Maximizing URM?

Started by SchoolboyQ
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SchoolboyQ

SchoolboyQ

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7+ Year Member
Good Afternoon,

Woohoo first post on SDN! Hope this is in the right place.

I recently realized that I am part URM. However, I have like no activities that relate to my URM-ness. I feel like, right now, if I put down my race, the adcoms wouldn't consider me URM because I have shown very little involvement. So at first I thought "well this can't be too hard, I'll just volunteer in my URM community a bit". But then I thought that it might come across as obvious - doing it only to get URM benefits. So...my question - how can I use my ethnicity to my advantage without sounding hokey?

Thanks so much everyone!
 
So like I could just volunteer in some inner city health clinic...but would that actually help? Wouldn't adcoms see right through that?
 
Ok...so yeah, you just found this out. I'm sorry to say that Adcoms won't acknowledge this anymore than the other people that have played the 1/16 Alaskan Indian and Native American card
 
Mad Jack said:
1/16th isn't enough to matter. I wouldn't put it down an an application, as you're likely to get burned hard. If you aren't black enough to realize you're black until now, you're not black enough to check the box.
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Yeah, that's what I would tell myself if I were you...BUT...I want to get into med school. It is true that I am part black. So why shouldn't I put it down, other than moral reasons?
 
Grace184 said:
Ok...so yeah, you just found this out. I'm sorry to say that Adcoms won't acknowledge this anymore than the other people that have played the 1/16 Alaskan Indian and Native American card
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One of my older brother's friends got into Harvard because he was 1/32 Native American. Guess what? Now he works for Goldman Sachs and has a condo in NYC. I just want medical school regardless of the moral side. Sorry, just being strait up
 
Grace184 said:
@LizzyM says to put down your race that's on the U.S. census. It's probably white.
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Why? If you have URM blood, why not use it? I'd rather be a doctor and know that I took an unfair advantage than being a high school science teacher and knowing that I was 100% clean.
 
Mad Jack said:
1/16th isn't enough to matter. I wouldn't put it down an an application, as you're likely to get burned hard. If you aren't black enough to realize you're black until now, you're not black enough to check the box.
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tumblr_n1wlb3rwSq1smcbm7o1_500.gif
 
I guess what I am asking is - all moral issues set aside, how much would it hurt/help my application to say I'm black?
 
SchoolboyQ said:
Yeah, that's what I would tell myself if I were you...BUT...I want to get into med school. It is true that I am part black. So why shouldn't I put it down, other than moral reasons?
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Put it down, watch what happens. You will receive several interview questions about how it affected your life and the like that you will be completely unable to competently answer. That, combined with your not looking the part and not having the ECs will have your application trashed. Generally the cutoff for being considered a member of a given minority is either 1/4 or 1/8th, such as with Native American tribes and many scholarships. If you told add-ons you were 1/16th the only struggle that would be real in that room would be their struggle to contain their laughter.
 
Mad Jack said:
Put it down, watch what happens. You will receive several interview questions about how it affected your life and the like that you will be completely unable to competently answer. That, combined with your not looking the part and not having the ECs will have your application trashed. Generally the cutoff for being considered a member of a given minority is either 1/4 or 1/8th, such as with Native American tribes and many scholarships. If you told add-ons you were 1/16th the only struggle that would be real in that room would be their struggle to contain their laughter.
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In other words, it would actually *hurt* my application, right?
 
kenjixshadow said:
Why don't SDN make you a mod?
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If he shows up again, just report him and say why. I did and the smack hit within minutes. I'm sure I'm not the only one who reported him though....I just honestly couldn't handle any more ridiculous threads from him baiting in people and wasting their time

Edit: lol narc isn't my style but today's been draining
 
Honestly, its always the most unqualified non-urms that complain about urm admissions. I have (non-black) friends who failed organic chem, and physics and have below a 3.0 yet talk about it all the time. These are the type of people who couldn't even bribe their way into medical school.
 
I find it's more the hyper-achievers who think that because they have a 3.9/36, God forbid someone with lesser stats should take their seat, as if any seat if a med school is "theirs".



twospadz said:
Honestly, its always the most unqualified non-urms that complain about urm admissions. I have (non-black) friends who failed organic chem, and physics and have below a 3.0 yet talk about it all the time. These are the type of people who couldn't even bribe their way into medical school.
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Goro said:
I find it's more the hyper-achievers who think that because they have a 3.9/36, God forbid someone with lesser stats should take their seat, as if any seat if a med school is "theirs".
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There are always exceptions to the rule which aren't worth talking about. But honestly how many people you know are walking around with a 3.9/36 mcat personally? I could count mine on one hand.
 
Goro said:
You haven't been reading SDN very long, have you?
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Im talking about people in real life bud. Not the type of people who post "what are my chances of getting accepted into medical school with a 3.8 and 40 mcat?". People I know with those stats are getting accepted into medical school with a full scholarship. Overall, they are just being neurotic. Please dont feel sorry for them. Your just doing yourself a disservice.
 
*Sigh*, and I'm talking about the people who complain about URMs here on SDN.

4.0 automatons are a dime-a-dozen and mine and other schools do reject them.

Then they come on here venting spleens about how some URM with a 3.3 and a 28 MCAT got accepted ahead of them.

Capeesh?


twospadz said:
Im talking about people in real life bud. Not the type of people who post "what are my chances of getting accepted into medical school with a 3.8 and 40 mcat?". People I know with those stats are getting accepted into medical school with a full scholarship. Overall, they are just being neurotic. Please dont feel sorry for them. Your just doing yourself a disservice.
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Goro said:
*Sigh*, and I'm talking about the people who complain about URMs here on SDN.

4.0 automatons are a dime-a-dozen and mine and other schools do reject them.

Then they come on here venting spleens about how some URM with a 3.3 and a 28 MCAT got accepted ahead of them.

Capeesh?
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Ok. So we can both see the futility of talking about this subject then. /Endthread
 
WedgeDawg said:
So then doesn't that kind of negate any validity of your argument based on anecdotal evidence?
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im not the one arguing lol i skipped thru your guys convo and just saw the last comment. I just decided to chime in. I only know one guy with super high stats IRL.
 
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