What Reviewers Look For in the PA Program Secondary — Adversity / Challenge

This rubric looks for one clearly defined difficulty, the constraints you faced, the choices you made, and the specific change that followed. It also checks that your response stays focused on the program's actual question and supports its claims with concrete details rather than broad statements about hardship or personal qualities.

What We Check

Mistakes We Flag

Relying on dramatic language

Saying an experience was devastating or the hardest thing you have faced does not explain what happened, what was at stake, or how it affected your responsibilities. Use specific facts about the situation and its limits.

Telling someone else's crisis

A family member's illness or financial problem can provide context, but the essay needs to show your own role, obligations, and response within it.

Using effort as the whole response

Statements such as “I never gave up” do not show how you handled the challenge. Name what you did, what you changed, and any help you sought or used.

Ending with a generic lesson

“I became stronger” or “I learned perseverance” is too broad on its own. Explain what assumption or habit changed and how your later behavior reflects that change.

Forcing a PA-career conclusion

Do not turn the ending into an unsupported claim that the experience will make you a better PA or proves your calling. Keep any connection to PA training brief and grounded in actions or learning you have actually shown.

References

Frequently Asked Questions