institutional action...

[thrills4ever]

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so during my second semester freshman year i got caught with plagiarism for a biology lab report. I received a reprimand and a letter was placed in my internal records. I ended up with a B+ in the class, so my overall grade was not affected. Also the policy on academic conduct for a reprimand was that it would not appear on any external records like my academic transcripts. Basically it said that it would not be made public when applying to graduate schools.

My question now is that I have a premed committee at my undergrad school and they ask for any institutional action, however the conduct code states that it is not to be made public. Does the premed committee have to include this institutional action if they ask for it in the packet they give you? Also, why would the premed committee want to hinder the applicants chances by including it in the letter...dont they want the kid they're writing for to look good and stand out?

It seems as if I am going to have to include this on my application regardless of it being expunged from my transcript. Would I then include a letter specifically explaining the situation in detail and stating what was learned from the overall experience..ie maturity, responsibility, honesty...??

I just am afraid because I searched this thread and basically I know that I stand no chance of getting into medical school...how can I convince the adcoms otherwise, and show them a strong applicant?

has anyone been in this situation and received an acceptance before?

 

[smeagol]

I can't say I've been in your situation but I have some thoughts.

Is it possible for you to acknowledge that you have been subjected to institutional action without elaborating on the fact that you have cheated? For instance, can you acquire a note from the proper authorities that corroborate the fact that you need not submit specific details with regard to the specific actions in question?

This might result in a less-than-stellar committee letter but if adcoms know you have cheated they will probably be merciless.

I don't want you to be, figuratively speaking, eternally punished for just 1 major mistake you've made in the past. I'm surprised though that the penalty was so minor. I wouldn't recommend that you try to hide this though. Further dishonesty would be rather hypocritical.

Good luck.

 

[MattD]

I can't say I've been in your situation but I have some thoughts.

Is it possible for you to acknowledge that you have been subjected to institutional action without elaborating on the fact that you have cheated? For instance, can you acquire a note from the proper authorities that corroborate the fact that you need not submit specific details with regard to the specific actions in question?

This might result in a less-than-stellar committee letter but if adcoms know you have cheated they will probably be merciless.

I don't want you to be, figuratively speaking, eternally punished for just 1 major mistake you've made in the past. I'm surprised though that the penalty was so minor. I wouldn't recommend that you try to hide this though. Further dishonesty would be rather hypocritical.

Good luck.

Eh, if you 'acknowledge' an IA but then don't elaborate, all you're doing is ensuring you'll be asked about it at some point. Probably better to be up front about it and hope for mercy.



At any rate I'm always amazed at stories that start with "I was caught cheating" and end with "I got a B+ in the class".... Last person I knew in undergrad who cheated got an F and a semester suspension, and was told they were being merciful 🙂 I didn't exactly go to Harvard either 🙂

 

[F12]

I just am afraid because I searched this thread and basically I know that I stand no chance of getting into medical school...how can I convince the adcoms otherwise, and show them a strong applicant?

Build a time machine and stop yourself from cheating?

Honestly, that's gotta be the biggest fault anyone can have on their application... that and a criminal record.

 

[chaser08]

so during my second semester freshman year i got caught with plagiarism for a biology lab report. I received a reprimand and a letter was placed in my internal records. I ended up with a B+ in the class, so my overall grade was not affected. Also the policy on academic conduct for a reprimand was that it would not appear on any external records like my academic transcripts. Basically it said that it would not be made public when applying to graduate schools.

My question now is that I have a premed committee at my undergrad school and they ask for any institutional action, however the conduct code states that it is not to be made public. Does the premed committee have to include this institutional action if they ask for it in the packet they give you? Also, why would the premed committee want to hinder the applicants chances by including it in the letter...dont they want the kid they're writing for to look good and stand out?

It seems as if I am going to have to include this on my application regardless of it being expunged from my transcript. Would I then include a letter specifically explaining the situation in detail and stating what was learned from the overall experience..ie maturity, responsibility, honesty...??

