Gay and Out - Curious about experiences of other applicants!?

[Mudd]

Sorry to get all sentimental for a second here, but I am pretty impressed by the passion with which people in this thread stated their opinions.

The debate of learned versus genetics will linger on for years. Society's acceptance or ostricization of abnormal behavior will be cyclic. The arguments will go back and forth without a conclusion ever being reached. And in the process we will all learn a little bit more about our neighbor.

As for this thread, it's ironic that the person who started it is long removed, having never really had his (or her) question answered. I think I will follow their lead and exit gracefully. On my way out, I want to applaud relatively prime for continually articulate comments and whyadoctor? for holding his ground when literally everyone, myself included, attacked him. I don't agree with your perspective by I admire the tenacity with which you defend it.

Thanks for some good reading everyone.

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[whyadoctor?]

thanks mudd.

 

[youngjock]

read the real inside story.

 

[Tweetie_bird]

Originally posted by youngjock
read the real inside story.

ok, out of sheer respect for your opinions I let your other thread stay alive (until now because others have been complaining about it). So why are you going around and pissing over other people's threads???

We have heard your points. We have given you plenty of room to present your opinions because afterall and (dammit) this is an OPEN FORUM. But now you're starting to hurt other people's sentiments and discussing things that are FAR beyond the scope of being "premed." We know you can't empathize with others' situations as you have so eloquently said, so why are you wasting time and server space in exposing the same monkey-******ed-mind-numbing BS over and over again.

WE KNOW YOU CAN'T EMPATHIZE!! So stop wasting your time and move on. Please!! Otherwise somebody's gonna start a flame war, and I'm gonna have to put on some serious gear to do some whip lashing.

 

[HarvardDoc]

ok, out of sheer respect for your opinions I let your other thread stay alive

I think someone's got a god complex...

but seriously, i think much of this thread is "beyond the scope of being a premed." Actually, a huge number of threads fits into this criteria and it's unfortunate that one person decides what to censor and what not to censor. By the way, how do you get to be a moderator anyway

 

[tBw]

Originally posted by HarvardDoc
By the way, how do you get to be a moderator anyway

I think the first step is having more than 4 posts

 

[tBw]

...and how on earth did THIS thread end up with 3 stars!?!?

 

[HarvardDoc]

I think the first step is having more than 4 posts

This is true, i mainly watch and read what's going on. But I'm serious about that question.

 

[tBw]

Originally posted by HarvardDoc
This is true, i mainly watch and read what's going on. But I'm serious about that question.

swimsuit, formal wear and talent. Tweeties talent apparently involved a bullwhip....

but seriously moderators seem to appear after being approached. When they started the MCAT section they asked for people to message Lee and I assume he approached whoever he thought most appropriate after having looked at their previous posts. The MSTP moderator was the person who first posited the need for a separate MSTP forum. I think most of the others have been moderators for a long time.

 

[Tweetie_bird]

Originally posted by HarvardDoc
I think someone's got a god complex...

but seriously, i think much of this thread is "beyond the scope of being a premed." Actually, a huge number of threads fits into this criteria and it's unfortunate that one person decides what to censor and what not to censor. By the way, how do you get to be a moderator anyway

hmmmm (pretending not to sound hurt)

I think a God complex would mean me only keeping those threads alive that appeal to me. Needless to say, YoungJock's thread did NOT appeal to me at all. His thread was kept alive because I felt it's not right to censor one's opinions although they may be different from the majority. I let his thread stay alive with a little note asking people to let me know when it gets out of hand. So yes, it is "unfortunate that one person decides to censor and not censor," yet, I would appreciate it if you don't accuse me of that. If you have indeed read that thread in it's entirety, I had specifically asked people to warn me when it gets out of hand. And so, when they did, I closed it.

A lot of times a moderator may do an action that others don't like. For example, moving a certain thread because **they** feel doesn't belong in preallo. When others ask for it to be moved, the Mods move it. It's as simple as that. So it's not like the Mod's word is the final one; there is power in numbers and if enough people appeal to have something done, I try and do it ASAP.

Secondly, if you feel that a lot of threads do not fit into the premed criteria, all you have to do is let a moderator know. They will discuss it with you and try and come to a compromise. A lot of times, I have had to edit certain threads just because ONE person out of 18,000 on this board got offended. So you see, we try and value other's opinions on here because we are simply here to HELP.

And lastly, I was nominated moderator by a few people on this board who thought I may do a good job. Not sure if you agree, but nonetheless, I enjoy it immensely and hope I do **some** good for the kids that come to this board.

