Gay and obese URM???

In before lock

not sure if srs... no really... U SRS??????!!!?????

also SDN are Kittens Considered URM"s??? I am of course asking for another kitten... not my kitteny self...

If obese people are then someone please call the pizza guy stat.

Are ambidextrous people URMs? Are sponges who live in the bottom of the sea URMs?

dreamweaver1988 said:

Wow...rude much? I'm talking about people with a unique background, life experiences, and perspective on life who could add to the diversity of a medical school and someday be a compassionate physician.

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Sorry dreamweaver1988.

People quit being rude. That was a genuine question.

I don't know. I have a gay friend who applied as disadvantaged. I don't think it's because he was gay...more so because his family was on welfare.

No, URM = black, hispanic, native american. That's it.

However, being demographically unique, e.g. homosexual, will definitely help you in the less tangible aspects of the application (personal statement etc). Med schools are trying to build diverse student bodies, so, yeah, being gay would probably help even though you are not technically URM.

Yes, they both are. YOu'll get in anywhere.

dreamweaver1988 said:

Are homosexuals considered an under-represented minority? What about obese people?

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No to both

dpsPanda said:

Gays are not URM (which is based on race). However, I do believe that being gay (and out) does help you in the application cycle if the topic is brought up sensibly. I've met 0 truly obese people on the interview trail (and a few pudgy people). Considering the stigma surrounding obesity, I think that being obese might hurt you if you don't wear the weight well.

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I've actually seen people on here say the opposite... Which is a bloody shame.

Omppu27 said:

I've actually seen people on here say the opposite... Which is a bloody shame.

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It could hurt you, depending on who reads your application. Unfortunately, there would be no way to predict or detect this.

No to both. Why would obesity (being unhealthily overweight) be seen as a positive thing on an application? Not just to medical school but for anything else? That just doesn't make any sense. Also whether you're straight, gay, or bi shouldn't factor into anything at all in my opinion. As much as I hate to say it, your friend should focus on raising their GPA or MCAT score and getting involved in interesting extracurriculars and research and not lean on their sexual orientation and weight. Heck if I went a year or 2 without working out and ate like garbage till I became overweight then changed my sexual preference, should I get into med school over someone else? Nope and nope.

gettheleadout said:

It could hurt you, depending on who reads your application. Unfortunately, there would be no way to predict or detect this.

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This is very true, but would Op's "friend" be happy in a school that rejected in part on orientation? They would most likely be happy in a school where they could be "out and proud" so to say

nygiants fan said:

No to both. Why would obesity (being unhealthily overweight) be seen as a positive thing on an application? Not just to medical school but for anything else? That just doesn't make any sense. Also whether you're straight, gay, or bi shouldn't factor into anything at all in my opinion. As much as I hate to say it, your friend should focus on raising their GPA or MCAT score and getting involved in interesting extracurriculars and research and not lean on their sexual orientation and weight. Heck if I went a year or 2 without working out and ate like garbage till I became overweight then changed my sexual preference, should I get into med school over someone else? Nope and nope.

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The main reason I don't like people who go around shoving the fact that they are obese "and proud". It is unhealthy, it will kill you and it is nothing to be proud about. I am glad you are comfortable being in your obese body but you should definitely work on changing that.

StoicJosher said:

The main reason I don't like people who go around shoving the fact that they are obese "and proud". It is unhealthy, it will kill you and it is nothing to be proud about. I am glad you are comfortable being in your obese body but you should definitely work on changing that.

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I think that for the majority this is a facade, most overweight people I know aren't happy about it. Same thing with many smokers. But sometimes old habits die hard.

BirdIsTheWord said:

In before lock

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SDN needs an unamused icon. It would make my internetting so much more consistent and enjoyable.

dreamweaver1988 said:

Are homosexuals considered an under-represented minority? What about obese people?

...Of course, I'm "asking for somebody else."

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The obese factor will not make you a URM as mentioned above.

IDK about being gay-- I understand why it could be a hardship, especially if you're from a very conservative family. Application wise, it could go both ways in terms of hurting and helping you depending on who is reading/recommending your application. I think you have to keep in mind that people do stereotype and make judgements. Unfortunately, the road for homosexual's is really rocky and acceptance isn't universal--- you have to keep that in mind.

I've promoted/mentored a couple of homosexual employees and my advice to them has always been that when you're in a professional environment your sexual orientation should not come up while interviewing/ applying for positions. It's not okay for the interviewee to bring it up nor is it okay for you to question if it is going to be a problem. I would say that the same applies for medical schools. Why bring up your sexual orientation when applying? Once you get the position then you can open up. Your work ethic will speak more then what you chose to do behind closed doors after you have the position.

