Does having disadvantaged status make any difference?

[notmyrealname23]

Does is make any difference in your applicationg by being considered "disadvantaged" ?

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[TexasPhysician]

By disadvantaged, do you mean financially........?

 

[Bacchus]

Remember that disadvantaged usually means before college. An upbringing that strays below the norm is disadvantaged.

 

[WannaBePreMed]

A good example of being disadvantaged is being a foster child or being extremely financially disadvantaged. I think that's about it, there's probably nothing else that you could put on there. Anyone know anything else that would be considered disadvantaged?

 

[amlo86]

Being born to teenaged parents. But that usually goes hand in hand with being below the middle class income bracket. It also makes the upbringing a little different than most others. I applied as a disadvantaged applicant even though I am technically not financially disadvantaged any longer; I was for the 1st 18 years of my life though. In case anyone's curious, I am going to be 22 and my parents are 37 and 38.

 

[flaahless]

Disadvantaged is a loose term and is often determined by the school. I know it definitely makes a difference with financial aid and I believe it's also considered in the admissions process. Unfortunately, AAMC doesn't post these stats.

 

[UVAbme2009]

I've been financially disadvantaged my entire life. I chose not to check disadvantaged on AMCAS because I've never felt that my family's financial status has held me back. I did talk about it in a lot of secondaries though because I want to practice in an underserved area.

 

[ElCaminoReal]

I also experienced financial disadvantage growing up (working to help supplement rent payments)... However, I did not fill out the disadvantaged status blip. I did not want to seem that I was "whining" at the time. I did talk about my experience in my personal statement and "overcoming adversity" questions. I also recieved FAP. Was not filling out the disadvantaged blurb on AMCAS a mistake? hmmmm.... any thoughts?

 

[RoadRunner17]

I also experienced financial disadvantage growing up (working to help supplement rent payments)... However, I did not fill out the disadvantaged status blip. I did not want to seem that I was "whining" at the time. I did talk about my experience in my personal statement and "overcoming adversity" questions. I also recieved FAP. Was not filling out the disadvantaged blurb on AMCAS a mistake? hmmmm.... any thoughts?

I hope not. It should be okay, given that you fleshed it out in the PS and secondary essays. That's what I did too. I am not financially disadvantaged but there are other aspects of my application that I briefly considered claiming disadvantaged status; but I think it has more to do with financial disadvantages than say, cultural disadvantages or disabilities that put you at a disadvantage early.

 

[BrokenGlass]

Disadvantaged status means jack for non-URM applicants. The director of admissions for one of the University of Califonia med schools personally told me on the phone that "the committee didn't care about your disadvantages." I was rejected from 30 med schools last year, 29 of which were pre-interview rejections. The one interview I received resulted in a waitlist.

 

[BrokenGlass]

<---- Look at the MDApps if you don't believe it.

Your mdapps gives me no reason to believe you got those interviews because of your disadvantaged background. It's not like you have a 3.2 GPA and 28 MCAT.

 

[RoadRunner17]

Your mdapps gives me no reason to believe you got those interviews because of your disadvantaged background. It's not like you have a 3.2 GPA and 28 MCAT.

I thought the same thing as well. 3.8 and 34 is more than competitive. What about yourself?

 

[gabem480]

To be hosest I think someone is just bitter about not getting in. Look maybe the disadvantaged status didn't work out for you but that is not what kept you out of medical school.

 

[BrokenGlass]

To be hosest I think someone is just bitter about not getting in. Look maybe the disadvantaged status didn't work out for you but that is not what kept you out of medical school.

Says the guy who calls UCLA and asks them about URM status.

In answer to your question, I want people to be judged by the content of their character and NOT the color of their skin.

 

[basketballakev]

Well here's someone who's "disadvantaged" http://www.mdapplicants.com/viewprofile.php?id=9732 and is doing really well in the process.