Any Gay/Lesbian/Bi/Transgender students applying this year?

[ghettohill]

I would like to share stories of GLBT students applying this year, include or exclude GLBT orientation in your application, and your perception of the schools about GLBT environment after the interview. Allies are welcome. Thanks.

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[Revenant]

Not to start a flame war....but I've always wondered by GBLTIQA always included the T. Considering T involves choosing to have it loped off...whereas being gay is a natural occurrence.

 

[ghettohill]

Not to start a flame war....but I've always wondered by GBLTIQA always included the T. Considering T involves choosing to have it loped off...whereas being gay is a natural occurrence.

Lol. Good question Revenant. I'm not sure why either. But I have worked with many T people in the past through T Legal Center, and they are the nicest and bravest bunch of people I have met.

 

[bth7]

I would like to share stories of GLBT students applying this year, include or exclude GLBT orientation in your application, and your perception of the schools about GLBT environment after the interview. Allies are welcome. Thanks.

Here's some resources for you:

Gay and Lesbian Medical Association
American Medical Student Association
Sexual orientation and medicine

bth

 

[mtd0130]

well, i'd say that we include the T because gender identity, like sexual identity, isn't really a preference. people who are transgender often report never feeling comfortable with their body and have surgery to reconcile that.

as far as the application process, i've been out through the whole process and while i only have two interview invites, i don't think it's affected my application. one interview is at UVM and the other at UTHSCSA, so definitely opposite ends of the ideological spectrum. i decided that i wanted to be out on my application because i felt that my process of coming out played a huge role in my decision to apply to medical school and is definitely part of who i want to be as a physician.

 

[drizzt3117]

Does T specifically refer to postop ppl? I didn't know that was the case, or that you needed to have surgery to be transgender?

 

[ghettohill]

Thanks mtd0130, very informative indeed. When is your UVM interview? Good luck with it! I have just submitted my UVM secondary. Hope to hear back as well.

 

[twilightcitysky]

Transgender is used both pre- and post-op, by people who feel that they do not fit into the gender that they were assigned at birth, whether or not they choose to have surgery. Many people identify with and live life as a different gender than their biological sex. As far as I know (and I'm certainly not an expert, but I've had several close transgendered friends), "transsexual" is exclusively a post-sugery term.

I'm a bi candidate myself, but haven't been out during the application process... it didn't seem to really be relevant for me personally, but I did think about putting it on my UMass application when they asked about our attachment to the state. I'm still wondering whether or not I should have mentioned that- I will likely reside in MA after med school because I can get married to my same-sex partner here. Did this come up for anyone else applying in Massachusetts?

 

[ghettohill]

twilightcitysky, I have heard conflicting suggestions about being out in applications. Most healthcare practitioners I talked to suggested to not be out in application. I have decided to not mention GLBT in my application so they can get to know me as a person rather than a 'gay' person. For MA, I am applying to Harvard. Would be interesting to see what you experience with UMass being that MA is leading the states in offering equality in marriage.

 

[aaj117]

Hi! Yay i've wanted to start a thread like this for a while. I guess i just identify as queer because I think that sexuality is fluid and don't want to weigh myself down with a definite label, but if i have to i go with Bi. I have been out in the application process, very out at some schools. I discussed this with my pre-health advisor, and he strongly suggested i be out because i have so much leadership experience with LGBT groups from my time as an undergrad, and i'm really glad i did it, because like he said i wouldn't really be comfortable at a school that rejected me for it. I spoke with the heads of admissions for Penn and Harvard, and they also both recommended me being out in applications because of my experiences, and who's going to argue wtih them? SO i did it. While my AMCAS included the majority of my LGBT activism work and activities, on some applications i also chose to write about it on secondaries. At tufts i wrote about it in my diversity essay, at howard and morehouse i wrote about the LGBT (especially T) community as an underserved community that i would like to make more visible at my time in medical school, and in Brown's essay i did the same thing, writing about my best attribute being my ability to advocate for and communicate with others, and how i chose to apply to brown becuase they were the first University to include gender identity in their non-discrimination clause and i believe they're still the only medical school to include it. I have interviews at all of these schools, and already have acceptances from two, so I am sure that it did not hurt me.
Also, my undergraduate institution's pre-health advisor is working to make a website for LGBT students applying to medical school, just kind of an advice thing on whether or not to be out, what schools were more or less friendly about it, where students do or don't feel comfortable when they enter med school, etc. If anyone has any experiences that they wouldn't mind being on that website, please note it at the bottom of your post for me so i can let him know? Thanks so much guys!

