Gay Friendly Schools?

[midwesternguy]

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Hey, I'm planning on applying this summer to matriculate in 2006, and am trying to complile a list of schools to apply to. After this whole issue this year with NYMC, I'm curious what other people think are the more gay friendly medical schools.

 

[Pinkertinkle]

Ucsf

 

[ajt2003]

Hey, I'm planning on applying this summer to matriculate in 2006, and am trying to complile a list of schools to apply to. After this whole issue this year with NYMC, I'm curious what other people think are the more gay friendly medical schools.

Hey...you might want to do a search on this (I think it's been addressed fairly recently)...

Off the top of my head, I would suggest looking into: NYU, Yale, Harvard, U. Penn...just to name a few. These schools tend to have a really open administration/student body and queer medical groups. I would suggest trying to avoid: NYMC, Georgetown, Columbia (seems farily conservative, but I'm not really sure).

Again, just my suggestions. Best of luck!

 

[midwesternguy]

Hey...you might want to do a search on this (I think it's been addressed fairly recently)...

Off the top of my head, I would suggest looking into: NYU, Yale, Harvard, U. Penn...just to name a few. These schools tend to have a really open administration/student body and queer medical groups. I would suggest trying to avoid: NYMC, Georgetown, Columbia (seems farily conservative, but I'm not really sure).

Again, just my suggestions. Best of luck!

I actually tried to look, but couldn't find any... Do you know the link?

 

[GuyLaroche]

Vandy and Emory are surprsingly open given their locations. UPenn is awesome and please believe that they are the most open and comfortable- with-gay-school that there is. Duke is also pretty open (yes, it is surprising but the dean is committed to diversity of all sorts).... Not that I would know not being gay myself 🙄

 

[Energon]

What happened with NYMC?

 

[midwesternguy]

What about Tulane? Does anyone know what the general attitude there is like?

 

[midwesternguy]

What happened with NYMC?

I don't know the whole story, but apparently after a student group changed it's name to specify that they were a GLBT group, the dean yanked the funding, saying that this sort of organization was at odds with the school's Catholic affiliation.

 

[Energon]

I don't know the whole story, but apparently after a student group changed it's name to specify that they were a GLBT group, the dean yanked the funding, saying that this sort of organization was at odds with the school's Catholic affiliation.

😱
sweet baby jesus

 

[LauraMac]

I don't know the whole story, but apparently after a student group changed it's name to specify that they were a GLBT group, the dean yanked the funding, saying that this sort of organization was at odds with the school's Catholic affiliation.

glad i specifically made a point not to apply to any schools with a religious affiliation...

i think umich is very gay friendly. 🙂

 

[trinitrotoluene]

Vandy [is] surprsingly open given [its] location.

As a denizen of (near) Nashville, I take exception to this statement. Not that I would call Nashville "BGLT friendly," but there are a number of people "out-and-about." Now, if I were gay, I wouldn't live in Goodlettsville or South Nashville (and certainly not Brentwood), but there are a large number of very open-minded people in East Nashville, the Vandy area, Rutherford County, and other parts.

 

[trinitrotoluene]

I don't know the whole story, but apparently after a student group changed it's name to specify that they were a GLBT group, the dean yanked the funding, saying that this sort of organization was at odds with the school's Catholic affiliation.

And I told them that I campaigned for Howard Dean for a year. Just great. (However, I'm still waiting for an interview, and I'm not rejected yet.)

 

[HumptyDumpty]

I'd like to take a moment to defend NYMC b/c I interviewed there and found that it isn't nearly as "stiflingly conservative" as many seem to suggest. The Catholic affiliation of the school does limit what the school can officially support, but that kind of goes without saying. I talked about being gay in my interviews there, and it didn't seem to be an issue at all. I'm just trying to say that if you find NYMC to be an otherwise appealing school, you shouldn't feel compelled to write it off b/c of its gay-unfriendly reputation. Good luck in your search for gay friendly schools! Let us all know what you find out.

 

[getunconcsious]

Hey midwesternguy! I'm a queer applicant too. AMSA has a survey thing that includes a rating of how GLBT friendly each school is and you can find it at:

http://www.amsa.org/premed/medsurvey/

Hope this helps! 😉

 

[NDFan392]

The school is standing by it's decision - but they'll either cave or be forced to observe the state and local anti-discrimination laws. We'll know when the city's Human Rights commission comes back with a report.

