As a premed and having to report an institutional action against myself, I was absolutely horrified and I was sure that my chances of attending any school completely ruined, let alone a "top 20" on several sources.
To begin, today I was just accepted to UW SMPH as: OOS, 30 MCAT (was sure old one/not the best score would also be detrimental), 3.98 GPA, and many of your typical extra curriculars.
The thing that caused 2 years of anxiety was the fact that I had to report my institutional action. I would imagine that several people like me have the same exact feeling of hopelessness after 4 years of extremely hard work being destroyed by a few minutes. My story is probably much worse and sounds a lot worse on an application that yours (besides cheating). So, after a night of drinking way too much I was under the impression I was at my residence at the time. I forgot my keys and my place had a loose pane of glass that could be pushed out to enter if need be; however, this was not my place. The charges could have been a felony B&E if I had chosen to deny the charges and they went through DNA analysis and a full court trial. By successfully contacting the owner, explaining the situation, meeting with the police several times, I ended up with a city ticket and paying for replacement of the door. This was relayed to my school and I had institutional action taken against me.
Although it was to be expunged after graduation, it, and everything else can still be accessed by any ADCOM if necessary. Expunge does not mean it's gone. Anyone that is considering medicine should have the similar attitude to correct their mistakes immediately and be a good person. Never consider lying on your application because chances are you'll destroy yourself emotionally and your chances of ever getting accepted since they will most likely discover it. Whatever weak point of your application you're fretting about, I assure you that the admission staff truly considers everything presented.
Be honest, be yourself, and you will be fine if you have successfully demonstrated a commitment to the field.
To begin, today I was just accepted to UW SMPH as: OOS, 30 MCAT (was sure old one/not the best score would also be detrimental), 3.98 GPA, and many of your typical extra curriculars.
The thing that caused 2 years of anxiety was the fact that I had to report my institutional action. I would imagine that several people like me have the same exact feeling of hopelessness after 4 years of extremely hard work being destroyed by a few minutes. My story is probably much worse and sounds a lot worse on an application that yours (besides cheating). So, after a night of drinking way too much I was under the impression I was at my residence at the time. I forgot my keys and my place had a loose pane of glass that could be pushed out to enter if need be; however, this was not my place. The charges could have been a felony B&E if I had chosen to deny the charges and they went through DNA analysis and a full court trial. By successfully contacting the owner, explaining the situation, meeting with the police several times, I ended up with a city ticket and paying for replacement of the door. This was relayed to my school and I had institutional action taken against me.
Although it was to be expunged after graduation, it, and everything else can still be accessed by any ADCOM if necessary. Expunge does not mean it's gone. Anyone that is considering medicine should have the similar attitude to correct their mistakes immediately and be a good person. Never consider lying on your application because chances are you'll destroy yourself emotionally and your chances of ever getting accepted since they will most likely discover it. Whatever weak point of your application you're fretting about, I assure you that the admission staff truly considers everything presented.
Be honest, be yourself, and you will be fine if you have successfully demonstrated a commitment to the field.
