Your Personal Statement

Your introduction should be engaging and compelling enough to grab the attention of the admissions committee. You can begin with a story that shows your passion for dentistry, or you can start with a quote that resonates with you. A good introduction should make the reader feel interested in your story, and want to keep reading.

Another effective way to start your personal statement is by posing a thought-provoking question that relates to your field of study. This can help to immediately engage the reader and make them curious about your perspective on the topic. Additionally, you can use statistics or data to highlight the importance of your chosen field and why it matters to you.

It's important to remember that your introduction sets the tone for the rest of your personal statement. Therefore, it's crucial to avoid cliches and generic statements that don't add any value to your story. Instead, focus on showcasing your unique experiences and qualities that make you a strong candidate for the program. By doing so, you'll be able to capture the attention of the admissions committee and leave a lasting impression.

Key Elements to Include in the Body of Your Dental School Personal Statement

Your body should include information about your relevant experiences and how they helped you develop the skills that are essential for success in dentistry. You should also discuss your academic background, specifically any science courses that you have taken, as these are highly relevant to your dental education. It is also important to discuss any extracurricular activities that demonstrate your various skills and qualities.

In addition to discussing your experiences, academic background, and extracurricular activities, it is important to highlight your motivation for pursuing a career in dentistry. This can include personal experiences that sparked your interest in the field, as well as your long-term career goals and how dentistry fits into those goals.

Another important element to include in your personal statement is your understanding of the challenges and responsibilities that come with being a dentist. This can include discussing the importance of patient care, the need for strong communication skills, and the ability to work well under pressure. By demonstrating your understanding of these challenges, you can show admissions committees that you are prepared for the rigors of dental school and a career in dentistry.

The Importance of Authenticity

It is important to be authentic and honest in your personal statement. Do not try to create a persona or present any inaccurate information. Admissions committees are experts at gauging authenticity, and any deception can be highly detrimental to your application. Write from your heart and keep in mind that the purpose of your personal statement is to allow the committee to know you better.

One way to ensure authenticity in your personal statement is to reflect on your personal experiences and how they have shaped your desire to pursue dentistry. Share your unique story and highlight the qualities that make you a strong candidate for dental school. This can include your passion for helping others, your attention to detail, or your ability to work well under pressure.

Additionally, it is important to tailor your personal statement to the specific dental schools you are applying to. Research each school's mission statement and values, and incorporate them into your writing. This shows that you have done your homework and are genuinely interested in attending that particular school.

Examples of Effective Ways to Convey Your Passion for Dentistry

The admissions committee needs to see your passion for dentistry in your personal statement. You can begin by telling a story about a dental experience that inspired you, or you can describe your interest in a specific aspect of dentistry, such as orthodontics or oral surgery. You can also discuss how your past experiences or academic background has prepared you for your future in dentistry.

Common Mistakes to Avoid in Writing Your Dental School Personal Statement

There are some common mistakes that can significantly decrease the quality of your personal statement. One of these mistakes is writing in a generic way without discussing your unique experiences. Another is writing a statement that focuses solely on your academic background without demonstrating your qualities and experiences of relevance to dentistry. You should also avoid writing personal statements that are too long or too short, making sure to follow the specified guidelines.

How to Edit and Revise Your Dental School Personal Statement for Maximum Impact

After you have finished your first draft, it is highly recommended to take the time to edit and revise your personal statement. One essential tip is to take a break before starting to revise so that you can look at your personal statement with fresh eyes. As you revise, ensure that your statement is clear, concise, and effectively conveys your message. You may also want to get feedback from friends, family, or professors as well as use online resources such as grammar checking tools.

Tips for Tailoring Your Dental School Personal Statement to Specific Programs or Schools

An effective way to make your personal statement stand out is to tailor it to the specific dental school programs you are applying to. Research and find information about each school's curriculum, facilities, and mission statements, for example, and choose to include information that shows your interest and compatibility with the program specifically. This approach will show the committee that you are serious about attending their specific program and that you've done your homework.

Strategies for Standing Out Among a Pool of Competitive Applicants

Standing out in a pool of competitive applicants can be challenging, but it is vital to remember that if you stay authentic and communicate your passion for dentistry effectively, you have a good chance of making a lasting impression. Additionally, take the time to review what you wrote before making the final submission, use the appropriate formatting guidelines, and be certain you have represented yourself and your aspirations as holistically and accurately as possible.

Making the Most of Supplemental Essays and Interviews as Part of the Application Process

In addition to your personal statement, there may be supplemental essays or interviews that are included as part of the dental school application process. It is essential to take these components seriously as they can play a significant role in the final decision. Be sure to prepare for these essays and interviews carefully, using tips and tools online and even seeking advice from current dental students or former colleagues. Remember, by taking advantage of all aspects of the application process, you can make your candidacy stand out.

Navigating the Admissions Process and What Comes Next After Submitting Your Personal Statement

The admissions process can be stressful, but always remember why you're applying and what your end goal is. It is important to stay organized throughout the application process, keeping track of deadlines and all required documents. After submitting, you can breathe easy, awaiting a decision. However, if you're putting all your eggs in one basket, you may want to consider applying to multiple dental schools. Knowing what to expect and what you'll need to do can help put your mind at ease and prepare you for whatever may come next.

Writing a winning dental school personal statement takes time, effort, and commitment. By keeping the tips mentioned in this article in mind and staying true to yourself and your motivations, you will have an excellent chance of getting admitted to the dental school of your choice, and ultimately following the path you envisioned for your professional life. Good luck!

Want to learn more about the process for applying to dental school? Take a look at these resources to take your application to the next level:

• How to Prepare for Your Dental School Interviews
• Navigating Dental School Acceptance Rates: Strategies for Success
• How to Get Into Dental School: Essential Tips and Guidelines
• Letters of Evaluation for Dental School: Everything You Need to Know
• How to Get Volunteer Hours for Dental School Applications
• University of the Pacific Dental School: Application Requirements and How to Get In (2023-2024)

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Dental School Personal Statement Examples

Applying to dental school can feel daunting enough, let alone when you need to start your statement, but we're here to help you every step of the way. Inspira’s dental school personal statement database gives you an inside scoop on what top statements look like and offers inspiration to create a personal statement that stands out to the admissions office!

How Does the Dental School Personal Statement Examples Database Work?

To access our database, all you have to do is provide your name and a valid email address. Once you’ve done that, you’ll have access to +15 unique and successful dental school personal statement samples from the country's top schools. Whether you’re just beginning or working on your conclusion and don’t know how to bring your story full circle, this resource will benefit you.

Tips for Ensuring Your Statement is Impactful

Simply provide your first and last names and a valid email address to access our database.

Once submitted, you'll gain access to our successful vet school personal statement samples—a valuable resource to guide you in writing your own statement.

Take a look through our database and use these examples to create a personal statement that stands out to the admissions office!

Tips for Ensuring Your Statement is Impactful 

1. show, don't just tell.

Rather than simply listing your strengths or great qualities, demonstrate them through concrete examples and anecdotes. Show how you've applied your skills in situations, how you’ve grown from an experience and how these experiences have shaped your journey toward dental school.

2. Emphasize Your Distinctive Perspective

Within your personal statement, highlight what makes you stand out. Your first step is identifying your special qualities, experiences, or perspectives that will differentiate you from other applicants. Allow the admissions committee to get to know you on a human level.

3. Explicitly Address “Why Dentistry”

You must clearly articulate to the admissions committee why you want to become a dentist. Speak to the specific aspects that inspire you. This could look like providing comprehensive patient care, advancing dental research, or even advocating for equitable access to oral health to an underserved community or group.

Here are frequently asked questions about dental school personal statements.

1. What Should Be Included In A Dental School Personal Statement?

A dental school personal statement should explain why you are passionate about dentistry. It should also highlight relevant experiences demonstrating your readiness, understanding of the profession, and personal qualities that make you a strong candidate.

2. How Do Personal Experiences Enhance A Dental School Application?

Your personal experiences enhance a dental school application by demonstrating your commitment, responsibility, and passion. They provide concrete, authentic examples of your skills, character, and readiness for the challenges of dental school.

3. How Long Should A Dental School Personal Statment Be?

Your dental school personal statement should be double-spaced, one page long, and not exceeding 4,500 characters. It should give dental schools a clear understanding of who you are outside of the numbers and statistics.

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Dentistry Personal Statement Examples – KCL (Saif)

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Welcome to our collection of Dentistry Personal Statement Examples! We’ve searched far and wide to find personal statements from successful applicants all around the UK and asked them to analyse the strengths and weaknesses of their work for your own inspiration. Today’s subject is from Saif, who studies Dentistry at King’s College London.

Saif applied to study Dentistry back in 2021 at four amazing UK Dental Schools, including KCL, University of Bristol and University of Glasgow. He received offers from 3 out of his four choices of which he chose to study at KCL.

Let’s read the personal statement that got him a place at KCL, or skip straight to his feedback to learn what made his personal statement a success!

Please be aware that these examples are meant purely for the sake of inspiration, and should absolutely NOT be used as a model around which to base your own personal statement. UCAS have a rather strict system that detects plagiarism .

KCL Dentistry Personal Statement Example

Whole personal statement.

A smile is more than just a smile, it is a reflection of happiness, confidence and self-esteem. Dentistry is the engineering of a smile, focusing on patients’ health, comfort and wellbeing. The interaction with patients and colleagues is not only integral to the care provided, but also a very attractive aspect of this career. With constant advances in research, dentistry has been and always will be an evolving profession. This opportunity for lifelong learning excites me and has fuelled my desire to pursue this pathway.

I had the opportunity to join the dentists at my local practice where I observed check-ups; the fitting and moulding of dentures; and tooth extractions. The interaction between dentists of different specialist interests; along with the dental nurses, hygienists and supporting staff maintained the best care possible in a multidisciplinary team. It was amazing to see the wonderful impact that they had on so many patients. For example – helping a lady with periodontitis. Her gums had begun to recede causing many teeth to fall out and others to wobble. Everyday tasks we take for granted (such as talking and eating) led to constant pain and difficulty. I will never forget the look on her face once she was fitted with her personalised dentures. This inspired me to learn more about the working life of a dentist.

I came across Dr Manouchehri’s ‘Teeth and Tales” podcast which was informative and enjoyable. It was interesting to learn about the importance of dental health as an indicator for many diseases. For instance, mouth ulcers can indicate signs of some bowel diseases, and examination of the mouth can diagnosen early stages of oral cancer. This captivated me : dentistry does not only improve the quality of people’s lives; it has the potential to save it. The podcast includes a brief yet stimulating discussion about a dentist’s ‘typical work week’ – which is in fact not typical at all.

Each patient has their own needs, resulting in an immense variation of work that has intrigued me – sparking my interest in orthodontics. This focuses on unique tooth alignment in order to provide patient focused treatment, providing new, exciting challenges to overcome. A smile can be built that improves the appearance and functionality of someone’s mouth – building their confidence and protecting their teeth by correcting their bite.

Communication is the basis of the dentist-patient relationship that is built on trust and respect. I am an effective communicator – evident in my roles as Senior Prefect and Classroom Assistant. As part of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Bronze Award, I volunteered at my local Barnardo’s where I worked as part of a team which helped me improve my communication skills. It was a great pleasure to do something good for my community, supporting the less fortunate by gathering and sorting through donations to those in need.

Dentistry is a demanding and stressful career, so finding ways to relax is important. Music is my tool for relaxation. I am a keen piano player and have passed my grade 6 exam with distinction. Hard work and disciplined practice have greatly improved my manual dexterity and attention to detail – skills that are integral to dentistry. My commitment has allowed me to begin tutoring, where I tailor my teaching style according to a student’s age and skill level. I am able to communicate complex information in an understandable way; build relationships with otherwise shy children; and put them at ease when dealing with frustrations. By effectively managing my time, I balance my schoolwork and benefit from being part of the school choir as well as an U18’s football team within the top division of my region. Football involves communication with teammates, mirroring the teamwork required in the life of a dentist.

I recognise that dentistry is a demanding career, but it is also extremely rewarding. It would give me the opportunity to connect with and positively impact so many people. Nothing would fulfil me more.

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KCL Dentistry Personal Statement Example Analysis

Now, let’s go section by section and see what Saif has to say about what he wrote:  

INTRODUCTION

Introduction

I feel that in the introduction of my personal statement I have been able to clearly demonstrate my passion for Dentistry. From my explanation, the intent behind my desire to study Dentistry really shines through. 

I do feel that my introduction does come across as quite impersonal and I haven’t related it to myself until the final sentence. I could have expanded further on the research aspect of Dentistry as this is an area I am interested in and it would have been better to covey this to the admissions tutor to demonstrate my understanding of it. 

Paragraph 1

I have not only discussed my work experience but also reflected on it, showing what I learnt and how it made me feel. This shows my passion and experience – and also that I understand the value of doing work experience. 

I probably could have been more concise, which could have meant I would have had more characters available to me later on in my personal statement which I feel I ended up rushing through. As well, I would have liked to have spent more time discussing the life-saving aspect of Dentistry in more depth by talking about what a Max Fax surgeon is.

Paragraph 2

I have shown that I have been doing wider reading – even though it has not been in the traditional sense of the term but rather with a podcast. I have made sure to talk about what I have learnt from it, using mouth ulcers are a symptom for some bowel diseases as an example as I just found it so fascinating. 