 

[aaj117]

twilightcitysky, I have heard conflicting suggestions about being out in applications. Most healthcare practitioners I talked to suggested to not be out in application. I have decided to not mention GLBT in my application so they can get to know me as a person rather than a 'gay' person. For MA, I am applying to Harvard. Would be interesting to see what you experience with UMass being that MA is leading the states in offering equality in marriage.

Our pre-health advisor suggested only being out if it is relevant to your med school application. As in, if you identify as GLBT but haven't done any extracurriculars and / or it hasn't influenced you wanting to become a doctor, there is no reason to mention it and it's hard to find an appropriate way to do so. However, if you have done lots of activism work, or volunteered/worked at an LGBT clinic, or anything like that, it is definitely relevant and shouldn't be left off of your application. For instance i was an officer for my school's undergrad LGBT organization, the pride alliance, so i included this. I did peer education to help stop homophobia on my campus, and included that. i did work-study at the LGBT center. I also have done some medically related thigns in this field such as petitioning the red cross to allow gay men to donate blood, and have been strongly impacted by transgendered and gay patients i have had who reported being refused health care because people did not understand them. These are all things that enhance an application, so leaving them off may hurt you as an applicant. Also, includign these activities could make one just a strong ally to the community; i never wrote about dating women, or being queer, just abotu working within the community.

 

[aaj117]

Does T specifically refer to postop ppl? I didn't know that was the case, or that you needed to have surgery to be transgender?

Transgender is often used as an umbrella term for people who feel that they were born the wrong gender, or feel that they do not fit within the two gender options as they are normally defined. Not all transgender people decide to transition, some choose to remain in the bodies they were born. Others wish to transition but cannot afford it, while still others go through partial or full transitions, including hormones only, or hormones and surgery. A transitioned patient is known as a transexual, a specific term which falls under the larger umbrella of transgendered.

Okay i will stop hijacking this thread, sorry for three posts in a row this is just my favorite topic on sdn.

 

[ghettohill]

aaj117, you rock GIRL!! Congrats. Thanks for posting your experience. 🙂

 

[aaj117]

aaj117, you rock GIRL!! Congrats. Thanks for posting your experience. 🙂

You're quite welcome. Hahaha since someone broke up the pattern of me posting continuously, lol i will include one public service announcement:
DO NOT let the religious affiliation of Georgetown make you nervous about applying there. This school is amazing. You are informed at the interview that the jesuits are big on "accepting you as you are" and accepting of everyone. Ms Sullivan was talking about the possibility of tracking patient populations for multiple years for your research project, and i asked her if it would be possible to do this with the LGBT population even though there wasn't a program yet in place, and while i was in my interview she asked around and was told that i would be able to do it and got a list of possible mentors for the project.

 

[ghettohill]

Awesome, I am working on my secondary to Georgetown at the moment. A bit late in the application process due to the delay in primary. Your info has been very encouraging. Thanks again.

 

[Textuality]

Yeah, I never included it because I'm not involved in any GBLT groups on campus very heavily. And obviously, nobody at interviews has directly asked me, haha (although of course, I wouldn't lie about it).

Part of me wants to go to an interview in a men's suit and tie (i'm a girl) and see if anybody comments on it. My friend thinks that they probably wouldn't say anything out of fear it might be construed as questions regarding sexuality which are illegal, lol.

 

[ghettohill]

Textuality, now that would be fun showing up as girl-boy. lol. Imagine the surprise on some of the interviewer's face as they restrain themselves from saying anything. BUT, seriously, I don't think it is a good idea and I am glad you are not doing it.

 

[Flopotomist]

Good luck all you GLBTers... If anybody has any questions about Loyola... feel free to PM me. We could always use a few more in the club.

