The first time I applied to med school, I had no idea about this little thing called residency bias. It ended up massively lowering my chances of getting accepted all while costing me hundreds of dollars applying to the “wrong” schools. This doesn’t have to be your story though! In this blog post, you will learn exactly what residency bias means. Also you will learn how you can strategically use it to maximize your chances of acceptance.
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Everything You Need to Know About Residency Bias
What is residency bias?
Residency bias is when schools are favoring in-state applicants over out-of-state applicants. The degree can vary greatly from school to school. Some have a very strong bias and others are welcoming out-of-state applicants with open arms.
As an example, the first time I applied, my school list included a public medical school in Alabama. Back then I had no clue about residency bias. Only later I realized that this school not only had a very strong bias but also required a minimum 3.5 GPA for out of state applicants which my own stats couldn’t compete with.
Wondering if this is only something to worry about with public schools? Although public schools tend to have a stronger bias towards applicants from outside their state, this can also be true for private schools. So make sure to always check before you apply so you can use this to your advantage. More about that later!
How can you identify residency bias in schools?
For MD schools, the best way is through the MSAR database. Here you will find most MD schools in the US including their application requirements, acceptance statistics and more. You have to get their yearly membership in order to see all relevant stats but it’s only $28. It’s definitely worth it. Not only for identifying residency bias but for a wide range of application details for each listed medical school.
Within each school’s profile, you will be able to see their policy for out-of-state applicants. You will also see their data for applied and matriculated students (aka students who got accepted and actually enrolled). So let’s take a look at how to interpret this information!
A school’s policy for out-of-state students
First, you want to take a look at their policy. Check if they already show a clear bias or not. Here, some schools already mention that a very high percentage of matriculated students are actually from out of state (not biased). Or that they only consider applicants with strong ties to the state where the medical school is located (strong bias). In case they don’t mention any preference (as in the example below), take this with a grain of salt . Also make sure to always evaluate their application and matriculation data as well, as explained in the next step.
Application and Matriculation Data
Now, head to the Matriculation Data for First Year Class. Take a close look at how many out-of-state applicants applied. Also, look at how many were interviewed and matriculated compared to in-state applicants for that particular school. In our example below, you can see that from all the out-of-state applicants only 0.4% got invited to an interview. For in-state applicants it was 9.5%. You can see a similar equation in the amount of applicants who matriculated at this school. So this is clearly a medical school with a strong bias towards out-of-state applicants. This can greatly reduce your chances if you are not a resident in the particular state.
It’s important to mention though that most schools have a tendency to favor in-state applicants. But the degree can vary greatly. So this is not about finding the schools that have a 50/50 equal ratio. It’s more about identifying those that have a very strong bias. You can consider this when creating your own list of schools to apply to.
To see more examples of residency bias and make it that much easier for you to identify it for your own school list, sign up for my Free Premed Workshop.
Among many other strategies, we will go through a few real-life examples for residency bias. This will help you fully understand the concept. You will also learn how to successfully use it to build your own rock solid school list.
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Residency bias – using it to your advantage!
As much as residency bias can be a major red flag when creating your school list, it can also be a great opportunity to actually boost your chances of acceptance. It all depends on if you are considered a resident in the state where the school is located (in-state-applicant), or not (out-of-state applicant).
For in-state applicants: Schools with a strong residency bias increase your chances of acceptance. They should be a firm part of your school list, as they often count as “safe schools” for you. You can still have great chances with schools that don’t have a clear preference.
For out-of-state-applicants: Avoid schools with a strong residency bias. They can still be part of your school list. You just want to make sure they are not the main show. Also, you can at least match or (even better) surpass the average GPA and MCAT scores of accepted students. Also make sure if they might even have a cut-off for out-of-state residency based on a specific score which depending on your own stats could mean zero chances of acceptance.
Keep in mind that residency bias is just one of several factors you should consider when creating your school list. Yet, it can still make or break your list so make sure to check the data for each and every school before applying.
For step-by-step guidance on creating the perfect school list for your medical school application, join my online course Making a Rock Solid School List. You will learn the key strategies that make or break your school list, all the hidden factors no one ever talks about, additional research methods to ensure you won’t regret your choices later and much more. This course also includes a full spreadsheet of all the MD schools with data on accepted GPA, MCAT scores and potential residency bias so you are ready to get started without having to dig up all the stats yourself.
When are you considered an in-state applicant?
In your primary application, you will be asked to list your residency state and for each school within this state you will be considered an in-state applicant. But it’s a bit more complex than just putting down the state you currently live in and each state can have different policies on when you are actually considered a legal residency. One of the most important factors is your potential dependency on your parents.
If one or both of your parents list you as a dependent when filing their taxes, your residency state will be the one where they live, even if you go to school or live in a different state. For divorced parents, the IRS states that only one of them may add you as financially dependent so that their residency will decide your own state residency.
On the other hand, if you can verify that you are not a dependent anymore, the state you live in full-time would determine your residency. As a rule of thumb, you are considered independent if you already pay your own taxes. Again, the policies can vary greatly from state to state so make sure you check into your state’s guidelines around residency to be on the safe side.
Applying to in-state or out-of-state medical schools?
One of the key factors for getting accepted is casting a wide net. This means to apply to at least 20 schools, maybe up to 30 if you have any weaknesses in your application that give you a lower competitive advantage. If you would only focus on in-state medical schools, hitting this number is simply impossible. Therefore, a well-curated school list should definitely include in-state, but also out-of-state schools.
Keep in mind that apart from increasing your chances of acceptance, choosing an in-state, public medical school can also have a major impact on your tuition which tends to be much lower for in-state applicants. On top of that, a school nearby might help you to avoid a major move across the country and reduce overall travel costs for visiting family and friends throughout your med school time.
On the other hand, exposing yourself to a whole new living environment, challenging yourself and growing with this new independence can be an invaluable life lesson. In the end, it all depends on your personal circumstances and if you feel like you need the loving support system in your home state to move through medical school with confidence or if you could use a new opportunity to step out of your comfort zone and grow into a new phase of your life.
Final Thoughts on residency bias
Never let lack of knowledge hold you back from maximizing your chances! When I applied to medical school the first time, I had no idea about residency bias. It ended up in a weak school list that didn’t give me a great chance of acceptance. So don’t repeat the same mistakes! Identify residency bias early on when creating your school list, using it to your advantage. All the little things combined are what earned me 10 acceptances the second time I applied. You can get there as well!
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