Disadvantaged applicants?

[kelvin81]

I m 24 and I came to the U.S. when I was turning 20, meaning I finished highschool back in Vietnam. My family has had a lot of financial issues as well. I am applying to med school this year. I looked over the application form for this year and I am kinda getting the idea that I can be considered as an disadvantaged student? Anyone knows anything about the DISADVANTAGE status? please let me know

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[Rafa]

This thread will be all right as long as you-know-who doesn't post on it. Good luck!

 

[relentless11]

I m 24 and I came to the U.S. when I was turning 20, meaning I finished highschool back in Vietnam. My family has had a lot of financial issues as well. I am applying to med school this year. I looked over the application form for this year and I am kinda getting the idea that I can be considered as an disadvantaged student? Anyone knows anything about the DISADVANTAGE status? please let me know

It is defined by AAMC, as from an early age, you resided in a low-income community or experienced enduring family and/or societal hardship that significantly compromised your educational opportunities. If that fits your bill, then check the box, and you should be qualified for the fee assistance program.

I believe that is the limit of its use in terms of applying. However its effects are quite minimal in terms of getting into med school when compared to your overall stats. Combined with the fact SE asians are somewhat over-represented in med schools vs. a URM. Hope that helps. Good luck!

 

[Mr. Tee]

Combined with the fact SE asians are somewhat over-represented in med schools vs. a URM. Hope that helps. Good luck!

I am assuming you mean East Asians are somewhat overrepresented vs. a URM, since you don't see many Vietnamese/Laotian/Cambodian/Thai/etc. people in medical schools.

 

[michjen23]

There was a thread about this recently that got moved to the topics in healthcare forum if you are interested. Good luck with whatever you decide

 

[kelvin81]

To Rafa: Sorry, I m kinda new to SDN, who is "you-know-who" that you implied about?
Thank you all for responding to my post. Appreciate it a lot.
Kelvin

 

[RxnMan]

You can apply for disadvantaged status for any number of reasons - most do it for financial hardships (e.g. supporting the family while working through college), but there can be social or educational disadvantages (e.g. chronic personal medical condition that made it difficult to stay in school).

I say go for it - answer the questions honestly, and let the ACOMs decide whether or not to grant it to you.

 

[lyn2006]

It is defined by AAMC, as from an early age, you resided in a low-income community or experienced enduring family and/or societal hardship that significantly compromised your educational opportunities. If that fits your bill, then check the box, and you should be qualified for the fee assistance program.

I believe that is the limit of its use in terms of applying. However its effects are quite minimal in terms of getting into med school when compared to your overall stats. Combined with the fact SE asians are somewhat over-represented in med schools vs. a URM. Hope that helps. Good luck!

Actually, the fee assistance program and applying as a disadvantaged applicant are 2 different things. I qualified for the FAP but decided not to apply as a disadvantaged student.

You have to send in yours and your parents' tax returns to AAMC and they decide if you qualify for the FAP. It's based solely on family income put into some formula. I think if you could just check a box, a lot more applicants would try to get the FAP since it reduces costs so much (cheaper MCAT, 11 free primaries, and most secondary fees waived at the schools).

 

[relentless11]

Actually, the fee assistance program and applying as a disadvantaged applicant are 2 different things. I qualified for the FAP but decided not to apply as a disadvantaged student.

You have to send in yours and your parents' tax returns to AAMC and they decide if you qualify for the FAP. It's based solely on family income put into some formula. I think if you could just check a box, a lot more applicants would try to get the FAP since it reduces costs so much (cheaper MCAT, 11 free primaries, and most secondary fees waived at the schools).

Yea I recall FAP helped out with MCAT, but for some reason when I spoke with Stanford about disadvantaged status, they were saying how they'll use that to determine $$ aspects as ones application continues down the pipeline. Go figure. I wasn't going to apply as disadvantaged either so didn't really put too much thought into their statement.

I am assuming you mean East Asians are somewhat overrepresented vs. a URM, since you don't see many Vietnamese/Laotian/Cambodian/Thai/etc. people in medical schools.

Although I can't speak for Laotian, Cambodian, Thai, there are a lot more vietnamese represented in med schools than say Native Americans which is considered a URM. If i recall a few years back AAMC defined URM as Blacks, Mexican-Americans, Native Americans, and mainland Puerto Ricans, however shifted their definition to a different scope. Thus you will have threads that pop up on SDN that vent their frustrations about being asian in general. Really thats moot as long as you do well in school, but in terms of representation, I have seen more vietnamese people than native american's in med schools, and thus the reason for my statement.

 

[Rafa]

To Rafa: Sorry, I m kinda new to SDN, who is "you-know-who" that you implied about?
Thank you all for responding to my post. Appreciate it a lot.
Kelvin

No worries - I was referring to Panda, but he's not here, so it's fine. Everyone on this thread has given you good advice so far - as RxnMan stated, try it, and simply tell your story. The worst they can do is say no.

 

[Mr. Tee]

Although I can't speak for Laotian, Cambodian, Thai, there are a lot more vietnamese represented in med schools than say Native Americans which is considered a URM. If i recall a few years back AAMC defined URM as Blacks, Mexican-Americans, Native Americans, and mainland Puerto Ricans, however shifted their definition to a different scope. Thus you will have threads that pop up on SDN that vent their frustrations about being asian in general. Really thats moot as long as you do well in school, but in terms of representation, I have seen more vietnamese people than native american's in med schools, and thus the reason for my statement.

Thanks for your input. I didn't mean to imply that SE Asians were less represented than traditional URMs, but rather questioning your statement; however, comparing the numbers to Native Americans is skewing the statistics (There are more African Americans than Native Americans but African Americans are still URMs) And I'm glad that you realize we SE Asians are heterogeneous, just like what falls under the URM umbrella

 

[relentless11]

Thanks for your input. I didn't mean to imply that SE Asians were less represented than traditional URMs, but rather questioning your statement; however, comparing the numbers to Native Americans is skewing the statistics (There are more African Americans than Native Americans but African Americans are still URMs) And I'm glad that you realize we SE Asians are heterogeneous, just like what falls under the URM umbrella

Oh no problem there, glad I can clarify though

 

[chintu]

I don't think applying as a disadvantaged student will benefit you all that much. However I think you should elaborate your personal situation a bit in your personal statement and you will probably be asked about your immigration problems, etc. during your interview and you can say whatever it is that you want to say to them. Adcoms will understand that you've had to face quite a bit adjusting to a new culture while offering support to your family. I think most immigrants to US who come at a late age such as yours could relate to your situation. I came to US at 14 and wrote a little about some adjustment issues in my PS and was asked about it during most my interviews and I think it actually made a good conversation topic since they were interested in healthcare issues in my country and stuff. I had no problem getting into medschool. IMO writing it in PS is your best bet if you can somehow make it flow into it. Most interviews would have access to your PS, however not all of them will have read about your disadvantaged status.

 

[kelvin81]

Chintu, I think you have made a very good point. I have faced a lot of issues, especially the language barrier. English is not taught well in highschool in Vietnam and I had to work very hard to get the point where I am today. I guess I will just go for it and see how it is decided. But for sure I will mention it in my PS.