I just am afraid because I searched this thread and basically I know that I stand no chance of getting into medical school...how can I convince the adcoms otherwise, and show them a strong applicant?

has anyone been in this situation and received an acceptance before?

Maybe I'm missing something, but can't you just ask (preferably anonymously) the premed committee if it's in your record and/or if it will be used against you?

 

[silas2642]

so during my second semester freshman year i got caught with plagiarism for a biology lab report. I received a reprimand and a letter was placed in my internal records. I ended up with a B+ in the class, so my overall grade was not affected. Also the policy on academic conduct for a reprimand was that it would not appear on any external records like my academic transcripts. Basically it said that it would not be made public when applying to graduate schools.

My question now is that I have a premed committee at my undergrad school and they ask for any institutional action, however the conduct code states that it is not to be made public. Does the premed committee have to include this institutional action if they ask for it in the packet they give you? Also, why would the premed committee want to hinder the applicants chances by including it in the letter...dont they want the kid they're writing for to look good and stand out?

It seems as if I am going to have to include this on my application regardless of it being expunged from my transcript. Would I then include a letter specifically explaining the situation in detail and stating what was learned from the overall experience..ie maturity, responsibility, honesty...??

I just am afraid because I searched this thread and basically I know that I stand no chance of getting into medical school...how can I convince the adcoms otherwise, and show them a strong applicant?

has anyone been in this situation and received an acceptance before?

Well, the ethical thing to do would be to tell the truth-- lying was what got you here in the first place, and doing it again is certainly going to show the pre-med committee and medical schools that you have not learned your lesson about right vs. wrong. You're pretty lucky that you didn't fail the class or receive a suspension from school, so you should really count your blessings there.

If you lie and get caught, you can most certainly kiss your career in medicine good-bye. Forever. As I'm sure you're aware, you put it all on the line when you committed plagiarism. However, one of the things that you have going for you right now is that it was a long time ago (freshman year) and so you can tell the admissions committees as well as the pre-med committee how sorry you are, how much you have learned from that horrible mistake, and how much you have matured since then.

I honestly don't know what your chances at med school are-- it's seems like it's a pretty big gamble to me either way. I would certainly take into consideration the fact that even if your school is large, that these sorts of things are still internal and tend to get around, so one way or another this incident may come back to bite you in the ass. Therefore, it would seem wise to diffuse the bomb now rather than later. Show your pre-med committee that you have the maturity to own up to your mistakes, learn from them, and move on.

 

[beachblonde]

At any rate I'm always amazed at stories that start with "I was caught cheating" and end with "I got a B+ in the class".... Last person I knew in undergrad who cheated got an F and a semester suspension, and was told they were being merciful 🙂 I didn't exactly go to Harvard either 🙂

Yeah, me too...all the stories I've heard about people getting caught cheating involve suspensions and expulsions (not to mention failing classes). A reprimand is getting off easy!

But OP, you need to go and speak with 1) a dean and 2) your pre-med advisor. Ask the dean about the rules regarding institutional actions and how they are reported, and be straight with your advisor about the issue. When they ask if you've ever had any action taken against you, there is no footnote to say "well, except if it doesn't show up on your transcript." If it happened, it happened, and you have to be honest or really face the consequences. Lying about plagarism is just bad news.

 

[punkindrublic]

I had an IA in my past (very minor, academic probation due to really poor first semester performance, dean's list the rest of my days), and included it in my AMCAS with an explanation. Thing is, I never checked with the school or committee about it.

There were two schools (BU and Temple, I believe) that asked for a letter from the someone in the administration at my school explaining what happened and whatnot. When I went to get it, it took me about two weeks. Turns out that AP is never to be disclosed outside the school, it's strictly for academic dismissal purposes for continued poor performance, and was even deleted from my internal record upon graduation. So there was no record whatsoever that anything ever happened. This, compounded by the fact that after my freshman year, the policy changed so that no freshman were ever placed on AP, made it extremely difficult to get a letter (got a lot of people telling me it was impossible for a freshman to be on AP, also bear in mind that I graduated 5 years ago, so there's been turnover since that time in administration).

