Are my chances to be a doctor over because of my IA?

[KnownBreakfast1985]

Hey guys,

This is my first post on here and I'm only doing this because I feel like I have no other outlet/ place to ask for help.

Just for some background, l'm a senior right now at a T20 undergrad university (according to US News so take that as you wish). I'm studying Sports Medicine, Biochemistry, and Statistics. I have a 3.96 overall GPA (B+ in Orgo I/II and a W for Orgo II during the summer, the rest are all A’s) 514 MCAT, as well as 5 publications, good research in a cancer lab, clinical research, ~ 60 hours of shadowing, etc. I applied this last cycle to 25-27 MD schools and so far gotten zero interviews with only 7 schools left (but l've pretty much lost all hope with these as well considering how late in the cycle it is). I am studying right now to retake my MCAT in May because I feel like that is one thing I can try and improve on, but I’m not sure if it’s even worth it as I think more and more about it. This year, I plan on taking a gap year working as a Medical Assistant full-time, so I’m hoping this improves the clinical experience section of my application.

Essentially, my sophomore year, one day before a chemistry exam I was having a severe flare up of my diagnosed ulcerative colitis and was feeling really sick. I was a commuter at the time and there was no way I would be able to make it to campus for the exam, so l emailed the professor asking if I could take a remote proctored exam over Zoom with lockdown browser and stuff. But I didn't feel like getting up close and personal about what was going on with my condition, so I decided to tell them I had COVID and attached a picture of a positive test I had actually received 2 weeks prior. My professor saw that the picture was taken 2 weeks ago, reported me to the Dean, and I got placed on disciplinary probation for "falsifying records" for a semester.

Looking back, I know this was incredibly stupid and I would do anything to go back and change what I did and just told them what was actually going on.

I feel like this is a really niche Institutional Action that I haven't been able to come across anywhere, but I did see something vaguely similar on here on SDN and essentially what everyone said was that his shot at an MD acceptance was pretty much out of reach for at least 4-5 years, if not forever.

Any input on my situation would be appreciated, and sorry for the really long post (I have been under an incredible amount of stress and I just feel like my life is in shambles right now, as dramatic as that sounds). Thanks guys.

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[Goro]

Overt dishonesty is taken more seriously by us, even when committed at an earlier age like yours.

So yeah, it's very possible that your medical career is in stasis.

Did you own this in your explanation in the IA section of your app?

You may need to take a few years off, and put some time between the transgression and applying.

 

[Faha]

Where is your state of residence ? Which schools did you apply to ?

 

[KnownBreakfast1985]

Overt dishonesty is taken more seriously by us, even when committed at an earlier age like yours.

So yeah, it's very possible that your medical career is in stasis.

Did you own this in your explanation in the IA section of your app?

You may need to take a few years off, and put some time between the transgression and applying.

Hello @Goro,

Thank you so much for your reply and input - it really means a lot.

Yes, I do mention it in my AMCAS/TMDSAS applications. Here is what exactly I wrote on AMCAS:

“During my Spring 2022 semester, I received a disciplinary probation sanction under the charge of giving a false statement to a university faculty member. One day prior to an exam, I asked my professor if I could take a proctored Zoom exam, falsely stating that I tested positive for COVID-19. The truth was that I was experiencing a severe flare-up episode with my diagnosed Ulcerative Colitis, and I did not want to discuss the personal details and symptoms of my condition with my professor.

Reflecting on this experience, I deeply regret my actions and realize that I should have been honest and communicated my situation openly. I understand that I broke the trust held between a professor and a student, and I have learned a lot about handling similar situations. Since then, I have had more flare-ups but have been honest about my condition when communicating with professors, PIs, and physicians I shadowed.

This experience has been a powerful reminder that honesty is always the best policy, no matter the situation. It has taught me the importance of transparency and integrity, values I will continue to uphold as I move forward in medical school and beyond.”

And here is what I put on TMDSAS (this has a much shorter character limit):

“In Spring 2022, I received probation for giving a false statement to a university professor about having COVID-19 instead of revealing a flare-up of my Ulcerative Colitis. I regret this dishonesty, acknowledging that I damaged the professor-student trust. Since then, I have been transparent about my condition with educators and healthcare professionals. This experience has served as a vehement reminder of the honesty and overall ethical responsibility necessary for medical school and a life-long career in medicine which I will continue to maintain.”

 

[oatmilkplease]

Hello @Goro,

Thank you so much for your reply and input - it really means a lot.

Yes, I do mention it in my AMCAS/TMDSAS applications. Here is what exactly I wrote on AMCAS:

“During my Spring 2022 semester, I received a disciplinary probation sanction under the charge of giving a false statement to a university faculty member. One day prior to an exam, I asked my professor if I could take a proctored Zoom exam, falsely stating that I tested positive for COVID-19. The truth was that I was experiencing a severe flare-up episode with my diagnosed Ulcerative Colitis, and I did not want to discuss the personal details and symptoms of my condition with my professor.

Reflecting on this experience, I deeply regret my actions and realize that I should have been honest and communicated my situation openly. I understand that I broke the trust held between a professor and a student, and I have learned a lot about handling similar situations. Since then, I have had more flare-ups but have been honest about my condition when communicating with professors, PIs, and physicians I shadowed.

This experience has been a powerful reminder that honesty is always the best policy, no matter the situation. It has taught me the importance of transparency and integrity, values I will continue to uphold as I move forward in medical school and beyond.”

And here is what I put on TMDSAS (this has a much shorter character limit):

“In Spring 2022, I received probation for giving a false statement to a university professor about having COVID-19 instead of revealing a flare-up of my Ulcerative Colitis. I regret this dishonesty, acknowledging that I damaged the professor-student trust. Since then, I have been transparent about my condition with educators and healthcare professionals. This experience has served as a vehement reminder of the honesty and overall ethical responsibility necessary for medical school and a life-long career in medicine which I will continue to maintain.”

