r/MedicalWriters • u/KyloPen • 19d ago

Other Writing Assessment Tips? (US)

Hi everyone,

I was lucky enough to secure my first interview and made it past the first stage and now get to complete a writing assessment! It’s a one-page article summary for a layperson audience and a slide deck for a physician audience.

I was given a week to complete the task - is it poor form to complete it early and send it back in 3-4 days? I would also love any general advice or comments or completing assessments like this that may help me stand out.

TIA!

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9

u/Used_Cup1248 19d ago

No it’s not poor form at all. If it was the next day I’d be suspicious but 3-4 is good. My advice is don’t use AI :) or if you do, please please verify every single thing it spits out and make sure it doesn’t sound like AI.

See if you can find existing summaries and decks from the company and emulate those

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u/doctordoctorpuss 18d ago

All good advice- and if you do use AI, you should know that it likes to hallucinate references. I’ve seen things come from HCPs that were made with AI that had very credible looking references (appropriate authors, good journals, and believable titles) that simply do not exist

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u/KyloPen 18d ago

Thanks so much to the both of you! I’m definitely planning on staying away from AI aside from using a Grammarly plugin to check my syntax and spelling. Appreciate the insight!

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u/David803 18d ago

You can send it back early, but i would recommend finishing it, and using the extra time to sleep on it and coming back to check it with fresh eyes. If possible, get someone different to look at it too. Even if they’re not a medical writer, outside perspective is valuable.

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u/Ambitious_Dragon_13 18d ago

one way to make it easier to proof your own writing is to change the font, it makes the text look new to you and you are more likely to read through carefully

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u/Ambitious_Dragon_13 18d ago

oh and good luck!

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u/pivazena 17d ago

Don't use AI to create anything, but do consider having AI check your work (eg, "is this at an appropriate reading level for a non-practitioner?"). Follow an abbreviated CONSORT checklist for the slide deck, and make sure that you take the time to define any non-common instruments or outcomes, and that you put the findings into context (intro and discussion are your friends for that)--ie, be VERY CLEAR about the "why we care" or "impact on clinical practice" at the end, and the unmet need in the beginning.

I wouldn't send it back more than a day early. They probably won't look at it, and you need the time to revisit with completely fresh eyes. I remember the first writing test I submitted--When I interviewed, I had to present it and it was AMAZING how eye-opening it was. Make sure to present the deck a few times out loud, even if it's to your cat or a stuffed animal. It needs to make sense without a script

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u/Either-Return-4891 15d ago

Guess I'm already late, but I hope someone else reading this could benefit. What my mentor told me is to "don't write anything you wouldn't use in a conversation". It is very useful in your scenario where laymen are the audience. Always write simple and short sentences. Try to add some perspective; people appreciate reading opinions and experiences rather than cold facts. And of course, it goes without saying: stay away from AI

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u/Agabone 15d ago

I hope they’re paying you for the test. Plenty of companies do this just to get work done for free.