BS/MD Dismissal

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reddoggie979

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I'm very sorry to hear of your woes. Your behavior is a red flag for professionalism and responsibility issues. You're an adult now, big enough to vote, drive, fight and die for your country, and to meet with your advisors when you're supposed to.

With some growing, I think there's hope for the future.

Hi Everybody,

I was in a BS/MD program with a flagship state university, and its medical school. I was dismissed for failing to communicate with the advisers, whom I had to meet with once a semester. and I didn't talk to them my first semester, only at the beginning and after the summer session of my second. And I was dismissed this semester after failing to schedule an appointment.

I already wrote an appeal, citing my motivations for the medical profession, and the fact that I was nervous/scared (100% true) to talk to my advisers. My GPA is fine, and I was doing medical shadowing in the summer. I got letters of recommendations from the doctors that I shadowed. And I wrote about how I would overhaul my communications if allowed to continue in the program.

This medical school is also known for being a student oriented school. And, after thinking long and hard about it, I realize that I was given ample opportunities to improve.

Supposedly a decision was made by the committee today, but the meeting ran to the end of the day and I haven't received any results. I'm very nervous/scared and I would appreciate some opinions about whether the medical school admissions committee will be sympathetic or not.
 
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I was nervous/scared (100% true) to talk to my advisers.

...Lol.

How are you going to handle talking to patients if you get anxiety talking to your advisors? So many premeds probably hate you for likely throwing away an awesome opportunity over something so asinine.
 
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In my eyes, I don't see "I was nervous" being a good enough excuse. Doesn't mean you won't win your appeal though.
 
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Hi Everybody,

I was in a BS/MD program with a flagship state university, and its medical school. I was dismissed for failing to communicate with the advisers, whom I had to meet with once a semester. and I didn't talk to them my first semester, only at the beginning and after the summer session of my second. And I was dismissed this semester after failing to schedule an appointment.

I already wrote an appeal, citing my motivations for the medical profession, and the fact that I was nervous/scared (100% true) to talk to my advisers. My GPA is fine, and I was doing medical shadowing in the summer. I got letters of recommendations from the doctors that I shadowed. And I wrote about how I would overhaul my communications if allowed to continue in the program.

This medical school is also known for being a student oriented school. And, after thinking long and hard about it, I realize that I was given ample opportunities to improve.

Supposedly a decision was made by the committee today, but the meeting ran to the end of the day and I haven't received any results. I'm very nervous/scared and I would appreciate some opinions about whether the medical school admissions committee will be sympathetic or not.
I'm very sorry to hear of your woes. Your behavior is a red flag for professionalism and responsibility issues. You're an adult now, big enough to vote, drive, fight and die for your country, and to meet with your advisors when you're supposed to.

With some growing, I think there's hope for the future.


Old enough to die for your country but not old enough to have a beer...
 
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I explained it, I thought of advisers as authority figures and was therefore scared/nervous. Do I have any chance of the committee being sympathetic and readmitting me?
 
I explained it, I thought of advisers as authority figures and was therefore scared/nervous. Do I have any chance of the committee being sympathetic and readmitting me?

There's no point in freaking out now. Whatever happens, happens. I'm sure you'll end up on your feet in the end.
 
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On the one hand, that seems like a serious deficit in maturity. On the other hand, it also seems like a legitimate mental health problem concerning anxiety.

I can actually understand your anxiety. If you are doing well GPA-wise, did you still think they were going to give you some bad news or judge you negatively on something? Avoidant personality disorder. I realize I'm being an armchair psychiatrist now: but you probably need some help. Certain anti-depressants might help.
 
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One of my advisors was incredibly judgmental, but I'm not concerned with this. I just want to know what my prospects of being readmitted to the program are.
 
One of my advisors was incredibly judgmental, but I'm not concerned with this. I just want to know what my prospects of being readmitted to the program are.

That's hard to say, especially since not fulfilling your obligations to the program in the manner you did will seem very unprofessional and irresponsible. I wish you luck.
 
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Were there not warnings before hand? It seems pretty extreme to just kick you out for failing to schedule an appointment. However if they warned you beforehand of the consequences and you still failed to meet the obligation then that would be an entirely different story.
 
