Here's some advice for college students who may have a condition or identify with a group that faces stigma:

Firstly, think about whether it's necessary to mention your condition or identity in your application:

Does it help explain your academic history?
- Did the condition or identity lead to a period of low grades or course withdrawals in college? If so, disclosing can provide important context so the reviewer understands why you were struggling at that time. Also, it allows you to implicitly convey your resilience and ability to mobilize your resources when needed.
Does it provide important context to understand why you are motivated to become a clinician or how you intend to engage with future patients?
- In other words, has your identity/history fundamentally informed your motivations? Would omitting that information hamper your ability to fully address the topics below? If so, it may be wise for you to disclose so that you can tell your story in a compelling way:
  - Why do you feel driven to become a certain type of clinician, and/or why do you want to care for a certain population of patients?
  - How do you want to communicate with and care for your patients?

If there's no good reason to disclose, it might be safer not to mention it. However, some students prefer to be open and honest, even if it means risking discrimination. They believe that if a school discriminates against them, it's not the right fit anyway. And if they're accepted after disclosing, it can be reassuring.

It's important for students who've faced challenges to show consistent academic success and engagement in relevant experiences leading up to their application. A minimum requirement for every applicant is to have consistent and meaningful involvement in high-quality pre-health activities for at least three (preferably four) consecutive academic terms before applying. Disclosing provides context but isn't an excuse.

When considering disclosure, you should also consider how comfortable you are discussing it, especially in interviews. It can be brought up during interviews if you mention it in your application.

It's worth noting that concerns about disclosing mental illness have decreased, especially since the pandemic. More people understand and empathize with these issues now.

FYI, you might be surprised to hear that people have written papers on this topic.

Abraham et al. 2022. "Should I write about mental health on my med school app?..." https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35900355/#:~:text=As%20such%2C%20students%20may%20choose,is%20accepted%20to%20medical%20school

Salzer, Mark. 2023. "A critical review of conclusions about disclosure of a mental illness on medical school applications." https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37871173/

Brownell & Cooper. 2023. "Reply to Salzar: A rebuttal..." https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37871174/