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[joeception]

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I think the worse consequence you should have received was a warning. That seems incredibly ridiculous to put a persons future in jeopardy over some food in a container.

Also, what school offers smoked salmon?!

 

[Robin-jay]

I think the worse consequence you should have received was a warning. That seems incredibly ridiculous to put a persons future in jeopardy over some food in a container.

Also, what school offers smoked salmon?!

Probably one near a mass of water.

 

[de Ribas]

Also, what school offers smoked salmon?!

probably somewhere in California or Washington, since they have plenty of salmon.

 

[Terror Billy]

All the analysis from everyone aside...this might be the stupidest IA I've ever seen... schools who charge roughly >$16 per meal swipe are the real criminals, god forbid some poor starving college student try to grab another snack/meal for the road

 

[Goro]

I get what you're saying when you say "another applicant like you with no blacks marks exist". But thats like saying to someone with a 500 MCAT "another applicant exists like you except with a higher MCAT". Yet, they still have the ability to get accepted at places that average 504 MCAT fro example, and the ADCOM may have passed up someone with a 505 MCAT to interview them. Evaluation of the whole applicant.

I and my colleagues take professionalism very seriously. When you get to be Faculty, you will understand this. Until then, stop, just stop.

 

[candbgirl]

OP how did you happen to have the Tupperware with you? Did you plan to take stuff ahead of time?

 

[de Ribas]

OP how did you happen to have the Tupperware with you? Did you plan to take stuff ahead of time?

It was some smoked salmon. I had checked the menu earlier and saw that it would be served and since I hadn't had any in a while, I decided to take some out in a Tupperware, since I have seen others do this and did not know this was a rule.

 

[Robin-jay]

I and my colleagues take professionalism very seriously. When you get to be Faculty, you will understand this. Until then, stop, just stop.

I agree. Professionalism and I.A's are a serious thing.

 

[LebronManning]

Likely your school is just getting fed up with students doing this and so has resorted to formal discipline. You're gonna get a stern official warning and then you and your buddies will never do it again. Word will spread and the school will have resolved its issue.

More that I think about it... you're probably not getting probation (IA). You did something dumb, but nothing that shows a serious character flaw that needs remediation. In other words, what you did can be corrected very easily (don't do it again). In contrast, even minor drug infractions end up being probation so that school can ensure sobriety from that point.

OP, as I said before, just be cordial and apologetic, and you'll probably get a warning.

Keep us updated!

 

[begoood95]

I didn't say "automatically".

I said it was a possibility. A very real possibility. You have to get that stuff from somewhere, and the further you go into the rabbit hole, the more sketchy it gets. The guy you might be getting it from might not be sketchy (or maybe so...), but I can assure you that guy is talking to some sketchy people somewhere down the line.

Playing off "recreation drug use" as just another day in the park, while condemning "taking food from a cafeteria in which you already somewhat paid for" is crazy to me, personally (not saying the user I quoted specifically believes this).

Note: multiple and repeated use of bolded words in your posts desensitize everyone to your use of them, rendering their effects null and void. Use 'em less, friend.

Anyways, sure, it is a possibility that my guy knows some guy who knows a guy whose brother sells coke. Then again, with those degrees of separation at play, I'd be surprised if we didn't all know a friend who knows a friend who knows a friend... It's a small world. Therefore, your snowball argument, essentially a slippery slope of drug use, is inappropriate in this case, and in general that's been proven to not be the case—that is, people who smoke week usually only smoke weed, and do not progress onto something "harder" (in fact, medical marijuana has helped people with their addiction to opiates; trust me, I'm not someone who thinks weed is a cure for everything, but your characterization of it, I think, is undue and unsubstantiated).

But yeah, I also think it's a bit crazy to condemn this particular instance of "taking" food while, at the same time, thinking recreational drug use at some level is okay. When you think harder about it, unless you're obtaining weed or your drug of choice ethically (which, unless it's through legal means, you're not), smoking recreationally is definitely on morally shaky ground, whereas this apparently innocent taking of food is not. Then again, we're not expecting ADCOMs to conduct deep ethical analyses on each IA case, which is why generalizations are made in the first place—regardless of their accuracy on the whole.

