LGBT student in a conservative state DO school

[BobTheBuilder34]

Hi, I was wondering if any students have any experiences or stories of LGBT students attending a DO school in a very conservative state. I don't actively display my sexual orientation wherever I go, but I'm hoping that I can at least be comfortable talking about certain topics with friends without feeling repercussions/judgement. I know most of the students at this school will mostly be coming from other conservative states and would like to give them the benefit of the doubt that not everyone is homophobic. This school does have an anti-discrimination policy for sexual orientation. Am I just worrying myself over nothing?

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[DoctorSynthesis]

Hi, I was wondering if any students have any experiences or stories of LGBT students attending a DO school in a very conservative state. I don't actively display my sexual orientation wherever I go, but I'm hoping that I can at least be comfortable talking about certain topics with friends without feeling repercussions/judgement. I know most of the students at this school will mostly be coming from other conservative states and would like to give them the benefit of the doubt that not everyone is homophobic. This school does have an anti-discrimination policy for sexual orientation. Am I just worrying myself over nothing?

Well if we knew the school some current students might be able to chime in. However if possible it would be better idea to go to a school in a more friendly location. The school might be OK but the area might not be. I think this is a legitimate concern and something you should factor in your decision

So I would recommend schools in big cities. For example:
Western
Touro ca/ny
Nyit
CCOM
Nsucom
PCOM
AZCOM
ROWAN
RVU

I wouldnt recommend schools like LUCOM

 

[BobTheBuilder34]

Well if we knew the school some current students might be able to chime in. However if possible it would be better idea to go to a school in a more friendly location. The school might be OK but the area might not be. I think this is a legitimate concern and something you should factor in your decision

So I would recommend schools in big cities. For example:
Western
Touro ca/ny
Nyit
CCOM
Nsucom
PCOM
AZCOM
ROWAN
RVU

I wouldnt recommend schools like LUCOM

It's V-COM-Carolinas. Don't really have any other options at this point in the cycle.

 

[j4pac]

As a guy who has traveled the world...it is really a mixed bag wherever you go. If your plan is to avoid homophobia entirely...then I wish you the best of luck, because that is not going to happen...regardless of where you live. When you are in medical school you are very secluded away from the rest of society and the people who you associate with are generally medical professions. I think that medical professionals generally tend to be less judgemental. You are going to find people who disagree with your lifestyle wherever you go...but even the southern schools are tolerant. I would probably avoid Liberty...because I could see how that may be an uncomfortable situation for you...but otherwise, I would not use location as a deciding factor. I have met plenty of homophobic and racist people in California and the Northeast...which are generally considered more progressive.

I went to med school in the south...had many LGBT students. Nobody cared and they felt comfortable.

 

[CanIdoIt?]

Oh man I had this same fear! Look to see if VCOM carolina has a LGBT medical club.... if not most major cities have a LGBT center and you can go there for refuge.

 

[hogie1224]

Totally agree with the above post. There will be both very open/closed minded people where ever you go. I go to one of the more friendly schools and have met both types of individuals. Just make friends with people who will support you and you'll be fine.

 

[DoctorSynthesis]

It's V-COM-Carolinas. Don't really have any other options at this point in the cycle.

Well its only four years remember that!

 

[deleted407021]

I think @touchpause13 can give some insight.

 

[touchpause13]

Hi, I was wondering if any students have any experiences or stories of LGBT students attending a DO school in a very conservative state. I don't actively display my sexual orientation wherever I go, but I'm hoping that I can at least be comfortable talking about certain topics with friends without feeling repercussions/judgement. I know most of the students at this school will mostly be coming from other conservative states and would like to give them the benefit of the doubt that not everyone is homophobic. This school does have an anti-discrimination policy for sexual orientation. Am I just worrying myself over nothing?

Hello friend!
I'm queer and go to DMU. I also did my undergrad in a very conservative area (North Dakota dontcha know) so I might be able to provide some insight. Thanks for tagging me Senpai

Unfortunately, while in undergrad I was outed so I don't really have much experience with coming out in a conservative area, everyone just kinda knew and I just decided to roll with it. I certainly hope the same thing doesn't happen to you during med school because obviously it really really sucks. Even though DMU is quite gay friendly it was still difficult for me to figure out how to come out to my new friends, and that period before everyone knew was really difficult because I was worried that they wouldn't like me if they knew. I think no matter what area you live in, most LGBTQ people have that same fear, and coming out sucks no matter how you slice it.