 

[HumbleMD]

Just to toss in my 2 cents, from some notable schools I looked into last year.
UMichigan: A great and accepting school for LGBTQI students, but the scene in the town kind of stinks.
Baylor: School and students are more or less open-minded and accepting, but the city itself has a good gay district.
Emory: The school and students seem more accepting than at Baylor, and the city is considered the gay mecca of the south.
WashU: I was told by the diversity director "I think we have a gay student or something." Oooh, bad sign. The city is in the heart of the bread basket and isolated as hell too.
Duke: The school is liberal and open-minded (The dean of admissions is gay himself), but the area is not, and very isolating.
Penn (I'm a little biased here): Incredibly liberal and understanding city, with a great gay scene. The mayor himself recently officialized this citiy's "gayborhood" by giving it rainbow street signs. The school is also incredibly open to LGBTQI students (the university has a 25 year old LGBTQI center). All in all though, we don't have a whole lotta gay students, dedinitely under 10 per class, but I think we're underrrepresented almost everywhere in medicine (except for Yale, of course).

As far as being out on your application, I wasn't, but I didn't have any inolvement with any LGBTQI groups in college, so it wasn't really relevant (do people "out" themselves as straight in their applications or interviews?) If you choose to be out in the application process, it would be a good test to make sure you end up in a place were they really want all of you, not just a selective part of your being. That being said, there definitely are some folks out there in the very conservative field of medicine who aren't as open-minded and may hold it against you in an interview, even though they aren't supposed to (and we're a freaking protected class under the law now).

P.S. aaj117, let us know about that website. Sounds like a great project.

 

[Azadi]

I didn't write about being bisexual in my applications because I figured the only place I would is the challenging experience or diversity type questions. Being Native American and poor is probably enough for them anyway.

Here in Oklahoma it's sometimes almost too much for a bisexual ("promiscuous") Native American ("drunk")/Iranian ("terrorist") atheist ("hateful godless heathen")...😱

 

[aaj117]

Just to toss in my 2 cents, from some notable schools I looked into last year.
UMichigan: A great and accepting school for LGBTQI students, but the scene in the town kind of stinks.
Baylor: School and students are more or less open-minded and accepting, but the city itself has a good gay district.
Emory: The school and students seem more accepting than at Baylor, and the city is considered the gay mecca of the south.
WashU: I was told by the diversity director "I think we have a gay student or something." Oooh, bad sign. The city is in the heart of the bread basket and isolated as hell too.
Duke: The school is liberal and open-minded (The dean of admissions is gay himself), but the area is not, and very isolating.
Penn (I'm a little biased here): Incredibly liberal and understanding city, with a great gay scene. The mayor himself recently officialized this citiy's "gayborhood" by giving it rainbow street signs. The school is also incredibly open to LGBTQI students (the university has a 25 year old LGBTQI center). All in all though, we don't have a whole lotta gay students, dedinitely under 10 per class, but I think we're underrrepresented almost everywhere (except for Yale, of course).

As far as being out on your application, I wasn't, but I didn't have any inolvement with any LGBTQI groups in college, so it wasn't really relevant (do people "out" themselves as straight in their applications or interviews?) If you choose to be out in the application process, it would be a good test to make sure you end up in a place were they really want all of you, not just a selective part of your being. That being said, there definitely are some folks out there in the very conservative field of medicine who aren't as open-minded and may hold it against you in an interview, even though they aren't supposed to (and we're a freaking protected class under the law now).

P.S. aaj117, let us know about that website. Sounds like a great project.

Awesome report, thanks so much for that. A little note on your emory quote, i didn't apply there but i did recently interview at morehouse which is also in Atl. It was interesting i found a huge trans community, and lots and lots of clubs/bars for gay men, but very little in the way of anything for lesbians. I didn't really know anyone there to help me find it, either, as i was staying with undergrads from morehouse, which is an all men's school undergrad.
I second that notion about penn, their LGBT center is phenominal, and the undergrad is very open and accepting, and all of the queer med students i've met love it there. This was one of my main motivaitons for having penn as a top choice, the other of course being the facilities. I live in Philly now and really enjoy the community here. Unfortunately i haven't gotten a single philly interview, so it doesn't look like i'll be staying here next year. HumbleMD do you attend penn?

 

[ghettohill]

HumbleMD, great report. Thanks. Now I wish I had applied to Penn. I was at UCSF for several years and hence hoping to get back to UCSF or Stanford. UCSF is definately not a problem, but anyone probably would have concluded that easily. Your description of Penn is very encouraging. The AMCAS book should include this kinds of tidbit information in their annual publication. Maybe we can lobby them to do so. lol.