If not, one could could argue they're being especially anti-gay: the school hasn't banned a Jewish student group... which, I assume, is not in the "Catholic tradition." 😉

 

[midwesternguy]

I'd like to take a moment to defend NYMC b/c I interviewed there and found that it isn't nearly as "stiflingly conservative" as many seem to suggest. The Catholic affiliation of the school does limit what the school can officially support, but that kind of goes without saying. I talked about being gay in my interviews there, and it didn't seem to be an issue at all. I'm just trying to say that if you find NYMC to be an otherwise appealing school, you shouldn't feel compelled to write it off b/c of its gay-unfriendly reputation. Good luck in your search for gay friendly schools! Let us all know what you find out.

I actually have a friend at NYMC and have heard that the students are actually pretty accepting, and that it's the administration who seems to be more conservative.

What I wanted to ask though is how you talked about being gay in your interviews. You weren't asked about your sexual orientation, were you? Is is pretty accepted that you can being comfortable in bringing this kind of topic up without worrying about discrimination?

 

[t33sg1rl]

Case Western doesn't have very many gay students, and the LBGT bulletin board hasn't been updated in three years, but the school is very, very committed to equal treatment. I've been working in a lab here for three years, and Case has the best domestic partner benefits in Ohio, hands down. You might say that the school overcompensates a little to counter Ohio's conservative reputation... but Cleveland went solid blue in 2004, and has a lively club scene for girls as well as boys (sadly, most clubs are on the West Side, and Case is on the East).

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Hey midwesternguy! I'm a queer applicant too. AMSA has a survey thing that includes a rating of how GLBT friendly each school is and you can find it at:

http://www.amsa.org/premed/medsurvey/

Hope this helps! 😉

just curious, do gay people like the word "queer"; for some reason to me, it always sounded disrespectful and offensive but I always see gay people here using it.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

I actually have a friend at NYMC and have heard that the students are actually pretty accepting, and that it's the administration who seems to be more conservative.

What I wanted to ask though is how you talked about being gay in your interviews. You weren't asked about your sexual orientation, were you? Is is pretty accepted that you can being comfortable in bringing this kind of topic up without worrying about discrimination?

just curious why you would want to bring it up. I'm a very strong Christian and would not bring it up on my own, only if it was necessary to answer a particular question.

 

[icebrat001]

Hey midwesternguy! I'm a queer applicant too. AMSA has a survey thing that includes a rating of how GLBT friendly each school is and you can find it at:

http://www.amsa.org/premed/medsurvey/

Hope this helps! 😉

Wow, cool thanks. I'll check it out!

 

[abraxas20]

just curious, do gay people like the word "queer"; for some reason to me, it always sounded disrespectful and offensive but I always see gay people here using it.

I hope I do this question justice.

Some do, some don't. What you call yourself is obviously a personal decision. If you want to call yourself queer, go for it. No one likes to be called "queer" in a derogatory way, but that seems pretty obvious.

Now a couple of other points. First, there is a field of study called "Queer Theory". Within that discipline is a lot of study on gay theory, but also some people use the moniker "Queer Theory" to describe anything that is "against the norm". So sometimes, "Queer Theory" gets applied to looking at women in academia and other things that are unusual (though I am not sure that my example does it justice).

Second, personal experience....

Most of my gay friends like the term queer....the only one I can think of who didn't, also didn't like the word woman preferring to spell it womin or something like that because she didn't like the word 'man' in it.

That always pissed me off much more than use of the word queer.

 

[LauraMac]

just curious why you would want to bring it up. I'm a very strong Christian and would not bring it up on my own, only if it was necessary to answer a particular question.

because he probably considers it a really important part of who he is. i've been asked what clubs and organizations i might join in med school, and i'm afraid to say anything even slightly controversial. i will DEFINITELY be in students for choice and would like to be in an LGBT group as an allie (sp?) as well. both of these are things i'm afraid to bring up in case my interviewer is some hard-core pro-lifer or is hateful and discriminatory to gays.

i'm also afraid to bring up the fact that i'm an atheist. in one interview i was asked about a conflict i had with someone and how i dealt with it, and i told him how i wasn't very religious (didn't even mention that i'm an atheist specifically) and that my mom is very religious, and i talked about what a huge issue that is and how i've dealt with it. anyway, the point is i could see this look in his face that i must be a bad person with no morals because i don't believe in the fantasy world that he believes in. i was waitlisted at that school despite the fact that the rest of the interview went really well. after that interview i haven't mentioned religion at all... no more waitlists. it's probably just coincidental, but interesting nonetheless.

