Core Competencies

Core Competencies and My Application to Medical School

You want to get accepted to medical school and you want to know what to do besides the two things everyone says: get good grades and get a good MCAT score. Well, there is more to it. To be a good provider you need to have it in your core that you want to be a physician – a healer. You have to have a deep desire to help achieve the well-being of others, and that has to be reflected in the acts you do. If you make an informed decision to become a doctor you are more likely to be a good doctor and much more likely to be happy in your career choice.

The Association of American Medical Colleges (the AAMC) Group on Student Affairs, Committee on Admissions has endorsed a series of 15 Core Competencies that every pre-medical student should have when applying to medical school. These competencies are designed to assess your knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes related to being a health care provider.

The AAMC’s 15 Core Competencies recommended for pre-medical students are divided into 4 groups:
1. Interpersonal Competencies
2. Intrapersonal Competencies
3. Thinking and Reasoning Competencies
4. Science Competencies

Let’s walk through this list and see how competitive a candidate you are for medical school. Do some soul searching and see if these competencies actually speak to you and your character. We will then discuss how you can consider showing medical schools how you have met the various competencies.

Interpersonal Competencies

Interpersonal Competencies are a set of competencies related to how you relate with others. What is your attitude toward others as a healer? Do you have a caring heart and will you assist others in time of need, both locally and more globally. Will you care for people without bias toward their background? Will you learn to communicate more effectively with people of varied demographics by becoming culturally competent? Will you work in a collegial manner with others on the health care team and think of the care of the patient and the effectiveness of the team over personal goals? Are you able to effectively communicate with others?

How do I reveal my Interpersonal Competencies?

Interpersonal competencies are revealed in your everyday life by your various acts. Carrying a pleasant demeanor and making others feel good about themselves by exhibiting an affable character is a sign of good communication skills. Clearly the message has to be received for communication to be complete, but if you can engage someone to listen better by the way you treat them you will have more effective communication. Showing that you are prepared to help others in their time of need is a sign of altruism. Acts of kindness and selfless behavior are portrayed through activities such as volunteering, mission work, having a job as a nurse assistant, and similar activities. You can list these activities on your application in your personal statement and sometimes other locations on the application. You can also ask for letters of recommendation from people that can specifically speak to your various specific traits.

Intrapersonal Competencies

Intrapersonal Competencies are those skills you possess as an individual. Are you honest? Do you behave in an ethical manner and do you encourage others to adhere to that standard? Can people rely on you to carry out appointed tasks in a timely manner? Do you take responsibility for your personal actions? Are you able to adapt to stressful situations and keep your composure? Do you aspire to continuously improve your skills and are you open to change with appropriate feedback from others?

How do I reveal my Intrapersonal Competencies?

Much like interpersonal competencies, intrapersonal competencies are revealed through your interactions with others and the things you do. When you have obligations to work with others, be certain to show up on time, do an extraordinarily good job at completing designated tasks, and take responsibility for any personal problems that may have arose. Also, learn from good and bad experiences and always strive for personal improvement. You can speak to your intrapersonal competencies in your personal statement, but they will likely be better received when you have others attest to these in letters of recommendation.

Thinking and Reasoning Competencies

Thinking and Reasoning Competencies address your problem solving skills and your ability to write in an effective manner.

How do I reveal my Thinking and Reasoning Competencies?

How do I reveal my Thinking and Reasoning Competencies?
There are a number of ways that you reveal your analytical prowess. Your GPA (specifically, college grade point average) will attest to your ability to do well academically in medical school. Doing well on the MCAT also exhibits how competent you are with thinking and reasoning as there is a section devoted specifically to, “Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills.” There is no doubt that you are already striving to get the best GPA you can, and you should seek help within your university to address any areas of weakness as needed. Regarding the MCAT, there are many resources to help you prepare:

1. Start with the AAMC resources
https://www.aamc.org/students/aspiring/basics/280598/mcat-prep.html

2. Check out Khan Academy for additional free resources
https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcat
3. Kaplan has an abundance of excellent resources and has been preparing students for the MCAT and other major exams for years
http://www.kaptest.com/mcat
4. Princeton Review is another leader in the field of MCAT preparation
http://www.princetonreview.com/medical/mcat-test-prep

Doing well on the MCAT is pivotal in being a serious candidate for medical school and is a good way to reveal your competencies in thinking and reasoning.

Science Competencies

Science Competencies are relatively new to pre-medical education. The Association of American Medical Colleges and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (AAMC and HHMI) created a committee to investigate the concept of having undergraduate science competencies as part of the pre-medical curricula. The idea was to integrate basic science concepts into lessons of biological sciences and human disease: https://www.aamc.org/download/271072/data/scientificfoundationsforfuturephysicians.pdf
In the 2012-2013 Medical School Admission Requirements, p. 11, it states:
The study undertaken by the HHMI and the AAMC recommends a shift in focus from requiring specific courses to requiring specific competencies and outlines the competencies that entering medical students should demonstrate. In brief, these include:

Both the knowledge of and ability to apply basic principles of mathematics and statistics, physics, chemistry, biochemistry, and biology to human health and disease;
The ability to demonstrate observational and analytical skills; and
The ability to apply those skills and principles to biological situations

This has become so important that it is now part of the Core Competencies for students applying to medical school.

How do I reveal my Science Competencies?

Many universities have begun to offer courses that incorporate science competencies into their curricula. A current trend is to integrate modules of related science competencies into specific courses already required for students seeking to go to medical school. If you have completed science competencies in your current courses, you will want to document that and address it in your personal statement and in your medical school application.

Exploring Medicine has been offering science competencies for years through university courses, but these modules are now available online. When you complete one of these modules and successfully pass the post-test, you will receive a certificate of completion for this science competency (complete with a list of the foundational concepts and skills addressed in the module). The list of modules is continually expanding. To see the selection of available Exploring Medicine modules that address science competencies, click here.

Click Here for Available Science Modules