Calling all legacies...

[OmahaMX80]

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After reading that last post about the infamous "email" and the promise of donations in exchange for admission, I am really curious. How many of you out there are legacies and willing to discuss it? If you are a legacy, do you even know it? I imagine that is variable, some people probably know and others' parents (or whoever) probably never bother to mention that it was their efforts which landed you in medical school.

I'm not trying to cast judgements here, seriously. I admit, I'm from the other side of the tracks. My folks were/are poor and I have no connections. I'm not delusional enough to think that my efforts alone got me into medical school, however. I had a lot of support from my family and friends, albeit not the kind of support that gave me a lil' sump'n sump'n with the admissions committee. Even so, I know that legacies are a fact of life and it happens all the time and rather than be all upset about I'm honestly just very curious about these people.

So if you are a legacy and willing to talk about it... how do "legacies" track out in the long term? Do they tend to become good doctors? Are they decent students? I know someone said something about the biggest boobs being legacies in that person's school. I'm just wondering what happens to legacies beyond medical school and if you are a legacy, did you know it or do you now, and has it affected you at all?

 

[OmahaMX80]

Heh, I guess it's not altogether shocking I just thought that with the number of people defending legacies as a viable and perfectly reasonable means of entering medical school, someone would be willing to admit to being one. Interesting!

 

[typeB-md]

i am one...

it all depends on what the person is like. i'm sure there are boobs, i'm sure there are top 10%ers just as with the rest of the medical school population.

i know several other legacies and one is barely scraping by, the other is top 5 in the class and i'm right around top 20% or so (lack of motivation more than anything else).

maybe you'd like me to say that they all fail out so that you can feel a bit better about yourself. but here is a fact for you to keep in mind. legacies do not get in with 'sub par' scores. they may be at the lower end of averages (25th percentile) but they are usually within the "acceptable" range of admission. What sets a legacy apart is that being a legacy makes sure you don't get looked over, it makes you stand out so to speak... kinda like the inner city kid with a 30 MCAT. it's not that 30 is bad, but many times they will label this individual as average unless there is some attention grabbing factor (legacy, inner city, excellent service, etc.)

and to be honest, it is a bit shady. but a legacy puts out the word about the school and gives financial contributions. in the end, money talks and then life goes on.

 

[OmahaMX80]

Actually I didn't want to hear you say anything about the success or lack there-of of legacies, I was just curious to know the reality. If anything I am really intrigued by what you said because I think it just further illustrates that beyond a certain point, GPA's and MCAT scores don't really indicate success in medical school.

 

[tennesseejed]

tis true money makes the world go 'round.

I am not a legacy but I don't think there is anything wrong with letting in legacies with lower scores. It doesn't mean that they want it any less, also another factor is that they have been exposed to the medical field their entire lives and would presumably know more about what sacrifices medicine entails. Just my $0.02

p.s. I am not saying that most legacies have lower scores.

 

[Fantasy Sports]

So affirmative action is A-OK with all you guys too then I'm guessing?

 

[typeB-md]

So affirmative action is A-OK with all you guys too then I'm guessing?

nope...

like i said, legacies usually must be w/in the acceptable range of values

A.A. is based on completely different factors. Legacy deals specifically with the fact that you can be considered a future asset to the school since legacies many times breed legacies as well as $$ contributions.

And to address what someone asked earlier.. i do believe that after a certain GPA and MCAT there is not much of a difference in performance. Medical school isn't intellectually hard at all. If i made a big deal out of performance, no doubt i'd be top 10 at least and have a 4.0 (in regards to basic science years).

everyone makes a big to-do about how smart they are because they do well in medical school. some people study 6+ hours a day, everday and get A's while others stuck 1 1/2 hours and get B+'s... it's a motivational thing. Smart should be reserved for intellectual tasks such as reasoning and logic, not for properly naming the labia minora.

 

[care bear]

i'm a legacy. i really don't think it makes any difference.

 

[phoenixsupra]

After reading that last post about the infamous "email" and the promise of donations in exchange for admission, I am really curious. How many of you out there are legacies and willing to discuss it? If you are a legacy, do you even know it? I imagine that is variable, some people probably know and others' parents (or whoever) probably never bother to mention that it was their efforts which landed you in medical school.

I'm not trying to cast judgements here, seriously. I admit, I'm from the other side of the tracks. My folks were/are poor and I have no connections. I'm not delusional enough to think that my efforts alone got me into medical school, however. I had a lot of support from my family and friends, albeit not the kind of support that gave me a lil' sump'n sump'n with the admissions committee. Even so, I know that legacies are a fact of life and it happens all the time and rather than be all upset about I'm honestly just very curious about these people.