 

[Jolie South]

well, i'd say that we include the T because gender identity, like sexual identity, isn't really a preference. people who are transgender often report never feeling comfortable with their body and have surgery to reconcile that.

as far as the application process, i've been out through the whole process and while i only have two interview invites, i don't think it's affected my application. one interview is at UVM and the other at UTHSCSA, so definitely opposite ends of the ideological spectrum. i decided that i wanted to be out on my application because i felt that my process of coming out played a huge role in my decision to apply to medical school and is definitely part of who i want to be as a physician.

FWIW, UTHSC SA is not on the other end of the ideological spectrum. While it could be argued that Texas is typically conservative, I feel that UTHSC SA is open to diversity and I know it is quite friendly to non-trads so I wouldn't see why it wouldn't be just as friendly to GLBT.

 

[mtd0130]

FWIW, UTHSC SA is not on the other end of the ideological spectrum. While it could be argued that Texas is typically conservative, I feel that UTHSC SA is open to diversity and I know it is quite friendly to non-trads so I wouldn't see why it wouldn't be just as friendly to GLBT.

i'm sure the school is open to diversity, and quite excited about my interview! i grew up 2 hours from san antonio so i was speaking in generalities about the region and comparing it to vermont.

 

[Aynsl156]

I didn't mention anything about sexuality on my application, mostly because I've not held leadership positions in any of my LGBT clubs or activities. I've been a member of campus clubs and a volunteer in the local pride parade, but I don't think it extraordinarily relevant to my application, since my AAPI community health projects take up a lot more space and geared more clinically. I'm about a 2.5 on the kinsey scale, but I'll just get involved in local pride and LGBT events when I'm already attending their school.

Anyone know anything about Yale? My friend (she's out, but not vocal about it) attends the graduate school, but that's about all I know.

 

[BeatrixKiddo]

Once I was walking around on campus and this girl yelled at me "Hey! Do you have a minute for gay rights!" and she didn't enunciate properly so I thought she said "Hey! Do you have a minute for Gaterade!" So I just said no and kept walking, then later I realized it was gay day or whatever and thought, hm, maybe I would have stopped if I knew what she said.

 

[lackoftalent]

Hey everyone!

Is anyone considering working with the GLBTQ community as a physician? I think it'd be cool to work at callen-lorde or somewhere similar.

!!!

 

[aaj117]

Hey everyone! (I'm bumping up the thread)

Is anyone considering working with the GLBTQI community as a physician? I think it'd be cool to work at callen-lorde or somewhere similar.

!!!

I definitely am. When i was at Georgetown they were talking about how a lot of students track patient populations for their research project and there were programs in place to track pt pops of elderly, certain minorities, and i asked if we could do a pop that didn't have a program in place yet. ms sullivan looked into it for me while i was interviewing and pretty much guaranteed that they'd be able to find me a mentor and help set it up and i was really really excited. i am especially interested in working wtih transgendered patients as these patients often don't have access to healthcare, especially physicians who are knowledgeable about trans issues and don't make them feel ashamed or stigmatized.

 

[JaggerPlate]

Hi! Yay i've wanted to start a thread like this for a while. I guess i just identify as queer because I think that sexuality is fluid and don't want to weigh myself down with a definite label, but if i have to i go with Bi. I have been out in the application process, very out at some schools. I discussed this with my pre-health advisor, and he strongly suggested i be out because i have so much leadership experience with LGBT groups from my time as an undergrad, and i'm really glad i did it, because like he said i wouldn't really be comfortable at a school that rejected me for it. I spoke with the heads of admissions for Penn and Harvard, and they also both recommended me being out in applications because of my experiences, and who's going to argue wtih them? SO i did it. While my AMCAS included the majority of my LGBT activism work and activities, on some applications i also chose to write about it on secondaries. At tufts i wrote about it in my diversity essay, at howard and morehouse i wrote about the LGBT (especially T) community as an underserved community that i would like to make more visible at my time in medical school, and in Brown's essay i did the same thing, writing about my best attribute being my ability to advocate for and communicate with others, and how i chose to apply to brown becuase they were the first University to include gender identity in their non-discrimination clause and i believe they're still the only medical school to include it. I have interviews at all of these schools, and already have acceptances from two, so I am sure that it did not hurt me.
Also, my undergraduate institution's pre-health advisor is working to make a website for LGBT students applying to medical school, just kind of an advice thing on whether or not to be out, what schools were more or less friendly about it, where students do or don't feel comfortable when they enter med school, etc. If anyone has any experiences that they wouldn't mind being on that website, please note it at the bottom of your post for me so i can let him know? Thanks so much guys!