 

[sscooterguy]

I know ohio state is pretty gay friendly. There are several modules in the patient centered medicine courses specifically addressing GLBT issues. The GLBT med student group is fairly active, and there are several openly GLBT students every year. Columbus has a decently large GLBT population also. However, you must also understand that Ohio in general is fairly conservative, and the undergrad program has just announced that they have accepted the smartest class they have ever accepted, however they are also the least diverse class ever accepted. I would also look into U of Michigan, which is very open minded. The campus is very friendly, however, I cannot speak first hand of their med school cirriculum or class. Good luck.

sscooterguy

 

[Psycho Doctor]

anyway, the point is i could see this look in his face that i must be a bad person with no morals because i don't believe in the fantasy world that he believes in. i was waitlisted at that school despite the fact that the rest of the interview went really well. after that interview i haven't mentioned religion at all... no more waitlists. it's probably just coincidental, but interesting nonetheless.

actually it was probably because he saw you were judgemental and disrespectful of others' (his) beliefs. Your sarcasm is offensive; it's no wonder you were waitlisted. Hopefully you didn't actually say that to him but maybe your bigotry was obvious.

 

[midwesternguy]

just curious why you would want to bring it up. I'm a very strong Christian and would not bring it up on my own, only if it was necessary to answer a particular question.

I guess I don't really understand if I'm allowed to be asked, and if I should bring it up if it is to answer a question or validate an experience. I agree, it's not going to be something I just throw out there... "oh, by the way, I'm gay," but what I'm wondering is whether I should even bring it up at all if it were to be appropriate.

 

[Prag]

I guess I don't really understand if I'm allowed to be asked, and if I should bring it up if it is to answer a question or validate an experience. I agree, it's not going to be something I just throw out there... "oh, by the way, I'm gay," but what I'm wondering is whether I should even bring it up at all if it were to be appropriate.

I don't know if an interviewer will ask you directly, but I have had no problems in bringing it up relation to some of my experiences (e.g., HIV/AIDS educator) or in response to a question such as "What has been a difficulty you have overcome?" or "What is a difficult decision you have had to make?"...I think some will disagree with my choice to be open during interviews, but although being gay doesnt define me entirely, it has definitely had a large impact on my character (which I think is important for an interviewer to be aware of)...you just need to make that decision for yourself...

As well, in response to a previous post, I have no problems being called queer...what I think was once a derogatory term is now widely accepted within the gay community (years ago gay activists starting using this word as a means to 'reclaim' it for the community)...

 

[HumptyDumpty]

I actually have a friend at NYMC and have heard that the students are actually pretty accepting, and that it's the administration who seems to be more conservative.

What I wanted to ask though is how you talked about being gay in your interviews. You weren't asked about your sexual orientation, were you? Is is pretty accepted that you can being comfortable in bringing this kind of topic up without worrying about discrimination?

I was not asked about my sexual orientation, no. But being gay and feeling a little bit disenfranchised by the non-gay world had a huge impact on my decision to embrace a medical career w/ the underserved. So I felt it was an important part of me that I wanted to present if it came up. And it almost invariably did, as I alluded quite vaguely to "personal problems" in my essays.

For me, coming out has been a long and constantly evolving process. I honestly didn't feel comfortable enough w/ myself to be open about being gay in the one interview I had in October. Though leaving that detail out left (what I believed was) a gaping hole in my story, I couldn't ask myself to do something I felt uncomfortable doing. I don't know how or why, but in the few months since then, I've gotten so much more used to letting people know I'm gay if it ever comes up. And so I've been open about it in all my interviews since that one in October. The results have been mostly positive. There was one time that my interviewer did seem very uneasy w/ the subject, and he even interrupted me to change the topic. On the other hand, in a different interview, after I opened up about myself, my interviewer opened up to me, telling me about a gay relative of his who had died of AIDS but had never, to this day, been acknowledged as a homosexual by his conservative family. I really appreciated his candor, and it was a great way to break the ice.

To some people, being gay is just another part of their person, and it doesn't need to be given any special attention, certainly not in a med school interview. To others (like me) who can't get over their gayness 🙂 , it's important to talk about it. You just have to decide for yourself how big a thing being gay is in your life and decide thereafter whether or not to discuss it.

 

[USCTex]

I was not asked about my sexual orientation, no. But being gay and feeling a little bit disenfranchised by the non-gay world had a huge impact on my decision to embrace a medical career w/ the underserved.

That's a pretty interesting motivation actually. Do you mean the homosexual community as underserved?

