On the first day of the conference, Dr. Hilda Hutcherson, the
Senior Associate Dean for Diversity and Multicultural Affairs at Columbia
University, talked about her experiences in getting her MD as a first
generation student. She spent a lot of time talking about owning your identity
as a FGLI student and using that to propel your motivation and your career. She
talked about education being the bridge out of poverty, saying that once you
get knowledge into your head, no one can take it away from you. She discussed the
difficulties of navigating her journey as a healthcare professional and how she
learned to use her struggles to help others rather than letting them hold her
back. You can check her out her great presentation video by going here: https://www.fglimed.org/june-9-highlights
After doctor Hutcherson spoke with
us, we were broken into smaller groups so that we could meet other attendees of
the conference. The faculty and staff were put together in a breakout room and
we talked a little bit about who we were before chatting about how we support FGLI
students. We only had about 20 minutes, which was not nearly enough time, so we
decided to all meet again on our own on Friday after the conference to continue
the conversation. After we returned to the larger group of conference
attendees, we debriefed from our breakout conversations and had a larger discussion
in a town hall format. (Watch the video by going here: https://www.fglimed.org/june-9-highlights)
The major take-away from the session were that FGLI students should be proud of
their background, embrace it, and remember that it is your superpower! Other
take-aways were to learn to ask for help, to remember that you belong and
deserve to be where you are, and to not be discouraged by the assumed knowledge
about the structure of medicine that you were never taught by family/friends.
There was some discussion on being proud of yourself even when you fall short
of perfection. It reminded me of one of my favorite Ze Frank quotes, “Perfectionism
may look good in his shiny shoes, but he's a little bit of an @$$**** and
nobody invites him to their pool parties.” There was also some discussion about
empathy and compassion as well as standing up to colleagues who make
disparaging remarks about patients. The last major take-away from the
discussion was remembering that being categorized as FGLI isn’t just one,
specific background. There is a diversity of individual stories that fall under
FGLI and all of our stories should be celebrated!
The next day at the conference, there were two different
discussion panels that were hosted at the same time. As your pre health
advisor, I thought it would be best for me to attend the Applying to Medical School
panel over the Applying to Residency panel, so I did. (You can find both by
going here: https://www.fglimed.org/june-10)
During the Applying to Medical School panel, the speakers wanted all FGLI
students to know that their backgrounds are strengths not weaknesses in medical
school applications. FGLI students should be proud of their backgrounds and
should embrace the strengths of their stories for showcasing things like
resiliency and grit. The panelists shared various resources to help students
navigate the often-murky waters of the application process and talked about things
such as fee assistance programs, MCAT accommodations, and finding a pre-health
advisor if your school doesn’t already have one. They also talked about what a
disadvantage statement is and when it should be used. The goal of these
statements, should you choose to submit one, is to provide context for helping
the admissions committees to better understand the obstacles that you have
faced. These obstacles are not your identity, but rather your circumstances, such
as your economic situation, your medical conditions, or your learning
disabilities that have impacted your journey as a pre-health student. The
panelists emphasized that these statements should be filled with facts and should
provide context, but should not speculate about what you could have achieved had
you not had to face those obstacles.
The panelists stressed the importance of identifying your
strengths and then both celebrating and playing to those strengths throughout
your pre health journey and beyond. They encouraged students to be self-reflective
and to develop a growth mindset. They talked about how healthcare is a team
sport and how one of the best things you can do as an applicant is showcase how
you've been both a leader and a good team player in the past. They discussed
learning to construct healthy boundaries, a discussion that featured on of my
favorite new quotes, “We don't have to light ourselves on fire to keep others
warm.”
Other things that were discussed included the importance of
reaching out and asking for help from people like pre-health advisors,
diversity offices, or even the schools where you are applying. If you have
economic struggles, you can reach out to specific programs or to the diversity
offices within specific universities to ask for assistance in funding your interviews
or other program specific expenses. For example, some programs will waive
secondary application fees if you have financial hardships, but you might not
know that if you never ask.
On the final day of the conference, Dr. David Acosta, Chief Diversity
and Inclusion Officer of the AAMC, shared his story and perspectives on FGLI in
medicine. He spoke about the importance of embracing our own intersectionality
and using the power of our different identities to help us be more creative,
more innovative, and better at making decisions. He emphasized that students
should always be bringing their full selves to the table. He talked about the
realities of imposter syndrome, quoting a former student who said, “One of the
hardest obstacles have to overcome in medical school/residency is the one
inside your head.” He also talked about the value of mentorship and the
changing dynamics of mentor-mentee relationships over time. He said mentors and
mentees should set clear expectations of what they plan to get out of their
relationship and that it is okay (and even healthy) for mentors/mentees to grow
away from each other as they move forward in their careers. You can watch Dr.
Acosta’s closing keynote by going here: https://www.fglimed.org/june-11
The conference concluded with the discussion about ongoing
projects, scholarship opportunities, and ways to get involved in the FGL I'm Ed
community. There was discussion about using existing tools so that you aren’t
reinventing the wheel and documenting your efforts to promote sustainability. Much
of the discussion centered on finding, growing, and maintaining your FGLI
community, both on your campus and among peers at other institutions. Some of
the panelists talked about the importance of establishing traditions first to
build your community and then assessing what your community’s needs are for moving
forward. They also mentioned that it is important to recognize that your FGLI community
is complex and diverse and includes other students, faculty, and non-faculty
staff.
All in all, the virtual conference was a wonderful
opportunity to learn more about using your first generation experiences as the
backdrop for your applications into medical programs. The conference was
empowering and exciting and totally worth your time to catch on the replay,
which you can do by going here: https://www.fglimed.org/2020webinar
It also provided lots of great resources and tools for first generation
students as well as growing and strengthening the FGLIMed community. To learn
more about this community or to join so that you, too, have access to all of
these wonderful tools and can start building your professional network of
people with similar experiences, check out their website by going here: https://www.fglimed.org/
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