So if you are a legacy and willing to talk about it... how do "legacies" track out in the long term? Do they tend to become good doctors? Are they decent students? I know someone said something about the biggest boobs being legacies in that person's school. I'm just wondering what happens to legacies beyond medical school and if you are a legacy, did you know it or do you now, and has it affected you at all?

Ah, that was me who mentioned that the biggest boobs in my class are legacies. That's true. But my class has a lot of legacies and they're not all complete boobs. Many are average and one or two are top students. Don't worry about not having any connections. I didn't know anyone in medicine. I got in. Nepotism is a fact of life in medicine, but it's not the only way in. 🙂

 

[phoenixsupra]

Is someone considered a "legacy" if one of their parents graduated from their school? Or, can the definition be "extended"? My aunt graduated from my school in the late '90's. They actually asked me about this during my interview, and on the secondary (which, BTW- was the only secondary I ever filled out, because I was accepted in October and really wanted my school). I thought it was strange. In retrospect, I think it had little to do with my acceptance, but who knows? Another question: is somone more of a "legacy" if they are suspected of having the sort of "family money" suggestive of future contributions? Whadda 'ya think?

Yes, but forget about the word "legacy". Any kind of connection will help. Medicine is one big happy family. 😉

 

[dsblaha]

In one of my secondaries I briefly mentioned that my dad graduated from that medical school. I never even received an interview.

 

[MadameLULU]

In one of my secondaries I briefly mentioned that my dad graduated from that medical school. I never even received an interview.

You were accepted to wake forest w/o an interview?

 

[dsblaha]

You were accepted to wake forest w/o an interview?

No, I applied to many schools with the intention of just getting in somewhere. My dad went to UC Irvine.

 

[phoenixsupra]

I know someone who's dad used to work for Baylor. She mentioned it on her application but didn't get an interview. So her dad called up Baylor and then she got an interview. I think that's where she is now. 😉

 

[visualwealth]

WOW!! I hope AA is never cancled... NEVER .. They should take the urm with 30 over the non-urm with 34 EVERY TIME....

 

[edgesofsanity]

Smart should be reserved for intellectual tasks such as reasoning and logic, not for properly naming the labia minora.

Dumb is reserved for when you and your classmates are working in anatomy lab and a lone male voice pierces the bedlam with, "I can't find the clitoris."

 

[katrinadams9]

Dumb is reserved for when you and your classmates are working in anatomy lab and a lone male voice pierces the bedlam with, "I can't find the clitoris."

Do you go to Wayne State? We had a guy like that in our anatomy lab!

 

[C. LaRue]

I was a legacy at SLU, and I'm certain that it gave me preferred treatment from the admissions committee. I had no connection to the university other than that, and I was interviewed and accepted on the first possible days. It's pretty much the same as the preferrential treatment I got from my undergrad. My scores were good enough that I got in places without the legacy factor, but it definitely helped at those two.

Will I be a good doctor? Dunno. I hope so.

 

[Rogue_Leader]

I was a pseudo-legacy at UVA. My parents had a combined 3 graduate degrees from there, but in engineering. My parents weren't big time donators, but they said they donated a few hundred bucks a year just to stay on the donator lists in case me or my brother ever wanted to apply there. It apparently made them prompt in processing my application. I got an interview within 2 weeks of being complete, and I got my rejection less then a week after my interview. I had to double check to make sure that the rejection letter was indeed postmarked after my interview date 😛

 

[amyliz]

I'm at the same med school my dad went to...and in their admissions brochure they openly state that they will look closely at any children of alumni who apply (maybe that's why I'm here...who knows).

 

[njbmd]

I was a pseudo-legacy at UVA. My parents had a combined 3 graduate degrees from there, but in engineering. My parents weren't big time donators, but they said they donated a few hundred bucks a year just to stay on the donator lists in case me or my brother ever wanted to apply there. It apparently made them prompt in processing my application. I got an interview within 2 weeks of being complete, and I got my rejection less then a week after my interview. I had to double check to make sure that the rejection letter was indeed postmarked after my interview date 😛

Hi there,
I was a legacy (my Dad and cousin went to UVa med school) at UVa and went to undergraduate there. I did get accepted but a "full-ride" scholarship elsewhere changed my mind on attending there. It was pretty much a no-brainer for me. I loved Charlottesville and I really liked being at UVa. I just didn't love the medical school so much that I wanted to pay or have my parents pay for me to attend there when I could go for practically nothing at another school. Now I owe about $30,000 and can pay that off in my first year of practice.

njbmd 🙂

 

[Mike59]

Dayaaaaaam...........This thread is disturbing. But ah well, who said life was fair? 😎