My suggestions for you would be:

• Seriously think about if the school you are going to is right for you. You are going to be going here for 4 years and I'm not sure what your options are, and you should be sure this is where you want to be.
  
• Get in contact with the school's diversity office. I got involved with the diversity programming at my school right away and that helped me see that there were plenty of allies on campus and it made me less nervous about coming out to people. It also let me know that if anyone did harass or belittle me because of my orientation, that the school would have my back and I would have someone to talk to. I'm sure wherever you are going has a diversity coordinator of some sort, and you can always send them an email asking about how the school handles sexual orientation.
  
• Find out of there is a gay straight alliance on campus, and if there is get involved with that. It's usually not that difficult to find out who the club president is and you can always send them an email or Facebook them and ask them how gay friendly the campus is. I did that and it really put my mind at ease just to talk with someone in the community and he was able to reassure me that the campus was open and friendly
• Have a thick skin and be brave. This is obviously the most difficult thing and a lot easier said than done, but it's also important. I don't know what kind of adversity you have faced because of your orientation or where you are coming from, so perhaps this is a lesson you have already learned. It's a ****ty one, but you have to not let every homophobic comment hit you in the gut and knock the wind out of you. It's something I've been trying to work on for 24 years and sometimes **** still catches me off guard and ruins my day. If you can learn to say, "hey that's not cool" and move on, it will save you a lot of heartache.
• Find friends that you can trust. Being in the closet is the ****ing worst. Don't try and stay there for 4 years, med school is hard enough emotionally, and having to carry that burden along with everything else will eat you up inside. Plus with all the academic **** you have to do, it's really difficult to try and keep lies straight (no pun intended) when you are also trying to cram all this damn information in your head.

There's my med school/general homo advice. Feel free to PM me anytime or ask specific questions or if you just want to talk that's fine too.

-TP

 

[s5260205]

I would think future physicians would be very open-minded about people's sexuality, even those from a religious background.

 

[touchpause13]

I would think future physicians would be very open-minded about people's sexuality, even those from a religious background.

Unfortunately that is not how it always works.

 

[Mad Jack]

I would think future physicians would be very open-minded about people's sexuality, even those from a religious background.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...efuses-to-treat-lesbian-couples-baby.1121851/

You'd be surprised.

As to the op, VCOM-C probably isn't the worst place to go- it isn't a religiously affiliated school, so there's that. LUCOM, CUSOM, MUCOM, and the like might present more hostile environments. But it certainly isn't going to be the best place to go if you plan to be out. Last year Spartanburg has been fairly peaceful in regard to hate crimes (which are a fairly good proxy for intolerance), but most years they're over 5 times the national rate in regard to crimes involving sexual orientation.

http://www.usa.com/spartanburg-sc-crime-and-crime-rate.htm

The statistics are actually kind of interesting- there's virtually no hate crimes reported in most years based on race, religion, ethnicity, or disability, but virtually every year there are several crimes involving sexual orientation. You can pretty much extrapolate that it isn't a very LGBT friendly area.

 

[radkat101]

TCOM- Fort Worth

Conservative City and Conservative state.

Quite a few gay students in the class & a pretty active LGBT club. Everyone gets along great, and any homophobic comments/gestures would be unacceptable to pretty much everyone here. Definitely nothing to worry about. N=1 of course.

 

[Harker Heights]

And Fort Worth is the home of Wendy Davis. There was an openly gay city councilman for many years until he stepped down to go to school.

 

[polylux]

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...efuses-to-treat-lesbian-couples-baby.1121851/

You'd be surprised.

As to the op, VCOM-C probably isn't the worst place to go- it isn't a religiously affiliated school, so there's that. LUCOM, CUSOM, MUCOM, and the like might present more hostile environments. But it certainly isn't going to be the best place to go if you plan to be out. Last year Spartanburg has been fairly peaceful in regard to hate crimes (which are a fairly good proxy for intolerance), but most years they're over 5 times the national rate in regard to crimes involving sexual orientation.

http://www.usa.com/spartanburg-sc-crime-and-crime-rate.htm

The statistics are actually kind of interesting- there's virtually no hate crimes reported in most years based on race, religion, ethnicity, or disability, but virtually every year there are several crimes involving sexual orientation. You can pretty much extrapolate that it isn't a very LGBT friendly area.