 

[Robin-jay]

Note: multiple and repeated use of bolded words in your posts desensitize everyone to your use of them, rendering their effects null and void. Use 'em less, friend.

Anyways, sure, it is a possibility that my guy knows some guy who knows a guy whose brother sells coke. Then again, with those degrees of separation at play, I'd be surprised if we didn't all know a friend who knows a friend who knows a friend... It's a small world. Therefore, you snowball argument, essentially a slippery slope of drug use, is inappropriate in this case, and in general that's been proven to not be the case—that is, people who smoke week usually only smoke weed, and do not progress onto something "harder" (in fact, medical marijuana has helped people with their addiction to opiates; trust me, I'm not someone who thinks weed is a cure for everything, but your characterization of it, I think, is undue and unsubstantiated).

But yeah, I also think it's a bit crazy to condemn this particular instance of "taking" food while, at the same time, thinking recreational drug use at some level is okay. When you think harder about it, unless you're obtaining weed or your drug of choice ethically (which, unless it's through legal means, you're not), smoking recreationally is definitely on morally shaky ground, whereas this apparently innocent taking of food is not. Then again, we're not expecting ADCOMs to conduct deep ethical analyses on each IA case, which is why generalizations are made in the first place—regardless of their accuracy on the whole.

I haven't told you my position of recreational drug use, as it isn't relevant enough to the thread, so you can't say its undue or unsubstantiated. I'm simply saying a recreational drug use I.A. could be just as sketchy as many I.As for sure.

Besides that, I understand what you're saying and I don't really disagree with anything. I.A's should be looked at by a case-by-case scenario.

My point was really that a lot of I.As are petty and also somewhat subjective.

 

[deleted804295]

Lol @ people ITT making moral equivalencies between smoking weed (which automatically means you've been associated with "sketchy" people who have done harder drugs like cocaine or molly???) and "stealing" food. You're caught between a rock and a hard place OP, due to the language of your schools code of conduct, and the way these things usually progress (i.e., like another poster has said, they don't have to "prove" anything, but rather just show that it's more likely than not the case that you intended to "steal" the food).

Knowing university dining services, I think you're entitled to the food. However, be cordial, apologetic, yet understanding and firm in the meeting. Let them know that you understand that you perhaps appeared to be in violation of the code of conduct, but that in fact you never stole the food, and that you would appreciate if they could let you off with a warning. Sorry OP! Keep us updated!

Doing drugs is 10x worse than stealing food.

One is conscience awareness of doing illegal acts that fulfill no basic needs.

The other is an unconscious drive to satiate hunger which is one of the most basic of needs.

I am surprised you guys are equating illegal non-necessary activities to something as necessary as stopping hunger.

And as an FYI, you don't need to be "young and stupid" as you guys are implying by waiving off drug use. I have never had recreational drugs or even a sip of alcohol touch my lips.

Young and stupid to me means being within legal boundaries but doing something stupid.

Students who are starving should not have to worry about stupid institutional action against something as trivial as taking food that they pay for. If he were still in the dining hall they would not give him this action, it's because he wanted to take it with him- which there is nothing wrong with mind you that is hurting OP.

Shame on Universities nation wide that force students into sh---- meal plan packages, make them pay loan shark level amounts of money for these sh---- meal plans, punish students who God forbid want to take this food out, and look down upon students who may actually be facing poverty but still want to educate themselves.

 

[mk04447]

And as an FYI, you don't need to be "young and stupid" as you guys are implying by waiving off drug use. I have never had recreational drugs or even a sip of alcohol touch my lips.

Your best days are ahead once you accept the fact we're all going to hell anyway. But, completely explains why my previous post dumbfounded you. Santa is real BTW.

