Do interviewers accept better looking students more often?

[fullefect1]

Has anyone had a personal experience or know people who have been turned down at many interviews because of they look kinda out of shape, or just look kinda wierd? Lets say if two students have the same stats, and are pretty good interviewers, how much of an advantage does the student who looks well enough to be a model have?

Or does looks not really matter?

 

[avicoo]

Unfortunately, I don't think looks ever don't matter. I think they are always an issue. People form their first impression of other people they meet within, what, like 6-7 seconds. I think that was found to be critical to hiring decisions in the interview process in some study.

Hopefully, appearance does not have a huge impact in the medical school application process considering the how educated the decision makers are, but I do not think it can be eliminated entirely as an influencing factor.

 

[fun8stuff]

Exact opposite. A friend of mine has 3.5 gpa, 29 MCAT, URM, no clinical experience, no volunteer, did a lot of partying, but is good looking. She was accepted to a top 10. Given, she is a URM so that probably had something to do with it. The schools average MCAT and GPA are 33 and 3.85 respectively. She is a flirt too. Although she will make a good doctor, I am sure there are many much more qualified people who probably should have had her spot, and I have wondered if she "flirted" her way in. But, that is the way life is. The best people aren't always picked for the job. It's not like is a horrible pick or anything either. I am happy she got in.

If you are a girl and good looking, it will help you out in just about every situation. However, I'm don't think it is this extreme for guys.

 

[ZekeMD]

So that's why I got rejected from Pitt!!! There were too many HOT girls at my interview!

That's ok though, there were lots of good looking girls at Rochester too, and I got in there

 

[sleep deprived]

It's really unfair, but I do agree. I think if you are cute, things in general are a bit easier. Not just job or med. school interviews, but getting pulled over by cops, asking for help in the computer lab, getting notes from your peers, anything. It's just the way it is. Life is unfair. But just think of it this way, we all get old. So it's short lived.

 

[W222]

You ever think of it this way: If you have two applicants one of which is an athlete and in shape while the other is severely obese, all else being equal, couldnt the person's respect for their own bodies be taken into account? It is very hard to go to a doctor who is severely over weight or an alcoholic or a smoker and have the guy say your health habits are all wrong. I think it would be more difficult to get a patient to listen to you if your habits represent the exact opposite of what you are telling them to do. Sort of a different question but I think it is relavent.

 

[pekq]

Originally posted by ZekeMD
So that's why I got rejected from Pitt!!! There were too many HOT girls at my interview!

That's ok though, there were lots of good looking girls at Rochester too, and I got in there

UPitt - You must have gone on the hot girl's interview day or something. I sure didn't see any while there.

UR - I hope you are kidding about the good looking girl part cause UR is famous for having the exact opposite.

Yes looks matter, plastic surgery for ugly ppl!!!

 

[avicoo]

Hasn't anyone seen the previews for that ugly duckling show?

Don't you guys know there is no longer any excuse not to be beautiful and healthy looking?

I mean, if you can find the money for med school, you can find the money for plastic surgery, lipo, and stomach stapling . . .


(I am completely kidding!)

 

[CaMD]

Tons of studies have shown that attractive people are assumed to be friendlier and happier and smarter etc. It's human nature and I'm sure the adcoms are susceptible.

 

[secretmiss]

One of my female friends had two different interviewing suits. One was extrememly tight with a very, very short skirt. The other was very conservative. She got accepted to every school she interviewed at in the short skirt and waitlisted or rejected to all the schools she wore the other suit. Additionally, one of the schools she got into was more highly ranked than alot of the other schools she didn't get in. She swears the sexier suit helped her.

 

[ZekeMD]

Originally posted by pekq
UPitt - You must have gone on the hot girl's interview day or something. I sure didn't see any while there.

UR - I hope you are kidding about the good looking girl part cause UR is famous for having the exact opposite.

Yes looks matter, plastic surgery for ugly ppl!!!

Maybe I did hit UPitt on Hot girl day, but you're wrong about U of R. I don't know where you get that from.

 

[LP1CW]

I think it might help a good looking girl. I'd say, I'm a good looking guy and I don't think it matters being a guy.

 

[Wardens]

Oh cmon. It totally matters if you're a guy. Of course if you're being interviewed by a female, the strikingly handsome interviewee is going to have an advantage (even more so if he's charming). Even if the interviewer is male, he's gonna have the same opinions that the rest of the population does (happier, more successful, brighter, etc.) There's a correlation with looks regardless of whether or not its sexual.

 

[lisa13579]

I tend to agree that looks can only help you if you have everything else. Another factor might also be that people who have better "genetics" probably (but I'm sure not always) are more confident in general. This confidence allows you to do better in all aspects of your life.