CUSOM isn't a hostile environment for anyone, regardless of the religious affiliation. The students are incredibly friendly and supportive and it's right near Raleigh. To be fair, I have noted a lot of religious students, but that doesn't mean it's hostile to LGBT.

 

[Mad Jack]

CUSOM isn't a hostile environment for anyone, regardless of the religious affiliation. The students are incredibly friendly and supportive and it's right near Raleigh. To be fair, I have noted a lot of religious students, but that doesn't mean it's hostile to LGBT.

I didn't say explicitly hostile, just that it might present a slightly more hostile environment than a secular institution. Raleigh itself is actually pretty LGBT friendly, per the stats, far more so than Spartanburg. LUCOM is the real offender- MUCOM and CUSOM aren't even in the same category. They're just DO schools that happen to be religious and might have a higher percentage of religious conservatives that are not LGBT friendly (which are probably a small minority of students and faculty). They're not known to be actively anti-LGBT or anything like LUCOM, which is pretty openly anti-LGBT.

 

[touchpause13]

I didn't say explicitly hostile, just that it might present a slightly more hostile environment than a secular institution. Raleigh itself is actually pretty LGBT friendly, per the stats, far more so than Spartanburg. LUCOM is the real offender- MUCOM and CUSOM aren't even in the same category. They're just DO schools that happen to be religious and might have a higher percentage of religious conservatives that are not LGBT friendly (which are probably a small minority of students and faculty). They're not known to be actively anti-LGBT or anything like LUCOM, which is pretty openly anti-LGBT.

I remember when I interviewed at MUCOM I was bored and read thru their undergrad newspaper and it had some things in it that made me very uncomfortable.

While there are places that may seem fine to those who aren't thinking about it, there are more likely to be subtle aspects of the schools you mentioned that present as not entirely welcoming to LGBTQ folks. At least I think that's the point you were trying to get across

 

[Goro]

What concerns me is that while the school itself might be welcoming, the community may not. hence, I always advise seeking schools in larger metro areas, like, Philly, NY etc.

good luck!

Hi, I was wondering if any students have any experiences or stories of LGBT students attending a DO school in a very conservative state. I don't actively display my sexual orientation wherever I go, but I'm hoping that I can at least be comfortable talking about certain topics with friends without feeling repercussions/judgement. I know most of the students at this school will mostly be coming from other conservative states and would like to give them the benefit of the doubt that not everyone is homophobic. This school does have an anti-discrimination policy for sexual orientation. Am I just worrying myself over nothing?

 

[cabinbuilder]

LECOM Erie has many gay students, many openly gay professors. They have a gay club, etc.

 

[BobTheBuilder34]

Thanks everyone for the feedback, it has been reassuring. I am "out" to all my friends. I guess I'll just have to find a group of supportive students and grow thick skin. It's going to be a weird transition coming from a very liberal state.

 

[WillowLeaf]

Hi, I was wondering if any students have any experiences or stories of LGBT students attending a DO school in a very conservative state. I don't actively display my sexual orientation wherever I go, but I'm hoping that I can at least be comfortable talking about certain topics with friends without feeling repercussions/judgement. I know most of the students at this school will mostly be coming from other conservative states and would like to give them the benefit of the doubt that not everyone is homophobic. This school does have an anti-discrimination policy for sexual orientation. Am I just worrying myself over nothing?

Hello! Queer vet student here, so my experience isn't exactly what you're asking about. But I'm going to chime in anyway.

It is reasonable to be concerned and look into the LGBT presence at the school you'll be attending. Some people say it's only 4 years and time flies by, but it's also a long time to be in an unwelcoming environment, or to feel like you need to be partially closeted. I definitely factored it into my decision of where to apply.

It's a good suggestion to ask the school if there is a LGBT club, either within the med school and within the larger university if your school is part of one. And then find out if that club is actually active, or is one of those clubs that exists on paper but never really does anything. TP's suggestion of finding out about a club and then asking the club officers about the environment (both in the med school and in the surrounding community) is a good idea. Sometimes people view a school/location as LGBT-friendly because there isn't overt discrimination or hate crimes, but when you actually ask LGBT students, there might be subtler homophobia that makes it an uncomfortable place. And yes, supportive friends are the best.

Best of luck with your application, and I hope you find out that it is an accepting environment.

 

[Anthonyweiner]

like LUCOM, which is pretty openly anti-LGBT.

Source?

 

[Mad Jack]

Source?