 

[deleted804295]

Your best days are ahead once you accept the fact we're all going to hell anyway. But, completely explains why my previous post dumbfounded you. Santa is real BTW.

I'm an atheist. This doesn't contradict the fact that I can use the phrase "God forbid" because it carries more weight.

I choose not to do drugs and alcohol because it's illegal.

Also please stop with the stereotypes. Although I no longer believe in God, it isn't okay to reinforce stereotypes. Additionally, I would hate for someone on here to be offended by what you say because they actually are religious.

 

[bananafish94]

Hmm...I knew people in college that would literally walk out of the dining hall with armfuls full of fruit in plain sight and nobody ever remotely cared. That being said, you tempted fate a little bit by actually bringing in a tupperware container to take more food out.

My advice would be to go to the disciplinary hearing or whatever the process is at your school and just apologize sincerely, offer to write a letter or volunteer in the cafeteria or something, and try to get it reduced to a "warning" or some equivalent that doesn't go on your record. Don't say anything about lawyers (lawyers deal with the law, not cafeteria rules) or anything that applies to an actual court of law (i.e. proving it beyond a shadow of a doubt) or that will just make everyone more angry and be more likely not to work in your favor.

 

[Lawpy]

Hello so I just created an account to ask this question.

I was caught putting some food in a Tupperware in the dining hall, although the rules state that you are not allowed to leave the dining hall with any food. This resulted in a meeting with a university hearing officer for breaking the rule of "Theft, unauthorized use, or unauthorized possession of property or services of another; or knowing possession of stolen property".

If charged, how bad will this look on my application? I know you get to explain what happened. It doesn't seem like a big deal once I explain it, but I feel like just looking at the charge of theft makes it seem a lot more serious than it is. Will this hurt my application in any way, or should I forget about it and not worry ? (I still plan on disclosing and explaining it if charged)

It will hurt. At the minimum, it will make you look, well, stupid, and at the worse, if you knew what you were doing, well, you were stealing.

Check the box, explain it, OWN IT and lead an exemplary life from now on, and try to get into positions of responsibility. And always have a Plan B.

And please SDNers, refrain from the "but what if OP was starving???!!!" moral equivalencies.

Unfortunately I did not know of this rule. I'm not saying it makes it better, but I wouldn't have done it if I knew that rule existed

But what if OP's homeless friend was starving???!!!

OP: this wasn't as bad as, say, robbing the liquor store, but it ain't good, either. You knew the rule and decided the risk (an institutional action) was worth the reward (a little snack for later). This demonstrated poor judgment. To quote my esteemed colleague's words from another thread:

You've missed this particular opportunity for risk reduction. Next stop: damage control. @Goro couldn't be more right: own it and prove that you learned a lesson. Trying to explain it away won't sit well with adcoms: they'll see you as a risky candidate who doesn't accept personal responsibility for mistakes. They also won't appreciate you attempting to justify it on the basis of either personal circumstances or the perceived stupidity of the rule itself. The best approach is to say, "I did it, it was stupid and wrong, and I learned my lesson" (I'm paraphrasing here). And have a spotless track record from now on that you can point to as proof that the lesson was learned.

(EDIT: I wrote this before you'd posted about not knowing the rule. Hard-liners will fall back on "ignorance of the law is no excuse" anyway. Whether or not you agree with that approach in this instance is irrelevant. Part of being a mature adult is recognizing the compromise that must be made between idealism and practicality. In this case, it doesn't matter whether you think you should be in trouble; what matters is that you are in trouble and now you need to recover. That's doable, but (to cite a couple clichés) it's a bitter pill and will require that you eat some humble pie -- whether you feel you deserve it or not. My advice is unchanged.)

So i ignored all the moral discussions because they are irrelevant and boring. OP, I strongly suggest you to follow the above advice from Goro and HomeSkool on what you should do. Unfortunately, ignorance isn't a good reason for why you broke the rule, regardless of how strict or unfair it is.

 

[mk04447]

I'm an atheist. This doesn't contradict the fact that I can use the phrase "God forbid" because it carries more weight.