Again, I probably could have been more concise here. What the podcast talks about is not what is important but rather what I have grasped and learnt from it. I have probably embellished my language a bit too much, e.g., “…podcast which was informative and enjoyable,” when I could have cut out the latter part of the sentence and gone straight into why it was interesting. 

Paragraph 3

Here I made the point of discussing a specialist branch of Dentistry, that being orthodontics. I have talked about what interests me in orthodontics. This also displays the knowledge I have gained through wider reading and understanding of the profession as a whole.

I should have gone into my depth about what sparked my interest in orthodontics. It would have been helpful to relate it back to what I saw during my work experience. 

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Paragraph 4

I have used my personal experiences to relate to how I have developed and enhanced my communication skills – a skill which is vital to a career in Dentistry. Though I have only mentioned it from the sense of a dentist-patient relationship, it is also a necessary skill when working with other members of a dental team. 

As briefly mentioned above it would have been better to relate my communication ability to a clinical setting and draw on what I saw and learnt during my work experience. As well, I mentioned being a Senior Prefect and Classroom Assistant but have not gone into detail of anything I actually done within these roles. 

Paragraph 5

Here I have discussed the extracurricular activities that I undertook to show off more of my personality and interests outside of school and Dentistry. The idea behind this was to show the universities I was applying to what sort of person the would-be considering aside from my academics and to showcase myself as a well rounded individual. 

I have mentioned elsewhere I could have been more concise at the start of my personal statement as I feel this section is really rushed as I ran out of characters which would have allowed me to go into more depth. Maybe if I had structured my personal statement differently, it would have allowed me to discuss my extracurriculars in more detail 

My conclusion is clear, concise and straight to the point. I have acknowledged that a Dentistry degree and career will be challenging but I feel I am well suited to face this adversity and rise above it. 

There is being concise, and then there is potentially being too short which I feel this is. Again, I used up valuable characters earlier on in my personal statement which would have been better used for my conclusion. As well, I could have related it back to what I said in my introduction to make it feel more cohesive. 

Final Thoughts

I am pleased with my reflection of my work experience, I have not just listed what I done but mentioned the value I have gained from it by relating it to patients that I came across. Additionally, the section about my wider reading and my interest in the subject through Dr Manouchehri’s podcast, I feel, conveys my passion for Dentistry and my fascination with it. 

The end is what really lets it down, I feel, I ran out of characters, and it shows. I easily could have shortened my introduction and gained characters back there. Reading it back through, it does come across as slightly rushed and that I had just crammed it all in. There are definitely some sections that could have been broken down into smaller paragraphs just for ease of reading. 

So there you have it! This personal statement helped Saif get 3/4 offers in his application.

Everyone has different experiences and abilities, so you may not be able to relate to everything that was said in this personal statement. However, the information and advice provided by Saif is universal and will help any applicant write a better personal statement!  

Be sure to check out more Medicine Personal Statement Analyses to see advice from all different kinds of applicants, including Ali Abdaal himself! Or if you want to get started on your own statement, check out 6med’s Medicine Mastery Bundle for all the support and resources you’ll ever need for your PS and the rest of your application!

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Dental School Personal Statements

The personal statement allows you to demonstrate the thinking, strengths and values that are the foundation of your choice of a dental career and make you a strong candidate.  When someone finishes reading your statement, that person should sense that you have the potential to be a great clinician and want to talk to you more about your experiences and career plans.

ADEA limits the statement to 4,500 characters, including spaces.

Graduate & Professional School Advising at Career Services offers Personal Statement presentations in the spring to help you get started and go over the basics.

After completing a draft of your essay:

• Read it one last time to proofread, check for word choice, and assess the tone.
• Submit your draft into the documents section of your Handshake profile by clicking on your name.
• Schedule a “ Pre-Health Personal Statement Review ” video appointment with your advisor (either Mia Carpiniello or Caroline Wilky) via the “Appointments” section of Handshake .

Important Notes:

• At the time of your appoinment, please visit the BlueJean video conference room with the appropriate advisor: Mia Carpiniello: bluejeans.com/miacarp or Dr. Caroline Wilky: bluejeans.com/cwilky .
• Select “JOIN WITH BROWSER” at the bottom of the page to open the meeting within your web browser. It is YOUR responsibility to initiate a call at the time of your appointment.
• Each applicant is allowed a maximum of two reviews of their personal statement by a Pre-Health Advisor.  These two reviews must be with the same Pre-Health Advisor.
• The last day to submit your draft and schedule an appointment is May 22. These appointments will be available until the end of May.
• If a draft is not received before you schedule an appointment, your personal statement review request will be declined.
• These reviews cannot be rescheduled but if you need to cancel your appointment, the cancelled appointment will count as one review.
• To maximize the quality of our feedback and your opportunity to write an effective essay, we will not “proofread” or “edit” your draft — we will provide you with a focused reader response to assist you with your revision process.

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Dentistry Personal Statement Examples

What is a dentistry personal statement?

Your dentistry UCAS personal statement gives the university admissions tutors an idea of who you are and why you want to study dentistry.

It should explain why your skills, knowledge and experience make you a great candidate for dentistry, and why you should be offered a place on their course.

Read through our dentistry personal statement examples above for inspiration on how to write your own unique statement for your UCAS application.

Remember that the deadline for dentistry applicants is earlier than many other course, on 15 October .

What should a dentistry personal statement include?

To write a successful dentistry personal statement, you shoud include:

• Why you want to study dentistry - try to pick one or two aspects of the subject that interest you and explain why
• Work experience - what skills did you learn that will be useful in a dentistry degree?
• Volunteering - have you completed any unpaid or voluntary work that is relevant to your dentistry course?
• Wider reading and study - how has this influenced and/or motivated you to study dentistry?
• Extracurricular activities - what do you do outside of school or college and how might this help with your degree?
• Conclusion - mention your ambitions for the future. How will your dentistry degree move you forward on your career path?

For more help and advice on what to write in your dentistry personal statement, please see:

• Personal Statement Editing Services
• Personal Statement Tips From A Teacher
• Analysis Of A Personal Statement
• The 15th January UCAS Deadline: 4 Ways To Avoid Missing It
• Personal Statement FAQs
• Personal Statement Timeline
• 10 Top Personal Statement Writing Tips
• What To Do If You Miss The 15th January UCAS Deadline.

How do I write a good dentistry personal statement?

Your dentistry personal statement should be structured so that all the paragraphs flow well together and make a coherent statement overall.

We recommend starting with why you want to study dentistry. Most students choose to focus on one aspect of the subject they are enthusiastic about and explain why they find it fascinating or why they enjoyed learning about.

For the main body of your statement, you should think about the course content and explain how you can demonstrate the skills to meet them.

To be a dentist, you need good skills in:

• communication
• organisation
• physical stamina
• problem solving.

For your conclusion, we suggest you summarise your goals and ambitions, and explain how your dentistry degree will help further your career.

Remember to give your dentistry personal statement to teachers, friends and family members for feedback before submitting a final version on your UCAS statement.

What does a dentist do?

Dentists diagnose and treat dental issues and help patients develop better oral hygiene regimens.

They also clean teeth, correct bite issues, perform surgeries and extractions, and perform other duties to ensure that the teeth and mouth are healthy.

What can I do with a dentistry degree?

Apart from becoming a dentist, there are many other career options available to those wishing to study dentistry. These include:

• Dental hygienist
• Dental technician
• Health service manager
• Science writer
• Medical sales representative
• Laboratory technican.

For more information on careers with a dentistry degree, please see Prospects and The National Careers Service .

What are the best UK universities for dentistry?

Currently, the best UK universities for studying dentistry are:

For more information about UK university rankings for dentistry, please see The Complete University Guide and The Guardian .

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DentalPersonalStatement.com by Dr. Robert Edinger [email protected]

Personal Statement Enhancement for Admission to Dental School, International Dentists, Residency Positions, Recommendation Letters, Disadvantaged Status, Endodontics, Orthodontics, OMFS, Oral Hygiene, Pediatric Dentistry, Periodontics, Prosthodontics -  Dental School Personal Statement Samples, Professional Writing and Editing

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I invite you to fill out my Interview Form at this link. Even if you have a draft, the information on the interview form is often helpful and serves as the basis for me to make creative improvements to the statement. I spend more time with the statement for my premium service customers at US$299.00 ; this is especially true when it comes to making major contributions to creative ideas. My standard service at US$199.00 is for clients who already have a well-developed draft that they need to have tweaked. My premium service is for those clients who want my ultimate effort and further revision after making changes.  

All samples published on this website are anonymous and at least two years old.

Dental School Personal Statement Examples

Updated: Aug 24

Introduction

Welcome to our collection of exemplary dental school personal statements. This page features two distinct personal statements from non-traditional applicants who have successfully transitioned into the field of dentistry. These statements are designed to provide inspiration and insight into how diverse experiences and backgrounds can be leveraged to create compelling narratives for dental school applications. By reading these examples, you will gain a better understanding of how to effectively highlight your unique qualities, experiences, and aspirations to strengthen your own application.

Dental School Personal Statement Example #1

This personal statement reflects a journey marked by early life challenges and a profound desire to give back to the community. Inspired by a life-changing encounter with a dental student during a difficult time for his family, the applicant shares a compelling story of aspiration, resilience, and a commitment to serving the underserved. This example provides an inspiring guide for those applying to dental school, emphasizing the importance of compassion and community service.

Early Inspiration and Motivation

I trace my adult aspirations back to the age of nine. At this time, my father returned to college in his late thirties to pursue a master’s degree in anesthesia. I was the oldest of three children, my mother was also unable to work, and we soon found ourselves scrounging out an existence on welfare. I will never forget my first Christmas on public assistance, my parents agonizing over how they could buy presents in addition to putting food on the table. Our church taught me the most important lessons in life at that time, compassion, and generosity. And these moral imperatives have become my principal frame of reference, what I aspire to accomplish myself.

One morning, my mother woke up in excruciating pain, and we realized that the local dental school clinic was our only option as welfare recipients. John, a dentistry student, recommended a root canal and patiently responded to each of my mother’s concerns in a simple, straightforward way with illustrations; I could even understand it at 10 years old. I could see that my mother felt safe and comfortable, fully trusting in John. During the procedure I saw the tears roll down her face as I held on to her hand. John let me hold the suction for part of the procedure. John became my first real life hero; and from that day forward I have nurtured and treasured the dream of becoming a dentist myself, and attending to the weakest among us, the underserved.

Developing Skills and Community Engagement

Later, we would move to Florida where I constructed a hockey workshop in our garage with numerous stick handling drills that helped develop my natural dexterity and coordination. One professional experience that has helped to prepare me for the great challenges of dental school was my employment with XXXX Marine Services. We helped to train helicopter pilots in the fields of search and rescue. Coast Guard helicopters would hover within ten feet of my head while I was raising and lowering rescue baskets.

Since entering high school, I have cultivated noble goals of wanting to give something back to the community. One of my early forms of engagement with the community in high school was serving as Captain of our ice hockey team. Even though we lost the state tournament, I went on to serve as Assistant Captain of the Hockey team, helping to bring XXU Ice Hockey to its first winning season. Yet, when I realized that my grades were suffering, I quit the team to be able to devote myself full time to my studies. During my first year I co-founded the XXXX Leadership Organization, beginning with only ten members. My first title was Social Service Coordinator, and I oversaw designing and organizing our efforts to raise money for the Wounded Warrior Foundation. Within 3 years, we had 150 members. I see my natural inclination for organizing philanthropic activities to be my greatest asset and I feel strongly that the greatest contribution that I might be able to make to society would be to provide free dental health care to members of our American societies with scant resources.

Vision for the Future

I see my home as the entire Caribbean area and I have spent a lot of time in Jamaica, the Bahamas, Cozumel, Belize, the Grand Cayman Islands, Haiti, and Puerto Rico. I was a close observer of healthcare systems on these islands, especially Haiti, and it is my sincere hope to make major contributions to dental missions to these islands in the future. I studied Spanish for 3 years in college and continue to improve through a concerted effort to practice. I have also dedicated a lot of planning to my goal of someday operating a free mobile dental clinic in rural areas of Florida, especially for the benefit of migrant farm workers and their families. I assure you that I will give my all to my studies if admitted and I want to thank you for consideration of my application.

Summary: Why This is a Good Personal Statement

This personal statement is compelling because it:

Highlights a Transformative Experience: The narrative of the mother's dental experience provides a powerful motivation for the applicant's career choice.

Emphasizes Compassion and Community Service: The applicant's commitment to serving the underserved and organizing philanthropic activities underscores a dedication to making a positive impact.

Demonstrates Leadership and Initiative: The applicant's involvement in leadership roles and community service projects showcases their ability to lead and inspire others.

Illustrates a Global Perspective: The applicant's experiences in the Caribbean and plans for future dental missions demonstrate a broad and compassionate view of healthcare.

Articulates Clear Goals and Vision: The statement outlines a clear vision for the future, including plans to provide free dental care and contribute to dental missions.

Dental School Personal Statement Example #2

This personal statement provides a compelling narrative of a non-traditional dental school applicant who leverages a diverse background in art, computer consulting, and life experiences. The applicant's journey from Korea to the United States, combined with a strong commitment to serving underserved communities, showcases their readiness and determination to excel in dental school. The statement highlights key qualities such as grit, perseverance, and a passion for helping others, making a strong case for their candidacy.

Non-Traditional Background

A non-traditional applicant at 33, I am an excellent candidate for dental school because of my experience as an artist and computer consultant. I have been in the U.S. for 14 years, emigrating from our native Korea with my family. I have fully adjusted to full-time English and the American way and have matured significantly. I am a good listener and get along well with people from all levels of society.

