Do adcoms cyber-search applicants?

[langwang3]

Do adcoms look up applicants on google, LinkedIn, or other social media? If so, why?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[ChymeofPassion]

Yes

 

[Tastysalmon]

Yes

 

[langwang3]

P.S. what about tinder?

 

[TheDataKing]

Yes - for the same reason you look people up before meeting them. Red flags could show up.

P.S. what about tinder?

I’m guessing you’re trolling on this bit

 

[Goro]

Do adcoms look up applicants on google, LinkedIn, or other social media? If so, why?

I don't but the Admission Deans and his/her staff do.

So if there's a pic of you out there in a Klan robe, or you're taking a hit from a bong, delete it.

 

[deleted688779]

Adding to this: some admissions people I’ve met claim they even search up your house to see if you’re actually poor (or verify other claims)

 

[deleted987519]

Just to add, adcoms or staff arent going thru some laborious manual search, Some schools have subscriptions to search services and simply have their admissions software spit out a list of name, DOB, SSN, email, etc and and automatically upload to these search services. The basic searches cost a few bucks. In short, every applicant must assume you will have the internet equivalent of a full body cavity search if you get an acceptance

*deletes social media*

 

[Goro]

FYI, a guy who was accepted to ACOM had his acceptance rescinded over racist and inflammatory posts on social media some years ago.

 

[Styrene]

This is one of the reasons I don't have any social media accounts, not a single one. It's just not worth it. And if I'm not working or at class, I'm basically spending time alone reading or playing guitar. I don't drink or even go out. And even still, the odds of random posts rubbing people the wrong way is just a needless risk.

 

[carboxylicpremed]

This is one of the reasons I don't have any social media accounts, not a single one. It's just not worth it. And if I'm not working or at class, I'm basically spending time alone reading or playing guitar. I don't drink or even go out. And even still, the odds of random posts rubbing people the wrong way is just a needless risk.

My prehealth committee asked a kid why all his social media was removed and questioned if he is able to maintain a balance of school + family + social life. Granted my committee has been ridiculous before but I feel anything you do these days is a red flag to someone.

 

[and 99 others]

To answer OP's question: I saw multiple schools I applied to look at my linkedin. Probably didn't help that it was utterly empty.

 

[TwoHighways]

“Gotcha” culture admittedly sucks, and it’s further enabled by digitalization. All the more reason not to tweet impulsively (or at all) or broadcast your life on social media. I’m even questioning whether I should continue posting on SDN. Who hasn’t said or done something in their past that is in no way reflective of the person they are today? How long do we hold the sins of the past against a person? Where is the line drawn between insensitive and downright malicious? Are we no longer able to tolerate being offended by the thoughts of others to any extent at all?

 

[Styrene]

My prehealth committee asked a kid why all his social media was removed and questioned if he is able to maintain a balance of school + family + social life. Granted my committee has been ridiculous before but I feel anything you do these days is a red flag to someone.

Well, they obviously knew he had it before if they knew it was removed. My solution is get rid of it forever. It's bad for mental health and overall well-being. The data is there. Sounds like the committee has their own issues if they think like that lol

 

[Goro]

My prehealth committee asked a kid why all his social media was removed and questioned if he is able to maintain a balance of school + family + social life. Granted my committee has been ridiculous before but I feel anything you do these days is a red flag to someone.

Well, they obviously knew he had it before if they knew it was removed. My solution is get rid of it forever. It's bad for mental health and overall well-being. The data is there. Sounds like the committee has their own issues if they think like that lol

The question sounds like a classic stress question, rather than anything vindictive or accusatory. And given the ubiquity of social medial and internet presence, not having any does raise an eyebrow, after all.

 

[hellanutella]

Do adcoms look up applicants on google, LinkedIn, or other social media? If so, why?

I personally did – but after interviewing and writing my applicant evaluation, so that my initial impressions would not be coloured. (If I couldn't find anything, I just assumed they'd done a thorough job de-identifying or deactivated). I only brought up one student the whole year, because I thought their posts were inappropriate.

