Med-MAR

Have you heard of Med-MAR (Medical Minority Applicant Registry)? It’s okay if you haven’t; I did only recently but definitely want to share this information with you. 

Med-MAR is an AAMC service that was created to “enhance admission opportunities for students from groups historically underrepresented in medicine (URiM).” You can opt into this service when you register for your MCAT exam. Basically, what happens if you accept is your biographic information and MCAT scores are distributed to participating medical schools. These schools will then send you “recruitment information” encouraging you to apply to their program. Like: ‘Hey we’re trying to increase diversity within our program. You’re URiM and your MCAT score is good. Here’s some information about us, won’t you please apply to our medical school?’

AAMC is very specific that this service is only a means of identifying and communicating the availability of applicants from these groups. Do not misinterpret an invitation to apply as: if you apply, you’re going to get an automatic interview or that you have an automatic seat in the next class. That’s not at all how it works. It is simply a way to show you that the school has seen your MCAT score which is at the level they require and to show you that they are interested in creating more diversity in their program.

To be eligible to participate in Med-MAR, you must self-identify as a member of a racial/ethnic group that is historically under-represented in medicine. Or you must be economically disadvantaged/low SES. You don’t have to be both! Citizenship status is also a factor. If you were accepted into FAP this does not automatically enroll you in Med-MAR. You have to do this separately. When you register for the MCAT exam, you’ll be asked if you want to participate in Med-MAR. From what I understand, this is the only time you’re going be asked…you have to check a box to accept or reject participation. So, don’t fly through this trying to hurry and get to the checkout page, that MCAT registration fee will still be there waiting on you…

Now, there will always be chatter about schools that “recruit to reject”—we hear the same thing when colleges send recruitment mail to high school seniors. But this is my blog and my personal opinion. And my very strong opinion is that if you’re from a group that is under-represented in medicine (read: Black) and/or economically disadvantaged, you need to check that accept box. It doesn’t cost you anything! So what if you get some letters or emails you don’t want? You get those every day already anyways! This is about the white coat! Now I do not condone you being out here throwing money away just because a medical school sent you a friendly piece of mail. Remember, it’s $42 for each school you apply to if you don’t have the FAP…and those add up to a lot of Chipotle burritos. If you start getting correspondence from schools that you would never go to for personal reasons, delete them without a second thought. Or if you get a letter from a military branch telling you they’ll pay for your medical school but you don’t like waking up early, sweating, or people yelling at you, then throw that letter away! But if you get a correspondence from a school you haven’t even thought about, but would consider, and on top of that they’re telling you up front about their diversity efforts and scholarship opportunities or waiving secondary application fees (I read this in some student comments regarding Med-MAR, unsure if it’s true), then you’ve gotten a leg up at no extra cost to you. 

Remember that only around 5% of physicians in this country identify as Black or African-American. Some (read: some) medical schools are truly devoted to doing their part to change these numbers. And I’m not mad at them for that. Checking accept and getting some letters from schools is not an “easy pass” into medical school because you’re Black. You still have to meet the requirements and do well on your interview to get in. And when you get there, you still have to take the same tests and boards as everyone else to proceed. Don’t over-think this one, and that’s from The Queen of Overthinking Everything.

So, bottom line is: check the box if you want to. As Tabitha Brown (don’t you love her????) says, that’s your business. But I think you should. Doing so may give you a first glance at a school you hadn’t thought of applying to. And it may be a school that is pushing diversity so hard that they are handing out scholarships like candy. Of course, the next best thing to getting your white coat is not having to pay full price for it!

Did you already know about Med-MAR? Have you heard anything good (or not so good) about it? Do you have any concerns about being added to the registry? Feel free to leave your comments below, or send me an email!