They've got a lot of anti-gay rules on the books. Basically, if you're caught doing anything remotely gay, you get a demerit and the whole school is informed of it. But the people aren't horrible, from the sound of it. Still, it also doesn't seem like a pleasant environment, given the alternatives. Here's one gay guy's sorry of his time at liberty:

http://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/04/being-gay-at-jerry-falwells-university/274578/

A lot of the things that he was able to see past because of his Christian background might not be taken so well by a secular student. Overall, not horrible, but a secular and LGBT person should probably look elsewhere.

 

[touchpause13]

Source?

Normally I would have more words for you but I have a test in like 2 hours so the short version is- read the post above you. Also you can't deny that the undergrad institution is hostile to gays, come on now.

 

[Anthonyweiner]

They've got a lot of anti-gay rules on the books. Basically, if you're caught doing anything remotely gay, you get a demerit and the whole school is informed of it. But the people aren't horrible, from the sound of it. Still, it also doesn't seem like a pleasant environment, given the alternatives. Here's one gay guy's sorry of his time at liberty:

http://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/04/being-gay-at-jerry-falwells-university/274578/

A lot of the things that he was able to see past because of his Christian background might not be taken so well by a secular student. Overall, not horrible, but a secular and LGBT person should probably look elsewhere.

Just looked through our student handbook, did not see any anti-gay rules. We have a couple students that are openly gay and there's probably more than just them. But I agree there are probably schools/cities that are more open.

 

[touchpause13]

Just looked thru your yik yak for funzies. This was one of the first things on there:

Yup. So welcoming

 

[Anthonyweiner]

Just looked thru your yik yak for funzies. This was one of the first things on there:
View attachment 189708

Yup. So welcoming

What is a yik yak?

 

[touchpause13]

What is a yik yak?

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=What+is+Yik+Yak

 

[Mad Jack]

Admission of Students

Consistent with Liberty University’s nondiscrimination policy with respect to admission of students, the School of Law does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, or status as a veteran. The School of Law does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation but does discriminate on the basis of sexual misconduct, including, but not limited to, non-marital sexual relations or the encouragement or advocacy of any form of sexual behavior that would undermine the Christian identity or faith mission of the University.

In its employment practices, the School of Law does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, but does discriminate on the basis of sexual misconduct, including, but not limited to, non-marital sexual misconduct, homosexual conduct, or the encouragement or advocacy of any form of sexual behavior that would undermine the Christian identity or faith mission of the University.

If you look through The Liberty Way, homosexual conduct is in there with all of the premarital and other conduct violations. Unfortunately, Liberty makes these discussions difficult by not publicly publishing their code of conduct like every other educational institution in the country. Only the school of law is open about conduct policies in the slightest, and even then they remain vague.

 

[user3]

They've got a lot of anti-gay rules on the books. Basically, if you're caught doing anything remotely gay, you get a demerit and the whole school is informed of it. But the people aren't horrible, from the sound of it. Still, it also doesn't seem like a pleasant environment, given the alternatives. Here's one gay guy's sorry of his time at liberty:

http://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/04/being-gay-at-jerry-falwells-university/274578/

A lot of the things that he was able to see past because of his Christian background might not be taken so well by a secular student. Overall, not horrible, but a secular and LGBT person should probably look elsewhere.

IIRC the COM has stated that those undergrad rules (whatever they are) do not apply to medical students. They maintain that they are a separate/independent entity.

 

[touchpause13]

I've tried to find the Liberty Way online... this is the best I've come up with (via reddit)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/935532/posts

 

[Mad Jack]

IIRC the COM has stated that those undergrad rules (whatever they are) do not apply to medical students. They maintain that they are a separate/independent entity.

I actually emailed them myself and gotten the answer that the core conduct rules apply to all institutions within the school. You won't have to deal with demerits, but premarital sex, homosexual behavior, etc is still explicitly banned. Note that what I posted above is from the Law school, not the undergraduate institution. You can e-mail them yourself, say you're gay and you were wondering if you would be able to bring your boyfriend on campus to events if admitted, or if you would be allowed to openly admit that you were in a gay relationship.

 

[CCEMTP]

To the OP, I really wouldn't worry about it. In this profession we must be accepting and professional towards everyone regardless of their beliefs, practices or lifestyles. Any sort of discrimination just isn't tolerated. I go to Texas A&M and that's about as conservative as it gets, yet we have quite a few LGBTQ students and everyone gets along great, as far as I can tell it hasn't played a factor in anything. One of them made a post on our Facebook group a few months ago telling us how concerned they were being LGBTQ going to such a conservative school, and how unfounded those concerns ended up being.

