If you’re looking for help with the UC San Francisco Secondary Application essays, you’ve made the right move. After all, they’re not an easy school to get into. They had a 2.4% overall acceptance rate, a 3.6% in-state acceptance rate for California students, and an out-of-state rate of 1.3%.

To make matters scarier, UCSF is ranked 5th in both the US News and World Report’s Best Medical Schools for Research and Primary Care. Additionally, the school ranks in the top 5 for Anesthesiology, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Radiology, and Surgery.

Yikes.

It’s safe to say that if you’re going to get accepted into one of the top medical schools in the nation, you’ll need strong essays.

So, that’s what we’ll be discussing today. In this article, we’ll be covering everything you need to know to write the UC San Francisco Secondary Application essay.

Please note that UCSF only offers grad degrees. It does not provide spaces to undergraduate students. Thus, if you’re a student looking to apply as an undergrad, this article will not apply to you. But, if you’re looking for help with UC schools as a prospective undergrad student, you may want to consider checking out our UC guide here.

You can find more information on UCSF’s application process on their official website here.

Table of Contents

1. UC San Francisco Secondary Application Essay Prompts.
2. How to Answer the UCSF Activities Essay Prompt.
3. How to Answer the UCSF “What Have You Done Since Completing Undergraduate Degree” Essay Prompt.
4. How to Answer UCSF Marginalized Group Essay Prompt.
5. Key Points to Writing Successful UC San Francisco Secondary Application Essays.

UC San Francisco Secondary Application Essay Prompts.

We’ll be breaking down each of the UC San Francisco Secondary application essay prompts below. There are 3 prompts, each with their unique requirements and expectations.

Note that although everyone may have different answers for each prompt, there is no truly right or wrong way to answer each UCSF essay prompt. Nonetheless, it’s important to note that there are some topics that may be easier to write about than others.

1. If you wish to update or expand upon your activities, you may provide additional information below. (500 words)

2. If you are 2023 or earlier college graduate, please use the space below to tell us what you have done since completing your undergraduate degree. (350 words)

3. Do you identify as being part of a marginalized group socioeconomically or in terms of access to quality education or healthcare? Please describe how this inequity has impacted you and your community. (350 words)

UC San Francisco Secondary Application Essay Prompts 2023-24

How to Answer the UCSF Activities Essay Prompt.

We’re going to deconstruct these prompts one by one, starting with the UCSF activities prompt.

Take a look at the prompt below.

1. If you wish to update or expand upon your activities, you may provide additional information below. (500 words)

Before answering the prompt, consider UCSF’s average accepted student and their profile. Most accepted UCSF students have had some level of medical interning, research, or experience.

With this in mind, it’s safe to say that most other students trying to write the UC San Francisco Secondary Application essay will write about their medical internships, research, or experience.

So, write from a unique angle.

With everyone writing about medical experience, think of what you learned that others didn’t.

Here’s an example.

Perhaps you had experience working on research and learned from mistakes you made. With these mistakes come soft skills such as patience, humility, and openness that translate in unexpected ways into medical school. This diversion from the bigger elements highlights small details that admissions officers would appreciate.

Of course, if you haven’t had any medical experience, the same principle applies. You need to demonstrate from the activities you write about the important skills you’ve gained and how they may help you in your success as a prospective UCSF student.

How to Answer the UCSF “What Have You Done Since Completing Undergraduate Degree” Essay Prompt.

2. If you are 2023 or earlier college graduate, please use the space below to tell us what you have done since completing your undergraduate degree. (350 words)

It’s important to note that UCSF’s prompt 2 is very similar to its prompt 1. As such, you’ll need to be rather particular about what you choose to dedicate to this prompt.

Don’t repeat what you’ve already written in prompt 1 in prompt 2. Instead, take the time here to demonstrate other elements of your application that may be important but not always obvious.

