Top of Your Class Abroad? Give Your Awards Context.

You graduated top of your class in Lagos. And the program director reading your application has no idea what that means.

Every cycle, I watch IMGs with five real honors list one, or skip the section entirely. Underselling is the IMG epidemic.

Don't let the top of the section discourage you

The ERAS honors section opens with three US honor societies: Alpha Omega Alpha, the Gold Humanism Honor Society, and Sigma Sigma Phi. Most international schools are not affiliated with them, and programs know that. If your school has one, check it. If not, move on without a second thought.

The part that matters is "Other Honors or Awards." That is your section.

What belongs there

• Dean's list, first in class, top academic performance, from any country

• Scholarships for academic excellence

• Research awards, poster prizes, case competition wins

• Clinical excellence recognition from attendings or hospital leadership

• Community service and public health awards

• National exam performance recognition in your home country

• Athletic, artistic, or creative recognition

Context is everything

An award without context is invisible. "Best Graduating Student, 2018" leaves a reviewer in Ohio asking: out of how many? At what kind of school?

They do not know your institution's ranking system. You have to tell them. Use the description field like this:

"Awarded to the top 5% of graduating physicians at [institution], the largest medical school in [country], based on cumulative academic performance across all years."

Now the reviewer knows exactly what they are reading.

Want your accomplishments made legible to American reviewers? That is a core part of every Trifecta review. Only 10 spots are available this cycle. Book your Trifecta review.

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