Resilience

Resilience in Veterinary MMIs

Resilience is the capacity to recover from situations that don't work out, keep up one's spirits and will, and, if necessary, continue to struggle against misfortune. Vet med MMIs may ask about resilience quite often, as the field of veterinary medicine is emotionally draining, has unpredictable situations, and times when the results are not what you expected. The examiners are not interested in your story of how you went through hard times; it is your way of handling difficulty they want to see.

How to Build a Strong Resilience Answer

Choose a real life challenge

Examples could include:

• Disappointment in studies.
• Not getting a position or an award.
• Having a difficult experience during volunteering.
• A moment when things went wrong even though you tried your best.
• Handling the pressure of personal challenges.

Provide a truthful explanation of your feelings

Most of the time, feelings of anxiety, disappointment, and uncertainty are experienced. It is honesty, not perfection, that the MMIs most appreciate.

What Did You Do Following That

You might have:

• Getting feedback.
• Changing your method.
• Developing new skills.
• Asking for help.
• Setting new goals.
• Broadening your outlook.

Show the improvement: even where the final result was not what you had wished for, demonstrate the good influence your action had.

Think Carefully

Explain the valuable lessons you learned about perseverance, confidence, and getting over difficulties.