ADcom

[Persistence101]

Can applicants actually get "hooked up" if they know a member of an admissions commitee?

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[JohnHolmes]

Originally posted by Persistence101
Can applicants actually get "hooked up" if they know a member of an admissions commitee?

Is this a serious question?

Coops

 

[Persistence101]

I was just curious if this actually happens

 

[omarsaleh66]

yeah a freind of mine was hooked up at a med school cus his interviewer (a surgeon)'s ass was saved during an operation by friend;s dad (anesthesiologist)

my friend decided not to go there, but it is true. This does go on.

 

[peterockduke]

My friend got an interview to Johns Hopkins b/c of connections. He was initially going to be rejected previnterview and inevitably was rejected post interview. You'd be surprised how much connections help and occur....

 

[Tezzie]

My father knows (and is very good friends with some) members of the adcoms of the major NYC schools. I was debating with myself if i should apply to them because of it. I ended up applying to Columbia/NYU/Cornell/Sinai and AE and was granted interviews at all of them. My father never mentioned to any of them that my brother and i are going through the application process right now.

I am not sure if he did, or if they found it - how it would. I want to believe that they would not review me because they know me or they have connections with me.

I also believe that a story where an adcom member gives you the extra "push" would cause a scandal if it came out. Why would someone risk their career for something like that?

 

[CalBeE]

Well the lucky thing is that most, if not all, schools base their final decisions on the votes of adcom members. As a team, there is less biases, even if say one member knows the applicant really well.

However, this is obviously not a perfect process

 

[ixitixl]

I think that residency is where the connections are really useful, especially if you're trying to get a highly competitive specialty/subspecialty at a top rated institution.

Most people I know who were "hooked up" because of connections were generally highly qualified candidates to begin with. Knowing faculty got them an interview which in most cases, they aced. I know one person who got into a top rated institution because their family donated millions to the school in the past.