Hey I'm just lurkin about but wanted to say I thought your responses were very well written. You were honest, explained the situation, and took responsibility for your actions.

 

[KnownBreakfast1985]

Where is your state of residence ? Which schools did you apply to ?

Hi @Faha,

Thank you for your reply. I am a Texas resident, and I applied to these schools:

Baylor
UT San Antonio
University of Houston (Decision Pending)
McGovern
Texas Tech
UT Southwestern
UT Tyler
Albany (Decision Pending)
Boston
Columbia (Decision Pending)
Emory (Decision Pending)
Dartmouth
George Washington
Icahn
Indiana
Keck
NYU
Penn State (Decision Pending)
Tufts (Decision Pending)
UC Irvine
UCSF
Colorado (Decision Pending)
Pittsburgh
Rochester
Washington
Wake Forest
WashU

 

[KnownBreakfast1985]

Hey I'm just lurkin about but wanted to say I thought your responses were very well written. You were honest, explained the situation, and took responsibility for your actions.

Hey, thank you so much for the feedback. Yeah, I did spend a lot of time trying to write these actually, so I appreciate the kind words

 

[Goro]

I agree with the above poster that the response was very well written. You are having no luck with out-of-state schools because they know from historical Norms that people from Texas will stay in Texas.

That nice low Lone Star tuition after all.

The Ia is a confounder, but you may have had bad essays, or a bad letter of recommendation, or collectively weak letters of recommendation.

 

[KnownBreakfast1985]

I agree with the above poster that the response was very well written. You are having no luck with out-of-state schools because they know from historical Norms that people from Texas will stay in Texas.

That nice low Lone Star tuition after all.

The Ia is a confounder, but you may have had bad essays, or a bad letter of recommendation, or collectively weak letters of recommendation.

Thank you @Goro. Considering what you believe to also be an issue (essays/letters), would you think that retaking my MCAT would be worthwhile? My family and I think that if I can increase to a 517+, then it would also help make my application more competitive for the 2024-2025 cycle.

 

[Stuaccount]

I am studying right now to retake my MCAT in May because I feel like that is one thing I can try and improve on

My family and I think that if I can increase to a 517+,

That doesn’t seem like a good use of your time. Not sure about that input from your family either. Outside of the TX schools and the IA, I think your school list may be the issue. A lot of your non-TX schools have median mcat scores higher than yours. If your goal is to apply to those schools again, yes you may need a higher mcat score. But I think it is easier to change your school list than to try to get a higher mcat score.

 

[Faha]

You do not need to retake a MCAT of 514. You would benefit from a year working as a Medical Assistant since you would accumulate more than 1,000 clinical hours. OOS MD schools admit few Texas residents since they know from years of experience that Texas applicants will attend a Texas school. I notice that you did not apply to all the Texas MD and DO schools. When you reapply in 2025 I suggest these schools:
All TMDSAS MD and DO schools
AMCAS schools- Tulane and TCU and any new schools that open (Belmont, Alice Walton, Methodist University, Roseman)
Also apply broadly to DO schools and include these:
UIWSOM
OSU-COM
AZCOM
TUNCOM
ATSU-KCOM
KCU-COM
DMU-COM
CCOM
ACOM
CUSOM
VCOM (all schools)
PCOM (all schools)
LECOM (all schools)
Touro-NY
NYITCOM

 

[Goro]

Thank you @Goro. Considering what you believe to also be an issue (essays/letters), would you think that retaking my MCAT would be worthwhile? My family and I think that if I can increase to a 517+, then it would also help make my application more competitive for the 2024-2025 cycle.

Your stats aren't keeping you out of med school.

 

[KnownBreakfast1985]

Your stats aren't keeping you out of med school.

Got it. So would you have a similar recommendation of working as a medical assistant this gap year, while strengthening my essays/letters (and no MCAT retake of course)?

 

[purkinjekitty]

agree with above, please apply to all the TMDSAS schools! I have much lower stats than you and received interviews from UTMB and A&M, two MD schools which you just didn’t check the box to apply to

I don’t wanna tell you to apply TCOM/SHSU if you don’t want to be a DO, but consider they are powerhouse DO schools (we will see SHSU’s first match this March).

Proud of you for owning your mistake and am excited to see your future success!

 

[purkinjekitty]

also, I’m not sure if you have any volunteering experience with underserved communities but if you don’t try and squeeze in a few hours a week/month with some organization that goes out and helps out underserved communities. You got this!!

 

[Goro]

Got it. So would you have a similar recommendation of working as a medical assistant this gap year, while strengthening my essays/letters (and no MCAT retake of course)?

Work on whatever your app is missing

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Non-clinical activities descriptions with hours would be nice.

The IA is niche because of the times, but with your health documentation is important to maintain accuracy, especially if you were sick. If you can't do it for yourself, should we trust you with others' records?

What I don't see in your statements was how the institution sanctioned you. I see contrition, but were you brought up to your student conduct board? Was your request denied? If I asked for a Student Conduct Dean's letter, what will it say?

If I were your professor, I would have pointed out this documentation problem that your C+ test was from two weeks ago and just not granted your request. No institution action needed. Maybe they now had doubts of your flare up as a result, or they could just cite their syllabus about excused absences. If I glossed over this information, I apologize.

I'm unsure that your IA would be an issue, but the description might not satisfy those who review it.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

Agree with all my learned colleagues above. I would not repeat an 88th %tile Mcat. I have seen scores go down, not infrequently. Good luck and best wishes!