I finally found somebody who said, yes, you probably received a letter saying you were on AP, but that 'wasn't official'. Harharhar. So anyway, she ended up writing me a letter, and left me with the advice that it's always best to check first to see what's disclosed and what's not, and not to put anything on an application that doesn't actually exist anymore.

Seems a bit off to me, I still felt better for putting it on there, as I'm honest to a fault, so I'm glad I did (and I did interview at one of those schools). I gotta say though, your school's policy on plagiarism is extremely lenient. I know where I went that you would be suspended, fail the class, and a permanent mark would go on your transcript that you violated the academic honesty code. Another thing to remember is that a lot of IAs remain on your transcript until graduation, so if you're still a student, they may well show up. I'd recommend being safe and going with it. If you get accepted, and they find out you got busted for this after the fact, I'm pretty confident someone's getting off the waitlist.

 

[njbmd]

so during my second semester freshman year i got caught with plagiarism for a biology lab report. I received a reprimand and a letter was placed in my internal records. I ended up with a B+ in the class, so my overall grade was not affected. Also the policy on academic conduct for a reprimand was that it would not appear on any external records like my academic transcripts. Basically it said that it would not be made public when applying to graduate schools.

My question now is that I have a premed committee at my undergrad school and they ask for any institutional action, however the conduct code states that it is not to be made public. Does the premed committee have to include this institutional action if they ask for it in the packet they give you? Also, why would the premed committee want to hinder the applicants chances by including it in the letter...dont they want the kid they're writing for to look good and stand out?

It seems as if I am going to have to include this on my application regardless of it being expunged from my transcript. Would I then include a letter specifically explaining the situation in detail and stating what was learned from the overall experience..ie maturity, responsibility, honesty...??

I just am afraid because I searched this thread and basically I know that I stand no chance of getting into medical school...how can I convince the adcoms otherwise, and show them a strong applicant?

has anyone been in this situation and received an acceptance before?

Before you deal with your pre-med committee, go to the counseling (or your personal faculty adviser) service at your university and see exactly how that reprimand was handled. Technically, it is an institutional action but it sounds like it was a minor action. In that event, the committee might need to be aware of it but more importantly aware of this action within its proper context. This means that you should be able to satisfy the answer to their questions honestly but not jeopardize an acceptance by something that need not be mentioned in your committee letter.

A counselor or personal faculty adviser can put this in context for the committee (read minimize it) and help you avoid the "trap" of not answering the question on any "packet" honestly. Get the best possible advice on how to handle this situation before you fill out any "packet" and be sure that something is in your file from either your personal faculty adviser or university counseling service that shows you have already paid the price for your mistake and it need not follow you especially now that you have been able to get beyond it. It sounds like this definitely should NOT be included in any pre-med committee letter but that needs to be reinterated to the pre-med committee from someone besides you.

 

[Mr hawkings]

Eh, if you 'acknowledge' an IA but then don't elaborate, all you're doing is ensuring you'll be asked about it at some point. Probably better to be up front about it and hope for mercy.



At any rate I'm always amazed at stories that start with "I was caught cheating" and end with "I got a B+ in the class".... Last person I knew in undergrad who cheated got an F and a semester suspension, and was told they were being merciful 🙂 I didn't exactly go to Harvard either 🙂

Admitting to IA without explanation is a sure way NOT to get an interview.
You should either not admit it at all or admit to it and explain fully.
Unless if you are the "perfect candidate", they have way too many applications to go through to start pondering wether or not to invite you to come in to an interview so they can ask for an explanation.

 

[MattD]

Admitting to IA without explanation is a sure way NOT to get an interview.
You should either not admit it at all or admit to it and explain fully.

I think that's what I said..

 

[BoSoxMack]

I included my institutional action (caught drinking freshman year) in my AMCAS app with an explanation. My school destroys these IA files upon graduation, but since I am still an undgrad the record remains, so I disclosed it. This is not nearly plagarism, but was IA nonetheless. It has been brought up and joked about several times by some interviewers. One actually said "If I got caught doing all the stuff I was involved in my freshman year I probably wouldn't be sitting in front of you." This was a minor offense, but a lot can be read about a person who is upfront about a mistake.

