In August of freshman year I had a lot to drink at an off-campus residence and then was stopped by a security guard in the lobby of my dorm. I was arrested for public intoxication, but later had the legal charges completely dropped. However, my school still charged me with an IA titled "Visibly Overcome by the Influence of Alcohol".
So I have two questions:
1. If the IA is not on my transcript, should I even disclose it? Do schools actually contact the student conduct offices of the school of each applicant and/or matriculant in order to obtain their disciplinary records?
2. If I do disclose it, how likely is it to to affect my ability to get accepted?
I have had no incidents since. I am a rising senior applying this cycle and am worried that I am going to be overlooked by some schools because of this.
(Yes I am aware that AMCAS says to disclose all IAs, even if they are expunged. I'm not looking for responses telling me how terrible and dishonest of a person I am for considering not disclosing. I am simply trying to weigh the costs/benefits and risks of not disclosing and would appreciate honest answers. Thanks.)