The point is, medical school kinda sucks, it's probably the hardest thing you will ever do in your life. Unless you have physicians in your family, they won't understand what you're going though. So work hard to make friends and be a caring person to everyone, these people are going to end up becoming your family for the next 4 years. If they're worth your time, they won't think twice about your lifestyle, they'll just be thinking about you.

 

[AsianPersuasion]

To the OP, I really wouldn't worry about it. In this profession we must be accepting and professional towards everyone regardless of their beliefs, practices or lifestyles. Any sort of discrimination just isn't tolerated. I go to Texas A&M and that's about as conservative as it gets, yet we have quite a few LGBTQ students and everyone gets along great, as far as I can tell it hasn't played a factor in anything. One of them made a post on our Facebook group a few months ago telling us how concerned they were being LGBTQ going to such a conservative school, and how unfounded those concerns ended up being.

The point is, medical school kinda sucks, it's probably the hardest thing you will ever do in your life. Unless you have physicians in your family, they won't understand what you're going though. So work hard to make friends and be a caring person to everyone, these people are going to end up becoming your family for the next 4 years. If they're worth your time, they won't think twice about your lifestyle, they'll just be thinking about you.

I don't want to be that person who says it's easier said than done...but it's literally easier said then done. I know you mean well, I completely understand and respect that, but unless you're gay yourself, there's really no way you can truly empathize. Even though we have to be professional, negative tension will always be felt and it can be in subtlest way possible. 4 years is a very long time, at least to me to be in a place where I am ostracize for my sexual orientation.

This is one of the biggest problem I am facing right now with trying to formulate my list. All the potential schools are in places that are considered "deep south". I don't mind moving but I feel as though maybe not so much the school but the surrounding environment isn't so welcoming in term of LGBTQ. If anyone else has any other experience to share, please do

 

[crazyboi1993]

Can anyone comment on the LGBT community in Bradenton FLorida, or LECOM-B in general, how is the community in florida in the school?

 

[DoctorSynthesis]

Can anyone comment on the LGBT community in Bradenton FLorida, or LECOM-B in general, how is the community in florida in the school?

J4PAC went to LECOM B and he commented about this alread on this thread.

 

[crazyboi1993]

As a guy who has traveled the world...it is really a mixed bag wherever you go. If your plan is to avoid homophobia entirely...then I wish you the best of luck, because that is not going to happen...regardless of where you live. When you are in medical school you are very secluded away from the rest of society and the people who you associate with are generally medical professions. I think that medical professionals generally tend to be less judgemental. You are going to find people who disagree with your lifestyle wherever you go...but even the southern schools are tolerant. I would probably avoid Liberty...because I could see how that may be an uncomfortable situation for you...but otherwise, I would not use location as a deciding factor. I have met plenty of homophobic and racist people in California and the Northeast...which are generally considered more progressive.

I went to med school in the south...had many LGBT students. Nobody cared and they felt comfortable.

Can anyone comment on the LGBT community in Bradenton FLorida, or LECOM-B in general, how is the community in florida in the school?

 

[arc5005]

I feel like even if you can't find a LGBT club, you can always find gay friends in the city or a nearby city you live in. There will most likely be LGBT organizations, clubs, bars, etc... in the city/nearby metro area. There will be peers who are going to be open-minded, so I doubt friends will be an issue. If you are worried about finding friends and feeling welcomed, remember that there are most likely gays living in the vicinity (they might not be other med students).

I have never not lived in a liberal city/state though, so I guess I have not experienced an unwelcoming community per say. Isolated incidents of course. Those will be hard to escape in the most liberal cities.

And if you can't find anyone that way....there's always Grindr, Tinder, Scruff, Jack'd, etc... lol

 

[arc5005]

double post.

 

[arc5005]

Can anyone comment on the LGBT community in Bradenton FLorida, or LECOM-B in general, how is the community in florida in the school?

Tampa is pretty close by (~45 minutes?) and it has a fairly big gay community. I had a friend who lived in Tampa and worked at one of the gay bars for like 2 years.

 

[AsianPersuasion]

Can anyone comment on the LGBT community in Bradenton FLorida, or LECOM-B in general, how is the community in florida in the school?

