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Appropriate To Mention Low Family Income In Interview?


ftronic

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I plan to talk about why advocating for people in vulnerable/disadvantaged positions is important to me, and I thought it would strengthen the answer by mentioning that I am from a low-income family myself. I am otherwise an ablebodied white male and I know that there are other people out there that have it worse than me, but low family income has definitely represented a barrier for me, especially in applying to med school. Is it appropriate to mention this, or does it come off as complaining, or worse, could it somehow bias them against me and have a more negative general impression?

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It is definitely appropriate if it explains the motivation behind certain of your activities or your commitment to a particular group. It does not sound like you are complaining about it to me at all.

Entirely agree with above.

It all depends on how you say it. As long as you don't sound like you are BSing and you are able to explain why it makes you open minded and understanding towards poverty, it would be entirely appropriate to talk about it! And I'm pretty sure you can make your answer well formulated :)

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I think that everything about you that is mentioned naturally and organically in a conversation is fair game. I am in a similar situation, and used that background to justify how I think about a particular detail in what I was talking about in my first interview. If it flows seamlessly and it doesn't grind the conversation to a halt, there's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't. Remember that the interview period is where you are showcasing you for who you are. Being true to what shaped who you are is key.

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Answering a question, thre approach may be, "Coming from a low socio-economic background, I understand all too well the vulnerability and disadvantages of the poor in accessing proper medical care in a timely manner and accordingly, I intend to advocate for the poor blah blah .........". Refugees and our aboriginal population have had it far worse!

 

I too come from a financially stressed background, however, not having a Panel Interiew and only MMI, it was not appropriate to bring this up. However, this did have a positive impact upon shaping me and making me aware first hand of the difficulties encountered by this population. Moreover, although not particularly relevant to this discussion, I learned to be frugal out of necessity and I will never squander or waste monies.

 

Good luck. :P 

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