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Am I understanding this right: you got into a BS/MD program but continuously failed to meet up with your advisers to monitor your progress? This semester is already over for many students which means they gave you a long window (the entire semester) to follow up with them; it makes one wonder whether you thought you were just going to end up in medical school after you graduate without taking any action and showing that you are meeting all requirements. Whatever happens OP, I think will eventually make you a better medical student at the end of the day.
 
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Hi Everybody,

I was in a BS/MD program with a flagship state university, and its medical school. I was dismissed for failing to communicate with the advisers, whom I had to meet with once a semester. and I didn't talk to them my first semester, only at the beginning and after the summer session of my second. And I was dismissed this semester after failing to schedule an appointment.

I already wrote an appeal, citing my motivations for the medical profession, and the fact that I was nervous/scared (100% true) to talk to my advisers. My GPA is fine, and I was doing medical shadowing in the summer. I got letters of recommendations from the doctors that I shadowed. And I wrote about how I would overhaul my communications if allowed to continue in the program.

This medical school is also known for being a student oriented school. And, after thinking long and hard about it, I realize that I was given ample opportunities to improve.

Supposedly a decision was made by the committee today, but the meeting ran to the end of the day and I haven't received any results. I'm very nervous/scared and I would appreciate some opinions about whether the medical school admissions committee will be sympathetic or not.

People here seem a little harsh.

I'm not sure why you started this thread though? They made their decision so I don't know how we can offer advice for this. Guessing won't change anything, but I feel you made this thread because you're nervous.

Anyways BS/MD programs can sometimes be a bad deal. If your GPA is good enough for it then you will be fine for other medical schools if they do decide to drop you. It may not seem like it, but it really isn't a big deal if you're not in it anymore. Just keep your GPA and ECs up and when the time comes, study hard for the MCAT. Hopefully you can nab a few scholarships or maybe there will be schools that pique your interests.

Good luck!
 
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I personally think it's quite silly they would dismiss you for "not meeting with an advisor." Not everyone needs hand holding. Sorry you have to go through this, OP.
 
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I personally did not like meeting with UG advisors much not because of any anxiety issues but mainly because they would give me some shattering information that would guide me to a superstar academic record or career. I knew what I had to do and when I had issues I would ask for their opinions. Other than that, I just needed their signature on my schedule so I could register for my classes each semester. lol.
 
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One of my advisors was incredibly judgmental, but I'm not concerned with this. I just want to know what my prospects of being readmitted to the program are.

I don't think anyone here can give you that kind of answer. I know you're looking for comfort or assurance of some kind, but this is all very specific to your school and your situation. Best bet is just to go on with your day and wait for the decision.

I personally think it's quite silly they would dismiss you for "not meeting with an advisor." Not everyone needs hand holding. Sorry you have to go through this, OP.

It's not the matter of not meeting with the advisor. It's a matter of not fulfilling the requirements of the program, which requires meeting with an advisor once a semester. If he agreed to those requirements upon matriculating to the program, it's unprofessional to shirk them.
 
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You dropped out of a class, didn't complete required meetings and managed to appear aloof in the communication you did have?

This is not a good look
 
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I added that anecdote to illustrate my ability to overcome a previous failure. You obviously didn't read the entire thing.
 
My impression of your letter: long winded and repetitive (how many times did you use the word aloof?). Not only that, your reasons for not fulfilling the requirements of your program sound like excuses. You've also criticized the program administrators by saying they decided to dismiss you based on fragmented information. The truth is, you did act aloof and uncommunicative by not abiding by requirements of the program. In this matter, your interaction--or lack thereof--with your program is all that matters.

If you want to convince them to reconsider their decision then this is not the way to do it. Be contrite without making excuses; take responsibility and admit you screwed up by not abiding by the terms of the program, and that you've learned from your mistake and won't do it again. Don't criticize them, don't make excuses, and accept responsibility.
 
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I did admit my mistake, take responsibility, and promise to reinvent myself/never allow this to happen again. It's all there.
 
I did admit my mistake, take responsibility, and promise to reinvent myself/never allow this to happen again. It's all there.
You are oblivious to how you sound...we're explaining it to you
 
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Well, as I said before...The committee already made a decision based upon that letter and my reference letters. They had a meeting that ran until the end of hours today (Friday) I'll get an outcome on Monday I suppose.

And yes, I did have a couple of people read it.
 
Well, as I said before...The committee already made a decision based upon that letter and my reference letters. They had a meeting that ran until the end of hours today (Friday) I'll get an outcome on Monday I suppose.