 

[Tired Pigeon]

I included my institutional action (caught drinking freshman year) in my AMCAS app with an explanation. My school destroys these IA files upon graduation, but since I am still an undgrad the record remains, so I disclosed it. This is not nearly plagarism, but was IA nonetheless. It has been brought up and joked about several times by some interviewers. One actually said "If I got caught doing all the stuff I was involved in my freshman year I probably wouldn't be sitting in front of you." This was a minor offense, but a lot can be read about a person who is upfront about a mistake.

BoSox, true, it says a lot (good) about you that you were up front about this. To the OP, however, keep in mind that drinking and cheating are going to be viewed very differently. Even though this incident sounds relatively minor, they're going to be wondering if you cheated all the time & this was just the time you were unlucky enough to be caught. Really casts a long shadow over your entire application.

Maybe this advice is over the top, but I'll say it anyway: have you considered consulting an attorney to find out what the actual status is and, if necessary, to pursue the course of action necessary to have this truly expunged from your record if possible? I recognize that this sounds extreme and likely costly, but the way you handle this now could have repercussions for a long time to come.

 

[thrills4ever]

here is what happened. I wont go into details because it was a very stressful time for me. Basically a family member passed away. Also the incident occurred in April, which was around the time of the Vtech shootings. My cousin attends tech and lost someone who I knew as well during that horrible day. So pretty much my focus was with my family, and my grades slacked. What I did was stupid, and I did not think about. I made a mistake, and it just sucks because adcoms are going to judge my character when I am really not that kind of person. I will schedule a meeting with a premed advisor and ask about this.

Thanks for your replies

 

[silas2642]

here is what happened. I wont go into details because it was a very stressful time for me. Basically a family member passed away. Also the incident occurred in April, which was around the time of the Vtech shootings. My cousin attends tech and lost someone who I knew as well during that horrible day. So pretty much my focus was with my family, and my grades slacked. What I did was stupid, and I did not think about. I made a mistake, and it just sucks because adcoms are going to judge my character when I am really not that kind of person. I will schedule a meeting with a premed advisor and ask about this.

Thanks for your replies

Minor detail that I miss be missing here-- you said that this happened during the time of the Virginia Tech shooting, but wasn't that the spring of 2007 (i.e. last year)? If I recall correctly, you also said that this incident happened during the second semester of your freshman year-- that would make you a second semester sophomore this year. So I guess I was wondering what you're doing before a pre-med committee at your school during your sophomore year considering the fact that you really haven't had too much of an academic history for the, to look at.

By the way, I'm not sure if I would use the VTech shooting as an excuse for plagiarism-- I just don't think that would fly with the adcoms at medical schools.

 

[MattD]

By the way, I'm not sure if I would use the VTech shooting as an excuse for plagiarism-- I just don't think that would fly with the adcoms at medical schools.

Seriously dude, party foul.

 

[WrightMD]

here is what happened. I wont go into details because it was a very stressful time for me. Basically a family member passed away. Also the incident occurred in April, which was around the time of the Vtech shootings. My cousin attends tech and lost someone who I knew as well during that horrible day. So pretty much my focus was with my family, and my grades slacked. What I did was stupid, and I did not think about. I made a mistake, and it just sucks because adcoms are going to judge my character when I am really not that kind of person. I will schedule a meeting with a premed advisor and ask about this.

Honestly, I would have asked for an extension before resorting to cheating. And I agree with the person who said that the Virginia Tech shooting is not an excuse.

 

[JaysWay]

Build a time machine and stop yourself from cheating?

Honestly, that's gotta be the biggest fault anyone can have on their application... that and a criminal record.

Bit off topic, but I think you can get in with either of these, although it will require some explaining. I think a truly weak MCAT is harder to sneak by with. If you have good qualifications and an infraction (of a lesser degree) schools may recognize the applicant as... get this ... a human being. But if your scores are never there, it doesn't matter if you have a perfect record, the admissions committee will not think you can handle the material.