For instance, your primary activities may have involved you taking on medical experience. But, your secondary activities since completing your undergraduate degree may have involved experiences outside of the medical field such as joining the workforce, learning about the stock market, starting a business, etc.

Often, these non-medical experiences are going to involve other skills that can translate into your experiences as a medical student.

Let’s take business as an example.

If you started an online business as a side hustle after graduating, you may want to write about how you learned multiple methods of marketing and data analytics such as A/B testing that can apply to the way you increase efficiency as a medical student. Medical students have an infinite work load (exaggeration, but you get the point) and many students need to find a task management system that works best for increasing their productivity. The A/B testing mindset developed from a business background can help in maximizing your efficiency when translating those principles.

How to Answer UCSF Marginalized Group Essay Prompt.

3. Do you identify as being part of a marginalized group socioeconomically or in terms of access to quality education or healthcare? Please describe how this inequity has impacted you and your community. (350 words)

This is a more straightforward prompt. Nonetheless, there are a few important points that need to be made.

How you’re marginalized is not going to matter as much as the impact of your inequity. In other words, you need to focus on HOW your marginalization actually impacts you and the community you live in. So, get your hands dirty with the nitty-gritty details!

Here’s an example.

Let’s say that you live in a middle-class community that has a rather corrupt school district. Your school normally should be receiving enough funds to bolster a great education for you and everyone in your community. But, your school embezzled much of its funds and left many teachers underpaid, dissatisfied, and even leaving for better opportunities elsewhere. Thus, your school is mostly understaffed and there are not a lot of opportunities or resources for pursuing other great leadership experiences.

Middle-class schools with decent funding but improper management is actually quite a common problem. And, students are often unaware of just how much of an impact it has on their available opportunities. You’ll be deprived of networking opportunities as well as the chance to build the right team needed to tackle local competitions with a decent shot at winning.

Additionally, attending a school where the general culture and atmosphere are cold and unforgiving is a recipe for students being less likely to pursue medical research opportunities (especially if they’re not likely to have close connections with professors they deem proper to work with.)

Key Points to Writing Successful UC San Francisco Secondary Application Essays.

We’ve dedicated this section 6 points for writing a successful set of UC San Francisco Secondary Application essays.

1. Don’t use fluff. Admissions officers know when you’re fluffing up your application. If you truly don’t have much to say about your activities or experiences, think deeper about what you’ve really learned. Don’t force yourself to make the experience more profound than it actually is.
2. Answer “Why UCSF.” Admissions officers want to know why you chose UCSF compared to the other schools. This helps them determine your fit in the school and whether you align with their available resources.
3. Don’t be afraid of imagery. Sometimes, admissions officers could only really understand your perspective from a surface level. Often, you’ll need to discuss what these experiences were like, what you felt throughout them, and the imagery of details needed to allow admissions officers to understand your growth from your shoes.
4. Be genuine. Honesty is crucial. Every year, more students are finding ways to game the system. Thus, admissions officers are going to be on their toes sifting through your application with a fine-tooth comb. Don’t flicker any white lies. Be genuine, honest, and transparent.
5. Prove your passion for medicine. A deep passion and love for learning can go a long way, especially for UCSF. It essentially aligns you with the world of higher academia which demands a particular learning temperament and passion to truly succeed. By demonstrating your passion and love for the field, you’ll prove to admissions officers that you wont be slippery with your decisions.
6. Consider professional college essay services. Medical school applications aren’t easy to complete; many capable applicants struggle with answering the UCSF essay prompts. Getting at least a few hours of professional med school consultant opinions can dramatically improve your essay quality, increasing your acceptance rate.

Got any burning questions about your UC San Francisco Secondary Application essays? Still not sure how to answer the UCSF essay prompts, or looking for help with medical school applications in general? Don’t wait until the last minute! Schedule a free consultation with our professional medical school admissions consultants! We’ll get back to you within 24 hours, and show you how to maximize your chances of success through our time-tested editing and writing services!