American White Boy Diversity?

[TheBoneDoctah]

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So I am having trouble with all these prompts that have to deal with diversity. I am a Caucasian 26 year old male (will be 27 when entering medical school). I have lived my entire life in California and come from a middle class family. I am trying to spin this question so that I can answer it with something but I honestly can't find anything that makes me diverse. Anyone else having this problem and how did you answer it?

 

[M.MD]

So I am having trouble with all these prompts that have to deal with diversity. I am a Caucasian 26 year old male (will be 27 when entering medical school). I have lived my entire life in California and come from a middle class family. I am trying to spin this question so that I can answer it with something but I honestly can't find anything that makes me diverse. Anyone else having this problem and how did you answer it?

You don't need to be poor or a racial minority to bring diversity to the table. What have you done or experienced that you think not many other people have, and how does that affect your motivation for going into medicine? Ex. I was a military brat, so I lived abroad for most of my life and was exposed to all different kinds of people, cultures, and belief systems. This was part of my inspiration for going into medicine.

Edit: I should mention that I'm also a white male from a middle class family, but I still think I bring "diversity" to my class because of my experiences.

 

[mrh125]

you have to add more mayonnaise to your diversity statements.

 

[acquiescing]

You're 26. What have you done that delayed your matriculation until now and how does it provide you with a unique perspective?

 

[mcloaf]

You don't need to be poor or a racial minority to bring diversity to the table. What have you done or experienced that you think not many other people have, and how does that affect your motivation for going into medicine? Ex. I was a military brat, so I lived abroad for most of my life and was exposed to all different kinds of people, cultures, and belief systems. This was part of my inspiration for going into medicine.

Edit: I should mention that I'm also a white male from a middle class family, but I still think I bring "diversity" to my class because of my experiences.

This. Many an average white dude before you has gotten into medical school by simply giving this essay the old college try. There are compelling things about you that make you what you are, you just have to identify them and write about them reasonably cohesively. If you're really stuck, try asking friends or family. They're sure to notice things about you that are obvious to them but may not have occurred to you. Just being in your late twenties separates you from a lot of applicants, you are probably more mature and have more life experiences on which you can draw than most kids just finishing undergrad.

 

[mysdnhandle]

Just talk about your love of Chipotle and Panda Express.

 

[Spinach Dip]

Sorry, you're too average for med school.


Have you thought about dentistry?

 

[Gauss44]

So I am having trouble with all these prompts that have to deal with diversity. I am a Caucasian 26 year old male (will be 27 when entering medical school). I have lived my entire life in California and come from a middle class family. I am trying to spin this question so that I can answer it with something but I honestly can't find anything that makes me diverse. Anyone else having this problem and how did you answer it?

Just about any committed diversity leader/recruiter would highly value a person from your background who is a strong ally of some minority group. Is there any minority group that you would be interested in learning about and helping in some way?

Non-minority allies are extremely powerful and can often help minority groups in ways that they cannot help themselves.

 

[allantois]

Well actually white boys are becoming a minority of students receiving bachelor degrees in the US (as well as other developed countries). I am talking about the gender gap here

 

[Lamel]

Talk about reverse racism that you have experienced, and that you don't like checking your privilege.

 

[DermViser]

Talk about reverse racism that you have experienced, and that you don't like checking your privilege.

Ah, the 20 year old liberal who believes we all should pay for illegal immigrants with our taxes. Welcome.

 

[Mad Jack]

Non-minority allies are extremely powerful and can often help minority groups in ways that they cannot help themselves.

You should open with this line and close with one about how much you loved The Last Samurai

 

[Goro]

The whole point of the prompt is to make you look past your nose. There's more to diversity than your skin color. What is something truly unique about you that you bring to the table????

So I am having trouble with all these prompts that have to deal with diversity. I am a Caucasian 26 year old male (will be 27 when entering medical school). I have lived my entire life in California and come from a middle class family. I am trying to spin this question so that I can answer it with something but I honestly can't find anything that makes me diverse. Anyone else having this problem and how did you answer it?

 

[Gauss44]

Just about any committed diversity leader/recruiter would highly value a person from your background who is a strong ally of some minority group. Is there any minority group that you would be interested in learning about and helping in some way?

Non-minority allies are extremely powerful and can often help minority groups in ways that they cannot help themselves.

...And there's actually been a huge history of this. Just about every "rights" movement to date has examples. If you go this route, I think you have a good chance as coming across as interesting and thoughtful. In fact, these days some corporations are making a point to hire non-minorities who they believe will support their diversity efforts.