Just my opinion

 

[LizzyM]

AMCAS is going to ask if you have ever been subject to an institutional action. EVER. This is the same as the was AMCAS asks for all your grades, even for courses that have been repeated later or which were expunged (academic bankruptcy).

No doubt, the pre-med committee is asking the questions you'll be asked on the AMCAS so that it can comment in a LOR on anything that might merit a comment by the pre-med committee.

So, the answer is Yes, you've been subject to an institutional action and the reason was that you handed in a biology lab report that was not your own work. Might be the kiss of death but maybe you'll squeak thorugh given that you didn't wind up flunking the course which is usually the punishment for a serious case of plagiarism.

 

[thrills4ever]

thank you for your responses.

yes i am a second semester sophomore. I am trying to just get a feel of what I could do to possible remedy the situation. I will not lie to the admissions committee, so I know that as a junior when I am applying for Fall 2010 admissions I will have to include this on my application. I just wanted to know that if I succeed academically and get a good MCAT score, and explain this terrible mistake that I made I still have a chance at getting into a medical school. Right now I have a 3.5 for overall and bcpm, and am working on getting that higher.

So what if come junior year i apply and i dont get accepted into any medical school. then lets say i decide to get a masters in public health and then reapply again, wont the medical schools i applied to previously know about my plagiarism incident? How would i be able to get into medical school? If the rejected me because of that on my application, wont they do it again?

all your answers are appreciated.

BTW here is my schools policy on reprimands. i attend BU.

2. Reprimand​

a. For violations of a minor nature or mitigated by extenuating circumstances.
b. A copy of the reprimand shall be placed in the student’s file but shall not be recorded on the permanent academic record. Past reprimands may be considered in imposing sanctions for future offenses.
c. Reprimands are not to be made public when records, transcripts, etc., are sent out.
d. Reprimands place no restriction on the student’s participation in academic or nonacademic College or all-University activities.​

 

[thrills4ever]

also i did not fully copy the biology report, it was a couple of sentences; however, i understand that this is no excuse

 

[unsung]

Wow, I'm really surprised they let you get off with just a reprimand and a B+ in the course, even!

In my school, cheating/plagiarism resulted in an automatic F for the whole course, with no chance for making it up... and the incident goes into your permanent record.

You're really really lucky.

 

[mdiscool86]

Well, I think my school has the same rules as yours about keeping it off the academic record. I am pretty sure however, that the premed committee is allowed to look at your internal record from your school and so when writing your committee letter they probably will include your act of plagiarism in it. I see two solutions to avoid checking off the box on the amcas asking for institutional action. One solution is, don't get the committee letter. Ask individual faculty members to send it directly to the school, then make up some excuse if asked why you sent your recommendations that way. The medical schools have no way to find out about your internal records other than the committee letter if its not in your academic records. Another solution is to transfer to another school. You will start completely fresh because the internal records will not transfer and you have a clean academic record and transcript. The premed committee will not be able to pry in your internal records from your school, nor will have any suspicion and feel the need to do so since you got a b+. These two solutions are for educational purposes only and I do not condone them 😀.

 

[dasaniwater]

Just wanted to let you know that a similar incident happened to me. I plagiarized and collaborated with another student. I ended up failing a class. I was able to appeal and overturn the failing grade. I had this happen around the time I was about to submit my AMCAS, but I decided to wait a couple months to see if I could appeal and overturn the decision. It turns out that everything worked in my favor.

Since, I have interviewed and been accepted to many medical schools. At one of the interviews, I was asked what was the most stressful time in my life. I have been fortunate enough to not have been through harsh times, so I mentioned the incident of academic misconduct to the interviewers. Turns out, they were pleased that I informed them and the school later accepted me.

One way to prove that you are sorry and regret what you've done is serving as a volunteer to talk to others during orientation about plagairism and what it can do to you. I remember asking the Dean of my school this question and getting the reply that it was an excellent idea.

