activity descriptions and highly politicized topics

[pleasehelpme12]

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Getting ready to reapply and I am a little worried that one of my new activities could end up being a red flag with the current administrations politics.

One of my main weaknesses this past cycle was a lack of non-clinical volunteering, so I spent the last year volunteering at a youth and young adult soup kitchen with a strong focus on supporting trans people.

In the context of the current administration's positions will schools be hesitant to admit someone with a strong clearly stated position on LGBT rights, and with trans people specifically? should I just frame this activity in terms of service to homeless people without mentioning the specifics?

My school list was very narrow the first time through, and I plan to apply broadly this time since it obviously didn't work out, but that makes me worried about more red states like Florida. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, thanks everyone.

 

[LizzyM]

Does the sexual identity of the persons you served who were hungry really matter? Did you serve them food because they were hungry or because they were "trans people"? Just say you served people in a soup kitchen.

 

[pleasehelpme12]

Does the sexual identity of the persons you served who were hungry really matter? Did you serve them food because they were hungry or because they were "trans people"? Just say you served people in a soup kitchen.

it matters to me for personal reasons in my own life, I am not trans but I have a lot of trans people in my life and have seen them go through a lot with housing. that being said, it would be hard to discern that from what is on my app right now, and housing insecurity more broadly is a big theme of my app, so I think you are right that I can just focus on the soup kitchen aspect.

thank you

 

[hommefatale]

Personally, I wouldn't want to attend a school that would be opposed to a supportive position on LGBT rights.

 

[pleasehelpme12]

Personally, I wouldn't want to attend a school that would be opposed to a supportive position on LGBT rights.

I hear you but that's what I said last cycle, now I am about to drop another 4k in applications and spend another year doing this. I'm not a rock star so ill take what I can get this time with schools.

Edit: also to be clear I’m not applying to any clearly anti lgbt schools, I am just worried about getting filtered out to avoid the headache of a student with overtly pro lgbt politics. I don’t even know if this happens, but the thought popped into my head so I figured I’d ask.

 

[Mangoenthusiast]

I did research in gender-affirming care, and also specifically served trans patients in my volunteer work. It was something I spoke about passionately in a lot of essays, and I was able to get 5 As this cycle. Obviously my As were handed out prior to the mess happening with Trump and higher education, but overall medical schools tend to be liberal entities and might still value diversity. Be a little bit careful but I think it’s ok to write about if you have a personal connection.

That being said, speaking on these issues was kinda inevitable for me because my activities were so centered on gender-affirming care. If you feel uncomfortable saying something, you can easily leave that portion out of your description and say you worked at a soup kitchen.

 

[polymerization]

I hear you but that's what I said last cycle, now I am about to drop another 4k in applications and spend another year doing this. I'm not a rock star so ill take what I can get this time with schools.

Edit: also to be clear I’m not applying to any clearly anti lgbt schools, I am just worried about getting filtered out to avoid the headache of a student with overtly pro lgbt politics. I don’t even know if this happens, but the thought popped into my head so I figured I’d ask.

At the same time, to believe in human rights only when it is convenient and beneficial to you seems counterintuitive as an aspiring physician. The trans folks close to you are still going through all of those challenges (read: literally fighting for their right to exist), and they've only gotten immeasurably worse over the course of the year.

If a man with a giant tattooed swastika on his chest arrives to the ER in the midst of a heart attack, you would, as a physician, have a duty to care for him—point blank, period. You may not agree with his politics, but you must acknowledge his humanity. That is your job. To turn him away would be to violate EMTALA, several codes of ethics, and arguably, even the Hippocratic Oath.

It's unbelievably sad that the chilling effect of this administration has clearly permeated all corners of higher education, but it is still your responsibility as a human being to hold on to the ideals of the profession, even when it's hard—especially when it's hard.

To do otherwise is to show who you really are: an opportunist willing to toss the least fortunate among us down the river when it matters the most.

The choice is yours. I certainly won't know what you claim on your application. But you will.

These four years will be over, someday. Schools that are feeling the pinch of the administration—literally all of them—are probably deferent to it by necessity, but not because they agree. They don't have any direct power over the government.

What they do get is the ability to select the future professional class that will engage directly with the highest rungs of society.

If you're an admissions committee participating in this year's cycle, and you don't feel things are going well—how do you think you will view incoming students that will graduate in four years, when all of this is set to turn?

These won't just be medical students. For an intelligent committee, admissions is going to be a game of hoarding ammunition this year. Students who truly believe in their mission, even when it is unpopular. Students who will become physicians that insist on our fundamental rights. Physicians truly dedicated to protecting quality healthcare access for everyone, not just a particular demographic subset of the community.

Viewed from this vantage point, it isn't about whether schools will respond well to your beliefs; it's about how many of them believe in their own covenant with the public. It is so much bigger than just you—so might as well just be yourself.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Have you networked with MSPA members at the schools on your list about your concerns?

 

[Goro]

Just don't apply to Belmont, LUCOM, or Loma Linda and you'll be fine.

 

[ecobio]

I dont think you need to omit discussion about supporting the trans community on your application. A central part of my app was helping the LGBT community through crisis/mental health struggles/etc and I managed just fine.

 

[Rachapkis]

In general, I suspect that medical school adcoms are more liberal with respect to LGBT issues than the population at large. However, with any given adcom, YMMV. If you want to play it absolutely safe, I would focus on the activity (feeding people) rather than the identify of the people being fed (trans community). However, if that feels uncomfortable (which it might to me), I suspect that you could talk about all aspects of your experience without much risk.