This interview was conducted on December 2, 2021 using the Their Story platform. The interview was intended to get Jess Dawson’s perspective on the topic of medical school applications and how the criteria of those applications affect medical students from minority communities. In this interview, Dawson discusses her perspective on the judgment of medical school applications and describes how most of the emphasis is placed on applicant’s work and volunteer experiences. Dawson describes how her personal work and research experiences prior to medical school set her application apart but also how the pressure to get so many experiences was ultimately damaging to her mental health. In an academic context, Dawson discusses her experiences taking the MCAT, the impact these tests have on medical students, and how recent changes to the STEP One exam have altered the medical school experience. Dawson describes how the importance of previous experience often disadvantages applicants from minority communities who don't have as many connections. She also described the privilege experienced by medical students who are children of doctors and thus have more connections and less barriers. She also discusses how she feels medical schools favor individuals from economically privileged backgrounds. She concludes the interview by describing her experience working to get some new questions on her medical school application and her perspective on how medical schools are pursuing a limited form of diversity.
The virtual interview, conducted over TheirStory, starts with Jess Dawson recounting her experiences growing up as a first-generation immigrant in the United States. She discusses her childhood growing up in Canada and New Jersey, her experiences trying to integrate into U.S. school systems, and her relationship with her family. Ms. Dawson also describes her journey to realize her interest in the medical field and how her time spent as an undergraduate at American University helped her to recognize that interest. She also discusses her time as a medical student at the University of Washington in detail, specifically focusing on how being a woman of color and first-generation immigrant affected those experiences. She discusses her efforts to incorporate her passion for social justice into her work as a medical student and first year residency. The interview then turns to Ms. Dawson’s time as a first-year resident working in a Los Angeles hospital during Covid-19 and the effect of that period on her personally and professionally. The interview concludes with a discussion of racial health disparities in the U.S., Ms. Dawson experience in working through those disparities with her patients, and her perspective on how those disparities can be addressed in the future.