How honest should I be about my dirty job?

[Inquisitive7]

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Posting on an anonymous username because discussing this on my normal name would remove all anonymity during my application cycle. I would value LizzyM's opinion highly, if she happens to see this thread.

I graduated from college last year and was working a job that most people would not be willing to do. I was working in blue collar job in a lab in the public sector that had even less appeal than being a garbageman. I can't be specific about the job because I am fairly certain that I am the only applicant that has worked a job this dirty! It was a respectable, legal job for a corporation that did contract work for the government.

My question for you guys is, how honest should I be about the job? I was miserable working the job, but I needed to earn money to pay off student loans and it was the best I could find under my time frame. I am proud that I was able to do it , and it really pushed me to be a more mature person. The job had high professional standards in many ways, definitely not a push-over by any means.

However, I am still ashamed about the nature of the job and I usually try to play it down when I tell other people what I used to do. I definitely want to mention that I was working on my AMCAS app, so it doesn't look like I was loafing the whole year, but I don't want to make the adcoms disgusted by what I was doing. I can play it down in the application, but should I? And what should I do when asked about this experience during interviews? It was a horrible job and I'm glad that I'm in a better position financially and don't have to work there anymore. I just want to move on from it, move forward in a career in medicine, and never think about it, ever again!!

Edit: Clarified the nature of the job. It is not illegal or scammy or anything like that. A legit job but very gross. I smelled very bad and needed to change my clothes before I even left the workplace.

 

[greenbean09]

oh come on you can't be that vague. tell us what you did!

 

[SweetRain]

way to put garbagemen under "less appealing" category, dude.
To me they are honest and hard working people. Just because they pick up your trash every week doesn't mean they are actually repulsive.

 

[TexasHopeful]

way to put garbagemen under "less appealing" category, dude.
To me they are honest and hard working people. Just because they pick up your trash every week doesn't mean they are actually repulsive.

I agree with this. I've landscaped and done custodial work. I've also paid the rent and bills on time and in full every month. I wish there was a spot on AMCAS for my credit score.

 

[broken tibula]

On a similar note, to conserve threads, if you work at a job where you get paid under the counter (the majority of the workers are illegal immigrants), is it okay to put it on the application?

 

[Xinlitik]

Posting on an anonymous username because discussing this on my normal name would remove all anonymity during my application cycle.

I graduated from college last year and was working a job that would make most people shudder. I was working in blue collar job in a lab in the public sector that had even less appeal than being a garbageman. I can't be specific about the job because I am fairly certain that I am the only applicant that has worked a job this dirty!

My question for you guys is, how honest should I be about the job? I was miserable working the job, but I needed to earn money to pay off student loans and it was the best I could find under my time frame. I am proud that I was able to do it , and it really pushed me to be a more mature person. The job had high professional standards in many ways, definitely not a push-over by any means.

However, I am still ashamed about the nature of the job and I usually try to play it down when I tell other people what I used to do. I definitely want to mention that I was working on my AMCAS app, so it doesn't look like I was loafing the whole year, but I don't want to make the adcoms disgusted by what I was doing. I can play it down in the application, but should I? And what should I do when asked about this experience during interviews? It was a horrible job and I'm glad that I'm in a better position financially and don't have to work there anymore. I just want to move on from it, move forward in a career in medicine, and never think about it, ever again!!

I wouldn't want a squeamish Dr at my school. Why not add it? You're a guy who wont hesitate to take that race car out of little Johnny's butt.

Dont be gross in your application, just be honest. If you shovel ****, say you shovel ****. Dont tell them what it smells like and how many times you threw up.

Edit: Oh.. I hadn't considered the other possibility. If your job was morally disgusting, don't add it. 😛

 

[Inquisitive7]

way to put garbagemen under "less appealing" category, dude.
To me they are honest and hard working people. Just because they pick up your trash every week doesn't mean they are actually repulsive.

I never said that working garbage didn't involve being honest or hard-working 🙂 I have a cousin that works in garbage, and I respect him a great deal for it. He does what he needs to do to provide for his family, but he doesn't enjoy it, either. That's all I was implying -- I did it, it was the best choice under the circumstances, and I didn't really like it. I found the professions comparable, but you are of course allowed to disagree.