Commitment to Serving the Underserved

I would like to be a dentist who is sufficiently successful in devoting a large part of my time and resources to providing dental care to the underserved, especially minorities and immigrant populations in the inner city. I am especially drawn to the plight of inner-city children, in particular. The idea of being able to help them to better appreciate and respect themselves and their community through dental care is my long-standing dream of service.

Personal Struggles and Resilience

My grit, determination, and appreciation for the less fortunate were reinforced while I was in middle school in Korea and my father's business went bankrupt. We soon found ourselves living in only one tiny room in a rural area, all four of us. We slept next to each other every night, and I listened to my sister, trying not to sob. One night, I stretched my arm to see if I could reach her and my father and mother with my hand. I felt their hair and the reality of underprivileged life so acutely at that moment that I vowed that this would never happen to my children. I started delivering newspapers before dawn to support myself, paying my school expenses so as not to be a burden to my parents. At 5:00 in the morning, in freezing winter weather that numbed every part of my body, I began my struggle to succeed in life.

Adapting to Life in the US

Even after immigrating to the US, my family struggled financially. I had to work full-time as a janitor for several years while taking courses at a nearby college. After I moved to a four-year university, I did the dishes in the dining hall. I worked as an administrator at a computing lab while maintaining heavy loads of academic responsibility. I was a computer science major; however, by the time I had fallen in love with the physical sciences as a senior at the University of XXXX it was too late to change my major. I discovered my greatest passion while working at the Genetic Programming Research Laboratory learning about biological metaphors and evolutionary biology. I made a vital contribution to my research team by creating a software tool for automated data analysis and experimental support that saved a lot of time. Of course, I am pleased to have advanced computer skills, and I am sure that they will also be helpful to my career in dentistry.

Professional Experience and Skills

Upon graduation, I accepted a position at IBM as a consultant; constantly traveling and involved in numerous projects at major automotive companies, I had the opportunity to cultivate many qualities that will serve me well as a dentist: persistence, endurance, insight, sound judgment, and the ability to deal with all kinds of difficult situations. Although I thrived in my career, I resigned from my consulting position to finish preparing for a career in dentistry. A few years before I moved to New Jersey to enroll in the Pre-Dental Program at Rutgers, I started volunteering with a group of people at a nursing home in Dearborn, MI, helping organize events for the residents. Many, if not most of these elderly residents, had trouble eating correctly due to deteriorating dental conditions. There was a volunteer dentist who often came to the nursing home and checked their oral health. Sometimes, I could assist him with his work, and I was amazed by his dedication and passion. I enjoyed sharing the patients' joy upon emancipation from their suffering. For these reasons, my dedication to dentistry has become increasingly firm.

Hobbies and Personal Interests

Finally, my keen sense of hand and visual dexterity fomented by playing classical guitar, model ship building, and graphic design helps make me a competitive candidate for dental school. I also believe that the montage of priceless life experiences that I have accumulated will help to make me a compassionate and highly responsible dentist and I look forward to dental school with keen anticipation. I want to thank you for considering my application.

Highlights Non-Traditional Background: The applicant’s diverse experiences in art, computer consulting, and personal challenges provide a unique and rich perspective.

Demonstrates Resilience and Determination: The narrative details the applicant's journey through financial hardship and personal growth, showcasing resilience and a strong work ethic.

Shows Commitment to Community Service: The applicant's desire to serve underserved communities, particularly inner-city children, underscores a strong sense of social responsibility.

Illustrates Relevant Skills and Qualities: The statement effectively links the applicant’s skills in computer science, art, and manual dexterity to the technical demands of dentistry.

Provides a Clear Vision for the Future: The applicant’s future goals in dentistry are clearly articulated, emphasizing a commitment to continuous learning and community service.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What should be included in a dental school personal statement.

A dental school personal statement should include your motivations for pursuing dentistry, relevant experiences, personal anecdotes that illustrate your passion for the field, and your future goals.

Should I discuss specific career goals in my personal statement?

How can personal experiences enhance a dental school application, can i include experiences from outside the dental field.

What is a successful dentistry personal statement example?

How to start a personal statement in dentistry?

How to write a personal statement for dental residency?

What is the personal statement of a dental assistant?

Additional Resources

For more dental school personal statement examples and expert editing services, visit our website to contact us directly. Our team is here to help you create a personal statement that stands out in the application process.

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How to Write a Great Dental School Personal Statement

My wife kept asking me to watch Jiro Dreams of Sushi and I kept postponing it.  Finally,last weekend, I took out 2 hours to watch it.

The movie is about Jiro, a 85-year old world-class sushi master.

Jiro is obsessed with making sushi. Even in his dreams, he is coming up with recipes. His obsession with details is fascinating. Although his obsession is borderline unhealthy, sometimes that is what it takes to be the best in the world!!

Jiro is very methodical and systematic. Every plate of sushi he makes is unanimously a masterpiece –  the taste, texture, and appearance is always the same and top-notch. Even then, he does not stop. He is still on a relentless pursuit of improving his skills.

When one look at Jiro and his flawless sushi making art, one can’t help but think “I COULD NEVER DO THAT, he’s naturally talented”. But as you watch the rest of the documentary you discover the only thing that distinguishes Jiro is his passion, hard work and eagerness to improve himself.   For 50 years he learned, made mistakes, persisted, and worked hard before finally becoming the BEST SUSHI CHEF in the world.

Being a master dentist also takes a burning passion, hard work, practice and relentless pursuit of improving your craft. It takes time to be 

But you may ask : “Muhammed, I thought this is a post about personal statements. Why are you talking about a sushi chef?

A great personal statement is like a masterpiece sushi made by Jiro.

However, acknowledge that, your first draft will be far from the great draft you will send to dental school. 

When you look at a personal statement from an accepted student (like mine or aqz’s  ), you are probably thinking, “I COULD NEVER WRITE THAT WELL”.

But that’s not true.

When I started writing my own essay, I struggled a lot. I didn’t know what to write. My mind was blocked. In my brainstorming phase, I looked at a blank page for two hours thinking what I should write. I literally started crying because I didn’t know what to write.

Then a dental student friend of mine told me, “Zia, just get something down on paper.” And I wrote anything down that came to mind.

It was terrible. But it was good enough for a shittty first draft.

I accepted that my first draft will be terrible and I needed to improve on it.

But how did I take a shitty first draft to a GREAT personal statement that got me into Penn and UCSF?

It’s no magic.

A great body of work is like an iceberg. You only see the visible result. 95% of an iceberg is hidden beneath the surface. You will never see it. That 95% = hard work, and relentless improvement on the first shitty draft.

You will never see the 50+ hours I spent crafting a GREAT personal statement. (The draft I uploaded on AADSAS application was my 25th draft.) But you will see a beautifully crafted personal statement

I always, put in double the effort than someone else doing the same thing. By putting 2X the effort, I reap 10-20x the reward. That’s why interviewers cry after reading my disadvantaged statement. And that’s why dental school interviewers become more curious after reading my application essay. 

I put in a lot of work writing posts at SDN. Sometime to write one post, I spend 12-15 hours. But it’s totally worth it. Most of my posts get more than 3000-4000 views. The last post I wrote on personal statement was no different. I got 35+ requests from pre-dentals to review/edit their personal statements. Currently, I am having to turn down people because I am swamped with PS review requests. But you can read all my blog post on dental school coach blog.

I work hard, but I do it systematically. In that sense, I am almost like Jiro.  However, for my systematic approach I have gotten comments like this: 

Systematic approach is better than random act of non-productive techniques. If you are a pre-dental, you know how important systems are. Do you think dental schools will accept you if you didn’t submit your LORs or forgot to upload your transcripts? They probably won’t. (Dental School Application is a systematic process)

And yes! I do think in systematic, linear manner. In fact 99% of us do. The 1% of the human population probably don’t need a system (Good for them). For the 99% of us, systems liberates us and gives us opportunities to improve.

People who have criticized me by calling me a robot, should know better. Health professions are just full of systems, protocols and checklists. Read the book called The Checklists’ Manifest for your information. 

Because I follow a systematic approach, I produce high quality results CONSISTENTLY.  (ex: I attended Penn Undergraduate and got into dental school like UCSF and Penn).

I helped my friends using similar systematic approach to edit their personal statements and they all got into top tier ivy league schools in different fields of study. Not here to brag or anything.

In this post, I reveal THE SYSTEM I follow to consistently write high quality personal statements. It’s simple yet amazingly effective.

Let’s jump right in

a) Brainstorming + Creating a story Toolbox

Brainstorming is the hardest part in the essay writing process. Some people really struggle with what they should write about. See below

When I was in Ghana, my friend wanted to hook me up with girls. As a conservative Muslim, I didn’t know how to “hook” up with someone nor did I know how to talk to girls. ( I used to be a weirdo!)

So, my friend suggested I keep a story toolbox that will have pick up lines, jokes, etc. to tell when I approached girls.

The idea of a story toolbox has been pretty powerful in my life.  I did not use it in dating, but I have used it to write master personal statements and win multiple interviews.

If you look at my personal statements, it’s full of stories.

How did I collect that many stories?

The answer is pretty simple. I keep a daily journal. 

For example, when I was shadowing an oral surgeon, I kept note of things that I observed on a regular basis. If I saw something unusual/interesting, I made special notes about it. Once a patient came to the office with severe neuralgic pain. Dr. P patiently listened to him. When the patient finished ranting, he calmed and reassured him that he’ll be just fine. Instead of giving him any injection for his pain, Dr. P communicated to a pain psychologist and created a treatment plan for the patient.

A dentist calling up a pain psychologist !!! I have never seen that. That’s unusual, so I jotted it down in my journal.

Effective story telling is hard. It’s tough not because we suck at story telling. (You may be a story telling expert when you are hanging out with your friends.) But the stories you want to tell won’t readily come to your mind when you are sitting down to brainstorm for your personal statement.

So when you sit down to brainstorm, I recommend,  do it in two or three different sessions.

Spend 30-45 minutes for the first session, take a 2-3 hour break and come back for another session. During the break you should take walk, run or shower. I recently read a book called The Power of Full Engagement. In the book, the authors Jim Loehr and Tony Schawartz illustrate a provocative study by Michael Gelb:

In his book,  How to Think like Leonardo da Vinci , author Michael Gelb poses a wonderfully revealing question: “Where are you when you get your best ideas?” He asked that question to thousands of people over the years, and the most common response he gets include, “in the shower”, “resting in bed”, “walking in nature”, “listening to music”, “jogging/running”, “meditating”. “Almost no one claims to get their best ideas at work”- Gelb said.

You can sit at your desk,  stare at a blank paper for all day and get frustrated because you still don’t know what to write.

Or you can brainstorm for 30 min. Write down your ideas. Take a break.  Come back. Throw away all the bad ideas. Brainstorm some new ideas .

Here are some questions you should try to answer while brainstorming;

  What incidents inspired you to be a dentist? Who inspired you become a dentist?  Do you have soft qualities that a dentist may possess? What are they and how did you come to acquire them? (ex: I talk about my immigration story and relate that to patience and perseverance, skills most dentists have)   What did you learn at your dental shadowing? How can you apply what you learned as a future dentist? What did you learn at your Extra Curricular activities/Lab Work etc? Can you relate these activities to dentistry? Do you have any academic accomplishments that you are proud of and want to mention in the personal statement ( publishing a paper, etc) Did you pick up any manual dexterity skills ( playing guitar, violin, working at a science lab, etc)?

[In case you need help brainstorming, talk to someone who knows you well (close friends, parents, siblings, etc.). It really helps.]

c) Write Shitty first draft:

Once you have those ideas down on paper, take a break. Come back and write your shitty first draft.

Ann Lamott, author of  Bird by Bird  says,

“Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere. Start by getting something — anything — down on paper. A friend of mine says that the first draft is the down draft — you just get it down. The second draft is the up draft — you fix it up. You try to say what you have to say more accurately. And the third draft is the dental draft, where you check every tooth, to see if it’s loose or cramped or decayed, or even, God help us, healthy.”

Just write something down on paper. Don’t worry about its quality, style, grammar. JUST WRITE.

Come back one or two days later. Print the essay out . Do a cold read of the first draft. Ask yourself, “What do I like and what do I not like about the essay? Does it logically flow? If I were an adcom, would I be interested in meeting this person?

d) Making an Outline: 

After you have written your (shitty) first draft, make a detailed outline of the essay.

For example, my essay outline was:

• Intro: How I became interested in dentistry? (story: My grandmother’s financial situation prevented her from getting dental care)
• How I immigrated to the US? (relating how I learned to became patience and perseverant, skill dentist need)
• Told stories about generosity and empathy ( First, I mentioned how generous my dentist was and then related that to how I showed kindness and generosity to a Somali refuge).
• How I started “Community Dental Disease Prevention Society” and what impact I made. (Story of Tagita, a student I taught through the club).
• My sculpture class and examples of my projects
• How I honed my manual dexterity + Accomplishment in my research lab

Making a rigorous outline will take some time. But once you make that outline, writing a better draft would be  a matter of time. I recommend writing this outline on a whiteboard. If you don’t have a whiteboard, do it in post it notes. Make the outline as visual as possible. Check if your essay outline is flowing logically.  Send your outline via email to a few friends. Ask them to assess if your outline is logical.

Spend some time perfecting the outline. I used 3-4 hours white boarding until I knew I had an excellent outline.

e) Rewriting, revising and rewriting

Once you are satisfied with your outline, write the second draft of your essay.