If not, does it ever concern you that the chronically underserved include, in large numbers, recent immigrants and poorly educated ethnic minorities who often, for whatever reasons, hold extremely conservative views concerning homosexuality?

 

[GuyLaroche]

just curious why you would want to bring it up. I'm a very strong Christian and would not bring it up on my own, only if it was necessary to answer a particular question.

And look at you bringing it up now and no one has asked you to. Please keep your Christian ideas out of a queer-started thread.

 

[Mateodaspy]

I will give a brief overview of the glbt environment at some of the schools I have interviewed at:

Texas A&M: It's in College Station, TX. Gays should avoid this school like the plague. (unless of course you're the type that wouldn't mind being shoved back in the closet for four more years)

UT Southwestern: Not really addressed in the interview orientation, though I did run into one lesbian who's a first year there who seemed to feel that the environment at UT Southwestern was 'on par' with most other schools. There is a gay group on campus that has about 5-10 regulars that go to meetings -- their events don't face many difficulties in getting organized... Sadly, the Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs doesn't incorporate them into their office's mission.

Baylor: Probably the most gay friendly school I've visited in the South (probably about the same as Rice University, where I go for undergrad across the street). There is an active gay organization on campus (much to the dismay of the UT-Houston administration which prides itself on NOT having an LGBT organization on campus) and most students are very accepting and many consider themselves allies.

Emory: Decently gay friendly. Though, when asked a student about the lgbt climate, they needed to have the term explained to them, after which they gave an odd face and responded that they didn't know of anyone that goes there 'who's like that'. Atlanta is a saving grace, though.

Yale: I declined my interview there due to the cost of flying to Connecticut (late in the interview season, so I was kind of tired of the whole process), but I was very disappointed in the fact that the hosting program offered no LGBT hosts, nor could any be found after I specifically requested one from the hosting coordinator. Shame on you, Yale.

Harvard: It's in Boston... I think that's about all that needs to be said. One interviewer did seem a bit taken aback by my heavy involvement in LGBT civil rights organizations, but of course she was from kansas, so I guess that's to be expected. The other interviewer got very excited by my campaigning for Dean and went on a tirade about the importance of gay rights legislation/court decisions, etc. She and I got along greaaaat. Overall, students seem rather prep schoolish, but I could tell that the thought of a gay peer wouldn't phase them a bit.

Johns Hopkins: Didn't get much a feel for the gay scene at all in Baltimore, but judging from what I did see, I wasn't very impressed. The Admissions Dean was black and possibly gay, so that was a plus, but other that that it seemed like the administration had kept the gays a good distance away from the interviewees. 👎 👎

Columbia: New York, of course, is a very gay friendly city, however it seemed as if Columbia hasn't quite caught up... The school seemed very traditional and not so interested in attracting lgbt students. I did stay with a gay host while I was there, though, and he was great -- gay students are definitely out there, but it seemed as if they take a much lower profile than at some other northeast schools.

WashU: The school is right next to the gay/yuppy/metro side of St. Louis, so the school seemed to be in an isolated hotbed of gay activity in the midwest. I watched a student-run screening of Philadelphia while I was there (World AIDS Day) and there was a pretty good sized turn out (many gay students as well as allies). Though, be forewarned, once you leave the safe confines of the campus, attitudes towards gays and lesbians change drastically amongst the general populace.

U. Penn: BY FAR, the most gay friendly school I interviewed at... There are about 20-25 openly gay/lesbian students at teh school right now (which is a fairly large number considering the fact that there are about 400 that go there at any given time). The school has a ridiculously large three story gay and lesbian center (that it shares with the undergraduate campus) and they are constantly trying to draw in gay/lesbian students (they even talked about lgbt students/campus life during the large general orientation, much to the dismay of some of the brigham young kids that were interviewing at the time, haha). I stayed there with some of the coolest gay kids who are first years there right now who took me around Philly and showed me what Philly gay night life has to offer -- I was very impressed, the gay scene reminded me of New York, except on a smaller, more manageable scale. Couldn't have asked for more in terms of lgbt campus life!


In general, though, I would suggest that you be open about yourself and your activities on your application and when you are in your interview. Would you really want to go to a school that discriminated against lgbt students? If you don't really care, then by all means closet yourself during the application process, then come out as a flaming homosexual when you get out so you can rub it in the faces of all the bigoted admissions officials 😛 😛

 

[midwesternguy]

I will give a brief overview of the glbt environment at some of the schools I have interviewed at... 😛 😛

Thanks for the advice, M. I know what you're saying about bringing it up in the interview. I would like to get it out on the table, because it is a part of what my experience has been, but at the same time I don't want it to sound artificial, like I am bringing up my sexuality for the sake of bringing it up... Does that make sense? We'll see how it all plays out, but I guess it's just a matter of feeling out the situation.