It's been wonderful being a moderator, and I would appreciate it if you take your words back about me having a "God complex."

 

[HarvardDoc]

but seriously moderators seem to appear after being approached. When they started the MCAT section they asked for people to message Lee and I assume he approached whoever he thought most appropriate after having looked at their previous posts. The MSTP moderator was the person who first posited the need for a separate MSTP forum. I think most of the others have been moderators for a long time.

Thank you

 

[Camden772]

Originally posted by the boy wonder
...and how on earth did THIS thread end up with 3 stars!?!?

Well it can't be based on that many votes. Just out of curiosity I gave it 1 star, and that changed the overall rating to 2 stars instead of 3 stars. If you want to bring it all the way to 1 star, I think your vote would do it boy wonder.

Btw, I don't want the OP to think that my vote of 1 star has anything to do with his original inquiry. Instead, it is based on the majority of the subsequent discussion.

 

[HarvardDoc]

Tweetie, you must have been writing that while I posted my last one.
Anyways...I thought the

but seriously

indicated that i was exaggerating. I was trying to say that if we ban something because it's deemed offensive by some, then it would be a PC nightmare. Oh well, no hard feelings, and congrats on that interview

 

[Tweetie_bird]

Originally posted by HarvardDoc
Tweetie, you must have been writing that while I posted my last one.
Anyways...I thought the indicated that i was exaggerating. I was trying to say that if we ban something because it's deemed offensive by some, then it would be a PC nightmare. Oh well, no hard feelings, and congrats on that interview

hey no hard feelings from here too, and thanks!

Ya, it can get a bit hard but oh well.....it's fun being a Mod. We have a daily chanting ritual and the secret hand shake that makes it all the more better.

Carry on with the original point of discussion guys. And keep it clean please.

 

[relatively prime]

Originally posted by Encore
How disingenuous! Your tone an tendency towards remarks that you know are inflammatory show no respect for anyone. Additionally, it is easy for you to talk about tolerance when the views in question do not affect you personally. Your beliefs are about real people who have to live in a world where they are denied basic civil rights because of people who choose to believe as you do.

Just one example -my partner and I plan to buy a house & are looking at spending thousands of dollars in legal costs to ensure that our families will not be able to claim our property if one of us dies (not to mention the possibility of it being placed with a public administrator if no family survives). Additionally, if we happen to gain property rights, one of us will have to pay huge inheritance taxes (towards property that we jointly purchased) in a manner that "married" heterosexuals are not subject to. Your beliefs often translate into legislation that negatively affects the quality of life for my family, so please, pardon my lack of respect for your beliefs.

OOoo.... encore 1, blitz 0

 

[relatively prime]

Originally posted by Encore
I have to disagree with you here. Being a black lesbian, I know that I did not choose either. Of course the manifestations of this discrimination may be different, but it's all discrimination. Although I personally haven't felt the effects of racial prejudice in many ways, I wouldn't dare try to downplay another person's experience. A person who is murdered because he/she is gay is just as dead as a person who is killed because he/she is black.

It is amazing how much intensive support we demand when a matter is dear to us & how little we are willing to readily give when we have nothing at stake.

Oh and she does it AGAIN! encore 2, tweetie 0

You guys better start coming back with better material before encore puts this whole thing to rest.

 

[womansurg]

Originally posted by Encore
Your beliefs are about real people who have to live in a world where they are denied basic civil rights because of people who choose to believe as you do.

This is exactly the kind of interaction which is helpful to strike home the point that bigotry is harmful in real, calculable ways, not just in theory. When you see a person whom you know and love treated differently - unfairly - it becomes very real for you in a way that is hard to reproduce in the abstracts of your mind.

Thanks, Encore. You do something important by sharing here.

 

[Dr.Tong]

An oldie but goodie for all of you to enjoy

 

[calidoc2004]

Im gay and applied to schools.
It took me 3 years to get accepted ( i assume its my damn low Verbal score on my MCAT).
But anyway i never put Gay in my personal statement. I did think of it though as a way to make me stand out. I did put it in my secondary a couple of times.
This last round where i actually got accepted i didnt mention it anywhere. I did hint at this though in my Personal Statement and Interview in that i worked at an HIV clinic with a gay doctor. If they didnt put it together than thats there ignorance.
Im currently at the stage here where im looking at my Health Survey where they actually ask about my "Sexual Orientation" which completely suprizes me. Im tempted to put Str8 to be honest just cause im so chicken itll follow me forever. Id hate to be applying for a sweet residency 5 years from now and find out that i get turned down because i checked this box on my forms years ago. What did you do or did your school ask on the form?
Can they legally reject you due to this?