My findings very rarely hurt applicants, if anything their accounts often humanized them. So many people had active hobbies/pursuits they shared on social media but not on their app, which I would have loved to talk about! This is not to say your social media should become a business card, but don't be afraid to be genuine in your hobbies/club sections!

I did find one student who posted photos whilst volunteering abroad that were degrading – ex: "omg this person would kill me if they knew I posted this, but they don't have a computer hahaha" which I did bring up in committee discussion. IMHO people who'd post pictures with patients, particularly whilst volunteering in developing nations, left a sour taste in my mouth. Just... don't do it. These are people with lives as nuanced and rich as your own, not a photo prop.

For better or worse, social media is here to stay – even in medicine. I applied into a very social media-heavy specialty and was surprised by how much interaction (both personal and professional) happened in the social mediaverse during the app cycle. Depending on my subspecialty, it may even be expected of me to create a public + professional account.

tl;dr: If you're someone who enjoys social media, go right on ahead. Conversely, if you're someone who find it stressful or unhealthy, there should also be no shame in unplugging.

 

[deleted1011020]

Adding to this: some admissions people I’ve met claim they even search up your house to see if you’re actually poor (or verify other claims)

I put an address thats safe to send my mail so....they might think I'm lying lol? Is there a way to note this?

 

[Styrene]

The question sounds like a classic stress question, rather than anything vindictive or accusatory. And given the ubiquity of social medial and internet presence, not having any does raise an eyebrow, after all.

Yes, it raises an eyebrow in a good way. I'd be shocked if someone in a professional setting evaluated negatively a candidate or similar because of lack of social media.

"Oh, you don't have social media? That's interesting. Why is that?"

"Well, I spent a lot of time on it when I was in my teens and early 20s, and it was ultimately a waste of time, so I deleted my accounts. All the data out over the past several years regarding the negative psychosocial consequences of social media strengthens my case for continuing to stay off and instead occupy my time by playing music, reading, doing research, going to concerts and meeting new people...typical real-world stuff [humble laugh]."

 

[carboxylicpremed]

Well, they obviously knew he had it before if they knew it was removed. My solution is get rid of it forever. It's bad for mental health and overall well-being. The data is there. Sounds like the committee has their own issues if they think like that lol

They were just assuming since most have it -- I know the guy and he'd deactivated it something like 4-5 months earlier to study for his mcat without any distraction. Unless they had checked him out before he even was applying to the committee, it just stuck out to them. But as Goro said, prob a stress question

The question sounds like a classic stress question, rather than anything vindictive or accusatory. And given the ubiquity of social medial and internet presence, not having any does raise an eyebrow, after all.

Yeah, makes sense. And I'm not a big fan of it either, but as @hellanutella mentioned, I definitely see the humanization aspect of them seeing the hobbies, interests, & photos with family/friends. At my undergrad, without fb you couldn't access information about most orgs/campus&city events (some orgs & my campus job actually required it), and lots of students connected for study groups/projects through it. For better or worse, it seems to be getting more and more difficult to avoid as time goes on, especially for students.

I mean I know quite little as an applicant but I do feel if you don't have anything problematic whatsoever, maybe it'll make an interviewer somewhere a tiny bit more interested. Probably more with student interviewers who are our age and more accustomed to it as a norm

 

[deleted688779]

I put an address thats safe to send my mail so....they might think I'm lying lol? Is there a way to note this?

I’m not too sure about it myself LOL

Perhaps it would only affect you if there was a huge difference, like claiming you grew up impoverished and parents worked minimum wage but you live in a mansion in one of the most wealthy neighborhoods.

The adcom who mentioned that said he still offered those applicants interviews if they otherwise deserved it, and would bring it up then.

 

[ducks_are _the best]

How about SDN post? Like if you posted WAMC and gave information that could potentially lead to your identity being known, will this harm your chances?

 

[Doctor Strange]

Duh.

 

[throwawayofcourse]

Yes, it raises an eyebrow in a good way. I'd be shocked if someone in a professional setting evaluated negatively a candidate or similar because of lack of social media.

"Oh, you don't have social media? That's interesting. Why is that?"