And yes, I did have a couple of people read it.
You need different people to read things than you had read that.....your letter had some significant tactical errors
 
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And yes, I did have a couple of people read it.

People of relative authority and experience that would give you honest feedback? I know there's nothing you can do now to change the letter, but for future reference, it's too long, extremely repetitive, with too many excuses and pseudo excuses, and you come across as criticizing the committee.

Whoever read your letter before sending should have told you to completely remove this paragraph:
[REDACTED]
 
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Those errors being?
As was said before....

Too long, poor grammar/punctuation, told them they didn't have full information, implied you knew you weren't following rules but broke them because you didn't think you'd get kicked out over it, implied their staff were scary, admitted you can't communicate with superior while also claiming to communicate professionally, said you wouldn't offer excuses as a preface to offering excuses

Never simply said,"i messed up and was wrong. If you have mercy and allow me the chance to get this right, I won't let you down"
 
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I did admit my mistake, take responsibility, and promise to reinvent myself/never allow this to happen again. It's all there.

You never accepted any responsibility in the letter, you made a bunch of excuses. No good reason was given for why you were uncommunicative with your program. No, being scared of your advisors or fearing authority figures is not a good reason. You also criticized the committee by accusing them of making decisions based on fragmented information.

The only thing that could have been done here was to fall on your sword and ask for mercy. The way your letter was worded, I would imagine it made your situation worse and reaffirmed the committee's view of a lack of professional communication on your part.

I'm sorry that you were dismissed from your program. But like others have said, you still have opportunities to get into medical school.
 
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I am really sorry that you have to deal with this. I know this won't mean much right now, but life does work out in ways that are hard to understand when in stressful situations like this. Maybe your destiny is to apply to and get in to an even better school than this one. Maybe at this other school you will meet your future spouse and have your future kids. I know this seems hard now, but whatever happens, just trust in the world that you will make it through and everything will work out for the best.

That being said, I do think that you should have come here with your letter first. I agree with others' assessment here in that you took no responsibility for your actions in the letter, were too long-winded and repetitive, and even called out the committee as making a wrong decision... Ouch!

In the future, in situations like these, you must accept responsibility and explain how you will prevent it from happening again, NOT explain why it happened... NEVER try to explain because it always comes off looking like you are making excuses.

However, you do seem like a good person who was just scared and it does appear that they did not give you a warning. That doesn't excuse what you did, but it does make me pity you even more. I hope that the committee rules in your favor, but if it does not, learn from this mistake and rock the rest of your future.
 
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...Lol.

How are you going to handle talking to patients if you get anxiety talking to your advisors? So many premeds probably hate you for likely throwing away an awesome opportunity over something so asinine.
This is why I hate these BS/MD programs. The maturity just isn't there -- which isn't surprising as they just graduated high school.
 
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I agree with everyone else. I am pretty confident (almost willing to bet) that your dismissal will be upheld, with your own letter being seen as vindication of their decision. Do not send any more correspondence to these people until you hear the decision. Once you get it, tell us what they say, and we'll help you craft a response (if one is appropriate, although it probably will be).

Regardless of what happens in appeal, even if you are somehow forgiven and kept in, if the anxiety is really what kept you from these meetings (instead of the reason implied in the letter that they were beneath you), you need to meet with someone to start working on that, because it will be a major obstacle in applying to medical schools in a couple years, as well as during it. I assume you are not being removed from the UG program entirely - in that case, avail yourself of student mental health services, any school worth their salt will have them. You also should spend the next couple weeks making sure (again with our help) that your remaining educational plans are suited for a future medical school applicant, instead of someone already assured entrance. Keep in mind that you are now at a heavy disadvantage with this school, as the adcom here already has a negative view of you, and that you need to be aiming at other IS schools in particular (thankfully you're in "the great state of Texas", so you have plenty of remaining options).

Stop making excuses, and trying to figure out how to fix this. It's already too late. Take the next couple of weeks easy, and come back next semester ready to make the most of your remaining UG education.
 
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You need different people to read things than you had read that.....your letter had some significant tactical errors
It works the same way at the med school level. A HUGE red flag at med school promotion appeals are med students who don't take full responsibility and always place the blame on others.
 
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Yes, it looks like a maturity issue. Even in other healthcare fields, sometimes it's like pulling teeth to get together with others to review progress, discuss concerns, get feedback, chart improvement in various areas from the last time. It is time-intensive, but if you don't do the work of seeing that these meetings are scheduled, completed, and documented, well, in the end, it will fall hard on you. And there will be nothing documented to prove otherwise.
 
