how many URMs applicants did u see at interviews?

[jmejia1]

I'm just curious for those that have gone to interviews, if you've seen a decent number of URMs. at my school, out of 70 expected applicants, there's only me (Mexican-American), another Mexican-American, and two other Black students applying. Just curious if there's a downward trend in URM applicants in general.

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[girl]

Hey, in response to your question, at University of Chicago on the day I went, there were 5 interviewees:

1 Cuban female (I think that's considered URM)
1 Asian male
1 Indian female
2 Caucasian females

And at my UMDNJ-Newark interview, there 2 Caucasian students, one Korean female and me.

So out of 8 interviewees I've seen so far, one has been URM. However, it is still very early in the interview game, and this is a very small sample set. From my undergraduate college, I think there are approximately 15 URM's applying.

 

[sandflea]

actually cuban is NOT urm.

 

[E'01]

NJMS: only me (I'm black)
SUNY Downstate (only me)
Cornell (only me)
Columbia (one Black female and myself)

 

[md2be06]

Originally posted by girl:

From my undergraduate college, I think there are approximately 15 URM's applying.

15 URM premed's at Northwestern? That's it?
Whoa. How many premeds are there total there?

 

[racergirl]

At my interview last Friday, there were 2 hispanic females, one black female, One white female (me) and two white guys.

 

[MSN1]

Of the URM at the interviews I wonder how many were there because they earned the spot and how many were there just because they were a certain race. This is the problem with affirmative action because people will always wonder if the URM who got into medical school would have done it without special consideration.

 

[nochaser]

Well, then, we'll all be glad when that equal playing field AA is striving towards gets here, so no one has to make comments like this!

 

[girl]

I'm actually not sure how many pre-meds there are at Northwestern, and like I said before, my URM number was just a guess. (I approximated by how many URM students I've seen consistently in my big pre-med lecture classes, chem/orgo/bio etc.) But this is also from the current applying class only, not the total number of pre-meds at NU, which must be more.

 

[sandflea]

'underrepresented minority' is a political term, not a physical trait--how exactly can you claim to physically count the number of URM students in your classes??

 

[Nikki]

I'm an applying URM from NU and I doubt there are 15. Maybe half (if that).

 

[coop]

pitt: 1/16 (black male)
u chicago: 0/6
maryland: 0/14
vanderbilt: 0/9

there were no hispanic people at any of them (except my gf at chicago with me, but she's spanish, which isn't urm).

Its been really striking to me that when they say under represented they mean UNDER represented, I hope my days were anomolies.

 

[ken]

Originally posted by nochaser:
•Well, then, we'll all be glad when that equal playing field AA is striving towards gets here, so no one has to make comments like this! •

Something tells me that the liberal, communist, pro AA professors sitting on these admissions committees (I mean, seriously, when's the last time you met a conservative professor?) are probably not discriminating against minorities.

 

[none]

It is very important to note that while academia in general is liberal...MDs tend to be rather conservative, particularly when they get old enough to serve on an adcom.

 

[nochaser]

Something tells me that the liberal, communist, pro AA professors sitting on these admissions committees (I mean, seriously, when's the last time you met a conservative professor?) are probably not discriminating against minorities.

Are you suggesting that they should be discriminating against minorities, Rush? Er, I mean, Ken?

 

[nochaser]

'underrepresented minority' is a political term, not a physical trait--

say it loud--I'M URM and I'M PROUD! Uh, no thank you. Can we just stick to Black and Hispanic, people? Really, it's ok.

 

[E'01]

LOL. Speak it Nochaser

 

[Gator]

Why is it that only blacks and hispanics are URM? I find that there are other minorities that have even fewer representation at medical schools.

 

[vixen]

which other ones, gator?

 

[doctorperez]

Originally posted by Gator:
•Why is it that only blacks and hispanics are URM? I find that there are other minorities that have even fewer representation at medical schools.•

For the purpose of U.S. med schools URMs are Native americans, Mainland Puerto Ricans, Chicanos, African-americans, and other socio/economically unprivileged students. Hispanics in general are not URMs.

Dr.Perez

 

[ken]

Originally posted by nochaser:
•Are you suggesting that they should be discriminating against minorities, Rush? Er, I mean, Ken?•

Of course not. I am merely stating that it is unlikely that professors, as liberal as they tend to be, would be discriminating against minorities.
In addition, just because someone is against race-based affirmative action doesn't mean they are conservative. California is hardly the beacon of conservatism, yet prop. 209 (a measure which outlawed AA) passed overwhelmingly in this state.

 

[Bruin4Life]

Interestingly enough, the year after prop 209 passed in California, schools like UC Irvine and UC San Diego had ONE enrolled URM per 100+ enrollees each. That's 1% percent relative to Californias 40% URM population. Should the 40% be higher? I don't remember the exact percentage. I read that URM applications have been going in a downward trend across the nation as well.