I actually had discussions with my former co-workers about what they tell people they do. For instance, I learned that they usually lie to women that they meet at bars and such. Do I think it's fair that people judge others based on their profession? No, not at all. I worked an old summer job where I had people yell at me for what I was doing. It sucked. I am realistic though and I know that stigmas exist.

I have tremendous respect for the people at my former workplace. The efficiency and skill with which their approach their job is admirable, especially considering its undesirable nature.

 

[mvenus929]

I graduated from college last year and was working a job that would make most people shudder. I was working in blue collar job in a lab in the public sector that had even less appeal than being a garbageman.

I dunno... I think working in the micro dept of a hospital lab is pretty darn disgusting. I gag every time I walk back there. Working as an ME seems pretty gross too... I can't imagine the state of some of the bodies they get. Bleh.

 

[NeuroPhD2010]

There are 2 possibilities..Do you mean physically dirty as in the nature of your work made you smell bad everyday?

On the other hand...

If you mean "dirty" in any other sense, such as morally questionable or your job was in the adult industry, DO NOT mention this job.

You do not need to answer these questions right here on this forum if you don't want to. Just think about what kind of personality characteristics people could infer you possess from reading you held this position.

 

[Inquisitive7]

There are 2 possibilities..Do you mean physically dirty as in the nature of your work made you smell bad everyday?

On the other hand...

If you mean "dirty" in any other sense, such as morally questionable or your job was in the adult industry, DO NOT mention this job.

You do not need to answer these questions right here on this forum if you don't want to. Just think about what kind of personality characteristics people could infer you possess from reading you held this position.

I added a clarification. Good catch! I didn't notice that I didn't specify. The job was entirely legal, and my work exhibited good moral character and work ethic 🙂

 

[Squeal]

oh come on you can't be that vague. Tell us what you did!

+1

 

[MisterVeil]

Guys, this has to be a troll. And a damn effective one!

He's given us the bait with a clever line ("I've done a dirty, disreputable job but I won't tell you what it was") and many of us took it. But here's the catch: he's just reeling you in without any intention of revealing to us the nature of his fishy business. As it stands now, his story doesn't hold any water.

 

[NeuroPhD2010]

Mention the job then. It could make your app. interesting. I'm sure adcoms like hard-working people with a good work ethic.

 

[Musclemass]

Sounds like you are lucky to have great material to work into an essay to make yourself stand out from the crowd.

Depending upon where you are and where you apply, remember that for many schools, the people reading your app are also public sector employees with jobs many wouldn't want to do.

How desirable does the general public view the job of professor in an anatomy lab to be?

 

[eatinglightning]

I would write about it but like someone else said not go into details describing the noxious smell of whatever it is you worked with but instead talk about how this experience has made you internally and mentally stronger.

 

[Inquisitive7]

Guys, this has to be a troll. And a damn effective one!

He's given us the bait with a clever line ("I've done a dirty, disreputable job but I won't tell you what it was") and many of us took it. But here's the catch: he's just reeling you in without any intention of revealing to us the nature of his fishy business. As it stands now, his story doesn't hold any water.

The job was not disreputable, and I clarified that in several places. Gross is a better word for it. The comparison that mvenus made, like working in a hospital micro department, is an apt one. It is disgusting and smelly and you work with nasty things, but it is a vital and respectable job that someone has to do. It's not that I'm unwilling to divulge what my job was. It's rather that doing so would be like attaching my SSN to my post. It would make it very easy to identify me.

Anyway, thank you all so far for responding to this thread. I've been worried about what to do even since I began the job, and it's a relief to finally be figuring out what I should do about it. I'm a bit of a procrastinator, if you couldn't tell 😉

 

[niblet]

So you created a new account to have anonymity but can't be specific in fear of being identified?

wut

 

[marieantoinette]

Only thing I can think of is crime scene clean up for bizarre government operations or the OP's been workin' the late shift around D.C. 😉


It seems like there's been a major increase in troll threads lately...

:troll:

 

[Inquisitive7]

I must be the most courteous troll ever, then. 😛

 

[orthomyxo]

Well it sounds like we have a certified poop-checker on our hands, guys.