 

[Lamel]

Ah, the 20 year old liberal who believes we all should pay for illegal immigrants with our taxes. Welcome.

It was obviously a joke, I didn't mean to strike a nerve.

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Talk about reverse racism that you have experienced, and that you don't like checking your privilege.

What?

 

[mrh125]

talk about the adversity of being white. i mean even the sun's hating on you during the summer giving you the sunburn, which will make you turn into a peeling lobster 😛.

 

[Lamel]

What?

Lol it's a joke based around on all the "check your privilege" controversies going around.

 

[Mad Jack]

It was obviously a joke, I didn't mean to strike a nerve.

I think you struck a nerve with your immigration politics, not your amusing comment here.

 

[Lamel]

I think you struck a nerve with your immigration politics, not your amusing comment here.

Just healthy debate in the grand scheme of things, best not to take it personally.

 

[Mad Jack]

Just healthy debate in the grand scheme of things, best not to take it personally.

I didn't take it personally. Just saying that people on SDN are like elephants, they never forget.

 

[Lamel]

I didn't take it personally. Just saying that people on SDN are like elephants, they never forget.

I didn't mean you specifically, just in general.

The whole immigration debate thing has nothing to do with this topic, so its best to just stop polluting this thread with it. I don't know why dermviser even made that comment.

on topic: OP, since you're a non-trad, what have you been doing in the "real world" (being 26 and all); how do your experiences bring a different perspective to medical school? That's unique as well.

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

I didn't mean you specifically, just in general.

The whole immigration debate thing has nothing to do with this topic, so its best to just stop polluting this thread with it. I don't know why dermviser even made that comment.

on topic: OP, since you're a non-trad, what have you been doing in the "real world" (being 26 and all); how do your experiences bring a different perspective to medical school? That's unique as well.

Well I have a unique story in which I went to community college for 3 years straight out of high school. After the decision to pursue medicine, I finished my prerequisites for transfer and transferred to UCLA. I graduated last year and I have been working full time since graduation and live on my own.

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Just about any committed diversity leader/recruiter would highly value a person from your background who is a strong ally of some minority group. Is there any minority group that you would be interested in learning about and helping in some way?

Non-minority allies are extremely powerful and can often help minority groups in ways that they cannot help themselves.

Can you expand on this and offer an example? I am of course open to working with and treating patients from all walks of life. I am open to diversity and hope my school is diverse. I just can't really offer any diversity other than being older than the average applicant and having some extra life experience living on my own and having to pay for everything my entire life by myself (including undergrad).

 

[DermViser]

I think you struck a nerve with your immigration politics, not your amusing comment here.

I didn't mean you specifically, just in general.

The whole immigration debate thing has nothing to do with this topic, so its best to just stop polluting this thread with it. I don't know why dermviser even made that comment.

on topic: OP, since you're a non-trad, what have you been doing in the "real world" (being 26 and all); how do your experiences bring a different perspective to medical school? That's unique as well.

Bc based on your immigration politics comments, it wouldn't be at all beyond the realm of possibility that you believed your statement, "Talk about reverse racism that you have experienced, and that you don't like checking your privilege." It's called Poe's law: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poe's_law

 

[Lamel]

Bc based on your immigration politics comments, it wouldn't be at all beyond the realm of possibility that you believed your statement, "Talk about reverse racism that you have experienced, and that you don't like checking your privilege." It's called Poe's law: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poe's_law

Take it easy man. This was clear satire, and as much as you discount my opinions on the immigration topics it doesn't mean you need to bring it into other threads.

Well I have a unique story in which I went to community college for 3 years straight out of high school. After the decision to pursue medicine, I finished my prerequisites for transfer and transferred to UCLA. I graduated last year and I have been working full time since graduation and live on my own.

I'm sure there are unique/valuable aspects to this journey that you can talk about.

 

[LilEngineThatCould]

Well I have a unique story in which I went to community college for 3 years straight out of high school. After the decision to pursue medicine, I finished my prerequisites for transfer and transferred to UCLA. I graduated last year and I have been working full time since graduation and live on my own.

Talk about jobs that you worked in, esp if you worked in things outside of healthcare. For me, I worked at a shooting range (totally unrelated to medicine and why would a pre-med even get a job like that, right?? lol) and I have a pretty good knowledge base of firearms/injuries/lead exposure so I bring a whole new experience that other students may not have.