 

[ZekeMD]

Originally posted by Wardens
Oh cmon. It totally matters if you're a guy. Of course if you're being interviewed by a female, the strikingly handsome interviewee is going to have an advantage (even more so if he's charming). Even if the interviewer is male, he's gonna have the same opinions that the rest of the population does (happier, more successful, brighter, etc.) There's a correlation with looks regardless of whether or not its sexual.

You've got a point.

Why oh why did I have to drink so much beer during undergrad???

 

[phenolphthalein]

I think the fear is little overblown here. Keep in mind that in med school interviews, unlike job interviews, the interviewer does not make the final decision. Your application goes to a second stage -- "the commitee" -- who make the final cut. Granted many schools ask for a photograph, but you're not required to send in one.

 

[pekq]

Originally posted by ZekeMD
Maybe I did hit UPitt on Hot girl day, but you're wrong about U of R. I don't know where you get that from.

UR - ask the undergrad guys

With the exception of sentancing after being found guilty, good looks help a lot as was found by psych ppl. As was previously mentioned, psych studies show good looking ppl are often associated with positive traits.

 

[Adapt]

Looks matter in everything from the med school process to job interviews. It is unfair but it's the truth. However, it's also true that the admissions committee makes the decisions and not the interviewer.

All the interviewer can do is write a good write up which could help.

 

[Celestron2000]

Originally posted by phenolphthalein
I think the fear is little overblown here. Keep in mind that in med school interviews, unlike job interviews, the interviewer does not make the final decision. Your application goes to a second stage -- "the commitee" -- who make the final cut. Granted many schools ask for a photograph, but you're not required to send in one.

May not be fear. Have you seen the picpage? SDNers are a pretty good-looking bunch.

 

[Brickhouse]

Ok so how should I interpret this - I interviewed with three men and one women. I was waitlisted at the schools I interviewed with men, accepted by the woman. And I'm a woman, for those of you who seem to get confused by the name....

I do think one of the men that interviewed me was gay though, don't know if that has any influence on things.

 

[ZekeMD]

Originally posted by Brickhouse
And I'm a woman, for those of you who seem to get confused by the name....

You're F*@%ing kidding me!!! All this time I thought you were a dude.

 

[jlee9531]

Originally posted by ZekeMD
You're F*@%ing kidding me!!! All this time I thought you were a dude.

dude...what guy has a fascination with the bloom?

 

[ZekeMD]

Originally posted by jlee9531
dude...what guy has a fascination with the bloom?

The bloom?

 

[Harps]

Originally posted by Wardens
Oh cmon. It totally matters if you're a guy. Of course if you're being interviewed by a female, the strikingly handsome interviewee is going to have an advantage (even more so if he's charming). Even if the interviewer is male, he's gonna have the same opinions that the rest of the population does (happier, more successful, brighter, etc.) There's a correlation with looks regardless of whether or not its sexual.

hmmm...NO! At most of the schools I've visited, the students are just average looking folks...i don't see abercrombie models walking around (thank god...what a bunch of bozos...) The one place that most prospective students rave about is UCI...which supposedly has some of the best-looking females around.
Anyhow, this fear is irrational. I am not very handsome and I got in!

-Harps




-Harps

 

[jlee9531]

Originally posted by phenolphthalein
I think the fear is little overblown here. Keep in mind that in med school interviews, unlike job interviews, the interviewer does not make the final decision. Your application goes to a second stage -- "the commitee" -- who make the final cut. Granted many schools ask for a photograph, but you're not required to send in one.

i agree with you fully here.

i know they dont discuss looks over your mcat performance gpa performance over the years and the reason you want to pursue a path in medicine.

if it helped so much, everyone in medicine should be a looker. but as all of you know...this is not the case.

 

[exilio]

I think you guys are overlooking a key point here. It is not just looks, but the attitude that comes with them.

How many attractive people do you know that lack self-confidence? Not many. At least not on the surface.

Contrast that by looking at, "average joe's and joann's". Their confidence levels have taken many hits along the way and are less confident as a result.

All of this comes across in an interview.

True, in America, and other countries as well, we base much of our judgement on looks. Med school applicants are no different. But I think for med school appplicants, it is the confidence of the candidate that shines through more than anything else. This may be a result of looks, or of just healthy self-esteem.

I would be willing to wager that it's not the better looking students that are accepted, but the highly confident student.

 

[exmike]

Originally posted by jlee9531
i
if it helped so much, everyone in medicine should be a looker. but as all of you know...this is not the case.

hey, speak for yourself homie.



j/k

 

[jlee9531]

Originally posted by ZekeMD
The bloom?

orlando bloom. if you can see...brick is a fan.