 

[LuciusVorenus]

Well it sounds like we have a certified poop-checker on our hands, guys.

good old poop checkers
never let us down

 

[Flapjacks]

I think its a sewer cleaner, the one on dirty jobs where he goes under the grates in, i think its new york, and finds condoms and needles and shiiit.

 

[willen101383]

Only thing I can think of is crime scene clean up for bizarre government operations or the OP's been workin' the late shift around D.C. 😉


It seems like there's been a major increase in troll threads lately...

:troll:

Those crime scene cleaners make a TON. We learned about this in grad school (forensics). Its such a niche job that you can really make a KILLING (im so punny!) in a big city.

SDN premeds are hilariously paranoid! I dont get it, you think out of thousands of applicants somehow you will be identified on a message board just because you did an atypical job? The chance is so remote that its hilarious to even think it would be a possibility.

 

[kami333]

Port-o-potty pumper?

 

[JoshUNCW]

My troll-dar is going off pretty hard here guys.

Seriously, your job is just vile and disgusting and your coworkers lie to women to sleep with them. Ok, got it. But if it's so moral, ethical, and respectable, I fail to see why you're keeping it such a secret. And I think you must be an idiot if you have a moral, ethical, and respectable job but want to lie on your applications about it. Seriously?

And I like how the minute someone mentions you talking down garbage men you have one in the family in.

Tell us what you do damnit.

And that was me playing into a troll. I couldn't resist. 9/10.

 

[justinbaily]

I think that he worked in a slaughterhouse. If it is a slaughterhouse, then I would just keep the description section as professional as possible and if it came up in an interview, then discuss it in the same way you're doing here--it was a job that you needed at the time and you worked hard.

He doesn't seem like a troll to me. You don't need to be evasive about what the job was though, because you've created a new username that isn't connected to your past posts. It doesn't matter if the adcom links your application to this new username because all that you will have revealed is that you asked for advice on a forum.

 

[AbbyNormal]

Slaughterhouse was what came to my mind also. A very unpleasant job for sure but somebody has to do it. I could probably slaughter cattle myself but the way I have seen chicks handled I don't think I could do.

 

[jm192]

I think that he worked in a slaughterhouse. If it is a slaughterhouse, then I would just keep the description section as professional as possible and if it came up in an interview, then discuss it in the same way you're doing here--it was a job that you needed at the time and you worked hard.

He doesn't seem like a troll to me. You don't need to be evasive about what the job was though, because you've created a new username that isn't connected to your past posts. It doesn't matter if the adcom links your application to this new username because all that you will have revealed is that you asked for advice on a forum.

Seriously!

All they'll know is Inquisitive7 has "an interesting job." And if they could truly link the application with the screen name...they already knew it anyways. So, who cares?

 

[justinbaily]

And as far as LizzyM is concerned, you should just PM her. Be explicit about the job if you do. My experience has been that she will get back to you relatively quickly with some good advice.

 

[Renaissance Man]

You realize SSN are so unique that there are only one per person in the States right? So your job is so unique that no one in the country has it but you (or your coworkers...)? If you named this dirty job using an anonymous profile, people across the country would automatically know its you? Give me a break, stop wasting internet space. If its your job, own it and be proud.

 

[Meat]

Slaughterhouse was what came to my mind also. A very unpleasant job for sure but somebody has to do it. I could probably slaughter cattle myself but the way I have seen chicks handled I don't think I could do.

I worked in a slaughterhouse / butchery for three years during my undergrad, at which point I decided the meat sciences weren't for me. I explained my meaty experiences in my Amcas application, which resulted in some pretty interesting results.

1. Very few know about the meat processing business, because of this every interviewer I had asked questions about my job. Not how it related to medicine but what is was like to work in meat processing. When this conversation opened up, I was able to speak on dabbling in blue collar work, but also GMOs, hormone usage, antibiotic use in feeds, etc that have an immediate impact on the medical field. There was honestly never a dull moment in my interviews.

2. This background really made me stand out during interview days, as adcom members just started conversations with me concerning meaty goods (do they dye the ground beef red? what does aging do? etc).