One more time, what have people heard about Tulane? I know New Orleans is a pretty gay-friendly city (remember Danny from the Real World), but I can't quite get a read on TU.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Mateodaspy, wow so comprehensive! 👍 so did you request a gay host each time? Either you spent a lot of time at these schools or you somehow found out an amazingly incredible amount of information on the gay scenes there in a short period of time. i can see a gay host giving you the inside info but other than that I'm surprised you found out such comprehensive infromation during a day at the school when so many various things are discussed. Your information is sure to be very helpful to many people.

 

[Mateodaspy]

Mateodaspy, wow so comprehensive! 👍 so did you request a gay host each time? Either you spent a lot of time at these schools or you somehow found out an amazingly incredible amount of information on the gay scenes there in a short period of time. i can see a gay host giving you the inside info but other than that I'm surprised you found out such comprehensive infromation during a day at the school when so many various things are discussed. Your information is sure to be very helpful to many people.

I requested a gay host at about half the schools I interviewed at (only Yale was unable to find me one). LGBT campus life was one of the ten criteria I decided were the most important to me when selecting a medical school, so I made sure to find out as much as possible about it at every school I visited. I asked students, faculty, administration, etc. about campus life for gays and I made no effort to hide my work with lgbt civil rights (and health issues) in my interviews. Most people were very helpful and very receptive to my concerns -- I have no regrets and only a couple times did I experience negative responses from interviewers about my lgbt-related post-sec activities (and on those rare instances, I spoke with admissions deans about my experiences to be sure that any interviewer biases might not affect my application).

 

[Mateodaspy]

Thanks for the advice, M. I know what you're saying about bringing it up in the interview. I would like to get it out on the table, because it is a part of what my experience has been, but at the same time I don't want it to sound artificial, like I am bringing up my sexuality for the sake of bringing it up... Does that make sense? We'll see how it all plays out, but I guess it's just a matter of feeling out the situation.

One more time, what have people heard about Tulane? I know New Orleans is a pretty gay-friendly city (remember Danny from the Real World), but I can't quite get a read on TU.

If your sexuality is important to you and has in any way influenced your decision to pursue a career in medicine, then I would say that it is entirely appropriate to bring it up during the course of an interview. Any interviewer bias that you might perceive as a result should be reported to the dean of admissions. Most of the upper tier schools would rather remove a bigoted interviewer than to be viewed as a glbt-unfriendly school. All in all, I wouldn't worry about being out during the application process -- just be yourself and you'll end up being accepted at and attending the school that is right for you.

As far as the concern about Tulane: I have heard mixed opinions on the school -- Though it is in a glbt-friendly southern town, much of the student population is from rural, more conservative regions of the state. Being out at Tulane isn't too easy, but there are definitely a few out students whom you might be able to contact if you have any additional questions/concerns.

 

[midwesternguy]

I requested a gay host at about half the schools I interviewed at (only Yale was unable to find me one). LGBT campus life was one of the ten criteria I decided were the most important to me when selecting a medical school, so I made sure to find out as much as possible about it at every school I visited. I asked students, faculty, administration, etc. about campus life for gays and I made no effort to hide my work with lgbt civil rights (and health issues) in my interviews. Most people were very helpful and very receptive to my concerns -- I have no regrets and only a couple times did I experience negative responses from interviewers about my lgbt-related post-sec activities (and on those rare instances, I spoke with admissions deans about my experiences to be sure that any interviewer biases might not affect my application).

Hey Mateodespy... what do you mean by negative responses? Can you give more details? I think you had a very smart approach to this whole thing, but I guess I'm wondering what to expect/look out for. Also, how did you approach the deans of admissions about any issues you encountered with the interviewers? You've been a great help. Thanks 😀

 

[LoneCoyote]

If you're thinking West Coast, most schools in California and OHSU and UW should be fine. I would avoid Loma Linda since it is affiliated with the SDA church. I had no real problems anywhere and was out in my applications and interviews. UCI was a bit clueless when I asked about resources, but they were very nice about it and helped me find the GLBT center on campus. It was not an issue for any of the my interviewers there. Of course, if you aren't a CA resident it probably doesn't matter since you are limited to where you have a chance anyway. UCD now takes out-of-staters and there are a few of us who are out if you are interested 🙂 Good luck.