(what are they revising? what are some elements they are looking to edit and what kind of a checklist should they follow in terms of what makes a good draft)

f) The best $5 I ever spent: 

Once you are done with your second draft, start reaching out to your friends and professors.

Once I was done with my essay, I took my friends out to Starbucks, bought them a latte ($5) and asked them if they could read my personal statement. If they said yes, I immediately pulled out two printouts of my PS. My friends were brutally honest but that’s what I was looking for.

[I also reached out to my professors that knew me very well and ask them if they could review my PS. Some of them were busy, so they politely declined. But some of them got back to me immediately and offered to read my personal statement.]

g) Revise, Rewrite, Rewrite, and Rewrite

This is part of the iceberg that no one sees. Rewriting and revising is not fun. It’s boring and tough. But repeated rewriting is an absolute necessity to get to the perfect personal statement.

I rewrote my essay 25 times. Each time I re-wrote it, I printed my essay out, did a cold read, and ask “if I were an adcom, would I select myself for an interview.” I rewrote until the answer was yes.

To make your personal statement perfect, You’ve got REWRITE, REWRITE AND REWRITE.

Getting to the  Perfect  personal statement is no magic! You need to put in the hard work. Hard work is tough, challenging, and boring. Most people hate working hard.

Just remember, you are going to spend time and energy to write that personal statement; why not spend twice the time and energy to make it the world’s best personal statement.

On Thursday I will analyze my own personal statement and show you why it’s a GREAT personal statement.

Over the weekend, I will share the checklist that I used to review my rewritten drafts. I will also write a post about how to stay motivated (like an olympian) during the application season.

Stay tuned.

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3 Common Mistakes on Your Personal Statement

The personal statement (PS) is a rite of passage and an important application requirement for all dental school applicants. It is an opportunity for the applicant to show the Admissions Committee (ADCOMs) who they are by putting a little piece of themselves into words. For this reason, over ten thousand applicants annually rack their brains to write a PS well enough to stand out to the ADCOMs. As such, it doesn’t need to be said that a PS can make or break your application.

Over the course of the previous cycle, I have read countless personal statements to help predents get an edge on their application. Some were great, but most of them were subpar and it seems that predents in general do not know what the ADCOMs are looking for. In order to help as many predents I can, I would like to share with you the 3 biggest and most common mistakes that I see on a PS.

1. Not answering the prompt correctly

The biggest mistake I see in a majority of the personal statements that I read is that they do not address the prompt correctly. Most of the time, the PS prompt would read something like “Explain why you want to pursue a career in dentistry” or something similar. In other words, you have to answer the question “why do you want to be a dentist?” Unfortunately in many of the PS’s that I have read, students completely skipped what brought them on the path of dentistry. Believe it or not, a large majority had a PS where the intro was something not about dentistry – which is fine by the way if you can somehow bridge that into dentistry – and then would throw in dentistry in the next paragraph.

For example, I once read an intro about a student losing a loved one indirectly due to poverty and how she would change her life and start working hard. In the very next paragraph the student wrote “I decided to pursue dentistry and soon found myself shadowing Dr. Vichyssoise, a general dentist.”

This does not tell me why you want to be a dentist. In fact, it was abrupt and it made me feel that you chose dentistry as a career due to income, lifestyle, and prestige. Unfortunately, that is not good enough. Money could be a reason, but it should not be the biggest reason. You must detail what brought you to dentistry in the first place. What made you pick dentistry over medicine? What made you want to work with teeth for the rest of your life? These are the questions you must answer and incorporate into your PS.

2. Not showing your thought process

This next common mistake is a variant of the previous mistake. To write a PS, you still need to answer the prompt, but you must do it in a way that the ADCOMs can see your thought process. You must talk about how an experience influenced you. Too many predents talk about an experience that they had and then expect that to be enough to show the ADCOMs why they want to be a dentist. However, this is a personal statement, not a story. It is not enough to simply tell a story and expect us to understand your thoughts and desires.

Take the following examples:

“One of the most memorable moments at the dental office was with a patient named John. Johncame in one day to address his overjet. John had shared with me that he had always been ashamed of his overjet. Under the care of Dr. Vichyssoise, John had undergone orthodontics treatment for eighteen months. In his last visit, he looked into the mirror and could not believe his eyes. John almost could not recognize himself. His malocclusion had been completely straightened. He even shed tears and could not stop thanking us. This experience had touched me and cemented my desire to be a dentist.”

While the paragraph did talk about a dental related experience, it did not really show me the thought process of the writer. Keep in mind that ADCOMs read dozens of PS’s every day. If your thoughts are not clear and evident, then they will not divulge extra time to ponder over your PS. If you are able to show your thoughts using descriptive words on how you felt, then it would have a positive impact on their impression of your PS. The paragraph above would be much stronger if the thought process for wanting to be a dentist was more evident. To do this, cut out some unnecessary story sentences then use adjectives to describe how you felt.

“I felt a great sense of accomplishment in helping John through his orthodontic journey. I had never expected that correcting malocclusion could have such an impact on a patient. Seeing the effect that orthodontics had on John made me realize the importance of having confidence in your smile. This pushed me to desire to help even more people and cemented my desire to become a dentist.”

3. Not talking about dental procedures

The third mistake is more of a highly recommended tip. More often than not, students talk about what they witnessed during treatment, but never how witnessing the treatment affected them. Remember, as a dentist, you will be doing dental procedures all day and you need something to show that you are capable and willing to do procedures all day. Adding bits such as your favorite procedure or what you liked about dental procedures will show to the ADCOMs that you have been paying attention during your shadowing and that you were not bored out of your mind.

Consider adding a short piece like the following:

“My favorite procedure to witness are restorations. I learned that, in order to successfully complete a restoration, one must apply precision to shape and refine the composite to mimic the structure of a natural tooth. The finesse and dexterity required to perform these procedures fascinated me and reminded me of my own hobby of pottery making where I meticulously created pottery with my own hands. I admire the artistic nature of the procedure and I aspire to one day utilize my hands to perform procedures with such precision.”

Don't forget the other things!

Mastering the art of writing personal statements is still one of the hardest things to accomplish for any student. You have to create a good hook, address the prompt, and end on a strong enough note to have a lasting impression on the ADCOMs. Obviously, you still need to keep grammar, style, flow, and structure all into consideration but the ultimate goal is to have them understand why you want to be a dentist. Every single sentence be immensely impactful and show your ambitions, or at least lead to something that will be impactful. Hopefully with these three tips, you will be well on your way to create something that will wow the ADCOMs.

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How to Write a Residency Personal Statement with Examples from a Program Director

Residency programs receive thousands of applications from qualified candidates, and your personal statement provides the chance for you to show a program why they should choose you.

For Kamran M. Mirza, MD, PhD, Professor of Pathology Education at Godfrey D. Stobbe, the residency personal statement is the first piece of the application that he reads. So, it’s important to make it count. 

Use your voice to show them why you’re the perfect match for their program. It could be the thing that tips the scales in your favor.

Remember, it’s called the residency “match” for a reason. Programs aren’t just looking for the best candidates; they’re looking for the best match for their team and culture. Your personal statement is your opportunity to showcase why you belong there.

Key Takeaways:

• Invest time in your personal statement, as this can be the first piece of your application that a program director reads.
• Start with an engaging opening, use illustrative incidents to maintain the reader’s interest, and conclude by reinforcing your main points and linking back to your introduction.
• If there are any gaps, unexplained grades, or other potential red flags in your application, use your personal statement to provide context and show the lessons you have learned from these challenges. 
• Steer clear of clichés, rehashing old statements, and focusing too much on experiences before your time in medical school. Instead, emphasize current interests and future aspirations. 
• Ensure your writing is polished, free of grammatical errors, and avoid controversial topics unless they are presented thoughtfully and professionally.

What is the Purpose of a Personal Statement?

A personal statement paints a picture of you. While your ERAS application introduces your accomplishments, it doesn’t fully capture the essence of you . There’s a whole history behind why you’re on this journey to becoming a doctor, and your personal statement is where you get to tell that story. Show the program why this path matters to you.

A personal statement highlights your unique qualifications and experiences. It’s your opportunity to talk about your professional aspirations and showcase the experiences that make you stand out—whether it’s research, clinical skills, leadership, or even your ability to communicate effectively. Explain how these experiences have shaped you and how they’ll influence the way you practice in your chosen specialty.

A personal statement shows your commitment. Demonstrate how you’ve gone above and beyond the basic requirements. Make it personal. Share what you believe in, what you love about the specialty, what fascinates you, and what you find most rewarding. This is where you show the program what you will bring to the table to make an impact in the lives of the patients you will serve.

A personal statement sells you. Residency programs are going to be reading hundreds of these, so it’s crucial that yours makes an impact. Think of your motivation as the trunk of a tree, with specific incidents or work experiences branching out from there. Remember—be genuine. Don’t feel like you have to oversell yourself. Just be true to who you are, and let your passion and experiences speak for themselves. That’s what’s going to resonate the most.

How to Write a Residency Personal Statement 

The personal statement is your chance to help residency programs really understand who you are, what draws you to your desired specialty, and what sets you apart from other candidates. To make sure your personal statement is top-notch, here’s what you should include:

• Lead with a catchy opening paragraph that grabs the reader’s attention and makes them want to read more. This is the most critical part of your personal statement, and a strong start sets the tone for the rest of your narrative.
• Recapture the reader’s attention about halfway through your statement with insight that reinforces your overall theme.
• Focus on a few illustrative incidents that have shaped your journey. Unite these incidents with a theme or thesis that ties your story together and highlights what makes you unique.
• Outline what you want to say and the order in which you want to say it. This will help you create a coherent and well-structured narrative.
• Use concrete examples of experiences that help distinguish you from others and make your story more relatable and memorable.
• Write about interests that excite you. When you share what you are passionate about, it will come through in your writing and resonate with the reader.
• End your message with a conclusion that refers back to your opening and restates your thesis. This brings your personal statement full circle and leaves a lasting impression on the reader.

 Effective Residency Personal Statement Examples 

During the 2025 Match Summit event, Dr. Kamran Mirza presented several personal statements to help guide medical students through the process.

As a program director who has read many residency personal statements as part of the ERAS application process, Dr. Mirza shares some of the best residency personal statement examples.

Example #1 – The Introduction

I love dinosaurs. 

When I was a kid, all I wanted to do was learn everything I could about them – how they lived, what they ate, and what they looked like. My love of dinosaurs led me to apply to college as a paleontology major. Like any eager student, I wanted a head start in college so I decided to take a human anatomy class. My goal was to learn the names of bones. One day in class, the teacher showed us a video of total hip replacement and that was it. My entire life’s dream shifted. From that day on, I knew I wanted to be a surgeon. 

Example #2 – A Story of Family Hardship

My mother immigrated from the Philippines to Minnesota as a mail-order bride. Amidst the improved living conditions and snowy winters, she was physically abused by my father and repeatedly threatened for her life. Between episodes of abuse, she gave birth to me, her firstborn child. In the thick of her celebration and under postpartum care, her OBGYN connected her with the resources necessary to exit her dangerous situation. This was the first of many instances that would provide me insight into the immense privilege that OBGYNs have of caring for extremely vulnerable patients, such as my mother. And so, my mother left for California with her newborn infant, and if not for her OBGYN, she – and I – might not have survived. 

Example #3 – The Theme

The key to a perfect choux pastry, or any pastry for that matter, and the singular quality I’m convinced separates good surgeons from great ones are one in the same.

Mise en place is a French culinary adage meaning, “everything in its place.” In short, one’s ability to prepare is the major determinant of quality.

The best preparation, however, is informed by experience. I can tell you every ingredient, tool, and step to follow to make choux, but I can’t tell you how many eggs you’ll need. Recognizing the perfect texture comes only through practice and repetition. In these iterations one learns what could go wrong, what’s likely to go wrong, and whether those are the same. 

Example #4 – Turning Around Your Red Flag

During my senior year of undergrad, I was diagnosed with depression and got the help I needed to become the best student I could be. Through this experience, I learned the importance of advocacy for myself and others. Once I sought help for my mental health, my entire academic career changed. I use this skill now to advocate for my patients. 

For more examples, be sure to watch Dr. Mirza’s entire presentation below.

How to Address Red Flags

Your residency personal statement is a great way to address any gaps in your education, unexplained grades, or any other potential red flags in your application that may stand in your way of showcasing your strengths for a potential program.

There is no need to focus too much on any red flags you are able to address within your ERAS application. However, if there is something that you need to provide further explanation for, the best way to do so is to use your personal statement to turn it around to show how this challenge in your life shaped you in a positive way, and the lessons you learned. 

What to Avoid When Writing Your Personal Statement 

As you begin mapping out your residency personal statement, there are some common drawbacks that can prevent your statement from standing out.

