A.D.D anyone?

[dancew/me]

Hi everyone, this is my first time posting, and I need some advice.

I'm currently preparing for my interview with the University of Washington which will be in March. In December, I was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder which I believe may have been a factor in getting such a LOW score on my MCAT verbal. My other scores were very average, and I got an R on the writing. Recieving an interview came as a huge surprise considering my low scores. The problem is such that I don't know whether or not (and how much) to tell the interviewers (1 of 3 will have my stats) about my ADD. My med school friend have told me that will ask if I have anything in my file that needs explaining; however, explaining seems to help, but mostly hurt my chances. (I'm on my first day of dosage trials for ADD drugs.) Any wisdom is very much appreciated! Thanks.

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[AB2001]

I have a LD and chose not to mention it during my interviews.
Unfortunately, people, even in medicine, don't understand learning disabilities and will subtly discriminate against you.
Best of luck!
AB

 

[DreaLynn]

Like you, I have ADD as well as dyslexia, and it is always a debate as to who and how much you tell about this. My only advice is that if you do chose to tell this committee, make sure that you have strong documentation that is not out-dated (especially if you plan on requesting test accommodations etc.) To get your toe wet you might want to go to the "everyone" web forum on this site and look into a heated discussion that is currently going on entitled "med. students with learning difficulties.? There you will get a mild taste of what you may be up against when it comes to dealing with some of your peers and fellow colleagues and learning differences.

 

[UCLAmd2b]

I don't know about the schools your applying for but I can tell you that at my MSU, OHSU, and UCLA interview my LD came up. In fact, at UCLA it was discussed in both the student and faculty interview. However, I was just very honest and was accepted at MSU and UCLA and have not heard from OHSU yet. Of course I will go to UCLA and I understand that the school has a very supportive program. I believe honesty is the best policy. Good Luck and remember that every burden you have overcome has shaped who you are and has made you that much stronger.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">Originally posted by dancew/me:
Hi everyone, this is my first time posting, and I need some advice.

I'm currently preparing for my interview with the University of Washington which will be in March. In December, I was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder which I believe may have been a factor in getting such a LOW score on my MCAT verbal. My other scores were very average, and I got an R on the writing. Recieving an interview came as a huge surprise considering my low scores. The problem is such that I don't know whether or not (and how much) to tell the interviewers (1 of 3 will have my stats) about my ADD. My med school friend have told me that will ask if I have anything in my file that needs explaining; however, explaining seems to help, but mostly hurt my chances. (I'm on my first day of dosage trials for ADD drugs.) Any wisdom is very much appreciated! Thanks. •

 

[PaddingtonBear]

I have LD and mentioned it during my interviews and no one semeed to have a problem with it. Most of them seemed interested in the topic. I was waitlisted at SUNY Buffalo and NYU, but was accepted into SUNY Downstate so I do not think it hurts to mention it. Good Luck!