Interesting hobbies, life experiences, things that could help you relate to a certain subset of ppl too. Diversity can be found in all sorts of forms. Esp since you're a little older than most pre-meds that alone has probably provided you with experiences (like living on your own) that make you "diverse." Think outside the box.

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Talk about jobs that you worked in, esp if you worked in things outside of healthcare. For me, I worked at a shooting range (totally unrelated to medicine and why would a pre-med even get a job like that, right?? lol) and I have a pretty good knowledge base of firearms/injuries/lead exposure so I bring a whole new experience that other students may not have.

Interesting hobbies, life experiences, things that could help you relate to a certain subset of ppl too. Diversity can be found in all sorts of forms. Esp since you're a little older than most pre-meds that alone has probably provided you with experiences (like living on your own) that make you "diverse." Think outside the box.

I worked at Target during the holidays after graduating. I work full time now at LabCorp.

 

[Mad Jack]

I worked at Target during the holidays after graduating. I work full time now at LabCorp.

Did you work with diverse coworkers or customer populations?

Do you have any unique talents or skills? What makes you special? Have you done anything unique in your life?

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Did you work with diverse coworkers or customer populations?

Do you have any unique talents or skills? What makes you special? Have you done anything unique in your life?

I was pretty quick on the cash register haha.

 

[Deadlifts]

I worked at Target during the holidays after graduating. I work full time now at LabCorp.

Don't discount the value of customer service jobs.

I'm pretty WASPy when it comes to socioeconomics but I talked about all of my work experience and what unique perspectives I could bring to medicine.

 

[Narmerguy]

You know the funny thing about this is I didn't write about being African American for a single one of my diversity essays.

Don't look at this as a competition to show how hard your life is or how much you've struggled in the past. Use it as an opportunity to show the experiences and attributes that you have that you can bring to the table and enrich the medical school experience.

 

[mysdnhandle]

Just about any committed diversity leader/recruiter would highly value a person from your background who is a strong ally of some minority group. Is there any minority group that you would be interested in learning about and helping in some way?

Non-minority allies are extremely powerful and can often help minority groups in ways that they cannot help themselves.

Medicine is not social work.

 

[Laureatebarrel]

Diversity is in the mind - not where you are from. Are you thinking like a traditional, white male or are you just you?

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Diversity is in the mind - not where you are from. Are you thinking like a traditional, white male or are you just you?

I'm trying to think of what I could bring to the table that no one else can. If everyone brings diversity, I could bring non-diversity, therefore I would be bringing diversity. :0

 

[nOchemallday]

From this post on adversity and diversity:

below

"I've heard of how to answer this question in your (what I'm assuming is your) scenario as an interview format. But not as a written format.

In the case of interviews, paraphrased from a lecture by Dr. Kevin Ahern: if you don't have anything challenging to speak of without sounding trite (i.e. that XYZ class was the hardest thing you've ever had to do) is to simply address the fact that you have been fortunate enough not to be faced with exceptionally difficult circumstances. My family has had good health and few adversities and my parents created the opportunity for me to lead a better life than theirs. I recognize that personal growth and understanding can come from challenging situations. However, as I have had fortune in an otherwise undemanding life I've applied myself (and here you can take 2 routes) 1. to improve the lives of others who are less fortunate. OR 2. driven to challenge myself. and then expand on either 1. or 2. through an example.

In the case of not unique/diverse: In a post not too long ago by LizzyM, she liked the route of one applicant saying something to the effect of "I'm a brilliant and unique snowflake. In a blizzard of impeccable, and equally unique applicants." Go on to give an example of how your activities shaped your motivation and your nuanced overall application (Goro mentioned in a post how people often take one of 3 stances: 1. Research and science/academic orientation, 2. providing for an underserved comunity such as through volunteerism, or 3. well, I can't remember what 3 was). The preface indicates that these activities are not truly uniquely qualifying. An Adcom has literally defined applicants such that they fit 1 of 3 categories. But it's highly unlikely that several other applicants have the same motivation for med school as you which manifested itself in your XYZ activities.

Hopefully this gives you some kind of inspiration."

 

[Gauss44]

Look at page 4 of BU School of Medicine's diversity presentation here: chrome-extension://bpmcpldpdmajfigpchkicefoigmkfalc/views/app.html

They include SO MUCH: Age, religious beliefs, political beliefs, military status, marital status, etc.

You might fall into one of their categories.