My two cents. Good luck!

Obese? Minority? Whatcha talkin bout? This is AMERICA. On a more serious note, I could see how being obese would hinder a doctor in doing their job. Imagine standing for a 6 hour surgery. Now imagine standing for a 6 hour surgery if you're carrying 100 pounds extra weight.

n3xa said:

SDN needs an unamused icon. It would make my internetting so much more consistent and enjoyable.

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are you amused now?

dpsPanda said:

Gays are not URM (which is based on race). However, I do believe that being gay (and out) does help you in the application cycle if the topic is brought up sensibly. I've met 0 truly obese people on the interview trail (and a few pudgy people). Considering the stigma surrounding obesity, I think that being obese might hurt you if you don't wear the weight well.

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There's one guy in my class that's pretty big (probably 300+ lbs). I was surprised myself to be honest.

n3xa said:

SDN needs an unamused icon. It would make my internetting so much more consistent and enjoyable.

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dreamweaver1988 said:

Are homosexuals considered an under-represented minority? What about obese people?

...Of course, I'm "asking for somebody else."

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Yes homosexuals are considered a minority because homosexuals are a race in of themselves and so are obese people.

God, how the hell did I do this bad in school when there are bigger idiots out there that do well?

DeterminedDoc said:

Yes homosexuals are considered a minority because homosexuals are a race in of themselves and so are obese people.

God, how the hell did I do this bad in school when there are bigger idiots out there that do well?

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Sorry, but, to my knowledge, there are no anti-discrimination laws for the obese. It is still perfectly legal to discriminate against them, because they not considered a minority. Too bad, for we will never see big gay (fat & jolly) Santa Claus MD.

Maybe gay is considered urm but certainly not obese. I think of urm as plp who have a disadvantage that is not the result of his or her individual actions.

ADolefulDream said:

This is very true, but would Op's "friend" be happy in a school that rejected in part on orientation? They would most likely be happy in a school where they could be "out and proud" so to say

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But there is no guarantee that the attitude of the particular adcom who reads the app is indicative of the school as a whole. The app could be read by the one homophobe in a very tolerant school, or the one tolerant adcom in a largely intolerant school. If the wrong adcom pulls the app, the applicant could miss out on a great school, or end up attending a school where they will be miserable.

Sorry but, adipophobia is still alive and well. And they were the first, just before the homosexuals, to be harrassed, before white people discovered any mode of transportation to go harrass all the other groups. Very sad!

Kadava Reviva said:

Sorry, but, to my knowledge, there are no anti-discrimination laws for the obese. It is still perfectly legal to discriminate against them, because they not considered a minority. Too bad, for we will never see big gay (fat & jolly) Santa Claus MD.

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Yes that was my point. Its called sarcasm. Well there's another dream of mine down the drain lol.

DeterminedDoc said:

Yes that was my point. Its called sarcasm. Well there's another dream of mine down the drain lol.

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Santa?

Kadava Reviva said:

Santa?

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Yea i was looking forward to seeing a big gay happy and jolly Santa MD. Now you just had to ruin that dream

I can just see the "Unabridged version of the MSAR". Shows what % of the class is black, white, hispanic, etc. right alongside of what % of the class has BMI <18, 18-25, 25-30, 30+ as well as %straight, %gay, %undecided.

Panda always beats me to the punch, and I almost always agree. I can't speak to obesity in medical school&#8212;though I do have a couple of friends at top schools that fit the description, and from what I understand there's some interesting research going on at Michigan on fat acceptance and health outcomes.

Though it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure me out, I didn't mention being gay in my primary. It wasn't an active exclusion, either. But it would've been weird if I hadn't directly stated it in the age-old "diversity essay" in many secondaries. I just sort of ran with what felt right, and like Panda, received good feedback on how I presented myself vis-a-vis my sexuality.

There's no question that LGBT people are underrepresented in medicine, even if they aren't considered URM by AAMC. I've found that being out has had a net positive effect, though not due to some unseen URM status, or for being out alone. Chances are, if you're LGBT (or obese, I imagine), it has somehow worked its way into your story and perhaps your reasons for going to med school.

Most interviewers are cool with it, too. That said, I did have at least one slightly homophobic interviewer (still accepted, though). Also, it might interest someone out there that, despite not being URM according to AAMC, I was awarded a diversity-related merit scholarship at another school that may or may not have had to do with LGBT. That is to say, "diversity" is a big umbrella, we are often diverse in more ways than one, and who knows what goes on behind closed doors...?

bassvp said:

%straight, %gay, %undecided.

