Vulture magazine defined 2022 as the “Year of the Nepo Baby” in the entertainment industry, referring to “nepotism babies,” or children who advance their careers by utilizing familial connections. The rise of celebrities such as actresses Lily-Rose Depp and Maya Hawke, and media personality Brooklyn Beckham — who all share ties to famous kin — encouraged a cultural examination into nepotism in the entertainment industry.
According to some students, however, nepotism is not limited to the entertainment industry. Emory University Minority Pre-Medical Society President Precious Ajiero (24C) wrote in an email to the Wheel that having parental connections in the medical field provides a significant advantage in securing internships and other opportunities.
Ajiero noted that students without familial connections in medicine are at a significant disadvantage for receiving medical internships and shadowing opportunities that are vital in building candidate applications.
“Individuals who have parents in the medical field typically have access to great connections with other physicians early on and access to shadowing and internship opportunities,” Ajiero wrote.
Additionally, legacy status sometimes plays a role in medical school acceptance. Many universities reserve a percentage of their incoming classes for legacy students. In 2020, legacy students made up 21% of the incoming class at University of Notre Dame (Ind.) and 14% at Harvard University (Mass.). Some states — including Colorado, Connecticut and New York — banned legacy preferences in admissions considerations. The move to eliminate legacy preference is to help reduce the inequitable advantage legacy applicants gain and make the admissions process more equitable.
A study published by the University of Wisconsin Press showed that individuals whose parents were doctors had a nearly 14% higher chance of admission to medical school compared to people who lacked familial connections.
According to a LendEdu survey, 43% of undergraduates relied on family connections to gain an internship interview. Additionally, 75 of the top 100 medical schools in the United States consider legacy status as a factor in admissions, with some medical schools, such as the University of Arizona College of Medicine, guaranteeing interviews to legacy applicants.
While Associate Dean of Medical Education Ira Schwartz noted that the Emory School of Medicine does not keep track of applicants’ legacy status, Emory’s Office of Undergraduate Admission values legacies and encourages them to detail their ties to the school.
Parental connections in the medical field provides an advantage in securing internships and other opportunities, according to Precious Ajiero (24C). (Anusha Kurapati/Staff Illustrator)
Some students argued that other factors, such as applicants’ undergraduate school, play a greater role in medical school admissions.
Maurice Safar (23Ox), who is pre-med and whose parents are in the medical industry, wrote in an email to the Wheel that while Emory offered him academic opportunities, such as access to clinical research and shadowing, other universities would not have, certain groups of students should not be rewarded with exclusive opportunities.
The biggest disadvantage for pre-med students is coming from a “boring” background, according to Safar.
“Neither the student born to economic excess nor the student born to economic distress chose their financial situation,” Safar wrote. “If both of them have demonstrated capability in that they have made it to college, the aspects of their life that they cannot control should be neither punished nor rewarded.”
Safar noted that it does not make sense for a student with medical connections to attend medical school, as they could get a more lucrative job that requires less schooling.
“Direct familial ties with the admissions board are a guarantor for admission, but I think in the vast majority of cases, nothing really matters except the stats and story of the applicant,” Safar wrote.
While both of his parents work in medicine, Safar added that his high school biology class sparked his interest in the medical field. By observing his parents in the medical industry, Safar explained that he gained a balanced perspective on the positive and negative attributes of being a physician.
“My mom often is the voice of positivity, while my dad always brings up the negative aspects of the work,” Safar wrote. “This is perhaps because my dad has experience working as a physician and knows many of the less glamorous aspects of the field.”
Although Safar has obtained some shadowing opportunities through family contacts, he wrote that he earned the majority of his involvement in medical activities by reaching out to professors and doctors. Safar also noted that he previously volunteered at the Newton County Senior Center through the Oxford Service Corps and started a non-profit that sends refurbished hearing aids to the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
Through having parents who work in the healthcare industry, students such as Safar learned that despite making a significant impact in people’s lives, the path to becoming a physician requires a lot of sacrifice.
Simren Kochhar (26C) also has parental connections in the medical field. She was exposed to the medical field through her mom’s dental practice, but her parents initially discouraged her from pursuing medicine. After shadowing her mom at her dental office, in addition to shadowing other health professionals including a veterinarian and gynecologist, Kochhar decided to pursue the pre-med track at Emory. While Kochhar wrote she witnessed the sacrifices of becoming a medical professional, she also learned that it is a rewarding profession.
“My parents always said to do anything I wanted except medicine,” Kochhar wrote. “It’s way too long a road and that the stress and paperwork and lifestyle is draining. However, seeing my mom working and the impact she made heavily influenced me.”
Pre-Health Advising Director Kim Molee said that while parents have a high degree of influence on their children’s career paths, parental connections are not the sole factor in deciding to pursue medicine. The demanding nature of science courses, MCAT preparation and clinical and research activities require self-motivation and inspiration, Molee said.
During her time as a pre-health advisor, Molee said the most recurring reasons for pursuing medicine she has seen in students’ personal statements were personal experiences with a healthcare issue or seeing a family member go through one.
At Emory, pre-med students have access to a wide network of alumni and mentorship programs, Molee said. For example, Emory Connects provides students with exclusive access to networking with alumni in search for internships and shadowing opportunities.
In addition to helping students obtain internships, mentorship and alumni connections help students see what steps they took in their academic journeys, according to Molee. She encouraged students to utilize Emory’s mentor relationships to connect with healthcare providers, alumni and current students.
The Pathways Center is another useful resource to help guide students to a career that aligns with their values and experiences, according to Branden Grimmett, an associate dean in the Emory College of Arts and Sciences and vice provost for career and professional development. He added that the Pathways Center works to remove obstacles and provide support for students.
Grimmett said he hopes to bring opportunities to underrepresented groups in medicine by creating partnerships with test preparation and summer enhancement programs, collaborating with post-baccalaureate programs and developing networking events with alumni and healthcare providers.
The Pathways Center launched an internship funding program in February to reduce or cover the cost of an internship in the United States or abroad. The program funds up to $3,000 for domestic experiences and up to $4,000 for global experiences.
“A lot of our students are interested in shadowing and meeting with physicians and sometimes they can’t do that locally or they have stated that it costs resources to do that,” Grimmett said. “The Pathways Center was really committed to removing those barriers for students who would otherwise say no to those opportunities.”
By developing mentorship programs and eliminating financial barriers to medical school application resources, Ajiero noted that pre-med students without familial ties to the medical field gain opportunities they previously could not access.
“In order to bridge students who face economic struggles, college and medical schools must first acknowledge that there are disparities present that can have detrimental impacts on their students’ future endeavors,” Ajiero wrote.
Science & Research Desk | Julia Laszcz (she/her 24C) is from Bergen County, New Jersey, majoring in neuroscience and behavioral biology and English. Outside of the Wheel, Laszcz is a writer for Grey Matters. Laszcz also is a volunteer for her town’s ambulance corp. She likes to cook new recipes and play with her dog.