 

[jlee9531]

Originally posted by exmike
hey, speak for yourself homie.



j/k

for all of you ladies wondering about mike. a handsome man he is...but unfortunately for you ladies...he is already taken.

 

[ZekeMD]

Originally posted by jlee9531
orlando bloom. if you can see...brick is a fan.

Gotcha, that didn't even occur to me... I guess just seeing a guy in the avatar made me think she was a he.

 

[exmike]

Originally posted by ZekeMD
The bloom?

you dont get out much do you.

 

[ZekeMD]

Originally posted by exmike
you dont get out much do you.

I get out alot actually Which means I don't spend all my time watching MOVIES!

 

[Brickhouse]

There, I changed my signature. Is that a little more obvious?

 

[Flack Pinku]

Originally posted by Brickhouse
Ok so how should I interpret this - I interviewed with three men and one women. I was waitlisted at the schools I interviewed with men, accepted by the woman. And I'm a woman, for those of you who seem to get confused by the name....

I do think one of the men that interviewed me was gay though, don't know if that has any influence on things.

Your signature is amusing...

Looks play a role, but as someone said, it doesn't matter ALL that much whether you're good looking or not. Plus, the interviewer isn't the final decision-maker--it's a bunch of people who know you through a file only.

Also, interviewers, especially those who've done interviews for a while, will know when they're being subjective and letting their "feelings" get in the way. To be fair, they may in fact treat you more cautiously if you're good-looking.

As for how you should interpret the rejections--maybe they thought you're too hot to be in their school...

 

[fullefect1]

I kinda wish I was a very attractive female now. Well at least I can keep going to the gym to look pretty decent.

Does anyone think that a body full with muscles might be looked down apon? I speaking of bodybuilder size, say about 5 ft. 10', 230lbs., 6-8% body fat (competition bodybuilder size). Which would be abnormally huge in muscular size. Not saying that I am that big or even close to that size now, but I still have about 3 years before my interviews come. Would a person like this be looked at just as a big jock?

Well I guess it could go either way, some might have a biased, and some might not.

 

[Tofurkey]

This is an interesting thread, because it covers an issue I've thought a lot about, but in reverse: do you think there is a prejudice against really attractive people--I mean model types--due to jealousy from interviewers of both sexes?

For instance, does anyone think that being too attractive can hurt you, either because interviewers are consciously or subconsciously jealous or because they don't think you can relate to patients because you look like a supermodel?

Just wondering how people feel about this angle to the issue.

Thanks,

Tofurkey

 

[Persistence101]

Originally posted by Tofurkey
This is an interesting thread, because it covers an issue I've thought a lot about, but in reverse: do you think there is a prejudice against really attractive people--I mean model types--due to jealousy from interviewers of both sexes?

For instance, does anyone think that being too attractive can hurt you, either because interviewers are consciously or subconsciously jealous or because they don't think you can relate to patients because you look like a supermodel?

Just wondering how people feel about this angle to the issue.

Thanks,

Tofurkey

So does this mean you look like a supermodel?

 

[AlternateSome1]

Originally posted by Brickhouse
There, I changed my signature. Is that a little more obvious?

Ow, SHE'S a brick....house!
She?s mighty, mighty, just lettin' it all hang out
Ow, she's a brick house
I like ladies stacked, that's a fact, ain't holdin' nothin' back
Ow, she's a brick house
Well-built together, everybody knows, this is how the story goes


I just assumed you were a girl because of this song.

 

[underAchiever]

Just look around at the current doctors, a lot of them are below average looking. And still they are doctors which means they must have gotten in, so they weren't terribly biased against. or maybe they just brought in a beer keg at the interview which has the effect of improving people's looks.

 

[canada]

Originally posted by Flack Pinku

Looks play a role, but as someone said, it doesn't matter ALL that much whether you're good looking or not. Plus, the interviewer isn't the final decision-maker--it's a bunch of people who know you through a file only.

but your interviewer may present your application with more enthusiasm compared to someone who was not as good looking. So although the final decision is not by the interviewer, he'll have his bias in this presentation...and who would know most about u except for the interviewer?

 

[CalBeE]

OH MY GOSH....all this time I thought Brickhouse's a guy!!!

I could have said something offensive to him....err...her, cause I would have been more polite to a girl

And Legonias (Is that how you spell the name?) is Orland Bloom? He looks quite different in the Pirates of the Carribeans.

 

[CalBeE]

Originally posted by jlee9531


for all of you ladies wondering about mike. a handsome man he is...but unfortunately for you ladies...he is already taken.

