When I was in elementary school, my mother taught school in a county adjacent to where we lived. My older sister and I would ride the bus home and let ourselves in the house. We had a rule that our homework had to be done prior to any play time, so we would generally start that as soon as we got home. I also knew I could not go outside until my mother was home, so I would pass the time watching rap videos. One of my favorite rappers was Rakim and I loved his song “I Know You Got Soul”. In this song he states: “It ain’t where you’re from, it’s where you’re at”. I know it is bad English and sounds basic; however, this later became my mantra.
I attended undergrad at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. If you are not familiar with this institution of higher learning it has been designated a Historically Black College and University in Greensboro, North Carolina. I majored in Biology and the curriculum required that I take several if not all of the classes that were required for medical school. I was focused on scholarship from the moment my parents moved me into Scott Hall on that hot August Sunday, and my transcript reflected the hard work I put into the class room.
The time came to apply to medical school and I was excited about an upcoming interview I had. This school was my first choice because I knew the area well, I knew several students there, and my school had sent students to that program in the past. The interview process consisted of two interviews one by a faculty member in the medical school and a second interview by someone who may not be on faculty at the medical school. I can remember the professor looking at my transcript closely and then looking up from his glasses and asking me a single question. “Do you think you can function here?”
I really did not know how to respond to that question. So I asked if he could explain what he meant by that. He went on to tell me that he thought that maybe I needed to seek different experiences and that if I was not admitted to this medical school, I should look for “different mentors and a different program”. He then went on to tell me that he had some concerns because I went to a smaller school which led to doubt in my academic merits and achievements. The interview went on for an additional 20 minutes or so however, I really have little recollection of anything else that he said. Initially, I was angry after the interview. Why did he think that way? Science is science no matter where it was taught, and I busted my tail to earn every grade on my transcript. The electron transport chain generated the same number of ATP at my HBCU as it did at any majority institution.
Maybe he said this to get a reaction from me. Maybe he really did question my academic success and despised the fact that I was qualified to sit in front of him interviewing for a position at his institution. Maybe he did not know that HBCUs are responsible for producing 70% of black doctors and dentist, and that I had high aspirations of being included among the ranks. Maybe he did not know that when I was 9 years old Rakim expressed to me that “It ain’t where I was from, but it is where I’m at” over a smooth beat by Eric B. It did not matter that I took the MCAT twice and that I came from a small science program from a school he might not be familiar with. What did matter is that I had academic advisors and research directors that knew what kind of student I was, and who were just as appalled as I was in regards to his frowning upon my scholastic achievements.
Applying to medical school is a numbers game. Some years you may be a stronger or weaker candidate depending on applicant pool for that cycle. It may require you taking graduate classes to improve your application and showing that you can do graduate level work. It may demand that you take the MCAT again to improve your score.
Needless to say, I did not get accepted into that medical school but I receive three acceptance letters to other institutions. On the first day of class everyone introduced themselves, where they were from, and what college they attended. Some of us where from big schools and some of us (such as myself) where from small schools. At the end of the day, it really didn’t matter because we were all in the same place, just like Rakim told me several years earlier. It did not matter the slightest bit where I was from because on that day, they knew where I was at!
