Can anyone sabotage my chances by sending in a malicious letter???

[PARPcleavage]

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If I have made a few enemies (grad students) - who hate to see me get accepted to medicine - and they choose to send a letter to the admission committee to where I applied - will the adcom really consider such letter defaming me?

Basically, I have made an enemy with a lab member who is jealous of me having the chance of going to medicine. I am really afriad he would send a letter to the adcom saying how I am a bad person, how I am frequently wanting to go into medicine for the money...etc etc.

How would the adcom view such letter??

 

[Cambino]

If I have made a few enemies (grad students) - who hate to see me get accepted to medicine - and they choose to send a letter to the admission committee to where I applied - will the adcom really consider such letter defaming me?

Basically, I have made an enemy with a lab member who is jealous of me having the chance of going to medicine. I am really afriad he would send a letter to the adcom saying how I am a bad person, how I am frequently wanting to go into medicine for the money...etc etc.

How would the adcom view such letter??

Don't tell your 'colleagues' details as to where and when you're applying...? Easy solution. 0/10

 

[PARPcleavage]

Don't tell your 'colleagues' details as to where and when you're applying...? Easy solution. 0/10

They already know. I was basically friends with them at first - and then our relationships soured - and I am now afraid of them trying to sabotage me!

 

[Cambino]

They already know. I was basically friends with them at first - and then our relationships soured - and I am now afraid of them trying to sabotage me!

So, you claim to say that during your time of friendship, you told them all the details of when and where you'd be applying even though it was (presumably) in the distant future? And then they seem to remember all these details even after your relationship soured? I doubt it. Paranoid or troll... hmmm...

 

[MedPR]

If I have made a few enemies (grad students) - who hate to see me get accepted to medicine - and they choose to send a letter to the admission committee to where I applied - will the adcom really consider such letter defaming me?

Basically, I have made an enemy with a lab member who is jealous of me having the chance of going to medicine. I am really afriad he would send a letter to the adcom saying how I am a bad person, how I am frequently wanting to go into medicine for the money...etc etc.

How would the adcom view such letter??

Yes. ADCOM has at least a dozen other qualified people who aren't being written maliciously about for your spot. From their POV the letter(s) could be bs, but at the same time why should they risk anything?

 

[Cinclus]

ADCOMs have too much to do as it is for them to pay much mind to an unsolicited letter from some nobody grad student that's bashing a current applicant.

 

[Spinach Dip]

Easy solution: make a checklist of 10 schools you have no desire to apply to. Leave this sitting out in the open where you lab partner will see it. Then make sure you tell them that you have re-assessed which schools you're going to apply to and you left the list around here somewhere...

 

[La Presse]

This is why you keep quiet about your app. No good comes from voicing it, imo.

 

[darkjedi]

Unless the letter is from a faculty member or your bosses, no one in the adcom would likely care.

 

[weezynation]

In addition to what everyone else has said, the vast majority of schools use the AMCAS Letter Service and throw out any letters sent to them by mail. So unless they have access to your AMCAS app, I don't see how they could possibly do this to you.

 

[phikapdoctor]

Play nice in lab next time.
Send LizzyM a message.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN Mobile app please excuse punctuation and spelling

 

[pre med 2014]

Easy solution: make a checklist of 10 schools you have no desire to apply to. Leave this sitting out in the open where you lab partner will see it. Then make sure you tell them that you have re-assessed which schools you're going to apply to and you left the list around here somewhere...

This made lmao.

 

[pre med 2014]

In addition to what everyone else has said, the vast majority of schools use the AMCAS Letter Service and throw out any letters sent to them by mail. So unless they have access to your AMCAS app, I don't see how they could possibly do this to you.

They could sen emails to the admissions office. They likely would not forward it to the deciders.

I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[Druggernaut]

What the hell are people doing that they have "enemies?" I've seen a few threads like this recently.

If you can't run some gels in a lab without inspiring such strong hatred that people set out to ruin your future, you should probably seek therapy.