 

[Mateodaspy]

Hey Mateodespy... what do you mean by negative responses? Can you give more details? I think you had a very smart approach to this whole thing, but I guess I'm wondering what to expect/look out for. Also, how did you approach the deans of admissions about any issues you encountered with the interviewers? You've been a great help. Thanks 😀

Negative responses such as interviewers being antagonistic about my activities with gay/lesbian groups on campus or telling me that they felt homosexuality was wrong and that it was a sin. (NOT APPROPRIATE FOR AN INTERVIEW SETTING) Of course that was at A&M, so I guess that's to be expected. As I said before though, most interviewers were either very accepting or didn't react when I spoke about my activities with glbt organizations. In approaching deans of admissions, I would just go up to them in private after the interview day (or one I just e-mailed then called) and tell them I wanted to discuss a matter related to my interview. He then pulled me aside and took me into his office where I spoke a bit about what happened in the interview that made me feel comfortable -- both times that happened, the deans of admissions were very understanding and assured me that such perceived biases would not hurt my chance at admission... they usually do a pretty good job screening the deans of admission... the interviewers on the other hand... sometimes not so much. best of luck with the applications! If you want to chat some more, you can keep posting on here or you can IM me (screen name is the same as my nick on here)

 

[GuyLaroche]

I would just go up to them in private after the interview day (or one I just e-mailed then called) and tell them I wanted to discuss a matter related to my interview.

This was entirely the case at UPenn and the director of admissions was absolutely fabulous. She was very open with discussing issues with me. I imagine she would be open about discussing gay issues, even though that was not we discussed... well, 'cause, you know, I'm not gay or whatever....

So, how about them Patriots last night! A cold beer and a hot broad would be nice just about now.

 

[fakin' the funk]

Johns Hopkins: Didn't get much a feel for the gay scene at all in Baltimore, but judging from what I did see, I wasn't very impressed. The Admissions Dean was black and possibly gay, so that was a plus, but other that that it seemed like the administration had kept the gays a good distance away from the interviewees. 👎 👎

Can only comment on the city of Baltimore: it's very gay-friendly, there is a gay scene, and it being a very liberal place I think any GLBT students would feel comfortable. That doesn't really fix the crime issue though...

 

[dmk724]

Hey, I'm planning on applying this summer to matriculate in 2006, and am trying to complile a list of schools to apply to. After this whole issue this year with NYMC, I'm curious what other people think are the more gay friendly medical schools.

Jefferson is pretty gay friendly, from what I can tell. (I'm not gay, so I can't comment, really). We have openly gay faculty, and a LGBT-type alliance group for students. (I forget the exact name.) If you were openly gay, I doubt that you'd run into any problems, despite Jefferson's reputation for being really old-school. I think that almost everyone here pretty much has to be gay-friendly, since Jefferson's located right in the middle of the "gay-borhood" (their term, not mine). As a result, there are lots of gay coffeeshops and bars around. Plus, NYC is only 2 hours away. Lots of options, really.

 

[brainyjock]

I'm always interested to hear from those who don't think one should be 'out' on his or her applications. I'm in the boat that believes that there are clear advantages to being out up front. Not only will the schools that are friendly be able to identify this fact, but it is an opportunity for you to differentiate yourself -- and show your true self -- to admissions committees. If you hide activities in which you've been involved, then you are showing a water-ed down self to the committees. I decided that I didn't want to go to schools that would reject me based upon this fact. Not that I didn't worry about this decision -- I definitely did -- but in hindsight, I'm glad I took the risk. I interviewed at 10 schools and now have 4 admissions offers.

Meanwhile, as you've already heard, many of the UCs and the privates are friendly. I'd also include many of the Chicago schools, including UChicago, Northwestern and UIC to the pool.

Best of luck to you!!

P.S. GuyLaroche and LoneCoyote, would love to be at the same med schools as the two of you... You two are great!

 

[Will Ferrell]

I heard the University of Alabama is pretty open to gays.