3. I didn't have the strongest clinical application, but I really feel like my non-traditional background in meat made me a tad more interesting than other applicants. I'm sure that some schools were grossed out by some of my Amcas essays, and others were decided on not having a "butcher" in their medical team, but overall I really feel like listing the experience was a boon for me.

I would absolutely list you profession, no matter how dirty. Its an amazing talking point that will make people remember you. Don't go into the nitty gritty, but be proud of who you are.

 

[morning]

Crime scene cleanup OR slaughterhouse. I definitely agree.

I grew up on a farm...death is a part of life. It's not disgusting. I witnessed more animals being born and dying than most people do by age 50.

And I shoveled their ****, too.

Nothing to be ashamed of!

 

[sustentacular]

The comparison that mvenus made, like working in a hospital micro department, is an apt one. It is disgusting and smelly and you work with nasty things, but it is a vital and respectable job that someone has to do. It's not that I'm unwilling to divulge what my job was. It's rather that doing so would be like attaching my SSN to my post. It would make it very easy to identify me.

A dirty job at a lab? My guess is you're not as unique as you think you are dude.

To answer your original question. Just put it down as paid employment and list your duties as they were described to you when you applied. I don't see any reason for adcoms to be so completely disgusted by you as an applicant for doing what you describe as a "vital and respectable job".

 

[plsfoldthx]

God OP annoys me.

 

[Inquisitive7]

I worked in a slaughterhouse / butchery for three years during my undergrad, at which point I decided the meat sciences weren't for me. I explained my meaty experiences in my Amcas application, which resulted in some pretty interesting results.

1. Very few know about the meat processing business, because of this every interviewer I had asked questions about my job. Not how it related to medicine but what is was like to work in meat processing. When this conversation opened up, I was able to speak on dabbling in blue collar work, but also GMOs, hormone usage, antibiotic use in feeds, etc that have an immediate impact on the medical field. There was honestly never a dull moment in my interviews.

2. This background really made me stand out during interview days, as adcom members just started conversations with me concerning meaty goods (do they dye the ground beef red? what does aging do? etc).

3. I didn't have the strongest clinical application, but I really feel like my non-traditional background in meat made me a tad more interesting than other applicants. I'm sure that some schools were grossed out by some of my Amcas essays, and others were decided on not having a "butcher" in their medical team, but overall I really feel like listing the experience was a boon for me.

I would absolutely list you profession, no matter how dirty. Its an amazing talking point that will make people remember you. Don't go into the nitty gritty, but be proud of who you are.

Thanks, Meat. That helps a lot, I didn't know that there were a lot of other people out there with my experiences. I have some thinking to do but now at least I have a confirmed case of someone who was candid about their job, and then didn't have it cripple their admission chances.

Sorry for the smoke screen guys. Perhaps it was a bit excessive. I just don't want my job to define me, I'm scared of exactly that -- adcoms reading my application and being like "ugh, we don't want someone like that here." I worked for a wastewater treatment plant in their lab, checking the treatment process to ensure compliance with local, state, and federal regulations. Contract work for the city gov't. Apparently there's more than 20 different ways to weigh or filter poop, and I know all of them. I'm fairly certain I will be the only premed applying with that kind of job (kind of like Meat was with the meat science. Actually that is the perfect comparison for it.) Yes it smelled. A lot. I won't go into details.

Case is one of the schools I am applying to, maybe if I end up there Meat I will look you up and we can revel in our awesome bizarre jobs $$

 

[chiz2kul]

^^ finally you admitted it.

looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooool.

You're fine - it was an honest job, nothing more. Mention it, it'll def make for an interesting conversation during your interview if brought up. Nothing to be ashamed of son 👍

 

[plsfoldthx]

I worked for a wastewater treatment plant in their lab, checking the treatment process to ensure compliance with local, state, and federal regulations. Contract work for the city gov't. Apparently there's more than 20 different ways to weigh or filter poop, and I know all of them. I'm fairly certain I will be the only premed applying with that kind of job (kind of like Meat was with the meat science. Actually that is the perfect comparison for it.) Yes it smelled. A lot. I won't go into details.

oh no! I worked in a waste treatment plant! Ad coms will not like me and laugh at me because I will remind them of feces!

