Voices of Diversity
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Top 5 Do’s For a Premedical Student Getting to Apply
1. Begin researching medical schools Selecting the medical schools to apply to is a key component in the process. By researching medical school qualities beyond their accepted GPA and MCAT ranges, you will also learn that schools are eager for you to know what is unique about their programs. Look carefully through curriculums, coursework, clinical [...]
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Perspectives: The Call of Duty
There are few things in one’s life that compare to answering the call to serve in the United States Armed Forces. In this week’s blog post, Tameka Pyles, MD (currently deployed in Afghanistan) gives us insight on her decision to enter the Armed Forces and the current path it takes her on — saving lives. [...]
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#T4DWest Day 5: Just Because You Saw It On The Internet Doesn’t Make It True #KnowYourSources
As our last stop at University of Nevada Las Vegas came to a close, I found myself in a situation that completely changed the direction of what I intended to blog about. I just happened to be passing by in between sessions when I saw another mentor talking to a very noticeably upset participant of [...]
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#T4DWest Day 4: Re-energized!
To be or not to be, that is the question… I just sat down with a pre-dental student at one of our tour stops, for blog purposes I will refer to her a “Maria”. Maria indicated that she felt discouraged by her pre-health advisor. Maria said that when she approached her advisor and asked why [...]
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#T4DWest Day 4: Advice for the High School Senior
Our high school students have been representing in abundance this Tour! A few come to mind in particular: St. Michaels and Atrisco Heritage in Albuquerque, San Leandro in Sacramento, Estrella in Arizona, California Science and Math at CSU-DH… We at T4D are proud to have expanded our curriculum to include specific topics for younger high [...]
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#T4DWest Day 3: Balancing the Gender Scale
Ladies stand up! Let’s balance the scale. Today’s pendulum has swung in an unexpected direction. Recent statistics suggest only 29 percent of applicants applying to podiatry schools are female. This number continues to decline yearly…but why? Are women focused more on traditional allopathic/osteopathic routes to medicine? Are women choosing non-medically related professions? Are women simply [...]
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#T4DWest Day 3: Premed Hype
Often I see the negative energy that is caused by students comparing personal GPA stats, research, and clinical experiences amongst each other. Students engaging in these practices create an expectation of keeping up with what everyone of their peers are doing. As a result, students begin to use their peers as a way to evaluate [...]
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#T4DWest Day 3: #Reflection #WhyIT4D #NotABlackPowerRanger #AndIAmOKWithIt
#T4DWest Day 3: #Reflection #WhyIT4D #NotABlackPowerRanger #AndIAmOKWithIt Today marked my 21st school stop with the Tour 4 Diversity. But this tour, even at its halfway mark, has already had two topics of conversation arise more often than the other full tours: the question “Why I T4D” and the practice of reflection. After answering questions and [...]
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#T4DWest Day 2: Dreamers Can Reach Their Dream
The topic of dreamers is very personal because my brother is experiencing this tough harsh reality. Like many of you, he is determined to acquire a career in the health professions, but has experienced many drawbacks because of his status. At Albuquerque a young man shared his passion of wishing to serve his community through [...]
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#T4DWest Day 2: A Recipe for Success – One Surgeon’s Story
There are two questions that students frequently ask me about becoming a doctor. One is, “What did you do to become a doctor?” and “How did you stay motivated?” I often tell students attending the Tour 4 Diversity in Medicine (T4D) that becoming a doctor is like running a marathon. The pathway to medicine is [...]
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