Off-campus there's like gay bars and clubs everywhere. Abortion clinics too 🙂

 

[LauraMac]

actually it was probably because he saw you were judgemental and disrespectful of others' (his) beliefs. Your sarcasm is offensive; it's no wonder you were waitlisted. Hopefully you didn't actually say that to him but maybe your bigotry was obvious.

now you know how i feel everytime someone judges me because i'm an atheist. every day someone tries to change my beliefs. my grandma tells me how good "god" has been to me and how i should start going to church. my mom stops talking to me for weeks at a time and cries and says she feels like a failure as a mother. one of my religious friends constantly tells me i'll come around someday and see the real truth. i'm sorry if i'm bitter, but everyone telling me i'm wrong and that i'm a bad person has made me that way.

honestly, i think everyone should have whatever beliefs they want, so i'm sorry i said that. to me it's all a fantasy world, but i know it's not to people like you, so the sarcasm was unnecessary. if it makes you feel any better i would never, ever, ever, ever say anything like that to a patient.

in the interview he told me about the church he goes to and how it was not quite as conservative as other catholic churches, and i told him how the churches in my city are, because i've been to a few. we talked, and i totally respected his views. i just don't think he was respecting mine, what he knew of them anyway.

sorry i have gone off topic. i promise not to talk about religion anymore in this thread. 🙂

 

[stinkycheese]

actually it was probably because he saw you were judgemental and disrespectful of others' (his) beliefs. Your sarcasm is offensive; it's no wonder you were waitlisted. Hopefully you didn't actually say that to him but maybe your bigotry was obvious.

Here we go...

You ask why someone would bring up that he is gay in an interview. Your question reeks of judgment, as if being gay is something that SHOULD be hidden. It is such a Catholic point of view. You don't find it offensive to ask these questions, but when someone else discusses their viewpoint on religion, you're all over them with your judgment and hatred, calling them a bigot and other things.

Anyone who doesn't agree with YOU is a bigot, right, psycho?

In response to your other questions, gay people are taking back the term "queer" the same way black people have taken back the word "******" and lesbians have taken back "****." When you take a term that is meant to be an insult and re-define it to become a proud and inoffensive way in which to refer to oneself, you take the power of hatred out of that word. It's about owning your identity and not letting people use those traditional words of hatred against you.

 

[stinkycheese]

One more time, what have people heard about Tulane? I know New Orleans is a pretty gay-friendly city (remember Danny from the Real World), but I can't quite get a read on TU.

One of the first-years I met on interview day said that Tulane is a "hippie school". She said that the liberals go to Tulane and the conservative folks go to LSU-NO. 😉 I am not sure how accurate that is, but she said it is a very open environment. I hope that to be the case, because I am as liberal as they come, and I will be there next year!!!!

 

[midwesternguy]

I'm always interested to hear from those who don't think one should be 'out' on his or her applications. I'm in the boat that believes that there are clear advantages to being out up front. Not only will the schools that are friendly be able to identify this fact, but it is an opportunity for you to differentiate yourself -- and show your true self -- to admissions committees. If you hide activities in which you've been involved, then you are showing a water-ed down self to the committees. I decided that I didn't want to go to schools that would reject me based upon this fact. Not that I didn't worry about this decision -- I definitely did -- but in hindsight, I'm glad I took the risk. I interviewed at 10 schools and now have 4 admissions offers.

Meanwhile, as you've already heard, many of the UCs and the privates are friendly. I'd also include many of the Chicago schools, including UChicago, Northwestern and UIC to the pool.

Best of luck to you!!

P.S. GuyLaroche and LoneCoyote, would love to be at the same med schools as the two of you... You two are great!

I agree with you BrainyJ. My issue is how to bring it up. I feel just slipping it in out of context would be somewhat inappropriate, and seem like I was just throwing it in for the sake of bringing it up. Did you directly say in your essay that you were gay? What was the context you put it in? Congrats on the 4 admissions offers, hope I do as well. It's nice to hear that U Chicago and NW are pretty open, that's right in my back yard.

Additionally, for what it's worth, I am from Madison, WI and wanted to add that the UW is also pretty gay friendly school. I have several friends there now, two of which are gay. Also, Madison is a really gay friendly town (our congresswoman is the first out lesbian in the House), so if people may want to consider that as well... although from what I gather it's somewhat hard to get in out of state.

 

[HumptyDumpty]

I went to UChicago for undergrad, and it is definitely a gay-friendly institution. Choice and freedom of thought in general are respected so highly that it becomes a given - and I realize now, after having graduated and been outside the walls of such an open forum for the past few months, what a wonderful learning environment they cultivate there.

 

[dmk724]

I'm a little confused. Why would you necessarily want to bring it up? I agree, don't actively hide anything or hide any of your extracurriculars, and if the topic comes up then address it honestly, but volunteering the information would seem weird. I don't know of a graceful way to bring up the topic. Are you hoping to gauge the "gay-friendliness" of the school by bringing it up in your interview?