But my completely uninformed opinion is that such a letter won't get to anyone who can make such a decision. If it did, however, it would probably be cause for concern.

 

[Stixman28]

Unless the letter is from a faculty member or your bosses, no one in the adcom would likely care.

I had a conversation with one of my associate deans about this. She said they routinely receive unsolicited applicant bashing mail. She mentioned that unless there is something objective the letter writer can point to, they just ignore it.

For example, she told me a story about how someone mailed newspaper clippings about a male applicant who had repeatedly been in trouble with a school for rape/attempted rape. Their app got thrown out.

Unless your thirst for $$$ has made it into your local paper, whatever your enemy has to say about you is just their opinion and likely to be ignored.

 

[WorldChanger36]

It is unlikely any letter that is not directly attached to the application will be considered. All good and bad people make enemies. Like the above poster said unless you are in some kind of negative media I wouldnt worry. Of course if they are very rich and could buy CNN air time you could be in trouble.

 

[Yoseph101]

If I have made a few enemies (grad students) - who hate to see me get accepted to medicine - and they choose to send a letter to the admission committee to where I applied - will the adcom really consider such letter defaming me?

Basically, I have made an enemy with a lab member who is jealous of me having the chance of going to medicine. I am really afriad he would send a letter to the adcom saying how I am a bad person, how I am frequently wanting to go into medicine for the money...etc etc.

How would the adcom view such letter??

No it wont. The adcoms will toss the letter since it is grudge motivated. There's a thread in confidential consult about this same topic.

That said: Make less enemies in the future.

 

[MedPR]

Maybe all of you haven't heard of the 21st of November.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile

 

[LizzyM]

Maybe all of you haven't heard of the 21st of November.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile

Not relevant. If you post mean things through social media meant for fellow incoming students, you've dug your own grave. That's different than someone sending an unsolicited letter to the admissions office.

 

[MedPR]

Not relevant. If you post mean things through social media meant for fellow incoming students, you've dug your own grave. That's different than someone sending an unsolicited letter to the admissions office.

So multiple coworkers writing letters describing poor behavior and undesirable motivations for pursuing medicine wouldn't hurt someone's app?

 

[Narmerguy]

What the hell are people doing that they have "enemies?" I've seen a few threads like this recently.

If you can't run some gels in a lab without inspiring such strong hatred that people set out to ruin your future, you should probably seek therapy.

But my completely uninformed opinion is that such a letter won't get to anyone who can make such a decision. If it did, however, it would probably be cause for concern.

Nice 👍

 

[KnuxNole]

Not relevant. If you post mean things through social media meant for fellow incoming students, you've dug your own grave. That's different than someone sending an unsolicited letter to the admissions office.

I agree. It's 100% someone's fault if they say mean stuff. The easy solution is *huzzah* not say anything mean!

I also find it weird that people have enemies. I didn't know there were anyone who could actually be jealous in a malicious way. Sounds like those mean girls from the Hills/Laguna Beach, who make enemies cause you smile at them.

You can just leave the lab. They won't know WHICH schools you apply to right? You can cut off contact with them, and not answer any of their emails.

 

[Stixman28]

Maybe all of you haven't heard of the 21st of November

sorry, what's the reference?

 

[AnthonyBourdain]

There are a lot of crazy people out there and I thin it wouldn't be a bad idea to keep quiet about the schools you are applying to. I worked with a girl who would try to get people she didn't like laid off. This didn't make her popular as people were scared to work with her so she was constantly passed up for promotions (decided by a group of peers) for her constant conflicts with people. I got a promotion and she flipped out. I wouldn't be surprised if she sent a letter.

This girl is applying to PA school and I could do the same but to me it just isn't worth it, that isn't who I am. Some people just have no lives of their own and live for drama.

 

[MedPR]

sorry, what's the reference?

Someone on SDN got their acceptance rescinded the day before Thanksgiving. They allegedly made racist and/or threatening comments on SDN/facebook and someone wrote to the school about it.

I figured this was a similar situation.

