Religion and Selection

See also Debt and Medical Missionaries

6/18/2001 Health Prof

Greetings,

I have a strong student who will have her Master's of divinity degree (and
be ordained) by the time she applies to medical school. I have a couple of
general questions regarding her situation.

1.) In general how are M.div. students (who are academically strong in the
sciences) viewed by medical schools?

2.) Are their medical schools whose missions statements would be welcoming
to divinity students?

This student believes her training will help her in dealing with patients
emotional/spiritual concerns as well as their medical problems, and I agree.
Is their anything she should be weary of when applying to med schools?

Thanks for your help.
Mike

*********************
Michael Angell Ph.D.
Assoc. Professor / Biology
Eastern Michigan University
Michael.Angell@emich.edu

I have had two students with undergraduate grades at Columbia, which might
well not have assured entrance to medical shool, but who were successful.
One had a divinity degree from Yale and was ordained. He had worked as a
hospital chaplain (or visitor) during his training. The other did a masters
at Harvard divinity school and was assisting in a course in ethics at the
medical school there. I think that in both cases the graduate degree was
helpful in the application. They were both very good people (in quite
different ways). I can't say whether the fact that it was a degree in
divinity swayed the committees more than other evidence of character and
intelligence would have. I doubt if any particular school would like to see
its mission defined in terms that are singularly welcoming to divinity
students. However, insofar as the motives that impelled your student to
study divinity are applicable to being a good physician,(and its easy to see
overlaps in many cases), it could constitute an attractive credential.
Certainly it's most unlikely to be viewed negatively unless she radiates a
kind of religion which is arrogantly intolerant of unbelievers.

Patricia D. Geisler
Assistant Dean for Pre-Professional Programs
Columbia College and Engineering
Lion's Court
1130 Amsterdam Ave. Mail Code 2801
New York, NY 10027
phone 212 854 8819 FAX 212 854 0042
pdg2@columbia.edu

 

Had a medical student who was looking for residency programs. He had ties
locally and listed only local residency programs in the match. I knew the
student well as a second year student. He came to me after he did not match
with any local programs. When I asked a few questions, he was strongly
connected to a local underserved population and church and wanted to stay
close. The program directors were leary of his strong religious statements
and had a few questions regarding a few rotations. He was also fairly
introverted and did not have many contacts with residents or fellow
students. There was not an easy way to use third party sources.

A local program reviewed him more closely, and gave him a position in
addition to the match (the program has a funded opening in January). This
program already has significant ties to the population he plans to
eventually serve.

Some would say the Lord works in mysterious ways, others would consider it
a fortunate resolution of an error on his part or the part of the programs.

The lesson that he took home was to be patient and faithful. I am glad he
did so and am sorry that we do not have more programs that would facilitate
such dreams of service to the underserved, of a religious or service
nature. It is sad that we tend to be suspicious of such individuals.

For me to counsel him to keep quiet about who he is, might have misdirected
him or deceived the programs. I could only listen and be patient.
Fortunately I did so, but I am not always so patient.

I hope this helped our program learn not to take strong religious leanings
at face value. People with such beliefs can function well or poorly.


rbowman@unmc.edu

9/12/2001  Health Prof

Wisdom passed on by previous advisors will be repeated as learned by me.

Persons with a religious identification will likely be observed for signs
that they go "too far", whether they are applying for medical school or
residency. If these signs are not there, they will do fine.

If this person comes across very strong in interview situations, there may
be some concerns for certain schools, but again this is hit or miss
depending on who interviews them.

A strong service record, good personal skills, and good medical experiences
will defuse any situations that might come up.


I also have a question.

If there are any medical schools, private or public, that seek out devout
Christians, I would love to know who it is and how they go about this
process.

rbowman@unmc.edu

Only response to my question above from health professions advisors nationwide:

 Loma Linda University School of Medicine (LLUSM) is a Christian institution
whose mission and purpose is the formation of Christian physicians, educated to
serve as generalists or specialists providing whole-person care to individuals,
families, and communities.

The objectives of the School of Medicine include providing the student
with a solid foundation of medical knowledge, assisting the student in the
attainment of professional skills, and motivating investigative curiosity and a
desire to participate in the advancement of knowledge. We also endeavor to
reinforce interest in the practical application of Christian principles through
service to humanity.

The Admissions Committee seeks candidates who have demonstrated the
greatest potential for becoming capable physicians. A strong academic
background is needed in preparation for medical studies. While special
attention is given to performance in science courses, candidates should also
have a solid foundation in the humanities, social sciences, and human behavior.

Further, the Admissions Committee looks for applicants who demonstrate
problem-solving skills, critical judgment skills, and the ability to pursue
independent study and thinking. In addition to a commitment to medicine, the
Admissions Committee, also looks for an applicant's ability to make decisions,
emotional stability, a positive attitude, and integrity. It is a policy of the
Admissions Committee to admit each year applicants who have a demonstrated
commitment to Christian principles.

And so, in summary, we look for clear evidence of balance in each
applicant's life. Hope this is helpful.

Sincerely,


Lenoa Edwards

As far as I know, Loma Linda University still has a standing offer of tuition forgiveness for its graduates who serve as medical missionaries to third world countries.

Joseph H. Lechner, Ph.D.
Professor of Chemistry
Mount Vernon Nazarene College
800 Martinsburg Road
Mount Vernon, OH 43050-9500
[740] 397-9000 extension 3211
Assistant Dean for Admissions
 

On the list serve previously we asked what medical schools tended to prefer
Christian candidates and the only answer was Loma Linda x 2. Oral Roberts
pursued missionary-minded students in its short run.

Are their any medical schools that anyone on the list serve knows of, that
seek out such students?