I have seen this on the board a few times now, and have wanted to know ... is 'queer' the preferred term?? It sounds a little harsh to me (but I am a heterosexual male) so I was just wondering??

 

[aaj117]

I have seen this on the board a few times now, and have wanted to know ... is 'queer' the preferred term?? It sounds a little harsh to me (but I am a heterosexual male) so I was just wondering??

It totally depends on the individual. Some are offended by that word, others prefer it. At this point, there is no word for it that can't be taken as offensive. Every day people say "that's so gay" to indicate that they dislike something, queer used to be the derogatory term, then it became ***, and i'm pretty sure that the only reasons there are so many names and identifications is because every time people find one that they aren't offended by, the general public turns it offensive by tone and usage. Anyway, getting down from my soapbox, like i said some people love it some people hate it. I prefer it because it doesn't indicate my sexuality and i don't have to directly define myself; Sometimes i go months, even years, only attracted to one gender, but then later it changes. Sometimes i'm not sure if i identify as bisexual, straight, or a lesbian. Sometimes i get angry that i should have to identify as one instead of just being a person...people see me dating a girl and get confused and ask "what are you then?" as though who you're attracted to can't change over time or you have to be defined for them to accept you. Queer is kind of a way to erradicate that feeling of a definition, for some people. I know plenty of heterosexual people who identify as queer because they are strong allies, and they also don't like that people are so defined by their sexuality. So, it's a word that means a lot of different things to a lot of different people, and that's why i like it.

 

[aaj117]

an addendum: it probably sounds harsh to you because you recall hearing it used in a harsh way, people harassing others, yelling "hey, you, queer!" type of thing just like people yelling **** or *** (hey mods, please dont' put me on probation or anything for using offensive words, i'm just going through the etiologies). There is a difference when it's said with that tone than when i say "i identify as queer". I'm not saying it with hate in my voice. does that make more sense?

Also, i really appreciate you as a straight male taking the time to ask such questions and attempt to understand, rather than judging. Thank you.

 

[lackoftalent]

I definitely am. When i was at Georgetown they were talking about how a lot of students track patient populations for their research project and there were programs in place to track pt pops of elderly, certain minorities, and i asked if we could do a pop that didn't have a program in place yet. ms sullivan looked into it for me while i was interviewing and pretty much guaranteed that they'd be able to find me a mentor and help set it up and i was really really excited. i am especially interested in working wtih transgendered patients as these patients often don't have access to healthcare, especially physicians who are knowledgeable about trans issues and don't make them feel ashamed or stigmatized.

That's great! There's such a need for that too! I have a few trans friends who have had a difficult time locating understanding/knowledgeable physicians. Though, now that we are in nyc, it has been a bit easier👍. I have one FTM friend who had a horrible time finding a decent psychiatrist. I won't even go into the hundreds of misdiagnoses he faced (some of them were really incredible). I was pretty active in my GLBTQ group at school, and I'm pretty sure I'd like to work in a GLBTQ community health center. It's nice to find others! Your project sounds really interesting.

 

[33Tchica]

good luck to you guys

 

[sprinkibrio]

WashU: I was told by the diversity director "I think we have a gay student or something." Oooh, bad sign. The city is in the heart of the bread basket and isolated as hell too.

While the school may be conservative St. Louis has got a couple of good gay districts.

 

[bth7]

Hey everyone!

Is anyone considering working with the GLBTQ community as a physician? I think it'd be cool to work at callen-lorde or somewhere similar.

!!!

Callen-Lorde = My Dream Job. 😍😍


bth

 

[reverend doc]

I'm a first-year med student at Brown this year. I think I only mentioned my same-sex partner in the Stanford diversity essay, but I've worked for two different research studies involving GLBT health (one in Boston, one in the Bay Area), both of which were on my application.