God are you serious? Jesus Christ, get the **** outta here.

 

[Inquisitive7]

oh no! I worked in a waste treatment plant! Ad coms will not like me and laugh at me because I will remind them of feces!

God are you serious? Jesus Christ, get the **** outta here.

Respectfully, it was my job, not yours. I would think I have a much better idea of how people react to my job when I tell them than you do, so perhaps there is a justification for my hesitancy? Just a thought.

 

[Bleg]

"Inquisitive7? Isn't he the pooper scooper? Let's just pass on this application."

Seriously, dude, I sort of understand your feelings, but this isn't 19th-century England. You worked hard at a perfectly respectable, honest job. I bet you have some great stories. In any case, you have an important perspective on public health, something medical schools will love. (I consider sewage treatment and management the single most important public health service we have. I bet I'm not the only one.) Leverage this! Use it to your advantage! Don't hide it as if it's some sort of shameful secret.

I worked all sorts of jobs going through school, including teacher, dishwasher, parking ticket writer, and toilet scrubber. I valued them all, and they all taught me important lessons. Don't ever be ashamed of any honest work you have done.

 

[causalinference]

Definitely include the job on your application. No one ever lost points during a medical school interview for having gross jobs on their application.

 

[marieantoinette]

Sorry for the smoke screen guys. Perhaps it was a bit excessive. I just don't want my job to define me, I'm scared of exactly that -- adcoms reading my application and being like "ugh, we don't want someone like that here." I worked for a wastewater treatment plant in their lab, checking the treatment process to ensure compliance with local, state, and federal regulations. Contract work for the city gov't. Apparently there's more than 20 different ways to weigh or filter poop, and I know all of them. I'm fairly certain I will be the only premed applying with that kind of job (kind of like Meat was with the meat science. Actually that is the perfect comparison for it.) Yes it smelled. A lot. I won't go into details.

Haha, that is so not what I was expecting... maybe I'll retract my previous troll accusation. I think working in a wastewater treatment plant is definitely a respectable thing to list.

 

[brooklynblunder]

i thought you were a vigilante serial killer

 

[orthomyxo]

Well it sounds like we have a certified poop-checker on our hands, guys.

Sorry for the smoke screen guys. Perhaps it was a bit excessive. I just don't want my job to define me, I'm scared of exactly that -- adcoms reading my application and being like "ugh, we don't want someone like that here." I worked for a wastewater treatment plant in their lab, checking the treatment process to ensure compliance with local, state, and federal regulations. Contract work for the city gov't. Apparently there's more than 20 different ways to weigh or filter poop, and I know all of them. I'm fairly certain I will be the only premed applying with that kind of job (kind of like Meat was with the meat science. Actually that is the perfect comparison for it.) Yes it smelled. A lot. I won't go into details

Damn, I'm good.

 

[Bleg]

Damn, I'm good.

That MRI Homer brain may be tiny, but it's powerful.

 

[kami333]

You should check out the jobs thread on the non-trad forum, I thought I had some messed up jobs but some people are nuts: link

One job I almost took but didn't was room cleaning, at a love hotel (hotels you can book by the hour that are popular with couples in Japan, they're nice and clean but it was just too gross)

 

[Inquisitive7]

Damn, I'm good.

Yeah I was surprised no one else got it 🙂 Good job!

 

[ArkansasRanger]

I think the OP should just contact Mike Rowe.

 

[zombymush]

Respectfully, it was my job, not yours. I would think I have a much better idea of how people react to my job when I tell them than you do, so perhaps there is a justification for my hesitancy? Just a thought.

O haha really? I use to intern for the Bureau of Wastewater treatment. We get loads of applicants wanting to intern for the laboratory dept. It was probably one of my proudest internship experiences... quite an opposite thinking to yours.

 

[VTBuc]

I worked tending after hogs for a while. Vomit, urine, and fecal matter were the norm. You don't have to be gross about it. On my AMCAS I mentioned that I cleaned up after the hogs, but I didn't get explicit about it. Just show some tact on your application. No way would I exclude your work experience so long as it's legal.

 

[MisterVeil]

Well that was anti-climactic.