I've been to FL and within that area is pretty good. Very accepting. Nova is even better because you have Fort Lauderdale.

 

[arc5005]

I've been to FL and within that area is pretty good. Very accepting. Nova is even better because you have Fort Lauderdale.

A doc I know who recently graduated from NOVA said that some people even chose to live in Miami for their second year, but Ft. Lauderdale has a pretty big LGBT scene itself.

 

[AsianPersuasion]

A doc I know who recently graduated from NOVA said that some people even chose to live in Miami for their second year, but Ft. Lauderdale has a pretty big LGBT scene itself.

Yup!! Fort Lauderdale is the place to be. I personally think it beats SF. In terms of how cheap it is to live there, people and just overall lifestyle etc.

I keep saying we need to make an SDN LGBTQ pack and all go to school together but everyone bails out

 

[AsianPersuasion]

http://fortlauderdale.gaycities.com/overview/

I would love to go to school in FL.

 

[crazyboi1993]

When I went to Bradenton, FL, i went to the beaches, but I went to tampa the next night, and went too a lot of gay clubs, it reminded me of Austin, I had a lot of fun, but I was wondering if Bradenton was accepting?

 

[DrMikeP]

I don't want to be that person who says it's easier said than done...but it's literally easier said then done. I know you mean well, I completely understand and respect that, but unless you're gay yourself, there's really no way you can truly empathize. Even though we have to be professional, negative tension will always be felt and it can be in subtlest way possible. 4 years is a very long time, at least to me to be in a place where I am ostracize for my sexual orientation.

This is one of the biggest problem I am facing right now with trying to formulate my list. All the potential schools are in places that are considered "deep south". I don't mind moving but I feel as though maybe not so much the school but the surrounding environment isn't so welcoming in term of LGBTQ. If anyone else has any other experience to share, please do

Just an fyi, one doesn't have to experience something to be truly empathic toward a challenge or situation. One can experience accurate empathy toward others' suffering no matter the basis (e.g. cancer pts, members of another race/religion/etc). Group biases exist on many levels and across many groups, as do micro-aggressions. Even those from the rural deep South often experience negative cultural biases in large Northern cities and even in the media.

You'll definitely find variation in communities in regards to acceptance of someone being gay in the "deep South" but similarly you'll find biases against being gay (or a member of any particular group) in parts of many other communities in other areas as well. It may not make it right, but a lot of the acceptance also will depend on your personality and want to be expressive of your identity. If you are concerned about people not being welcoming or tolerant toward you interfering with your ability to be the most successful in med school, then as suggested you might want to look at med schools in or closer to bigger cities with known gay populations. Even then there are surrounding communities that will be more and will be less accepting.

Of schools I personally know of with significant LGBT communities in close (somewhat) proximity, LECOM-Bradenton (has Tampa) and Nova (Wilton Manors/Miami), but even in South Florida you will find groups that are intolerant. In smaller southern towns there are often very active LGBT groups, but they are less out in the open, but still possible to find (small rainbow stickers on business windows is often a good clue).

Best of Luck

 

[arc5005]

http://fortlauderdale.gaycities.com/overview/

I would love to go to school in FL.

I'm hoping to be in one of the big NorEaster cities (I miss living in NYC), or Pacific NorthWest (since I live out here now). I also wouldn't mind Denver, San Fran, or maybee maybeeeee Florida... However, I don't think I could handle Florida for more than 2-4 years.

 

[AsianPersuasion]

I'm hoping to be in one of the big NorEaster cities (I miss living in NYC), or Pacific NorthWest (since I live out here now). I also wouldn't mind Denver, San Fran, or maybee maybeeeee Florida... However, I don't think I could handle Florida for more than 2-4 years.

I agree with you, I'm such a northeastern boy. Plus, it sounds awful but my style is way better during the winter than the summer

 

[j4pac]

Can anyone comment on the LGBT community in Bradenton FLorida, or LECOM-B in general, how is the community in florida in the school?

St. Petersburg which is about 30 min away has an enormous LGBT community. Bradenton-Sarasota has tons of retirees and beach lovers. The Tampa area in general is not uber conservative (despite the confederate flag off of I-10).

 

[arc5005]

I agree with you, I'm such a northeastern boy. Plus, it sounds awful but my style is way better during the winter than the summer

really? I'm all about shorts & tank tops, especially if I'm dancing.