The premed journey is stressful, and it can be isolating if you don’t have any friends who are on the same path. Building a supportive community around yourself can help protect against burnout. You all deserve to have a supportive community around you. As an LGBTQ student, you may have faced stigma or rejection from your existing community. It is even more important to find new communities that support and accept you if you have.
Where Do I Look?
A good first step is to look for pride or diversity-focused organizations on your university’s campus. You can build relationships with students you share things with other than being premed. Some of them might share your major or your other interests, and some students might also be premeds or pre-health students.
You also may not have access to groups like this on campus, or their meeting times don’t work for your schedule. There are some online groups you can join to still be able to build community on your terms.
Medical Student Pride Alliance
Medical Student Pride Alliance was founded in 2018. Their mission is to connect LGBTQ students and increase awareness of LGBTQ issues in medicine.
American Medical Student Association
AMSA’s Gender and Sexuality Action Committee is a good resource for those of you looking to get involved in LGBTQ+ advocacy. And despite the name, membership in AMSA is open to medical students and premeds alike.
If you know any good LGBTQ+ resources or organizations, help your fellow students by sharing them in the comments!
I want you to know that you’re always accepted by everyone here at Medical School HQ and the Mappd team.