"Well, I spent a lot of time on it when I was in my teens and early 20s, and it was ultimately a waste of time, so I deleted my accounts. All the data out over the past several years regarding the negative psychosocial consequences of social media strengthens my case for continuing to stay off and instead occupy my time by playing music, reading, doing research, going to concerts and meeting new people...typical real-world stuff [humble laugh]."

why isnt this considered a social media account?

 

[Styrene]

why isnt this considered a social media account?

It's anonymous

 

[carboxylicpremed]

why isnt this considered a social media account?

It's definitely social media. I've lurked for years and people on here have full reputations, the whole voting system, etc. People one-up each other with scores, grades, acceptances; people on other platforms like reddit complain about bad it makes them feel that everyone's doing so well (maybe like you'd feel if you're jealous of some classmate's vacation on instagram, no?)

I've personally wasted a lot more time on here than liking an aunt's profile pic lol. Can't look down on people for being social just because you don't like to be Of course posting anything racist/sexist/insulting is easier to get "caught" for on there, but most don't do that, and those who do probably deserve the reject

 

[Jungkookie]

Yes be clean, professional and very private

 

[riverrunner]

Yes be clean, professional and very private

As long as you have a high percentage of pygmy goat videos, social media can be your friend.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I have, at least to see how smart an applicant is with his or her digital social media management. Social media and online sites actually help applicants provide more depth and insight about activities they are enthusiastic about in their application and interviews. In my case I encouraged applicants to share their sites so interviewers and committee members can see for themselves.

Sent from my SM-N960U using SDN mobile

 

[tessellations]

Shout out to the girl with my exact first name and last (also born in the same year as me) who has a blog about her romantic life, absolutely LOVE that it comes up when you google my name. Thank god she has photos of herself on there so people know it's not me, haha.

 

[Goro]

Cat videos are always safe

Adds accept points for me!!!

 

[Med Ed]

Who says "cyber-search"? What is this, the information superhighway?

 

[deleted976595]

Who says "cyber-search"? What is this, the information superhighway?

I just have private accounts for everything but LinkedIn. Don’t really post anything either way though. I’d imagine the type of stuff you’d have to post to get in trouble would be pretty egregious though.

 

[ak-aka-dak]

Not med school related but friends who were in a malpractice lawsuit against a lawyer with a 6 member jury trial had their lawyer hire a jury consultant to help with juror selection. The consultant took the 50 juror names that were assigned to the trial and researched names 1-30 on the internet including their social media accounts to weed out potential problem jurors during jury selection. Several on the jury panel were eliminated due to info that was revealed about them online, including one guy who had several anti-Semitic facebook posts. The plaintiff’s attorney was Jewish.

 

[Dantes]

People are always concerned about this (rightfully so), but with the right privacy settings you should be covered. I see people changing their names on FB which would be a little suspicious if I were on an adcom.

 

[deleted1011020]

Not med school related but friends who were in a malpractice lawsuit against a lawyer with a 6 member jury trial had their lawyer hire a jury consultant to help with juror selection. The consultant took the 50 juror names that were assigned to the trial and researched names 1-30 on the internet including their social media accounts to weed out potential problem jurors during jury selection. Several on the jury panel were eliminated due to info that was revealed about them online, including one guy who had several anti-Semitic facebook posts. The plaintiff’s attorney was Jewish.

On another tangential note. Clearview AI had their list of customers leaked which includes some medical schools. I could imagine that they could easily find any social media associated with your face.

 

[Blueprint Med School]

In reality, it is often too resource-intensive to completely screen everyone for everything.

That being said, proceed as if they could and would. Don't put stupid stuff up. Take stupid stuff down. Change your profile's last name before a cycle begins. Make your privacy settings airtight. Even consider making a dummy public profile with like 10 friends (and restrict the ability of others to see that) and fill it with pictures of family and PG-rated hobbies of yours every week or so.

David D, MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[Mr.Smile12]

On another tangential note. Clearview AI had their list of customers leaked which includes some medical schools. I could imagine that they could easily find any social media associated with your face.

I'd have to take a closer look at that list. I see universities listed, but it doesn't necessarily mean the medical schools are the clients.