Would relocating be crazy?

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

My goal is to get into *a* medical school. I don't really care too much which one at this point, as it seems that the stuff I'm really interested in doesn't start happening until residency anyway!

Would it be crazy to move from a low yield state (FL) to a high yield state like Texas? Obviously it takes time to establish residency but if I moved there and worked for a year or two, is that a solid move? Or would adcoms assume that I moved to their state for med school and cross me off the list?

For reference, I'd be ~30ish and married with a stable career, so this wouldn't be putting any strain on my family. I'd be waiting to do this til my SO graduates from undergrad in our current state.

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[GreenDuck12]

Pick a better state than Texas but recognize that while you might qualify as a resident they may not view you as someone who would fulfill the mission of training doctors who will serve the state.

 

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

That's fair. I wouldn't mind sticking in Texas specifically long term as we have family there anyway. I guess I'll see what happens in the next two years haha.

 

[Stranger00120]

I considered it, but I didn't end up doing it. I was considering Mississippi due to their very strong resident preference (according to their website, in recent years no non-residents have been admitted) and their high acceptance rate. I ended up being accepted recently, so the point became moot.

 

[chicandtoughness]

The "Texas is high yield" is a myth. Yes, state schools are required to take 90% in-state. But there are SO. MANY. PEOPLE. applying. The % overall that are accepted is lower than the AMCAS average, and those who are accepted have higher stats overall. It is just as tough to be accepted here as it is in FL. Unless you have a REALLY good reason to come and a good reason to stay, don't do it. A lot of people try to game the system to become a resident so they can get the resident consideration and cheap tuition, so it might even work against you.

 

[deleted849476]

I did what you're thinking OP, took a gap year in Nevada for chances at UNLV and Reno. Waitlisted at UNLV and never came off it, rejected after interview with Reno. It was really a bummer because those were my top choices and ultimately I ended up getting accepted elsewhere making my whole 9-month move to Nevada pointless from a career standpoint (had a blast though, and I'm trying to go back for residency/career). So I loved my life while I was there, but I don't think it had much impact on my chances at their schools, and I pitched a massive pro Nevada application. I had average stats for both places and I think it just came down to them wanting natives instead of me because of their huge in-state mission. I think they had plenty of applicants who were in-state and pretty much just like me and so they had their pick. Don't forget that this "gap year" is actually you applying to their school, and if you do get interviews you may've only been in the state for a couple months, which is kinda weird IMO. I RUSHED to get volunteering and medical experience in the state as soon as I moved (to show commitment), because youre up against people who have their entire applications based in the state. In fact I think it says something that I was actually interviewed by both and especially that I was even just waitlisted. I do think I could've got in after reapplying the next cycle because NV is known for being good about that I've heard (...but obviously the point is just to be accepted to a school, so once I got my A, I never reapplied). Nevada will just have to still be there after med school...So I guess I'd do it all over again, but that's because I simply want to live in the state--can't really recommend the moving for increasing your chances (at least not to NV anyway), and although you say its not an issue for you, for me it was a pretty bad financial move.

Summary: don't move out of state, just apply to a bunch of low tier schools for safety, also "play the game" with your in state school(s) and if they have a mission for you to serve the state's rural areas and prisons and underserved, be sure to tell them that's all you've ever wanted in life they play the game with us so play it back or you might not become a doctor

 

[AtrociousGrades]

I did what you're thinking OP, took a gap year in Nevada for chances at UNLV and Reno. Waitlisted at UNLV and never came off it, rejected after interview with Reno. It was really a bummer because those were my top choices and ultimately I ended up getting accepted elsewhere making my whole 9-month move to Nevada pointless from a career standpoint (had a blast though, and I'm trying to go back for residency/career). So I loved my life while I was there, but I don't think it had much impact on my chances at their schools, and I pitched a massive pro Nevada application. I had average stats for both places and I think it just came down to them wanting natives instead of me because of their huge in-state mission. I think they had plenty of applicants who were in-state and pretty much just like me and so they had their pick. Don't forget that this "gap year" is actually you applying to their school, and if you do get interviews you may've only been in the state for a couple months, which is kinda weird IMO. I RUSHED to get volunteering and medical experience in the state as soon as I moved (to show commitment), because youre up against people who have their entire applications based in the state. In fact I think it says something that I was actually interviewed by both and especially that I was even just waitlisted. I do think I could've got in after reapplying the next cycle because NV is known for being good about that I've heard (...but obviously the point is just to be accepted to a school, so once I got my A, I never reapplied). Nevada will just have to still be there after med school...So I guess I'd do it all over again, but that's because I simply want to live in the state--can't really recommend the moving for increasing your chances (at least not to NV anyway), and although you say its not an issue for you, for me it was a pretty bad financial move.