 

[gramcracker]

Im gay and applied to schools.
Im currently at the stage here where im looking at my Health Survey where they actually ask about my "Sexual Orientation" which completely suprizes me. Im tempted to put Str8 to be honest just cause im so chicken itll follow me forever. Id hate to be applying for a sweet residency 5 years from now and find out that i get turned down because i checked this box on my forms years ago. What did you do or did your school ask on the form?
Can they legally reject you due to this?

What's a health survey? Is it required? Just don't answer, if you don't want. It sounds like a general form that they compile the data to get an idea of what the class makeup is like. But would you honestly want to be at a residency (or med school) where people are going to reject you for who you are? Lame. And depending on the state, yes, they could reject you. But if you're already accepted, they're not going to do that, unless it's some conservative religion school or something.

And I have 99.999% confidence that no residency is going to look at some health survey to try to "figure out" if you're gay or not. They're not on the hunt to seek out gay med students and keep them out of their residency programs. They're not allowed to ask anything about your personal life at your residency interview, anyway.

 

[sfjohn]

it's hard to give advice here. i think that the main thing is for you to be comfortable with what is on your application. i think that you have to have some degree of passion about your life and what you're looking to achieve in it when you're talking w/ an adcom. for some people, these 2 things are sometimes at odds w/ eachother.
i was very open and honest about myself in my application. i've been out of school for 10 yrs, and have done a bunch of work related to hiv. i've also done a bunch of work with gay youth, aids clinics, etc. collectively, these experiences convey in part who i am, and it made no sense to me to hide any of it. i also had an attitude that if a medical school didn't want me for who i am, then i didn't need to go to that medical school. perhaps they're admitting people that i wouldn't mesh with - or faculty that i wouldn't see eye-to-eye with? for whatever reason, my strategy worked - i got into the majority of schools i applied to.
i don't think it's really about sexuality - i think it's about being comfortable in your own skin. it's about showing an adcom that you can work with all kinds of people - both similar and different to you - and that you'll one day become a successful, knowledgable, compassionate doc based on the experiences that contributed to your personality and mind.
that said - gay people deserve the same rights and privileges as everyone else in society - including practicing rights. be true to yourself. achieve your reward (right now your med school acceptance) - and be proud of the path you took to achieve it.

 

[ZephyrX]

Whenever the words "gay", "physician" and "medical student" pop up, there seems to be a need to put the word "HIV" somewhere in the same paragraph. Men's health (especially gay mens health issues") go much deeper than HIV. A lot of gay physicians who target a gay patient base (a big mistake but anyway) fall into the same trap as well.

As someone whose boyfriend has done extensive research on gay issues in medicine i can assure you that there are many other things that need to be discussed but everyone seems to avoid.

Another thing that bothers me is that we are under represented in medical schools. There are plenty of gay physicians who are out but don't get involved in the community and many gay students who remain in the closet during medical school. If women gained their freedoms by working, shouldn't we try to get out there also. I have spoken to people at WUSTL, Pitt, U Dub, etc (in other words liberal places) that still choose to remain in the closet in fear of their future. Openly gay students and physicians need to address this issue as well.

I have to run but i will be back to write more.

Z.

PS. Sorry to all the people who i have lost touch with. I keep reading your emails but being out of the country for a few days as well as plenty of graduation parties kept me very busy. I will try to catch up on all of your emails.

 

[sfjohn]

zephyr - after reading your anxious post, i remembered why i stopped posting/reading this network for a while. this should be a place to share information w/ out attacking what others read.

maybe your boyfriend should explain his research to you a bit more clearly. the number one disease affecting gay men disproportionately from their heterosexual counterparts is HIV. i should be very clear to you why such words as "medicine, gay, hiv, medical student, doctor" are frequently paired together. if not, i don't know what else to say.

also, presumably i'm a bit older than you. when i was 24, we didn't have cocktails, protease inhibitors, and the new drugs that are available today. i i've lost tens of close friends to hiv in the early years of this disease. one thing that bothers me is the young, naive generation that thinks that hiv is a managable, chronic disease that should be put on the back burner.

 

[ZephyrX]

Sorry i didn't mean to sound antagonistal. Once again i am in a hurry but the point of my post was not attack you but an expression of frustration towards both the gay and medical community. Yes i do realize the importance of HIV issues in healthcare geared towards homosexuals but the trap is that most people are focusing JUST on that. There are plenty of other problems to discuss.

Btw sfjohn add me to your AOL if you want. It's always nice to talk to other gay students. My AIM handle is tedjop [or you can email me at [email protected]].