 

[hookgrip]

Someone on SDN got their acceptance rescinded the day before Thanksgiving. They allegedly made racist and/or threatening comments on SDN/facebook and someone wrote to the school about it.

I figured this was a similar situation.

I wonder what became of that. A lot of people in the thread claimed that the email may have been fake.

 

[MedPR]

I wonder what became of that. A lot of people in the thread claimed that the email may have been fake.

It was real.

 

[Praefectus]

So multiple coworkers writing letters describing poor behavior and undesirable motivations for pursuing medicine wouldn't hurt someone's app?

I'd be more concerned if an entire lab group could coordinate nasty letters like that. OP, if that was the case, you work with a bunch of dicks.

 

[AnthonyBourdain]

I'd be more concerned if an entire lab group could coordinate nasty letters like that. OP, if that was the case, you work with a bunch of dicks.

I second that, even if you don't like someone. Is your life so dull that you waste your precious time on this crap? Normal people don't get my kicks from ruining people's lives.

 

[AestheticGod]

This is why i play the '****** card'. Where I act like i don't know anything and act like i need help to get by. So that way, everyone helps me with classes and stuff 😀
























































JK, i'm not acting 🙁

 

[Anathema]

Just throwing my opinion down that the word ****** shouldn't be used like that.

 

[Praefectus]

This is why i play the '****** card'. Where I act like i don't know anything and act like i need help to get by. So that way, everyone helps me with classes and stuff 😀

http://www.troll.me/images/full-******/you-went-full-******-never-go-full-******.jpg

Just throwing my opinion down that the word ****** shouldn't be used like that.

👍

 

[CaliGirl14]

Dear lord, what on earth did you do to your friends that they'd go out of their way to write a sour letter to med schools? Seems like a ton of effort to me.

 

[NickNaylor]

It was real.

I haven't looked at the thread, so how do you know it was real? I find it hard to believe that a school would rescind a decision about something like that unless there was irrefutable proof of something bad going on (eg, telling a member of the faculty that you abuse prescription drugs or something equally stupid). Med schools invest too much in selecting their classes to nonchalantly rescind acceptances.

(sent from my phone)

 

[45408]

So multiple coworkers writing letters describing poor behavior and undesirable motivations for pursuing medicine wouldn't hurt someone's app?

Just not credible. There are enough psychopath ex-boyfriends or ex-girlfriends out there that it's pretty easy to see how someone would forge a bunch of these letters trying to ruin their lover that spurned them.

 

[sliceofbread136]

I haven't looked at the thread, so how do you know it was real? I find it hard to believe that a school would rescind a decision about something like that unless there was irrefutable proof of something bad going on (eg, telling a member of the faculty that you abuse prescription drugs or something equally stupid). Med schools invest too much in selecting their classes to nonchalantly rescind acceptances.

(sent from my phone)

The IP of the email was eventually recognized as coming from the school. Also, the poster was removed from the facebook page and hasn't posted on SDN since.

 

[PARPcleavage]

Dear lord, what on earth did you do to your friends that they'd go out of their way to write a sour letter to med schools? Seems like a ton of effort to me.

I am an Indian-American from a wealthy family, I work in a neuroscience lab where eveyrone else are graduate students from India who are quite poor.

There is this thing in the Indian culture where medicine is considered the most "elite" of all professions. Politics in my lab is very complicated - because I have a problematic PI - who likes to pit us against each other to foster competition. For example, we all work toward one main goal, if someone gets results first - then PI would claim bodly that this person is going to be the first-author ....blah blah blah...UNLESS....you get the picture.

In the end of the day, everyone is exhausted, dejected, worn out, miserable, and hate each other. My relationships with all the Indian grad students have deteroriated over time, and all of them just have this nasty and disgusting look on their face when they hear about me going to interviews at various medical schools.

 

[Anathema]

As an Indian American I can verify these sentiments. They exist even out of the lab which is why I stray away from cultural gatherings.

 

[PARPcleavage]

As an Indian American I can verify these sentiments. They exist even out of the lab which is why I stray away from cultural gatherings.