Summary: don't move out of state, just apply to a bunch of low tier schools for safety, also "play the game" with your in state school(s) and if they have a mission for you to serve the state's rural areas and prisons and underserved, be sure to tell them that's all you've ever wanted in life they play the game with us so play it back or you might not become a doctor

I am actually considering moving to NV or TX myself, for multiple reasons, not just med school. Thanks for posting this input - were you not considered IS if only there for 9 months?

Really having a tough time deciding, should probably make my own thread.

 

[chicandtoughness]

were you not considered IS if only there for 9 months?

Not the person you're responding to, and I know nothing about NV... but in Texas at least, you need to be there at least 12 months before the TMDSAS deadline. So if you're applying to matriculate in 2022 (the 2021 TMDSAS cycle), you need to be in Texas no later than October 1, 2020.

 

[Yamatama]

A lot of people do this to game the system. Since many of the midtier schools are mission fit and even region specific, you would have better luck applying to amcas schools. It’s hard for people with Texas residency to get anything outside of Texas as well so consider that.
I had one of my oos interviews ask me why them when I have so many good schools in Texas. So yeah, being a Texas native is not all it’s cracked up to be.

 

[deleted849476]

I am actually considering moving to NV or TX myself, for multiple reasons, not just med school. Thanks for posting this input - were you not considered IS if only there for 9 months?

Really having a tough time deciding, should probably make my own thread.

EDIT: I just realized you're not OP, but I typed this all up as if you were so idk maybe someone will get something out of it

No problem. I actually was considered in-state, yes, in fact I made sure prior to choosing NV that they would consider me in state. UNLV just wants to see you living in the state 12 months prior to your expected date of matriculation. I moved in May of my gap year and would've matriculated the June/July the next year so I was fine. I just ended up leaving the state after I got waitlisted at UNLV and rejected at Reno. (Not that I didn't want to be there, I just couldn't afford it any longer after my application cycle.) Reno I believe was a similar circumstance--I can't really remember, but I may have had to fill out some sort of request or something.

The scary part is, AMCAS doesn't validate your state of residence, so you can mark whichever state you think you are a resident of, but then you just hope you understand the school's rule because they will validate you on their own for their in state purposes, perhaps even after acceptance, and I don't know what they would do if you were found to not qualify for in-state. I spent a long time over a couple years making calls to admissions checking up and making sure I understood their processes before doing it and that at least someone there was willing to give my plan the OK that it was legitimate. Ended up talking to an admissions officer and then briefly with the dean of admissions.

BTW I came from a WWAMI region (which isn't crucial to my point if you're not familiar with that), but long story short I applied to my in-state school as well and they shut out my application really fast given that I checked the "Nevada" resident box on AMCAS... So know that doing this is kind of burning bridges, which may've cost me like >$180k in the long run had I been accepted there instead of the private school I am currently at. Still worth it for me because that was just the price of living somewhere I actually wanted to be, if even for 9 months, and having a once-in-a-lifetime gap year before school started.

Final piece of advice is you should also consider schools that have rotation sites in the state you want to move to. You may end up at who-knows-where for preclinicals for two years, but if you can be at hospitals in your preferred state within 24 months then that's pretty good too. Not sure which schools might have NV/TX rotations though.

 

[lumya]

I considered moving this year if I wasn't accepted. I'm a DC resident (no instate preference even for Virginia/Maryland) and I was in the process of interviewing for a position in Kansas to help with my instate and in-region preferences. I found that most states require at least a 12 month residency before you're considered in-state, and Kansas (unless I'm grossly misinterpreting it), allows students to be considered in-state if they're employed by the state government (which was the position I was interviewing for).

I got a surprise acceptance so I didn't continue to pursue it, but there are a lot of really nice mid-western states that have decent instate bias that I certainly missed living in DC, so I definitely don't think it's crazy to consider relocating.