Last year I found that the three schools I agonized between -- UVM, Case, and Brown -- all seemed quite queer-friendly. Case had a special GLBT social at their second look weekend, which I couldn't attend -- but the fact that they made the effort felt really nice.

Brown has had a very active queer med student group this year. There are about 7-8 out people in my class, and a number in the year above us. There's also an elective on Gender and Sexuality in health care which has about 35 people signed up. That said, I have found that the class in general is far less aware of sexuality issues than I felt like my undergrad was (and probably than Brown is as a larger university). They do seem open, though, if somewhat unaware. My anatomy lab group is fascinated and confounded by the idea of a fluid sexuality, so I definitely spend every lab session doing some serious sexuality education. It's a strange context, for sure.

I should mention that the faculty are *very* queer sensitive. We've had a number of lectures on intersex conditions -- one of the deans of the medical school is a major advocate for the intersex society of america. Also, there is a constant reminder in our doctoring classes that we shouldn't make assumptions about gender identity or sexual orientation.

Good luck to all of you this year! Feel free to pm if you have any questions. I mostly only know about Brown at this point, but if you're thinking about coming here I'm happy to try and tell you more.

 

[JDUB44]

nah, better not say that.

 

[lackoftalent]

Callen-Lorde = My Dream Job. 😍😍


bth

me too! i <3 that place.

 

[bth7]

For all you LGBT and allies out there, I highly recommend doing two things:

Joining AMSA and the LGBT med student listsev.

Joining GLMA

Both the groups are very open to pre-meds. They are the voice of LGBT people in medicine.

bth

 

[Dr2012]

I've been a sdn reader for a while, but I finally signed up, so here is my experience w/ being a gay applicant. 🙂

I was out on all of my applications, because it was relevant to my academic history/path. Initially I did worry that it might hurt my application, but I decided that I wouldn't want to spend 4 years at a school where it would be an issue anyway. For those worrying, I haven't had any trouble getting interviews (10 so far). From my own experiences and from speaking w/ gay med students, most places it really won't affect an application. If anything it may contribute to the perspectives and life experiences you can bring to the table. In the end there are so many other more important things to consider (MCAT, grades, research, ECs) that it has felt like a non-issue for me.

That being said, I wasn't applying anywhere in the midwest or south, where things may be more conservative all around.

 

[Tony326]

Hey everyone!

Is anyone considering working with the GLBTQ community as a physician? I think it'd be cool to work at callen-lorde or somewhere similar.

!!!

Ok, this is where I have to throw in a plug for NYU. I had the opportunity to shadow at Callen-Lorde for the patient contact aspect of first year and I learned a lot more about things such as HIV and Transgender patient treatment from just observing there than I've learned in the classroom. It was a fantastic experience.

 

[aaj117]

Cornell has added gender identity to their non-discrimination clause. Just thought you guys should know. Don't know if that'll make anyone else as happy as it has made me.

 

[bigman123]

i hear URM LGBT students get an acceptance to Harvard Med automatically.

 

[HumbleMD]

i hear URM LGBT students get an acceptance to Harvard Med automatically.

🙄

 

[Twiigg]

This may be a really stupid question... so prepare yourselves! 😳 First of all, are URMs just minority applicants? And, if so, are gay/lesbian/bi/trans applicants considered URMs?

 

[33Tchica]

Hello.

LGBT is not URM for the purpose of application to medical school.

Whether or not LGBT status will be considered favorably seems like a crapshoot depending on the school and admissions team. Case in point: I was rejected pre-sec from EVMS but not UCSF. I speculate part of the reason why is that the people at UCSF are more knowledgable and more welcoming. Here's another example. At an interview, I was essentially made fun of by the woman for being T. Another guy at the same school thought I was really courageous.

Here's my advice: if your status as LGBT has been a major part of your life definitely write that down. You don't want to go to a school that won't accept you. I want to work with low income trans people so of course I wrote about what it's like to grow up with a lot of [medical and other] discrimination and how it made me want to be a doctor to help this population.

I kind of think trans people should be considered URM because I know of only 1 or 2 trans doctors in the whole world - not that many. Also there is a huge shortage of medical care for this population. If it were up to me, we would be URM, but that is just not the case.

