The Indigenous MD Pre-Admissions Workshop will return to the IMP for its 20th anniversary this July.
“The workshop is a chance for us to show prospective Indigenous applicants that not only is there a place for them in medicine, but there is a community of support that will encourage them every step of the way on their journey,” says Meghan MacGillivray (Red River Métis), the Indigenous Student Initiatives Manager for the UBC Faculty of Medicine.
During this three-day event, Indigenous high school and post-secondary students from across BC will learn about pursuing medical education with the UBC MD and residency programs. They will learn how to prepare their medical school applications, participate in lab demonstrations and mock simulations, visit local Indigenous centres, and connect with current Indigenous medical students and residents studying in Victoria.
Cole Daley (Chawathil First Nation; IMP Class of 2025) is one of the current medical students that participants will meet. Cole attended the workshop twice before applying to medical school, and he is excited for the opportunity to give back. “I want to make learning to practice medicine more accessible for the generations that come after me, as the generations of Indigenous physicians did before me,” he says.
“That first workshop was hugely influential for me; I think it was one of the first times I could actually see myself in medical school,” Cole adds. “It helped me to realize that medicine was an attainable goal for me—that my dream of being a doctor wasn’t just some pie-in-the-sky illusion, but something tangible that others had done before me. Secondly, it provided a ton of much-needed application support to me. As a first-generation physician, I had no idea what the process of applying to a program like medicine even entailed, let alone how I could feasibly become a capable applicant. This workshop helped to even the field for me.”
Along with directly supporting prospective students, one of the workshop’s main goals is to increase the number of Indigenous medical students. Despite making up more than four per cent of Canada’s population, less than one per cent of the country’s physicians identify as Indigenous.
“Representation is so important, and we need more Indigenous representation in healthcare,” says Meghan. “Through the workshop, we hope to inspire Indigenous students to confidently pursue a career in medicine and to recognize the value and strengths they bring to medicine.”
“I think all of us as Indigenous health professionals should contribute to reducing barriers for Indigenous students so that they can join us in the field,” adds Cole, who also regularly participates in the Indigenous MD mentorship program Medicine Cousins. “Having more Indigenous colleagues means there are more people to help with the active decolonizing / Indigenizing work needed in many areas of medicine.”
Since the workshop began, 131 Indigenous students have graduated from the UBC MD Undergraduate Program, including 29 students from the IMP.
“Our recent statistics show that around 40 per cent of the Indigenous students enrolled in our MD Undergraduate Program have attended the workshop. So, the workshop is making an impact,” says James Andrew (Lil’wat Nation’s Mount Currie Band), the Associate Director of Indigenous Initiatives in the UBC Faculty of Medicine’s Office of the Vice Dean, Education.
The 20th annual Indigenous MD Pre-Admissions Workshop will take place in Victoria from July 26 – 28, 2023. There is no cost to attend the workshop, though students will be responsible for their travel to and from the event.
If you are an Indigenous high school or post-secondary student interested in attending, please apply online. Application deadline is July 14, 2023.
If you have any questions about the workshop, please view the official workshop brochure or email indigenous.md@ubc.ca