Thank you! Finally someone who understands!!

We Indians have this thing about being jealous against people who are better than us, and then do everything we can to sabotage them behind their backs!

Not a bit of exagerration right here...

 

[KnuxNole]

That sounds depressing 🙁

They should worry about themselves instead of wasting energy being "jealous". Usually people who have feelings of jealously don't have much substance to bring anyway.

 

[Anathema]

You're in a tough situation if you stick around. Just do your duties and provide small talk if it comes up. Just hope you get an acceptance soon so you don't have to go through too much emotional turmoil.

Everyone here is right though, their letters won't mean anything unless somehow they get your pi to say something.

 

[911 Turbo]

That's what happens when you talk to fobs / interact with fobs.









Not srs










Actually 100% srs

 

[La Presse]

Indians, huh? So it that like an Apache tribal custom?
























notsrs. (this should really be trademarked)

 

[MedPR]

The IP of the email was eventually recognized as coming from the school. Also, the poster was removed from the facebook page and hasn't posted on SDN since.

And the person has said he is pursuing an smp.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile

 

[MedPR]

You're in a tough situation if you stick around. Just do your duties and provide small talk if it comes up. Just hope you get an acceptance soon so you don't have to go through too much emotional turmoil.

Everyone here is right though, their letters won't mean anything unless somehow they get your pi to say something.

Also don't tell anyone if/when you do get accepted. I'm not telling my employer until after they publish the holiday schedule. I've volunteered to work Christmas and New Year 😀

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile

 

[sliceofbread136]

And the person has said he is pursuing an smp.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile

Ah, the plot thickens

 

[MedPR]

Ah, the plot thickens

Yea. I'm not really sure why that's his plan though. I'm pretty sure he had a solid gpa but was limited to DO because he got a 26 or something.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile

 

[jl lin]

So, you claim to say that during your time of friendship, you told them all the details of when and where you'd be applying even though it was (presumably) in the distant future? And then they seem to remember all these details even after your relationship soured? I doubt it. Paranoid or troll... hmmm...

I don't know about that. I have seen a fair number of careers put in jeopardy by people badmouthing others. It's sad, but it happens. It happens a lot in healthcare. It happens a lot in nursing. All you need to do is pizz off the wrong people, and they can put a sour hurting on you. I'm not trying to give them all this "power." I am simply stating that it happens, and you have to work hard to rise above it. Sadly, it's one reason why people are not as chummy in the workplace anymore IMHO. It's sad, but many people will not look at what the actual truth is. They look at the perception. Someone paints perception as reality, and a fair number of people actually believe it--true or not.

I hate to say it, but people take the path of least resistance most of the time when it comes to references. It's b/c they don't have a lot of time or energy to dig further that they may go with the painted perception over whether or not it is true.

If I had my way, I'd make the world a better place in this regard. But I don't run the world or the mentalities of people.

So, don't get crazy about it. Test the references through a reliable reference checking service. Do research on the service so you don't get ripped off. Pay the money, try not to pizz anyone off, keep your head to the grindstone, don't get bitter, and move on.

You can't let it control your life. You can only try to prevent and do any damage control.

 

[HughMyron]

What the hell are people doing that they have "enemies?" I've seen a few threads like this recently.

If you can't run some gels in a lab without inspiring such strong hatred that people set out to ruin your future, you should probably seek therapy.

Science and medicine, hell, every career and field, are full of abusive and horrible people. You should know that.

As an Indian American I can verify these sentiments. They exist even out of the lab which is why I stray away from cultural gatherings.

And I can also verify this. I don't think Druggernaut is very knowledgeable about how Indian culture works.

 

[KnuxNole]

I don't know that many Indian people, but the ones I do know don't seem to act like this. If they really act like this in a common manner, they will be laughed at when they get to med school. Unless they expect to only talk to other Indian people who act "mean", which could be highly isolating.


I think the amount of abusive people in medicine is minimal. Some might be a bit abrasive, but I wouldn't be fearful.

This can happen in nursing, but it's more of catty/angry women