As a rule of thumb, here are some things you should avoid: 

• Cliches . Saying, “I want to help people,” isn’t going to set you apart—it’s something we innately hope all of you feel strongly about! However, what did you have to overcome to get here, and what part of your story led you to this moment? Stay clear of cliche stories that make it look like you didn’t put effort into your personal statement. Give specific examples of experiences that inform your career choice and demonstrate your skills.
• Rehashing medical school statements. Your time in medical school has helped shape who you are and why you are pursuing your desired specialty. Focus on experiences and challenges you have overcome in the present day and try to steer clear from anything before medical school. 
• Focusing too much on what led you to your specialty. While it’s important to touch on this, it shouldn’t dominate your narrative. Leave room to discuss your current interests and future aspirations. What excites you about the residency ahead? What are your goals for the future, both in residency and beyond? Programs want to see that you are forward-thinking and have a clear vision for your career.
• Informal writing. Your statement should be polished and well-structured, demonstrating your ability to communicate effectively.The best advice you can receive is revise, revise, and revise some more. Plan to read your personal statement several times, as well as others, to make sure your story stays on track, is free of grammatical errors, and remains engaging throughout.
• Controversial topics. It’s wise to avoid topics that include political, ethical, or religious issues. While it’s important to share your personal experiences, you don’t want your writing to come off as offensive or cross any lines. However, when relevant, sharing examples of hardships or family problems that have shaped your journey can be powerful, provided they are presented in a way that is thoughtful and professional. You can refer to Dr. Mirza’s example above for how to best position this.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long should your residency personal statement be.

The standard recommendation is to keep your residency personal statement to one page, which is around 600-750 words in length.

How to Write a Residency Personal Statement?

Start with an outline to help you begin to narrow down your theme, followed by examples you want to include. Remember to follow our guide on what to avoid, and don’t forget to revise, revise, revise !

Should You Address Red Flags in Your Residency Personal Statement?

Your personal statement is how you are going to sell yourself to your desired program. If you are able to address your red flags in your application, there is no need to bring them up in your essay, especially if it might invoke any doubt. However, if you are able to address it in a way that demonstrates how you overcame your situation and learned lessons from your struggles, this is a great opportunity to show the program how you were able to turn it around into a positive experience. 

What are Some Residency Personal Statement Examples?

While we touch on a few samples in this blog, Dr. Kamran Mirza, a program director who presented on the topic of writing an effective personal statement, shares several more in his presentation. Watch the full clip from TrueLearn’s 2025 Match Summit event here !

Time to Write Your Personal Statement

We know there is a lot of information here, and we hope these insights have given you a solid foundation to start shaping your own personal statement. The most important thing to remember about the residency personal statement is there are no shortcuts in this match application process. Doing things the right way and going the extra mile will set you apart from the hundreds of other applicants. 

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Friday, September 6, 2024

Russian offensive campaign assessment, september 6, 2024.

Riley Bailey, Christina Harward, Kateryna Stepanenko, Davit Gasparyan,  Annika Ganzeveld, and George Barros

September 6, 2024, 9pm ET

Click here to see ISW’s interactive map of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This map is updated daily alongside the static maps present in this report.

Click here to see ISW's interactive map of Ukraine's offensive in Kursk Oblast.

Click here to see ISW’s 3D control of terrain topographic map of Ukraine. Use of a computer (not a mobile device) is strongly recommended for using this data-heavy tool.

Click here to access ISW’s archive of interactive time-lapse maps of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. These maps complement the static control-of-terrain map that ISW produces daily by showing a dynamic frontline. ISW will update this time-lapse map archive monthly.

Note: The data cut-off for this product was 1pm ET on September 6. ISW will cover subsequent reports in the September 7 Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment.

US and European officials reported that Iran delivered hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles to Russia to support Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.[1] An anonymous US official confirmed to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that Iran delivered the missiles to Russia and a senior European official stated that more shipments of Iranian missiles to Russia are expected.[2] Iran and Russia previously signed a contract in December 2023 to send Iranian Ababil close-range ballistic missiles and Fateh-360 short-range ballistic missiles to Russia.[3] It is unclear, however, exactly what kind of missiles are included in the recently delivered shipment to Russia. Reuters reported on July 7 that Iran expanded at least two of its defense industrial sites outside Tehran since August and October 2023 to support the production of drones and missiles, some of which are meant to go to Russia.[4] Russia recently intensified missile and drone attacks against Ukraine, notably continuing to use Iranian-developed Shahed-131/136 drones and North Korean ballistic missiles.[5] Russia will likely use Iranian-provided ballistic missiles to target Ukrainian energy. military, and civilian infrastructure over the coming fall and winter to further destabilize Ukrainian society and disrupt Ukraine’s defense industrial base (DIB).

The transfer of Iranian ballistic missiles is part of the deepening strategic partnership between Iran and Russia. CTP-ISW has reported extensively on how Moscow and Tehran have expanded their economic, media, military, and political cooperation since Russian forces launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.[6] Iran seeks to benefit economically and militarily from its expanding partnership with Russia. Iran has sought cash for its ailing economy in return for selling weapons to the Kremlin, as CTP-ISW reported in September 2023.[7] Iran has also sought to procure Russian Su-35 fighter jets and Iranian officials “pressed” Russia for the delivery of Su-35s during a meeting with Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu in Tehran in August 2024.[8] The acquisition of Su-35s could enable Iran to more readily and independently project air power, given that the current Iranian air fleet is outdated and poorly maintained.[9] Iranian leaders have separately sought Russian support in upgrading their cyber capabilities and missile and space programs as part of the expanding military collaboration.[10] The United States and unspecified European countries have reportedly prepared a sanctions package against Iran for this contingency.[11]

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stated on September 6 that no specific weapon would be a "game changer" for Ukraine and that allowing Ukrainian forces to use US-provided weapons for long-range strikes against Russian military targets within Russia would not change the status of the war.[12] Austin is correct that no single weapon system will change the course of the war, but his comments ignore how weapon systems and their accompanying rules of engagement do affect Ukrainian capabilities, and that changes in capabilities can change the course of wars. Western military assistance remains crucial for Ukraine's ability to defend itself, and Austin’s statement ignores the Ukrainian long-range strike capability requirement necessary to disrupt Russian rear staging areas. Austin reiterated a Biden Administration talking point that since Russia has moved aircraft conducting glide bomb strikes out of range of US-provided ATACMS missiles, it somehow renders Ukraine’s request to use ATACMS in Russian territory against hundreds of known stationary military objects moot.[13] ISW has previously noted there are at least 209 of 245 (over 85 percent) known Russian military objects in range of ATACMS that are not air bases and not within range of US-provided HIMARS that the US does allow Ukraine to use in Russia under limited circumstances.[14] Austin also argued that Ukraine has its own domestically produced capabilities that can attack Russian targets well beyond the range of Western-provided Storm Shadow cruise missiles.[15] Most of Ukraine's long-range strike capabilities come from domestically produced long-range drones, which Ukraine cannot use to cause the same level of damage as long-range missiles due to drone payload limitations. Russian forces can also more easily harden facilities against Ukrainian drones than Western-provided missiles. Ukraine has begun to produce and successfully field long-range precision weapons with payloads more comparable to Western-provided long-range missiles but currently lacks the quantity of these domestically produced systems to significantly threaten Russian military targets within Russia at scale.[16]

Ukraine therefore can only use a limited number of domestically produced long-range strike systems and Western-provided HIMARS to significantly threaten a limited number of Russian military objects within Russia. This scarcity is not reflective of all the long-range strike capabilities that Ukraine possesses, and Western decision-making continues to artificially suppress Ukraine's overall long-range strike capability. ISW has assessed at length that long-range strikes against Russian military targets within Russia would degrade Russia's ability to leverage sanctuary space in Russia for offensive operations in Ukraine and place significant operational pressures on the deployment of Russian air defense, electronic warfare (EW), logistics, command and control (C2), and military support assets.[17] Russia, on the contrary, continues to actively expand its ability to maintain deep precision strikes against Ukraine by increasingly procuring ballistic missiles from Iran and North Korea, and continuing to expand its missile production.[18]

Ukraine's Western partners pledged additional military aid to Ukraine during the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Airbase in Germany on September 6, a significant portion of which will reportedly not be delivered in the immediate future. The US Department of Defense (DOD) announced that it will provide an aid package for Ukraine worth $250 million from the Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA), which includes missiles for RIM-7 anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems; Stinger missiles, HIMARS ammunition; 155mm and 105mm artillery shells; Tube-Launched, Optically tracked, Wire-guided (TOW) missiles; Bradley infantry fighting vehicles; and M113 armored personnel carriers.[19] United Kingdom (UK) Defense Secretary John Healey announced that the UK will provide Ukraine with 650 Lightweight Multirole Missiles (LMM) worth £162 million (about $212 million) in order to strengthen Ukraine's air defense capabilities.[20] Healey stated that the UK expects to deliver the LLMs by the end of 2024. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced a new military aid package for Ukraine worth 150 million euros (about $166 million), including 12 Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers – six of which Germany will deliver in 2024 and six of which will arrive in 2025.[21] Pistorius also stated that Germany will deliver 77 Leopard 1A5 tanks "as quickly as possible." Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair announced that Canada will send 80,840 CRV-7 rocket motors, 1,300 unspecified warheads, 970 C6 machine guns, and 10,500 9mm pistols to Ukraine and that the rocket motors will arrive in the coming months.[22] Blair also stated that Canada will provide decommissioned chassis from 29 M113 and 64 Coyote LAV armored personnel carriers that Ukraine can use for spare parts. Blair stated that 10 of the 50 armored combat support vehicles (ACSVs) that Canada donated to Ukraine in June 2024 will arrive in Ukraine in September 2024 and that the remaining 40 will begin arriving in Spring 2025. Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans stated that the Netherlands will provide Ukraine with 80 million euros (about $88 million) worth of maintenance equipment, spare parts, and air-to-air missiles for Ukraine's F-16 aircraft but did not specify a timeline for delivery.[23] Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles announced the immediate dispatch of a complete HAWK air defense system battery, including six missile launchers that Spain donated to Ukraine and that are already in Poland.[24]

Russian forces are increasingly executing surrendering Ukrainian soldiers throughout the frontline likely in part because Russian commanders appear to be endorsing the proliferation of such war crimes. CNN reported on September 6 that it obtained footage showing Russian forces executing surrendering Ukrainian soldiers near Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast in late August 2024 and Zaporizhia Oblast in May 2024.[25] Ukrainian defense intelligence reportedly gave CNN transcripts of audio intercepts from the May 2024 execution that showed that a Russian commander gave his subordinates the order to kill the surrendering Ukrainian soldiers. Ukrainian defense intelligence sources also reportedly gave CNN a list of 15 cases of Russian forces executing surrendering Ukrainian soldiers on the frontline since November 2023 - most of which included supporting drone footage or audio intercepts, and an anonymous Ukrainian official told CNN that the "pattern" of such executions has increased in 2024. Ukraine's Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin told CNN that the Prosecutor General's office has investigated at least 28 such executions since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022. Kostin stated that different Russian units operating in different sectors of the front have committed these crimes leading Ukraine to assert that this Russian policy could amount to crimes against humanity. A United Nations (UN) investigative source told CNN that the "pattern" of these Russian executions "suggests complacency, if not orders to give no quarter" and that together they could amount to crimes against humanity. Attacking soldiers who are hors de combat , specifically those who have clearly expressed an intention to surrender, is a violation of Article 41 of the Geneva Convention on the Protection of Victims of International Arms Conflict.[26] ISW has extensively reported on previous footage and reports of Russian servicemembers executing Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) and observed a wider trend of prolific Russian abuses against Ukrainian POWs across various sectors of the front that appeared to be enabled, if not explicitly endorsed, by individual Russian commanders and upheld by Russian field commanders.[27]

Russian officials attempted to use a meeting with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi to pursue longstanding efforts to legitimize Russia's occupation of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) and Zaporizhia Oblast, while also promoting false narratives about a Ukrainian threat to the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) to weaken Western support for Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast. Grossi met with Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom CEO Alexei Likhachev; Russian Chief of the Radiation, Chemical, and Biological Protection (CBRN) Forces Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov; and representatives from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), Ministry of Defense (MoD), and the Russian Federal Service for Environmental, Technological and Nuclear Supervision (Rostekhnadzor) in Kaliningrad Oblast on September 6.[28] Likhachkev repeatedly accused Ukrainian forces of threatening the safety of the ZNPP and KNPP and claimed that Ukrainian forces are targeting ZNPP employees and occupation officials operating near the ZNPP.[29] The Kremlin routinely accuses Ukraine of endangering the Russian-occupied ZNPP and extended this information operation to the KNPP shortly after Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast.[30] The Kremlin aims to convince the IAEA and the West that Ukrainian forces pose a threat and could cause a radiological incident at the KNPP in order to encourage Western fears about continued Ukrainian operations in Kursk Oblast and weaken Western support for the incursion.[31] The Kremlin has long sought to use Russia's physical control over the ZNPP to force the IAEA to meet with Russian officials to legitimize Russia's occupation of the ZNPP, and by extension, Russia's occupation of Ukrainian territory.[32]

Russian federal censor Roskomnadzor published and immediately deleted a draft procedure to implement a recently adopted law designed to deanonymize Russian Telegram channels, possibly after receiving backlash from the Russian ultranationalist Telegram community. The published draft document appeared on the Russian federal portal of legal acts on September 5, before promptly disappearing from the website overnight on September 6.[33] The deleted draft stated that Russian social media bloggers and Telegram channels with over 10,000 followers would be required to provide their personal information, such as their names, phone numbers, email, and IP addresses, to Roskomnadzor in accordance with the new federal law that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into effect on August 9.[34] The deleted draft stated that these procedures would come into force in November 2024. Roskomnadzor later told Russian state outlet RBK that it deleted the draft after it was "prematurely” published due to a technical error.[35] Russian milbloggers immediately criticized the draft on September 5 and 6, stating that these procedures would threaten milbloggers’ safety due to potential data leaks and observed that the law had already ”scared” many independent bloggers away – leaving behind only well-funded and foreign Telegram channels.[36] Some Russian milbloggers claimed that Russian officials may have rushed the draft to meet a certain deadline and speculated that Roskomnadzor deleted the draft following a backlash online to further revise it for a later publication.[37] One milblogger forecasted that the Kremlin will directly mandate authorization and deanonymization of all Internet users in Russia by the end of the 2020s.[38] The sudden deletion of the draft suggests that the Russian ultranationalist milblogger community still has some influence over the Kremlin’s decisions and that the Kremlin continues to fear backlash from this community.

