Applying as US Permanent Resident Hurts?

[FlowRate]

ah yes. americans can NEVER leave america! USA! U-S-A!!

Fun fact: Becoming ex-patriated still technically requires you to pay taxes for an extended period of time.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[rockymhs]

Just out of curiosity and being a PR myself. If there is no difference, why do they ask the question if you are a US citizen or a 'legal resident-specify your visa status' versus US citizen/permanent resident versus 'legal resident-specify your visa status'. In addition, when you fill out in information about your residency for amcas, they also ask you the country of your ‘nationality' or basically what passport do you have now. They're not optional questions. Hence, I find it hard to believe they don't factor in somewhere along the selection proves.

I've actually seen one or two schools on AMCAS that specifically state US citizens only may apply. Also isn't there is a cap put in place by the Fed government that allows allopathic schools a certain percentage of Non US citizens to matriculate. What I was told by a physician on the admissions committee for UIC was that its easier if you are a citizen to get in with lower stats.

I don't know the reasons behind AMCAS' method of identifying nationalities or residency status of applicants, but I think it is there to make it easy for them to get a clean data for analysis.

In my personal opinion, there is no difference between a permanent resident vs. a US citizen in terms of applying to MD school.

I am an PR, and I had no trouble getting accepted to my state school. For other schools, I haven't heard any news other than rejections, but I believe this is due to my own short comings in comparison to other strong applicants.

Main problem faced by international applicants is their ability to pay for med school since they are less likely to be eligiable for loans, which PR's have access to as American citizens do.

Therefore, there should be no difference between PR and Citizen.

Also, I emailed a question to an admissions office regarding this matter and was told that I would be treated same as American citizen.

 

[dingyibvs]

There is no difference whatsoever between a PR and a citizen when it comes to med school admissions, unless you're talking about the armed services school(forgot its exact name).

 

[blueflower77]

I don't know the reasons behind AMCAS' method of identifying nationalities or residency status of applicants, but I think it is there to make it easy for them to get a clean data for analysis.

In my personal opinion, there is no difference between a permanent resident vs. a US citizen in terms of applying to MD school.

I am an PR, and I had no trouble getting accepted to my state school. For other schools, I haven't heard any news other than rejections, but I believe this is due to my own short comings in comparison to other strong applicants.

Main problem faced by international applicants is their ability to pay for med school since they are less likely to be eligiable for loans, which PR's have access to as American citizens do.

Therefore, there should be no difference between PR and Citizen.

Also, I emailed a question to an admissions office regarding this matter and was told that I would be treated same as American citizen.

That's totally right. I have a family friend who is on the admissions committee at my local private medical school and he said that only US citizens and PR can apply and be accepted and that's ONLY because of loan repayment and financial obligations that the school has to the applicant and the applicant has to the school. A PR has the same rights as a US citizen as far as admissions is concerned. A PR can take out loans, be judged in the court of law and held liable for poor loan repayment the same way that a US citizen would be.

In fact, I was told that international background gives the applicant diversity, especially if the applicant is a PR because that would mean the immigration status is more recent than say of someone who was born here and was of foreign (aka: non American) descent and is already a US citizen.

There are many people out there who are just as racist to foreigners as they are to African American people, Hispanics, Muslims and etc. I lived in various areas of US - from coast to coast, in the south and now live in the Midwest and can say that it all depends on who reads your application and of course, the general populous of the state where you are applying. Some people are more forgiving than others and some love diversity, different backgrounds and etc.

Don't let being from another country be a deterrent. There will always be a school out there that will take you with open arms. (and there will always be that person out there who won't like you for who you are and things you can't change - just accept it as a fact and if you're self confident, it shouldn't bother you) Good luck.