I choose not to do drugs and alcohol because it's illegal.

Also please stop with the stereotypes. Although I no longer believe in God, it isn't okay to reinforce stereotypes. Additionally, I would hate for someone on here to be offended by what you say because they actually are religious.

Where are you from Venezuela? Or are you 12? Either way, why are you chiming in if you aren't even close to finishing a premed undergrad? You should really try to remain anonymous on here, Doogie.

 

[mk04447]

I'm an atheist. This doesn't contradict the fact that I can use the phrase "God forbid" because it carries more weight.

I choose not to do drugs and alcohol because it's illegal.

Also please stop with the stereotypes. Although I no longer believe in God, it isn't okay to reinforce stereotypes. Additionally, I would hate for someone on here to be offended by what you say because they actually are religious.

Also... on a slightly more serious note. Before starting medical school I used to call myself an atheist, but this experience has shown me I was agnostic all along. Give this a few years to sink in, probably a little deep before puberty wraps up.

 

[begoood95]

Doing drugs is 10x worse than stealing food.

One is conscience awareness of doing illegal acts that fulfill no basic needs.

The other is an unconscious drive to satiate hunger which is one of the most basic of needs.

I am surprised you guys are equating illegal non-necessary activities to something as necessary as stopping hunger.

And as an FYI, you don't need to be "young and stupid" as you guys are implying by waiving off drug use. I have never had recreational drugs or even a sip of alcohol touch my lips.

Young and stupid to me means being within legal boundaries but doing something stupid.

...who hurt you?

Okay, that was sarcasm, but really, lighten up. Many of your colleagues will have smoked marijuana—and I guarantee you that many more will have had (much more than) "a sip of alcohol." I won't go so far as to say that you believe you're better than anyone that has done the aforementioned activities, but you're getting close to sounding like someone who thinks these things are black and white, which they are not.

So you live your life with complete and unquestioning respect for the law? So in the 16th century, you'd be against disobedience to laws that were devoid of real morality, simply because they were law? You've never sped before? You've never done a single illegal act in your entire life? You don't think we ought to judge laws with reference to rigorous moral standards, rather than allow the laws in and of themselves to be the arbiters of morality and ethics?

We're not equating illegal non-necessary activities to something as necessary as stopping hunger—it's hard to imagine OP was "hungry," as you're characterizing it (no judgement on you, OP, just discussing this with Sunbodi). We're just saying that in one case, the morality and law seem to be a bit more clear-cut (food "stealing") whereas in the other case (light drug usage) it is a bit more grey.

But at this point I think you're just arguing because it's fun (which it is), but we shouldn't derail too much. Like I said before, OP, I don't think this is going to end anything for you! Do what you must and you'll end up a fine physician.

 

[LebronManning]

Hello everyone,

At my hearing (with just the one officer), he asked me to explain what happened and I did. This was what he emailed me after the meeting:



So, this would mean that assuming I do not get any more violations, by the time I apply (I am a sophomore), this would be off my record and I would not have to report it as institutional action, correct?

Yes this is pretty much an "official warning" in scarier words. The key is that the file is destroyed in one year. I say this DOES NOT need to be reported on AMCAS as long as future incidents don't occur. However, I would ask the conduct officer about this specifically. I would also ask the dean's office because that's who medical schools get conduct records from if they need them.

 

[Goro]

Yes this is pretty much an "official warning" in scarier words. The key is that the file is destroyed in one year. I say this DOES NOT need to be reported on AMCAS as long as future incidents don't occur. However, I would ask the conduct officer about this specifically. I would also ask the dean's office because that's who medical schools get conduct records from if they need them.

Agree!!!

 

[21Rush12]

This is best case scenario OP, I am happy to hear this stupid situation will be put to rest.

Now stop stealing crappy cafeteria food and get on with your life!