The Kremlin signaled its commitment to establish full control over the Russian information space in the future and will likely reattempt to deanonymize Russian social media and Telegram channels even though Roskomnadzor withdrew its recently proposed regulations for now. Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated on September 5 that censorship is justified during periods of war and implied that freedom of information would return in peacetime.[39] Peskov also added that Russian media outlets often compete with international media for Russian domestic audiences and argued that Russian content and technological means should not lag in such a “tough” information environment. The Kremlin passed a law in 2014 that tasked Roskomnadzor with creating a registry of all social media users with an audience of over 3,000 people, but Roskomnadzor stopped updating this registry by 2017 and instead created a list of ”information dissemination organizers.”[40] These ”information dissemination organizers” include social media platforms and websites that were visited by more than 500,000 Russian users per day such as Yandex, VK, HeadHunter, and Qiwi. Roskomnadzor’s recent reversal is not indicative of a permanent policy shift, as the Kremlin has passed laws and regulations that Russian milbloggers have vocally opposed before. The Kremlin recently passed laws that Russian milbloggers avidly scrutinized in the past, such as banning the use of personal cell phone devices on the frontlines in Ukraine, for example.[41]

The Kremlin continues to appoint Russian Presidential Administration Deputy Head Sergei Kiriyenko to positions overseeing Russia's informational efforts as part of efforts aimed at shaping Russian identity and ideology. Russian President Vladimir Putin created the "Rossiya" National Center in Moscow on July 1 to preserve the "Rossiya" (“Russia”) Exhibition and Forum that ran from November 2023 to July 2024.[42] Putin signed a decree on September 6 creating an organizing committee for the "Rossiya" National Center, which will "demonstrate [Russia's] achievements, strengthen national identity,...create a sense of pride for the country, [and] develop the professional skills of children and youth."[43] Putin appointed Kiriyenko as the chairperson of the center's organizing committee, which will plan the center's activities, propose events that include representatives of foreign governments, and assist Russian media with their coverage of the center's events. Kiriyenko has a prominent role overseeing multiple Kremlin information operations targeting Russian, Ukrainian, and Western information spaces, and his appointment to supervise the development of the center suggests that the center will play a role in shaping domestic and foreign perceptions of Russia.[44] The "Rossiya" National Center will likely continue these informational efforts to legitimize Russia's illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories and to promote Russia's justification of its war against Ukraine. The eight-month-long "Rossiya" exhibition forum featured exhibits claiming that Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson oblasts are part of Russia.[45] The Kremlin has recently appeared to be taking steps to codify a Russian state ideology while bypassing the Russian Constitution, which forbids Russia from establishing a state ideology, by vaguely defining Russia's "traditional values," and the "Rossiya" National Center's emphasis on Russia's "national identity" will likely further these Kremlin ideological efforts.[46]

Russia continues efforts to develop a capability to use information operations on social media platforms to trigger kinetic activity and has been using the Ukrainian information space for several years to hone this capability.[47] The US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on September 4 the ongoing seizure of 32 internet domains that the Russian government used in foreign malign influence campaigns called "Doppelganger."[48] Russian Presidential Administration Deputy Head Sergei Kiriyenko directed the campaigns, which promoted Russian propaganda in order to reduce Western support for Ukraine and influence US and foreign elections. The US DOJ stated that the Doppelganger campaigns registered domain names that imitated Western media websites in order to publish Russian narratives falsely presented as content from legitimate news outlets. The Doppelganger campaigns also used "sleeper" channels on social media claiming to be Ukrainian news outlets that would start to disseminate Russian-friendly information after spending at least four months developing trust among their Ukrainian audiences. The US DOJ noted that the Kremlin developed the tactic of using "sleeper" channels after many Ukrainians started rejecting messages that favored Russia during the war. The US DOJ reported that the "Morning Dagestan" Telegram channel, which the DOJ labeled as "anti-Russian," is the most "famous recent" example of such a "sleeper" channel. The "Morning Dagestan" channel notably promoted rumors that sparked antisemitic riots at the Makhachkala airport in the Republic of Dagestan in October 2023.[49] The description of the Doppelganger campaigns' tactics, particularly the use of "sleeper" channels to provoke riots, indicates that the Kremlin is developing ways to trigger kinetic activity via information operations promoted on social media platforms, and the current Ukrainian information space offers the West the best opportunity to study this latent, growing Russian threat.

Key Takeaways:

• US and European officials reported that Iran delivered hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles to Russia to support Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
• The transfer of Iranian ballistic missiles is part of the deepening strategic partnership between Iran and Russia.
• US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stated on September 6 that no specific weapon would be a "game changer" for Ukraine and that allowing Ukrainian forces to use US-provided weapons for long-range strikes against Russian military targets within Russia would not change the status of the war.
• Austin is correct that no single weapon system will change the course of the war, but his comments ignore how weapon systems and their accompanying rules of engagement do affect Ukrainian capabilities, and that changes in capabilities can change the course of wars. Western military assistance remains crucial for Ukraine's ability to defend itself, and Austin’s statement ignores the Ukrainian long-range strike capability requirement necessary to disrupt Russian rear staging areas.
• Ukraine's Western partners pledged additional military aid to Ukraine during the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Airbase in Germany on September 6, a significant portion of which will reportedly not be delivered in the immediate future.
• Russian forces are increasingly executing surrendering Ukrainian soldiers throughout the frontline likely in part because Russian commanders appear to be endorsing the proliferation of such war crimes.
• Russian officials attempted to use a meeting with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi to pursue longstanding efforts to legitimize Russia's occupation of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) and Zaporizhia Oblast, while also promoting false narratives about a Ukrainian threat to the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) to weaken Western support for Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast.
• Russian federal censor Roskomnadzor published and immediately deleted a draft procedure to implement a recently adopted law designed to deanonymize Russian Telegram channels, possibly after receiving backlash from the Russian ultranationalist Telegram community.
• The Kremlin signaled its commitment to establish full control over the Russian information space in the future and will likely reattempt to deanonymize Russian social media and Telegram channels even though Roskomnadzor withdrew its recently proposed regulations for now.
• The Kremlin continues to appoint Russian Presidential Administration Deputy Head Sergei Kiriyenko to positions overseeing Russia's informational efforts as part of efforts aimed at shaping Russian identity and ideology.
• Russia continues efforts to develop a capability to use information operations on social media platforms to trigger kinetic activity and has been using the Ukrainian information space for several years to hone this capability.
• Russian forces recently regained lost positions in Kursk Oblast amid continued fighting throughout the Ukrainian salient on September 6.
• Ukrainian forces recently regained lost positions near Pokrovsk, and Russian forces recently advanced near Toretsk.
• Open-source tracking of confirmed Russian military deaths in Ukraine suggests that more Russian volunteers have died in Ukraine than Russian convict recruits and mobilized personnel.

We do not report in detail on Russian war crimes because these activities are well-covered in Western media and do not directly affect the military operations we are assessing and forecasting. We will continue to evaluate and report on the effects of these criminal activities on the Ukrainian military and the Ukrainian population and specifically on combat in Ukrainian urban areas. We utterly condemn Russian violations of the laws of armed conflict and the Geneva Conventions and crimes against humanity even though we do not describe them in these reports.

Ukrainian Operations in the Russian Federation

• Russian Main Effort – Eastern Ukraine (comprised of three subordinate main efforts)
• Russian Subordinate Main Effort #1 – Push Ukrainian forces back from the international border with Belgorod Oblast and approach to within tube artillery range of Kharkiv City
• Russian Subordinate Main Effort #2 – Capture the remainder of Luhansk Oblast and push westward into eastern Kharkiv Oblast and encircle northern Donetsk Oblast
• Russian Subordinate Main Effort #3 – Capture the entirety of Donetsk Oblast
• Russian Supporting Effort – Southern Axis
• Russian Air, Missile, and Drone Campaign
• Russian Mobilization and Force Generation Efforts
• Russian Technological Adaptations
• Activities in Russian-occupied areas
• Ukrainian Defense Industrial Base Efforts

Russian Information Operations and Narratives

• Significant Activity in Belarus

Russian forces recently regained lost positions in Kursk Oblast amid continued fighting throughout the Ukrainian salient on September 6. Geolocated footage published on September 5 indicates that Russian forces recently regained positions northeast of Zhuravli (east of Korenevo).[50] Russian sources claimed that Ukrainian forces conducted assaults southwest of Korenevo near Komarovka; near Korenevo; east of Korenevo near Matveyevka and Olgovka; northwest of Sudzha near Malaya Loknya and Pogrebki; north of Sudzha near Russkoye Porechnoye; northeast of Sudzha near Martynovka; and southeast of Sudzha near Cherkasskaya Konopelka and Borki.[51] A Russian milblogger claimed that Ukrainian forces destroyed another Russian pontoon crossing in an unspecified area of Glushkovsky Raion (west of Korenevo).[52] Russian sources claimed that Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups are continuing to try to reach the 38K-017 (Kursk City-Rylsk) highway and that Russian forces are setting up checkpoints along the road.[53] Elements of the Russian 810th Naval Infantry Brigade (Black Sea Fleet, Southern Military District), the "Pyatnashka" Brigade, and the 51st Airborne (VDV) Regiment (106th VDV Division) are reportedly operating in the Kursk direction.[54]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukrainian forces "control" more than 1,300 square kilometers in Kursk Oblast, including more than 100 settlements.[55] ISW has observed claims and geolocated footage indicating that Ukrainian forces are operating within roughly 1,153 square kilometers of Kursk Oblast and 49 settlements in Kursk Oblast as of September 6, although there are many extremely small settlements and localities within this area that ISW has not included in this count.

Russian Main Effort – Eastern Ukraine

Russian Subordinate Main Effort #1 – Kharkiv Oblast ( Russian objective: Push Ukrainian forces back from the international border with Belgorod Oblast and approach to within tube artillery range of Kharkiv City)

Russian forces continued ground attacks north and northeast of Kharkiv City on September 6, but there were no claimed or confirmed Russian advances. Russian forces continued offensive operations north of Kharkiv City near Hlyboke and northeast of Kharkiv City near Vovchansk, Starytsya, and Hatyshche on September 5 and 6.[56] Russian milbloggers claimed that Russian forces repelled Ukrainian counterattacks in Vovchansk, in Hlyboke, near Lyptsi (north of Kharkiv City), and towards Starytsya.[57] Ukraine's Kharkiv Group of Forces reported that Russian forces have increased their activity in the Kharkiv direction, that elements of the Russian 11th Tank Regiment (18th Motorized Rifle Division, 11th Army Corps [AC], Leningrad Military District [LMD]) are preparing to intensify assault operations near Hlyboke, and that elements of the 7th Motorized Rifle Regiment (11th AC) are operating near Lukyantsi (north of Kharkiv City).[58]

Russian Subordinate Main Effort #2 – Luhansk Oblast (Russian objective: Capture the remainder of Luhansk Oblast and push westward into eastern Kharkiv Oblast and northern Donetsk Oblast)

Russian sources continued to claim that Russian forces advanced northeast and southeast of Kupyansk, but ISW has not observed visual evidence confirming these claims as of September 6. Russian milbloggers claimed that Russian forces advanced up to 900 meters deep west and up to 300 meters south of Pishchane (southeast of Kupyansk).[59] Russian milbloggers also claimed that Russian forces advanced along a front four kilometers wide and 900 meters deep north and east of Stelmakhivka (southeast of Kupyansk) and pushed Ukrainian forces back 1.5 kilometers from positions northwest of Synkivka (northeast of Kupyansk).[60] The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces continued offensives northeast of Kupyansk near Synkivka; northwest of Svatove near Hlushkivka and towards Lozova; west of Svatove near Andriivka; northwest of Kreminna near Novoyehorivka, Druzhelyubivka, and Cherneshchyna; west of Kreminna near Terny and Torske; and southwest of Kreminna near Dibrova on September 5 and 6.[61] A serviceman of the Ukrainian Border Guards Service recalled in an interview published on September 6 that small Russian infantry groups had to walk 11 kilometers before launching an attack on his unit in the Kupyansk direction, resulting in Russian forces initiating offensive operations in a more exhausted state.[62] The servicemen noted that Russian forces do not evacuate wounded personnel and only receive small arms before attacking Ukrainian forces.[63] Assault detachments of the Russian 144th Guards Motorized Rifle Division (20th Combined Arms Army [CAA], Moscow Military District [MMD]) are reportedly operating on the Svatove-Kreminna line, and ”Storm-V” convict elements are reportedly operating in the Kupyansk direction.[64]

Russian Subordinate Main Effort #3 – Donetsk Oblast (Russian objective: Capture the entirety of Donetsk Oblast, the claimed territory of Russia’s proxies in Donbas)

Russian forces continued offensive operations in the Siversk direction on September 6 but did not make any confirmed advances. Russian forces continued ground attacks east of Siversk near Verkhnokamyanske and southeast of Siversk near Spirne and Vyimka on September 5 and 6.[65]