 

[kutastha]

Originally posted by Bruin4Life:
•Interestingly enough, the year after prop 209 passed in California, schools like UC Irvine and UC San Diego had ONE enrolled URM per 100+ enrollees each. That's 1% percent relative to Californias 40% URM population. Should the 40% be higher? I don't remember the exact percentage. I read that URM applications have been going in a downward trend across the nation as well.•

This site gives a breakdown of URMs in the UC medical school admissions process:

University of California Admissions - Home Page

Andrew

 

[none]

The most important information to gain from those UC admission stats is that there are NOT enough seats for CA applicants! It's crazy that those avg. MCAT scores and GPAs are so high!! We need at least one other UC to open a med school and then to have UCM open one as well. The Central Valley is very, very badly in need of doctors.

 

[Gator]

I was referring to students from the Middle East, Russia, etc. Just curious.

 

[lady in red]

Gator,
I have ancestors in Turkey, Armenia, Russia, Germany and Iran and I was born "over there". But I look like a standard American blonde white girl. English is my second language but most people can't tell. I definitely don't fit in with American whites/caucasians, and for all purposes I am considered "white" and definitely not a 'visually identifiable' URM. Do you think my background makes me an URM? Just curious...

 

[vixen]

Gator, middle eastern, asian (including India), and russian are an "overly represented minority" in the medical field. They are far from URM status.

 

[Scooby Doo]

40% URM in California??
This number sounds a little ridiculous to me.
Does that include asians?? Asians are not considered URM...
I think the actual number of "URM" in Cali is maybe 20% max...probably more likely to be around 10-20.

 

[MSN1]

I am curious why people think AA is necessary. Should we have it because URM are not currently represented proportionally in each medical school class or because URM are at a disadvantage in getting into medical school. If it is only the former then we should get rid of AA because this by itself is not a sufficient reason to keep it around.
However if it is the latter then AA should be changed so that all people who are disadvantaged (ie the poor) can be assisted by the program and not just a select group.

 

[none]

The goal of AA, in the medical case only, is to provide doctors for currently underserved areas. There certainly may be other ways of finding doctors for these extremely unpopular sections of the country, but there is no denying that URMs serve in these areas at 4 times the rate of non-URMs. Other applications of AA may have less apparent reasons.

 

[sz]

Gator, middle eastern, asian (including India), and russian are an "overly represented minority" in the medical field. They are far from URM status.

Since When? .... I don't see any indication of it in various official enrollment breakdowns.

 

[Gator]

I am Eyptian but I certainly do not call myself a "white person." I disagree that Middle Easterns, etc are "overrepresented" in medical schools. But I can say the same thing about hispancs. I am not trying to start a fight. I think that it is wrong for AMCAS to place people from North Africa in the "white" category. Just my two cents.

 

[kutastha]

Good time for this story of a friend of mine.. she was applying to Harvard for graduate school and of course, they wanted to know her race. Well, she has, shall we say a lack of melanin? and was born and raised in South Africa. She moved to America and since became a citizen. So, the most appropriate item for her to put was "African-American". When she got to the interview she said they were pissed that she had marked that on her application. Needless to say, she didn't get in and went to USC instead.

Andrew

 

[sandflea]

Originally posted by Gator:
•I am Eyptian but I certainly do not call myself a "white person." I disagree that Middle Easterns, etc are "overrepresented" in medical schools. But I can say the same thing about hispancs. I am not trying to start a fight. I think that it is wrong for AMCAS to place people from North Africa in the "white" category. Just my two cents.•

um, well, it wasn't AMCAS's idea to place middle easterers/north africans into the 'white' category. that's pretty universal. 'african american' is the current PC term for 'black', not just those people who happen to be from the continent of africa. so where do you feel that you, as an egyptian, would better fit?

frankly i'm not sure how you could consider latinos to be overrepresented in the medical field (not just medical schools, but rather the field as a whole). 'overrepresented' (or 'underrepresented' for that matter, as in URM) refers to the number in the medical field versus the general US population. the number of latino americans is quite high in the general US population, yet there are relatively few latino doctors. that's the idea behind the 'underrepresented' moniker. perhaps you feel that there are few egyptian physicians, but they are not considered 'underrepresented' because their numbers in the medical field more accurately represent their numbers in the general population than those of latinos. i don't have any exact numbers to cite here but that's the theory behind it.

 

[SIXTHSENSE]

I agree. The whole purpose of affirmative action and URM status in the application process is designed to get the med school populations to generally coincide with those of the general population, not to give those who aren't white a better shot at admission.

 

[nochaser]

finally, some sense! thanks, sixthsense!

 

[vixen]

yes I agree with sandflea and sixthsense. that's why there are some that are considered as an "overrepresented minority"...

 

[USeF]

Gator, as my parents were born and raised in Libya, I am your neighbor! (salam wa-alaikum. Keefik?)

For AMCAS, I wanted the schools to be able to get some info on my background in the race section. To avoid the situation that arose with kutastha's friend, (i hope she is enjoying herself at USC) I listed myself as: Other Race (North African-American)
That way there is no ambiguity and the schools can't dogg me for me trying to be something that I'm not.

*awesome: this is post #123*

 

[Gator]

Salam wa-alaikum USeF the Bull


I did something similar, I put other:Middle Eastern - Egyptian. I like your idea better.