 

[PreMedStudent55555]

Kids at my school don't take Tupperware but we always take coffee, cookies, fruit, and sometimes even fill up bottles with milk when we leave. This is ridiculous. OP, don't just take this, seriously go and apologize profusely and genuinely and never do this again. It doesn't matter if you explain it because this will SERIOUSLY hurt your chances. I have a friend who had mediocre grades and MCAT and applied 4 cycles and couldn't get in because he was caught drinking freshman year. He's now at a Caribbean school but that's another story that I don't want to discuss. However, this is truly BS. To the people who are comparing this to going to a buffet, please don't. School's use the school food to purposely get more money out of you. My school literally has the worst ranked college campus food and we were forced to get meal plans for the first 2 years. They charged us up to 4 k for 3 months of food and most of it tasted like ****.

Message: Take this VERY SERIOUSLY and don't just roll over and take the IA. Apologize to the right people, send emails to anyone who can change this, and seriously try to get this to be just a warning. IA's are very serious and the slightest ones can genuinely hurt you. I really think they'll just let you off with a warning but don't fight them. Just be very apologetic, kind, and pray they have a good heart. I honestly wish the best of luck to you op and I really hope this doesn't turn out to be too bad.

 

[Goro]

Kids at my school don't take Tupperware but we always take coffee, cookies, fruit, and sometimes even fill up bottles with milk when we leave. This is ridiculous. OP, don't just take this, seriously go and apologize profusely and genuinely and never do this again. It doesn't matter if you explain it because this will SERIOUSLY hurt your chances. I have a friend who had mediocre grades and MCAT and applied 4 cycles and couldn't get in because he was caught drinking freshman year. He's now at a Caribbean school but that's another story that I don't want to discuss. However, this is truly BS. To the people who are comparing this to going to a buffet, please don't. School's use the school food to purposely get more money out of you. My school literally has the worst ranked college campus food and we were forced to get meal plans for the first 2 years. They charged us up to 4 k for 3 months of food and most of it tasted like ****.

Message: Take this VERY SERIOUSLY and don't just roll over and take the IA. Apologize to the right people, send emails to anyone who can change this, and seriously try to get this to be just a warning. IA's are very serious and the slightest ones can genuinely hurt you. I really think they'll just let you off with a warning but don't fight them. Just be very apologetic, kind, and pray they have a good heart. I honestly wish the best of luck to you op and I really hope this doesn't turn out to be too bad.

Read post #75

 

[LizzyM]

I do think that this is an institutional action in that you are on probation and required to write an essay. It must be reported, per AMCAS rules, even if it is no longer on your record at the time you apply.

That said, it is not likely to be a big deal if you make it clear you were taking a portion of food to eat later not realizing that this was prohibited by school rules. I would not classify this as comparable to stealing someone's unattended belongings or shoplifting.

 

[Toutie]

I think anyone who elects to take more school cafeteria food home to eat should have their head examined.

Unless it was at UCLA. Their food ranks #1 as best dorm food in the country! Some of it is worth sneaking out with! 😀

 

[21Rush12]

Ugh all you UCLA people never stop gushing. WE GET IT, SoCal is great and it never snows and avocados are always on sale. Some of us have to suffer.

 

[Toutie]

Ugh all you UCLA people never stop gushing. WE GET IT, SoCal is great and it never snows and avocados are always on sale. Some of us have to suffer.

Yes, it is pretty great...but there are downsides...classes do get cancelled when there is a fire a couple miles from campus and the smokey air is unbreathable...and we do have earthquakes...and traffic that is beyond belief...and it takes anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 hours to get to a football game...or back from one! But otherwise it's pretty damn good!

And although the dorm food is ranked #1 in the country now...I can honestly say it was just okay when I was there...it is MUCH MUCH better now! 😛

And...as for the avocados...we are really in trouble there. Many of the avocado trees burned up in the recent fires...but even worse than that loss is the main nursery that supplies the young avocado stock also burned to the ground. It was the only nursery that supplies stock with the resistance to fungus root disease. It make take 10 years for the California avocado industry to recover.😱 I see lots of Mexican imports in our future.