Russian forces continued offensive operations in the Chasiv Yar direction on September 6 but did not make any confirmed advances. Russian milbloggers claimed on September 6 that Russian forces advanced in western Kalynivka (north of Chasiv Yar), northeast of Kalynivka, and west of Klishchiivka (southeast of Chasiv Yar).[66] Russian forces continued offensive operations near Chasiv Yar; north of Chasiv Yar near Hryhorivka; east of Chasiv Yar near Ivanivske; south of Chasiv Yar near Bila Hora and in the direction of Predtechyne and Ivanopillya; and southeast of Chasiv Yar near Klishchiivka and Andriivka on September 5 and 6.[67]

Russian forces recently advanced in the Toretsk direction amid continued fighting on September 6. Geolocated footage published on September 5 further clarified the visually-confirmed maximum extent of the Russian forward line of own troops in northern and eastern Niu York, north of Niu York, and into eastern Nelipivka (all south of Toretsk).[68] The Ukrainian Azov Brigade stated on September 6 that Ukrainian forces regained control of an unspecified part of Niu York, suggesting that Russian forces do not exert control over the entirety of Niu York.[69] ISW has not observed recently published footage of Ukrainian forces operating in Niu York but will continue to update its maps as more information is made available. ISW maps depict maximalist Russian advances in areas where ISW assesses Russian forces have operated in or launched attacks against but do not control. A Russian milblogger claimed on September 6 that Ukrainian forces have started counterattacking near Toretsk and Niu York and that Ukrainian forces have reserves to influence the pace of the Russian offensive in this direction.[70] The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) claimed on September 6 that Russian forces recently seized Pivnichne.[71] Russian milbloggers claimed on September 5 and 6 that Russian forces advanced in southern Toretsk and near Druzhba (northeast of Toretsk).[72] ISW has not observed confirmation of these claims. Fighting continued near Toretsk, south of Toretsk near Nelipivka, and southwest of Toretsk near Oleksandropil, Panteleymonivka, and Leonidivka on September 5 and 6.[73]

Ukrainian forces regained limited positions in the Pokrovsk direction amid continued Russian offensive operations in the area on September 6. Geolocated footage published on September 6 indicates that Ukrainian forces regained positions in southwestern Halytsynivka and western Mykhailivka (both southeast of Pokrovsk).[74] A Russian milblogger claimed on September 6 that Russian forces have seized most of Lisivka and are approaching the southern outskirts of Ukrainsk (both southeast of Pokrovsk).[75] A Russian milblogger claimed that a Russian sabotage and reconnaissance group reached the outskirts of Hirnyk (southeast of Pokrovsk), although ISW has not observed confirmation or wider reporting of this claim.[76] The Russian MoD claimed on September 6 that Russian forces recently seized Ptyche, Skuchne, Karlivka, Zavitne, and Zhurvaka.[77] Fighting continued east of Pokrovsk near Vozdvyzhenka, Zelene Pole, Sukha Balka, Myrolyubivka, Hrodivka, and Novotoretske and southeast of Pokrovsk near Novohrodivka, Selydove, Mykhailivka, Zhelanne Pershe, and Ukrainsk on September 5 and 6.[78] Elements of the Russian "Black Knife Division" are reportedly operating in Zavitne (southeast of Pokrovsk).[79]

Russian forces continued offensive operations west of Donetsk City on September 6 but there were no confirmed changes to the frontline. A Russian milblogger claimed on September 6 that elements of the Russian 110th Motorized Rifle Brigade (51st Combined Arms Army [CAA] [formerly 1st Donetsk People’s Republic Army Corps], Southern Military District [SMD]) advanced in northern Krasnohorivka (west of Donetsk City), but ISW has not observed confirmation of this claim.[80] Russian forces attacked west of Donetsk City near Krasnohorvika and Heorhiivka on September 5 and 6.[81] A Russian milblogger claimed that Ukrainian forces unsuccessfully counterattacked near Maksymilyanivka.[82]

Russian forces continued offensive operations southwest of Donetsk City on September 6 but there were no confirmed changes to the frontline.[83] Russian forces continued offensive operations southwest of Donetsk City near Kostyantynivka, Staromayorske, Vuhledar, and Vodyane on September 5 and 6.[84] Elements of the Russian 11th Air and Air Defense Army (Russian Aerospace Forces [VKS] and Eastern Military District [EMD]) are reportedly operating near the Pivdennodonbaska Mine No. 3 (east of Vuhledar).[85] Elements of the Russian 37th Motorized Rifle Brigade (36th CAA, EMD) and elements of the Russian 40th Naval Infantry Brigade (Pacific Fleet, EMD) are reportedly operating in Prechytsivka.[86] Drone operators of the Russian "Kaira" Detachment (39th Motorized Rifle Brigade, 68th Army Corps [AC], EMD) are reportedly operating in the south Donetsk direction.[87]

Neither Russian nor Ukrainian sources reported fighting in the Donetsk-Zaporizhia Oblast border area on September 6.

Russian Supporting Effort – Southern Axis (Russian objective: Maintain frontline positions and secure rear areas against Ukrainian strikes)

Ukrainian military officials reported that Russian forces attacked near Robotyne in western Zaporizhia Oblast on September 5 and 6.[88] Ukrainian Tavriisk Group of Forces Spokesperson Captain Dmytro Lykhovyi reported that small Russian infantry groups usually carry out one to two attacks per day and that Russian forces have recently intensified airstrikes in southern Ukraine.[89] Drone operators of the Russian 35th Combined Arms Army ( Eastern Military District [EMD]) are reportedly operating in the Polohy direction (in central Zaporizhia Oblast east of Robotyne).[90]

Positional engagements continued in east (left) bank Kherson Oblast on September 5 and 6.[91]

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on September 6 tasking the operational headquarters in occupied Simferopol with the management of counterterrorism operations in the Sea of Azov.[92] The decree specified that the operational headquarters could plan the use of unspecified forces, federal means, and Simferopol’s territorial structures to combat terrorism and manage counterterrorism organizations in the Sea of Azov – except the ports, estuaries, and littoral areas of the Kerch Strait and Taganrog Bay.

The Ukrainian sinking of the Russian “Konro Trader” railway ferry in the port of Kavkaz on August 22 is reportedly complicating Russian logistics in occupied Crimea.[93] The Ukrainian Resistance Center reported that the sinking of the “Konro Trader” reduced Russian throughput capacity via railway ferries to occupied Crimea by three times and that Russia does not have available railway ferries to immediately restore this capacity. The Ukrainian Resistance Center added that Russian officials are now looking to retrofit barges to transport railway echelons with fuel and that Russian forces have been reliant on the ”Konro Trader” railway ferry due to unrepaired damage to the railway portion of the Kerch Strait Bridge. The Ukrainian Resistance Center added that Russian forces have also increased fuel transfers from Rostov Oblast to occupied Crimea to 160 wagons per day via occupied Donetsk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson oblasts along the Avilo-Uspenka – Amvrosiivka – Volnovakha – Tokmak – Melitopol – Dzhankoi railway. The Ukrainian Resistance Center noted that Russian forces are also rushing the construction of the Taganrog (Rostov Oblast) - Ilovaysk (occupied Donetsk Oblast) railway and the Mariupol – Volnovakha railway.

Russian Air, Missile, and Drone Campaign (Russian Objective: Target Ukrainian military and civilian infrastructure in the rear and on the frontline)

Russian forces conducted a series of missile and drone strikes against Ukraine on the night of September 5 to 6 and during the day on September 6. The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces launched a Kh-59 cruise missile and a Kh-31P anti-radar missile from airspace over Bryansk and occupied Luhansk oblasts and 44 Shahed-136/131 drones from Kursk Oblast, Primorsko-Akhtarsk, Krasnodar Krai, and occupied Cape Chauda, Crimea on the night of September 5 to 6.[94] The Ukrainian Air Force reported that Ukrainian forces shot down at least 27 of the Shahed drones and that at least eight Shaheds did not reach their intended target after unspecified electronic warfare (EW) devices presumably impacted the drones.[95] The Ukrainian Air Force reported that several drones were still in Ukrainian airspace as of the morning of September 6 and that Russian forces later launched five Iskander-M/North Korean KN-23 ballistic missiles from Voronezh and Rostov oblasts against Pavlohrad, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.[96] Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration head Serhiy Lysak reported that Russian strikes in Pavlohrad damaged residential areas and injured upwards of 61 people.[97] Ukrainian officials reported that Russian drone debris damaged vehicles near Lviv City.[98]

Russian Mobilization and Force Generation Efforts (Russian objective: Expand combat power without conducting general mobilization)

Open-source tracking of confirmed Russian military deaths in Ukraine suggests that more Russian volunteers have died in Ukraine than Russian convict recruits and mobilized personnel. BBC Russian Service and Russian opposition outlet Mediazona reported that they have identified 68,011 Russian soldiers that have died since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022 and that 20 percent of these identified deaths were among Russian volunteers, 19 percent were among Russian convict recruits, and 13 percent were among mobilized personnel.[99] The actual number of Russians killed in action (KIA) is likely much higher than BBC Russian Service's and Mediazona's count of identified KIA, and the actual percentage breakdown of KIA among different groups of Russian personnel is likely different as well.

Russian state-owned enterprises continue to support Russian force generation efforts. Russian opposition outlet Sota reported on September 6 that intermediary companies recruiting personnel for the war in Ukraine are offering recruits potential future employment in state-owned companies if they sign a contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD).[100] Sota noted that the state-owned companies include Russian transportation companies like Mosgotrans and Russian Railways, Russian oil company Rosneft, and Russian water supply and sanitation company Mosvodokanal.[101] Sota reported that intermediary recruiters stated that state-owned companies are also trying to send current employees to fight in Ukraine and are offering up to 1.9 million rubles ($21,000) to incentivize employees to sign military contracts.[102] A Russian insider source claimed that Moscow Metro Head Viktor Kozlovsky instructed deputies to recruit 850 new Moscow Metro employees and that employment with Moscow Metro is currently only possible if a potential employee signs a military contract with the MoD.[103] The insider source claimed that this has led to disparities in the number of available workers in key specialties for Moscow Metro.[104]

Russian Technological Adaptations (Russian objective: Introduce technological innovations to optimize systems for use in Ukraine)

A Russian insider source claimed on September 6 that a widely advertised, alleged Russian drone detection and suppression system is a Chinese-produced system.[105] The insider source claimed that Rosgvardia's press service widely advertised that Rosgvardia was using the allegedly Russian-produced "Vyzhigatel" drone detection and suppression system in tasks associated with the "special military operation," but that Russian authorities later initiated a criminal case on smuggling after they discovered that Chinese company Shenzhen Skyfend Technology had produced the system.[106] Rosgvardia had reportedly initially claimed that Russian company Oruzheynaya Palata had delivered the drone detection and suppression systems to Rosgvardia in December 2023.[107]

Ukrainian Defense Industrial Efforts (Ukrainian objective: Develop its defense industrial base to become more self-sufficient in cooperation with US, European, and international partners)

ISW is suspending publishing coverage of Ukrainian defense industrial efforts until further notice.

Activities in Russian-occupied areas (Russian objective: Consolidate administrative control of annexed areas; forcibly integrate Ukrainian citizens into Russian sociocultural, economic, military, and governance systems)

ISW is not publishing coverage of occupied areas today.

The Kremlin continued efforts to subvert the 1995 Dayton Accords that ended the 1992-1995 Bosnian war. Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov claimed on September 5 that the foundations of the Dayton Accords are eroding and that unspecified actors are infringing upon Serbs' interests.[108] Peskov claimed that Russia has limited capabilities to help but can support Serbia and Republika Srpska (the Serbian political entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina) in the international arena. The Kremlin has previously leveraged its relationship with Republika Srpska to further influence the Balkans, sow divisions in the West, and undermine the Dayton Accords to destabilize the Balkans.[109]

Significant activity in Belarus (Russian efforts to increase its military presence in Belarus and further integrate Belarus into Russian-favorable frameworks and Wagner Group activity in Belarus)

Nothing significant to report.

Note: ISW does not receive any classified material from any source, uses only publicly available information, and draws extensively on Russian, Ukrainian, and Western reporting and social media as well as commercially available satellite imagery and other geospatial data as the basis for these reports. References to all sources used are provided in the endnotes of each update.