JLee, I don't know that you're blind...too bad

 

[LP1CW]

I try not to be shallow. I really do. My girlfriend asked me if I would have been interested in her if she wasn't attractive. I thought about it. And the truth is: I really like the way she looks. Before we started dating, it was her smile, her eyes, and her body. She has incredible body. But it's not just that now, even then. i thought she was nice, fun to be with. I just liked her. But if she didn't look so great, I probably would have stayed friends with her.

That's depressing to know that I'm so superficial. She told me that she liked me for me and if was overweight or less attractive that it wouldn't matter. She cares about my heart, my mind. Today, I think i'd be more accepting of her looks, I mean if something happened to her, i wouldn't leave her. I care about who she is, but intially, looks matter to me. Maybe I'm just young.

I wish I could say that I'd date a person for who they are on the inside.

 

[Flack Pinku]

Originally posted by LP1CW
I try not to be shallow. I really do. My girlfriend asked me if I would have been interested in her if she wasn't attractive. I thought about it. And the truth is: I really like the way she looks. Before we started dating, it was her smile, her eyes, and her body. She has incredible body. But it's not just that now, even then. i thought she was nice, fun to be with. I just liked her. But if she didn't look so great, I probably would have stayed friends with her.

That's depressing to know that I'm so superficial. She told me that she liked me for me and if was overweight or less attractive that it wouldn't matter. She cares about my heart, my mind. Today, I think i'd be more accepting of her looks, I mean if something happened to her, i wouldn't leave her. I care about who she is, but intially, looks matter to me. Maybe I'm just young.

I wish I could say that I'd date a person for who they are on the inside.

Agreed... but I don't get sad that I'm into looks so much. After the initial meetings, its more about personality anyway, so I'm not shallow.

 

[Celestron2000]

Originally posted by LP1CW
I try not to be shallow. I really do. My girlfriend asked me if I would have been interested in her if she wasn't attractive. I thought about it. And the truth is: I really like the way she looks. Before we started dating, it was her smile, her eyes, and her body. She has incredible body. But it's not just that now, even then. i thought she was nice, fun to be with. I just liked her. But if she didn't look so great, I probably would have stayed friends with her.

That's depressing to know that I'm so superficial. She told me that she liked me for me and if was overweight or less attractive that it wouldn't matter. She cares about my heart, my mind. Today, I think i'd be more accepting of her looks, I mean if something happened to her, i wouldn't leave her. I care about who she is, but intially, looks matter to me. Maybe I'm just young.

I wish I could say that I'd date a person for who they are on the inside.

I think that's pretty much true for most people, gals and guys.
Back to the interview thing... I do think it could hurt you to be too attractive, although it clearly helps to be basically attractive. I think that, infact, life can be really hard on people who are super attractive, but is generally a little easier for those who are moderately attractive. Honestly I'm grateful to occupy that comfortable middle ground. I don't doubt that being reasonably attractive (but not too attractive) has helped me on many occasions.

 

[Tofurkey]

Hello,

Could you elaborate on why you think being too attractive can hurt? I'm very interested in this, as I personally believe I've been discriminated against in this way on several occasions (job interviews). I'm really trying to get to the bottom of it so the same thing doesn't happen in med school interviews.

Is it that being too attractive = intimidating and interviewers get intimidated? I think being an attractive female is more threatening to other females than to males. What do you guys think?

Thanks,

Tofurkey

 

[raincrew]

i don't think that any med school in the country has a whole bunch of attractive students. just take a look at any of the facebooks that are online. northwestern and uva come to mind.

i mean, obviously being better looking could make a *slightly* better impression on an interviewer but the interview is only a part of the equation.

 

[Brickhouse]

Originally posted by AlternateSome1
Ow, SHE'S a brick....house!
She?s mighty, mighty, just lettin' it all hang out
Ow, she's a brick house
I like ladies stacked, that's a fact, ain't holdin' nothin' back
Ow, she's a brick house
Well-built together, everybody knows, this is how the story goes


I just assumed you were a girl because of this song.

THANK YOU! Sheesh....

 

[Brickhouse]

Originally posted by CalBeE
OH MY GOSH....all this time I thought Brickhouse's a guy!!!

I could have said something offensive to him....err...her, cause I would have been more polite to a girl

And Legonias (Is that how you spell the name?) is Orland Bloom? He looks quite different in the Pirates of the Carribeans.

!!!! are you seriously Cal, even after I told you I wanted to have your children?

And it's Legolas.....

 

[CalBeE]

Originally posted by Brickhouse
!!!! are you seriously Cal, even after I told you I wanted to have your children?

And it's Legolas.....

If you want your kids to look ugly as hell, sure There's a reason why I'm single now