Robert C. Bowman, M.D.
Rbowman@unmc.edu
 

Since this posting, I have found that the medical school at Beersheba involving Columbia University has attracted a number of devout Christians and those interested in becoming medical missionaries.

Other Religious Communications:

I have to say I am ashamed that I, as a Christian, have gotten so cynical
about the rest of the world that I would have not had the courage to give
this advise. Thank you for reminding me that in Him all things are
possible! Lolita
 

God Bless you for sending me such beautiful reminders of the "walK". As I
go through each day, inundated by the needs of the world, I often fail to
be in the Word. Thanks again. I hope we meet at the next meeting. Lolita

At 03:03 PM 6/19/01 -0500, you wrote:

>These were the words that have convicted me most recently: From a Christian
>Doctor involved in medical education.
>
>When I am in the word, I am doing more of God's bidding than when I am
>outside of the word of God. I am winging it on the basis of a gift and
>therefore to me the anchor and the mooring always has to be in His word. If
>a medical profession gets so caught up in the profession then the
>profession has superseded the call. When the day is done we will find out
>that it was the word that abided forever. So the man or woman in this kind
>of profession I say listen to Him and He speaks to you in His word. It
>gives you a more realistic perspective of who you are. The world can give
>you accolades or can cut you down and misplace you, but the word will
>always humble you without humiliating you and lift you up without
>overexalting you. It gives you a right perspective of who we are before
>God?
>
>That is where the discipline comes in. I think the medical profession
>obviously needs a lot of discipline. I think what we will have to do is
>learn when to argue, how gently to argue, and when to back away. It is
>going to be an apologetic that is not just argued but is also seen. If the
>medical profession is called upon to pay a price today because of all we
>know about the intrinsic nature of human life, so be it. There will be the
>world that will stand up and call them blessed, just as decades go by and
>those that did not speak out against the holocaust are now being asked to
>apologize for it. The day may come where those who are speaking out for the
>unborn and the protection of the most little among us may have a world come
>to their side and say we owe an apology to them because we did not listen
>to them. God sent His son who ended up on a cross. Why are we asking for
>something less?
>Ravi Zacharias 2/2001
>
>
> (superscript: 1CH 4:9) Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His
>mother had named him Jabez,(superscript: n) saying, "I gave birth to him
>in pain." (superscript: 10) Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, "Oh, that
>you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and
>keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain." And God granted his
>request. - this was helpful when my kids and job were getting
>overwhelming and my tendency was to retreat instead of ask for help. This
>is part of my prayer daily.
>
>
>Don't know if this came from the health prof folks or not, but a great
>reminder also.
>
>Itzhak Perlman
>
>Article from the Houston Chronicle
>
>On Nov. 18, 1995, Itzhak Perlman, the violinist, came on stage to give a
>concert at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City. If you
>have ever been to a Perlman concert, you know that getting on stage is no
>small achievement for him. He was stricken with polio as a child, and so he
>has braces on both legs and walks with the aid of two crutches.
>
>To see him walk across the stage one step at a time, painfully and slowly,
>is a sight. He walks painfully, yet majestically, until he reaches his
>chair. Then he sits down, slowly, puts his crutches on the floor, undoes
>the clasps on his legs, tucks one foot back and extends the other foot
>forward. Then he bends down and picks up the violin, puts it under his
>chin, nods to the conductor and proceeds to play.
>
>By now, the audience is used to this ritual. They sit quietly while he
>makes his way across the stage to his chair. They remain reverently silent
>while he undoes the clasps on his legs. They wait until he is ready to
>play.
>
>But this time, something went wrong. Just as he finished the first few
>bars, one of the strings on his violin broke. You could hear it snap - it
>went off like gunfire across the room. There was no mistaking what that
>sound meant. There was no mistaking what he had to do.
>
>People who were there that night thought to themselves: "We figured that he
>would have to get up, put on the clasps again, pick up the crutches and
>limp his way off stage - to either find another violin or else find another
>string for this one." But he didn't. Instead, he waited a moment, closed
>his eyes and then signaled the conductor to begin again. The orchestra
>began, and he played from where he had left off. And he played with such
>passion and such power and such purity as they had never heard before. Of
>course, anyone knows that it is impossible to play a symphonic work with
>just three strings. I know that, and you know that, but that night Itzhak
>Perlman refused to know that. You could see him modulating, changing,
>recomposing the piece in his head. At one point, it sounded like he was
>de-tuning the strings to get new sounds from them that they had never made
>before.
>
>When he finished, there was an awesome silence in the room. And then people
>rose and cheered. There was an extraordinary outburst of applause from
>every corner of the auditorium. We were all on our feet, screaming and
>cheering, doing everything we could to show how much we appreciated what he
>had done. He smiled, wiped the sweat from this brow, raised his bow to
>quiet us, and then he said, not boastfully, but in a quiet, pensive,
>reverent tone, "You know, sometimes it is the artist's task to find out how
>much music you can still make with what you have left."
>
>What a powerful line that is. It has stayed in my mind ever since I heard
>it. And who knows? Perhaps that is the way of life - not just for artists
>but for all of us.
>
>Here is a man who has prepared all his life to make music on a violin of
>four strings, who, all of a sudden, in the middle of a concert, finds
>himself with only three strings. So he makes music with three strings, and
>the music he made that night with just three strings was more beautiful,
>more sacred, more memorable, than any that he had ever made before, when he
>had four strings.
>
>So, perhaps our task in this shaky, fast-changing, bewildering world in
>which we live is to make music, at first with all that we have, and then,
>when that is no longer possible, to make music with what we have left.
>
> -- Jack Riemer, Houston Chronicle

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