If you're looking to see how gay friendly a school is, here's something that you could try. Call the student affairs office of the school that you're interested in, and ask for a list of all campus activities and organizations. That list should also include contact information for the group's president and/or faculty advisor. Look for any organization that sounds related to LGBT issues (Jefferson's is the Lambda alliance, for example), and then email or call the person listed. They should be happy to answer your questions.

I just don't feel like anyone should necessarily volunteer any information of any kind in an interview. It might seem weird, and, as a student interviewer, if someone just brought something up out of nowhere, I might find it hard to respond gracefully. It would just get awkward. I definitely agree - finding a gay-friendly school is super important, but bringing up any topic out of context (regardless of what topic it is) might hurt your application more than anything else.

Good luck!

I agree with you BrainyJ. My issue is how to bring it up. I feel just slipping it in out of context would be somewhat inappropriate, and seem like I was just throwing it in for the sake of bringing it up. Did you directly say in your essay that you were gay? What was the context you put it in? Congrats on the 4 admissions offers, hope I do as well. It's nice to hear that U Chicago and NW are pretty open, that's right in my back yard.

 

[GuyLaroche]

I just don't feel like anyone should necessarily volunteer any information of any kind in an interview. It might seem weird, and, as a student interviewer, if someone just brought something up out of nowhere, I might find it hard to respond gracefully. It would just get awkward. I definitely agree - finding a gay-friendly school is super important, but bringing up any topic out of context (regardless of what topic it is) might hurt your application more than anything else.

Good luck!

It's entirely not out of context. Being comfortable in your own skin while you study is every bit a part of the process. Would you say then the minority luncheons that are typically tagged to interviews are out of context? If a student you're interviewing brought it up, and you didn't respond gracefully, then you would have to be really ashamed of yourself, won't you? When you speak with your patients, would you respond only to things you deemed pertinent to the discourse or would you listen to their cares and concerns? I am quite uncomfortable with the idea of you being a student interviewer, and if you had the misfortune of interviewing me, you better believe I'd alert the administrators of any inappropriate behavior on your part. Implicit in your post is the idea that you hold the reins, and you decide the tone of the interview. Unfortunately for you, interviews are a dialogue. It involves not only you assessing the student, but the student also assesses the school. An applicant should not have to be so supplicant that they cannot bring up issues they think is important to them. Besides, those applicants you interview, dear "student interviewer", paid a large sum to travel up to your school. The very least you can do is to listen to whatever concerns they might have. Also, you've got to ask yourself why you would think anyone asking about the gay climate of your med school is "weird." I personally think this reveals a bit of backwardness and immaturity on your part. That would be my assessment of you were I your poor, unfortunate interviewee.

I hope I am not reading too much into your post, but I'd suggest dismounting the high horse you seem perched upon. Med student or student interviewer or whatever does not a God-in-making make.

As always, God bless.

 

[USCTex]

It's entirely not out of context. Being comfortable in your own skin while you study is every bit a part of the process. Would you say then the minority luncheons that are typically tagged to interviews are out of context? If a student you're interviewing brought it up, and you didn't respond gracefully, then you would have to be really ashamed of yourself, won't you? When you speak with your patients, would you respond only to things you deemed pertinent to the discourse or would you listen to their cares and concerns? I am quite uncomfortable with the idea of you being a student interviewer, and if you had the misfortune of interviewing me, you better believe I'd alert the administrators of any inappropriate behavior on your part. Implicit in your post is the idea that you hold the reins, and you decide the tone of the interview. Unfortunately for you, interviews are a dialogue. It involves not only you assessing the student, but the student also assesses the school. An applicant should not have to be so supplicant that they cannot bring up issues they think is important to them. Besides, those applicants you interview, dear "student interviewer", paid a large sum to travel up to your school. The very least you can do is to listen to whatever concerns they might have. Also, you've got to ask yourself why you would think anyone asking about the gay climate of your med school is "weird." I personally think this reveals a bit of backwardness and immaturity on your part. That would be my assessment of you were I your poor, unfortunate interviewee.

I hope I am not reading too much into your post, but I'd suggest dismounting the high horse you seem perched upon. Med student or student interviewer or whatever does not a God-in-making make.

As always, God bless.

Your continual campaign against 'closed mindedness' on this board shows your own disdain of what others think and feel.

I think if a student interviewer got sort of quite and was feeling "awkward" after someone came out to him or her during an interview and you went and told the dean of admissions...the vast majority of time nothing would happen.

Good luck at your interviews.