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Yes, it looks like a maturity issue. Even in other healthcare fields, sometimes it's like pulling teeth to get together with others to review progress, discuss concerns, get feedback, chart improvement in various areas from the last time. It is time-intensive, but if you don't do the work of seeing that these meetings are scheduled, completed, and documented, well, in the end, it will fall hard on you. And there will be nothing documented to prove otherwise.
All he had to do is meet with his adviser for pre-mandated meetings. Nothing time-intensive about it. It's a professionalism issue, which is why it is taken seriously.
Can this person follow directions, do things on time, and carry out certain responsibilities? Yes or No.
 
If you're a good enough student to get into one of those BS/MD programs then you definitely have what it takes to be competitive for med school elsewhere. It sucks to be in a situation that you might get dismissed for something so seemingly trivial, but it's not like the MD dream is even close to over for you.
 
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I agree with everyone else. I am pretty confident (almost willing to bet) that your dismissal will be upheld, with your own letter being seen as vindication of their decision. Do not send any more correspondence to these people until you hear the decision. Once you get it, tell us what they say, and we'll help you craft a response (if one is appropriate, although it probably will be).

Regardless of what happens in appeal, even if you are somehow forgiven and kept in, if the anxiety is really what kept you from these meetings (instead of the reason implied in the letter that they were beneath you), you need to meet with someone to start working on that, because it will be a major obstacle in applying to medical schools in a couple years, as well as during it. I assume you are not being removed from the UG program entirely - in that case, avail yourself of student mental health services, any school worth their salt will have them. You also should spend the next couple weeks making sure (again with our help) that your remaining educational plans are suited for a future medical school applicant, instead of someone already assured entrance. Keep in mind that you are now at a heavy disadvantage with this school, as the adcom here already has a negative view of you, and that you need to be aiming at other IS schools in particular (thankfully you're in "the great state of Texas", so you have plenty of remaining options).

Stop making excuses, and trying to figure out how to fix this. It's already late. Take the next couple of weeks easy, and come back next semester ready to make the most of your remaining UG education.

This wasn't really an ordinary BS/MD program, it was one targeted towards students from areas with medical/health profession shortage delegation. I've never seen somebody dismissed like I'm being dismissed, but then again, that's not a good sign. I'm still hopeful that they'll be lenient.
 
This wasn't really an ordinary BS/MD program, it was one targeted towards students from areas with medical/health profession shortage delegation. I've never seen somebody dismissed like I'm being dismissed, but then again, that's not a good sign. I'm still hopeful that they'll be lenient.
So? There are many early pipeline MD programs that take students from rural areas (health profession shortage areas) and guide them towards med school as those people are MUCH more likely to go back to those areas and to do primary care. The only thing you'd be losing is the guarantee and would have to do premed like everyone else (god forbid).
 
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It's so unfortunate that things had to turn out this way. I feel as though I've been crushed at almost all aspects of life.
 
It's so unfortunate that things had to turn out this way. I feel as though I've been crushed at almost all aspects of life.
You're 19 (maybe 20?) years old. Your life is not crushed. I repeat, your life is NOT crushed.
 
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I just didn't think would happen. I didn't think that there could be unfairness in every sphere of my life. I reasoned that this was a gift for the tolerating previous crappy circumstances. But you never know, my appeal might be successful. The medical school is known for being a student oriented, lenient medical school.
 
I just didn't think would happen. I didn't think that there could be unfairness in every sphere of my life. I reasoned that this was a gift for the tolerating previous crappy circumstances. But you never know, my appeal might be successful. The medical school is known for being a student oriented, lenient medical school.

there is not unfairness in this....they offered you a deal and you didn't keep your end. THERE IS NO UNFAIRNESS HERE

but it also isn't the end, so graduate with good grades and apply just like everyone else in the country does
 
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I just didn't think would happen. I didn't think that there could be unfairness in every sphere of my life. I reasoned that this was a gift for the tolerating previous crappy circumstances. But you never know, my appeal might be successful. The medical school is known for being a student oriented, lenient medical school.
I would calm down and find out Monday. Either way, have a game plan for either scenario. Either way will require a complete 180 in terms of how you're approaching things. Your life is nowhere close to being crushed.
 
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