I really hope medical schools look at not just race though. Of course I support affirmative action for URMs but they also need to look at SES and try to gauge the actual level of adversity one has faced. At least in my case, I have to believe my background is a plus because I am a very unique applicant. My personal comments essay is probably nothing like any other they are going to read this year. At the very least I will probably stand out and leave an impression. I also have a really strong motivation to pursue medicine, and it's not "Daddy wants me to be a doctor."

Hope this answers your question.

 

[senseiturtle]

I've got no problems with homosexuals or the community, but it should be noted that most old guys who run medical schools and the admissions committees are generally very conservative and very "republican," to put it lightly.

Sure, being a homosexual leads to additional struggles and acceptance issues, but a big part of the admissions process is based on SUBJECTIVE evaluation. If I were in this situation, I really wouldn't focus on it, unless you've got a 100% unique and novel-worthy amazing story of "overcoming the odds" and "triumph."

I know we're all looking for that competitive edge, but sometimes it might be better to stick to your guns. If you participated or were-president-of Spectrum alliance or any number of gay-advancement organizations, then I'd list those on the basis of leadership position... but I can almost guarantee that if you make "being gay" the primary focus of your personal statement, it's going to come across as "edgy" and may turn off a few members of committees.

I wish you guys/gals the best. It's tough enough as it is.

 

[LifetimeDoc]

I was open on my application in that I mentioned being together with my partner for almost 10 years. I got into medical school. I am open about being gay in medical school if anyone asks me. I haven't had any problems yet.

 

[bth7]

Hello.

LGBT is not URM for the purpose of application to medical school.

Whether or not LGBT status will be considered favorably seems like a crapshoot depending on the school and admissions team. Case in point: I was rejected pre-sec from EVMS but not UCSF. I speculate part of the reason why is that the people at UCSF are more knowledgable and more welcoming. Here's another example. At an interview, I was essentially made fun of by the woman for being T. Another guy at the same school thought I was really courageous.

Here's my advice: if your status as LGBT has been a major part of your life definitely write that down. You don't want to go to a school that won't accept you. I want to work with low income trans people so of course I wrote about what it's like to grow up with a lot of [medical and other] discrimination and how it made me want to be a doctor to help this population.

I kind of think trans people should be considered URM because I know of only 1 or 2 trans doctors in the whole world - not that many. Also there is a huge shortage of medical care for this population. If it were up to me, we would be URM, but that is just not the case.

I really hope medical schools look at not just race though. Of course I support affirmative action for URMs but they also need to look at SES and try to gauge the actual level of adversity one has faced. At least in my case, I have to believe my background is a plus because I am a very unique applicant. My personal comments essay is probably nothing like any other they are going to read this year. At the very least I will probably stand out and leave an impression. I also have a really strong motivation to pursue medicine, and it's not "Daddy wants me to be a doctor."

Hope this answers your question.

👍
Just wanted to applaud your efforts.
We absolutely need more T people in medicine.
Represent!
🙂

 

[HumbleMD]

Hello.

LGBT is not URM for the purpose of application to medical school.

Whether or not LGBT status will be considered favorably seems like a crapshoot depending on the school and admissions team. Case in point: I was rejected pre-sec from EVMS but not UCSF. I speculate part of the reason why is that the people at UCSF are more knowledgable and more welcoming. Here's another example. At an interview, I was essentially made fun of by the woman for being T. Another guy at the same school thought I was really courageous.

Here's my advice: if your status as LGBT has been a major part of your life definitely write that down. You don't want to go to a school that won't accept you. I want to work with low income trans people so of course I wrote about what it's like to grow up with a lot of [medical and other] discrimination and how it made me want to be a doctor to help this population.

I kind of think trans people should be considered URM because I know of only 1 or 2 trans doctors in the whole world - not that many. Also there is a huge shortage of medical care for this population. If it were up to me, we would be URM, but that is just not the case.

I really hope medical schools look at not just race though. Of course I support affirmative action for URMs but they also need to look at SES and try to gauge the actual level of adversity one has faced. At least in my case, I have to believe my background is a plus because I am a very unique applicant. My personal comments essay is probably nothing like any other they are going to read this year. At the very least I will probably stand out and leave an impression. I also have a really strong motivation to pursue medicine, and it's not "Daddy wants me to be a doctor."

Hope this answers your question.

Let us know about the status of your application and keep us updated. I definitely don't know any trans-gendered physicians (there's few enough of us LGBs around to begin with). Best of luck!