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You joke, but many (if not most, or all) LGBT applicants pursue this information in other ways—often by asking current students, especially those involved in LGBT interest groups. I certainly do.

percy said:

You joke, but many (if not most, or all) LGBT applicants pursue this information in other ways&#8212;often by asking current students, especially those involved in LGBT interest groups. I certainly do.

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I did too. It's useful information. I'm a huge bitch, and I worry that might not be enough room for more than about five people like me at any given school. Being gay is one of many factors, obviously, but it also correlates with love of Kathy Griffin, which ALSO correlates with being a huge bitch. An AWESOME huge bitch.

But not huge like obese. I don't want to falsely state that I'm URM when I'm not, you know.

On a more serious note, since I was out during my actual interviews, I found it refreshing when my interviewers were aware of LGBT groups on campus. It's one thing for the students to get GLBT people-- our generation is the out-and-it-doesn't-matter-unless-you're-a-major-tool-and-then-you-suck-anyway generation-- but for a professor to be down with the LGBT (Yeah, I changed it again. Because lesbians and gay men are equals. Deal with it.) means, at least in my opinion, that the professors the school hires are probably similarly open-minded.

Contrary to what has been mentioned a few times, I think disadvantaged status only applies to finances while growing up, not sexual orientation.

Personally, I didn't mention my sexual orientation in my primary since it had absolutely nothing to do with my motivations for applying to med school. I also didn't mention it in any diversity-related secondary essays, either; it's not an influential part of who I am--and I had been involved in exactly zero GLBT groups--so I didn't really have anything to say about it. Also, at the time, I thought it was a bad risk to take. I'm unsure whether I would do things differently in retrospect, but it's definitely a possibility. The people I've met in med school have all been extremely conservative in a professional sense, but not a social one.

I'm really not sure what to think about this to be honest. I'm not even sure the whole obesity thing will be considered as a URM because it can be said that you put yourself in that position (no offense!!).

Suncrusher said:

I also didn't mention it in any diversity-related secondary essays, either; it's not an influential part of who I am--and I had been involved in exactly zero GLBT groups--so I didn't really have anything to say about it.

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Yeah, it doesn't really seem germane to an app, any more than "I wanna be a doctor because I ****in' love pickin' up chicks, brah."

If you look close enough, I'm sure there are many ways in which being LGBT influences one's story. Doesn't necessary need to correspond with motivations for pursuing medicine.

CityLights said:

If you don't mind -- what was the situation? Just an impression?

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There were two instances. With one, it was an impression I got based on how my interviewer's disposition/questioning changed, quite dramatically, upon learning this tidbit. The other instance: As I was walking out of the room, another interviewer made a (not entirely negative, but rather uncomfortable) comment about one of my gayer tendnencies. Totally unrelated to anything we'd talked about. So I raised an eyebrow, smiled (genuinely, too; keep reading), and said, "Can't help it." I couldn't decide if it was plain criticism, or if he felt the need to warn me for my next interview. In some weird way, perhaps he was actually trying to help me out...? In any case, acted just as gay (if not gayer!) in subsequent interviews, was accepted.

If anything I feel like being obese may be a negative trait. Many people see obese people as lazy and unwilling to do things. Also how many people are going to listen to an obese doctor telling them to lose weight and get healthy? Not that I have anything against overweight people, it just seems that this is the general attitude towards them.

1) No, having an unhealthy BMI isn't grounds for automatic consideration in adcoms.
2) LGBT individuals may not receive "preference" in adcoms but they would certainly not be automatically rejected/accepted on the basis of their sexual preferences/gender orientation. So are they URM? Depends on the school's location.

Slowpoke said:

are you amused now?

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thomallama said:

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But I want the *other* unamused face.

percy said:

In any case, acted just as gay (if not gayer!) in subsequent interviews, was accepted.

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Similar-ish experience: I've done some freelance work in makeup and fashion styling, and one of my interviewers really seemed to struggle -- for at least a minute or two -- with the idea that a dude could/would do those things. Accepted!

candav said:

Similar-ish experience: I've done some freelance work in makeup and fashion styling, and one of my interviewers really seemed to struggle -- for at least a minute or two -- with the idea that a dude could/would do those things. Accepted!

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Candav, you're as close to perfection as a premed can get. So cool.

varsityblue said:

Candav, you're as close to perfection as a premed can get. So cool.

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I know, right? Unfortunately, some of my schools just don't seem to get this.

dpsPanda said:

Has he never watched TV before (cough Project Runway cough)? lol

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Don't you dare insult Candav!