[1] https://www.wsj.com/world/u-s-tells-allies-iran-has-sent-ballistic-missiles-to-russia-9558f4c4?mod=hp_lead_pos2

[2] https://www.wsj.com/world/u-s-tells-allies-iran-has-sent-ballistic-missiles-to-russia-9558f4c4?mod=hp_lead_pos2

[3] https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/iran-deliver-hundreds-ballistic-missiles-russia-soon-intel-sources-say-2024-08-09/

[4] https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/satellite-photos-show-iran-expanding-missile-production-sources-say-2024-07-08/

[5] https://t.me/kpszsu/18948 ; https://t.me/kpszsu/18921 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-september-5-2024 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar090424 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-september-3-2024 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-september-2-2024 ; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-26-2024; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-23-2024; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-20-2024 ; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-18-2024; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-21-2024-0

[6] https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/iran-update-september-27-2023 ;

https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-september-5-2023 ;

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-may-17-2023

[7] https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/iran-update-september-27-2023

[8] https://www.reuters.com/world/putin-asks-iran-avoid-civilian-casualties-israel-response-sources-say-2024-08-06/; https://www.aei.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Pivot-to-Offense-How-Iran-Is-Adapting-for-Modern-Conflict-and-Warfare.pdf ;

https://www.borna dot news/fa/tiny/news-1372678 ;

https://twitter.com/IrnaEnglish/status/1634481569300709377/photo/1

[9] https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-september-5-2023

[10] https://www.wsj.com/articles/russia-supplies-iran-with-cyber-weapons-as-military-cooperation-grows-b14b94cd ; https://www.newsweek.com/israel-worries-us-weapons-ukraine-are-ending-irans-hands-1806131

[11] https://www.wsj.com/world/u-s-tells-allies-iran-has-sent-ballistic-missiles-to-russia-9558f4c4?mod=hp_lead_pos2

[12] https://www.reuters.com/world/using-us-arms-long-range-strikes-into-russia-no-game-changer-says-austin-2024-09-06/

[13] https://www.reuters.com/world/using-us-arms-long-range-strikes-into-russia-no-game-changer-says-austin-2024-09-06/

[14] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/interactive-map-hundreds-known-russian-military-objects-are-range

[15] https://www.reuters.com/world/using-us-arms-long-range-strikes-into-russia-no-game-changer-says-austin-2024-09-06/

[16] https://isw.pub/UkrWar082424

[17] https://isw.pub/UkrWar082424 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/interactive-map-hundreds-known-russian-military-objects-are-range-atacms ; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/putins-safe-space-defeating-russias-kharkiv-operation-requires-eliminating-russias

[18] https://isw.pub/UkrWar090224 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar073024 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar020724 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar082823

[19] https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/3896787/biden-administration-announces-additional-security-assistance-for-ukraine/

[20] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-to-provide-162-million-package-of-air-defence-missiles-for-ukraine-as-defence-secretary-meets-international-partners

[21] https://www.welt dot de/politik/ausland/article253386110/Ukraine-Werden-zwoelf-Panzerhaubitzen-vom-Typ-2000-liefern-sagt-Pistorius.html ; https://www.spiegel dot de/politik/deutschland/ramstein-deutschland-sagt-ukraine-zwoelf-weitere-panzerhaubitzen-zu-a-c7891e90-c35c-4c06-8442-32ec855839e2

[22] https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/news/2024/09/minister-blair-announces-additional-military-assistance-for-ukraine-at-the-24th-meeting-of-the-ukraine-defense-contact-group.html

[23] https://english.defensie dot nl/latest/news/2024/09/06/ammunition-and-maintenance-for-ukrainian-f-16s

[24] https://www.defensa dot gob.es/gabinete/notasPrensa/2024/09/DGC-240906-reunion-ramstein-ucrania.html ; https://x.com/defenceu/status/1832067988867920144

[25] https://edition.cnn.com/2024/09/06/europe/video-russia-surrendering-ukrainian-soldiers-killed-intl-cmd/index.html

[26] https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/en/ihl-treaties/api-1977/article-41

[27] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-june-19-2024 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar122823 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-june-3-2024 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar032724 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar052924 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar090424 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-july-10-2024 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar062324

[28] https://t.me/tass_agency/271052; https://t.me/tass_agency/271054

[29] https://t.me/tass_agency/271071; https://t.me/tass_agency/271072 ; https://t.me/tass_agency/271074 ; https://t.me/tass_agency/271076

[30] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-17-2024 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-27-2024

[31] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-17-2024 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-27-2024

[32] https://isw.pub/UkrWar040724; https://isw.pub/UkrWar030824 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-june-17-2024

[33] https://www.rbc dot ru/technology_and_media/06/09/2024/66dab4849a79475712c0fe3f ; https://meduza dot io/news/2024/09/06/proekt-roskomnadzora-o-reestre-stranits-s-auditoriey-bolshe-10-tysyach-podpischikov-udalili-s-portala-pravitelstva; https://meduza dot io/news/2024/09/05/rkn-rasskazal-kakie-lichnye-dannye-budet-sobirat-u-blogerov-chya-auditoriya-prevyshaet-10-tysyach-podpischikov-imya-telefon-imeyl-i-ip-adres

[34] https://meduza dot io/news/2024/09/05/rkn-rasskazal-kakie-lichnye-dannye-budet-sobirat-u-blogerov-chya-auditoriya-prevyshaet-10-tysyach-podpischikov-imya-telefon-imeyl-i-ip-adres; https://interfax dot com/newsroom/top-stories/104973/

[35] https://www.rbc dot ru/technology_and_media/06/09/2024/66dab4849a79475712c0fe3f

[36] https://t.me/dva_majors/51687; https://t.me/dva_majors/51691; https://t.me/pavelostrovski/9817; https://t.me/pavelostrovski/9811;

[37] https://t.me/boris_rozhin/136341; https://t.me/dva_majors/51698 ; https://t.me/dva_majors/51727 ; https://t.me/kremlin_sekret/15940

[38] https://t.me/boris_rozhin/136344

[39] https://tass dot ru/politika/21788727

[40] https://meduza dot io/news/2024/09/05/rkn-rasskazal-kakie-lichnye-dannye-budet-sobirat-u-blogerov-chya-auditoriya-prevyshaet-10-tysyach-podpischikov-imya-telefon-imeyl-i-ip-adres

[41] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-july-23-2024; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-july-31-2024; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-2-2024

[42] https://tass dot ru/obschestvo/21247065; http://publication dot pravo.gov.ru/document/0001202407010017

[43] https://www.vedomosti dot ru/society/news/2024/09/06/1060623-putin-obrazoval-orgkomitet; http://publication.pravo dot gov.ru/document/0001202409060007?ysclid=m0qpkqv06f31690041 ; https://tass dot ru/politika/21794597

[44] https://isw.pub/UkrWar123023; https://isw.pub/UkrWar120323; https://isw.pub/UkrWar112823; https://isw.pub/UkrWar112723; https://isw.pub/UkrWar093023; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-august-26-2024; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-28-2024; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-february-18-2024 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-march-1-2024 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-february-20-2024 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-february-29-2024 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar123023

[45] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-november-4-2023; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-december-14-2023

[46] https://isw.pub/UkrWar083124; https://isw.pub/UkrWar081924; https://isw.pub/UkrWar06272024

[47] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/viral-disinformation-kremlin%E2%80%99s-coronavirus-information-operation-ukraine

[48] https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-disrupts-covert-russian-government-sponsored-foreign-malign-influence ; https://www.justice.gov/d9/2024-09/doppelganger_affidavit_9.4.24.pdf

[49] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-november-2-2023; https://t.me/sotaproject/68747 ; https://isw.pub/UkrWar103023; https://isw.pub/UkrWar102923

[50] https://t.me/WarArchive_ua/19680 ; https://t.me/pentagonkh/66

[51] https://t.me/mod_russia/43036; https://t.me/dva_majors/51700; https://t.me/sashakots/48817; https://t.me/DnevnikDesantnika/15060; https://t.me/DnevnikDesantnika/15057; https://t.me/motopatriot/27189; https://t.me/DnevnikDesantnika/15061

[52] https://t.me/dva_majors/51700

[53] https://t.me/sashakots/48817; https://t.me/dva_majors/51700

[54] https://t.me/NgP_raZVedka/18968; https://t.me/tass_agency/271001 ; https://t.me/boris_rozhin/136403

[55] https://armyinform.com dot ua/2024/09/06/prezydent-rozpoviv-pro-vtraty-rosiyi-na-kurshhyni/; https://www.youtube.com/live/opIkY2HXbD0

[56] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl ; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l; https://t.me/wargonzo/21939; https://t.me/motopatriot/27193

[57] https://t.me/DnevnikDesantnika/15059; https://t.me/wargonzo/21939; https://t.me/Sladkov_plus/11341

[58] https://t.me/otukharkiv/1119

[59] https://t.me/z_arhiv/27997; https://t.me/RVvoenkor/76439

[60] https://t.me/DnevnikDesantnika/15044; https://t.me/RVvoenkor/76439

[61] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l

[62] https://www.facebook.com/DPSUkraine/videos/536051995651021

[63] https://www.facebook.com/DPSUkraine/videos/536051995651021

[64] https://t.me/vysokygovorit/17206 (Kupyansk); https://t.me/vysokygovorit/17206 (Svatove-Kreminna)

[65] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l

[66] https://t.me/rybar/63307 ; https://t.me/priviyazkasvo/210 ; https://t.me/dva_majors/51700 ; https://t.me/DnevnikDesantnika/15051 ; https://t.me/wargonzo/21939 ; https://t.me/rybar/63307; https://t.me/z_arhiv/27999

[67] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l

[68] https://x.com/azov_media/status/1831941205023740108; https://x.com/strategicbakery/status/1831946696764616990

[69] https://t.me/azov_media/6034; https://suspilne dot media/donbas/830157-bijci-azovu-povernuli-pid-kontrol-castinu-nu-jorka-na-doneccini/ ; https://x.com/azov_media/status/1831941205023740108; https://x.com/strategicbakery/status/1831946696764616990; https://t [dot] me/azov_media/6034; https://suspilne dot media/donbas/830157-bijci-azovu-povernuli-pid-kontrol-castinu-nu-jorka-na-doneccini/

[70] https://t.me/notes_veterans/19331

[71] https://t.me/mod_russia/43039

[72] https://t.me/RVvoenkor/76439 ; https://t.me/DnevnikDesantnika/15022

[73] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l

[74] https://x.com/Bielitzling/status/1832022313547501615; https://x.com/small10space/status/1832020092608995523 ; https://x.com/moklasen/status/1832119972568485942; https://t.me/ghost_of_khortytsia/138

[75] https://t.me/RVvoenkor/76439; https://t.me/motopatriot/27192; https://t.me/z_arhiv/27995

[76] https://t.me/boris_rozhin/136389

[77] https://t.me/mod_russia/43039

[78] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l ; https://t.me/boris_rozhin/136389 ; https://t.me/notes_veterans/19331 ; https://t.me/milinfolive/130039

[79] https://t.me/boris_rozhin/136333

[80] https://t.me/z_arhiv/28003; https://t.me/PushilinDenis/5090

[81] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l

[82] https://t.me/DnevnikDesantnika/15053

[83] https://t.me/mod_russia/43040 ; https://t.me/RVvoenkor/76410;

[84] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l

[85] https://t.me/boris_rozhin/136372

[86] https://t.me/RVvoenkor/76410

[87] https://t.me/boris_rozhin/136410; https://t.me/voin_dv/10659

[88] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/OperationalCommandSouth/posts/pfbid02RAaxV3ebyeH1mwkz59sktPLeUyWid4S1RjFoeFVk71SX4eiagXXgdz7uVwBbsxY7l ; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l

[89] https://armyinform dot com.ua/2024/09/06/na-pivdni-vorog-atakuvav-243-dronamy-95-bezpilotnykiv-znyshheno/; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5TqaWCCdUg

[90] https://t.me/voin_dv/10656

[91] https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid07FnDHFsQv7wiBZWXczzPq3VsSJV1TSHEc19jRoUChLpsj2ms4aCxtUbmAirznXeml ; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid02qhvQaR7KR92GYjezmAjc57PwibTsviGNnWm4DKzTdqTTLxB8o42PVcsYh4kT3n7wl; https://www.facebook.com/OperationalCommandSouth/posts/pfbid02RAaxV3ebyeH1mwkz59sktPLeUyWid4S1RjFoeFVk71SX4eiagXXgdz7uVwBbsxY7l ; https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid021x8mtMXE7FGYJM7HEkxnLfuEvya5bkddU7PcsiMUfdT6yqzit6Mq5mC6BwVTsmi2l ; https://t.me/dva_majors/51752

[92] https://tass dot ru/obschestvo/21794933

[93] https://sprotyv dot mod.gov.ua/rosiyany-shukayut-barzhi-shhob-zaminyty-zaliznychni-poromy/; https://t.me/sprotyv_official/5177

[94] https://t.me/kpszsu/18921

[95] https://t.me/kpszsu/18921

[96] https://t.me/kpszsu/18948 ; https://t.me/kpszsu/18921

[97] https://armyinform.com dot ua/2024/09/06/u-pavlogradi-majzhe-vdvichi-zbilshylas-kilkist-poranenyh/; https://t.me/dnipropetrovskaODA/15839

[98] https://www.facebook.com/MNS.GOV.UA/posts/pfbid02bZkfiP3sMsqm9A3PJK7L942mRoyXWDgtUBGv4pxjTKLhMtc4SxmKMTJymiSwahxHl ; https://armyinform dot com.ua/2024/09/06/udarni-drony-rosiyan-sprychyny-masshtabnu-pozhezhu-na-lvivshhyni-ryatuvalnyky-pokazaly-likvidacziyu/ ; https://t.me/severrealii/27084 ; ttps://t.me/andriysadovyi/2475; https://suspilne dot media/lviv/830087-na-lvivsini-cerez-padinna-ulamkiv-saheda-zdijnalasa-pozeza-so-vidomo-pro-obstril/

[99] https://t.me/bbcrussian/70093

[100] https://t.me/sotaproject/86699

[101] https://t.me/sotaproject/86699

[102] https://t.me/sotaproject/86699

[103] https://t.me/vchkogpu/50683

[104] https://t.me/vchkogpu/50683

[105] https://t.me/vchkogpu/50681

[106] https://t.me/vchkogpu/50681

[107] https://t.me/vchkogpu/50681

[108] https://tass dot ru/politika/21786755

[109] https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-may-24-2023 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-april-25-2024 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russia-review-december-1-2021-%E2%80%93-january-11-2022 ; https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russia-review-october-20-%E2%80%93-november-9-2021; https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-june-7-2024