Other than that, I basically I wanted to let you know to have firm faith that you'll pull through it. I know it's stressful, and trust me my situation seems a lot worse having failed a class and waiting more than a month for the overtuned ruling. If you want to be a doctor, you will be. Don't let other people try to tell you "its over" or "its the kiss of death." Just tell the truth on the app with a lot of detail of what happened and why you regret it. I am sure if you have a good GPA and MCAT, schools will look at you. Also, from experience, DO schools look at applicants more as a whole and more as a person and if they know you are truly sorry for what you did, they will give you a shot. Im sure some MD schools will also give you a shot. Hang in there and know its not over. ***K those who tell you so.

 

[TheLesPaul]

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=469517

 

[ComicBookDude]

Screw the committee and apply on your own.

 

[mdiscool86]

Screw the committee and apply on your own.

has anyone successfully done that? if so, what was their excuse for not getting a committee letter?

 

[notdeadyet]

has anyone successfully done that? if so, what was their excuse for not getting a committee letter?

Most medical schools that I looked at explicitly state that they require a committee letter if your school offers one. I'm sure that med schools have a pretty good list of which schools have premed committees.

Anyway, like LizzyM mentioned, AMCAS asks if you ever received an institutional action, so if you're not going to lie (baaaad idea), you have to check "yes". Checking "yes" and then avoiding getting a committee letter would look much worse than checking "yes" and getting one.

 

[notdeadyet]

I see two solutions to avoid checking off the box on the amcas asking for institutional action. One solution is, don't get the committee letter. Ask individual faculty members to send it directly to the school, then make up some excuse if asked why you sent your recommendations that way. The medical schools have no way to find out about your internal records other than the committee letter if its not in your academic records.

Lying on AMCAS is a just plain bad idea. If you get caught, kiss off ever going to a U.S. allopathic medical school. Lying to those who run the system = not being able to apply through the system = no med school.

Another solution is to transfer to another school. You will start completely fresh because the internal records will not transfer and you have a clean academic record and transcript. The premed committee will not be able to pry in your internal records from your school, nor will have any suspicion and feel the need to do so since you got a b+.

Also a bad idea. AMCAS requires you to report grades and send transcripts from all classes ever taken. Starting fresh at a new college all over again will raise a lot of eyebrows and AdComs will know something is up.

I know it's not a very sexy option, but there's a lot to be said for owning up to your mistakes and taking the hit. When you have black mark that shows bad judgment, AdComs want to see that you've learned from your mistake. The way you do that is by jumping through the hoops, apologizing for your mistake and owning up to it. Any creative solution (aka weaseling) just tells AdComs that you haven't accepted responsibility and lack maturity. This is the kiss of death.

 

[notdeadyet]

I am trying to just get a feel of what I could do to possible remedy the situation. I will not lie to the admissions committee, so I know that as a junior when I am applying for Fall 2010 admissions I will have to include this on my application.

Good for you. And note that the committee letter is irrelevant. AMCAS will ask you specifically if you have any institutional action.

I just wanted to know that if I succeed academically and get a good MCAT score, and explain this terrible mistake that I made I still have a chance at getting into a medical school.

Honestly, a record of plagarism will slam shut the doors at some schools no matter what your stats are. But not all of them. Just apply very broadly.

So what if come junior year i apply and i dont get accepted into any medical school. then lets say i decide to get a masters in public health and then reapply again, wont the medical schools i applied to previously know about my plagiarism incident?

It won't matter. When you apply again after an MPH, AMCAS will still have the checkbox asking if you've ever received an institutional action. The only advantage to applying years from now is that the more time that has passed, the more you can talk about the mistake as being a studpid decision you made when you were young. That's hard to do when it happened a year or two ago.

How would i be able to get into medical school? If the rejected me because of that on my application, wont they do it again?

Do your best to get great grades, experiences and a solid MCAT. Own up to your mistake and apply to a whole bunch of schools (including osteopathic). You have a shot. If no school takes you, think of the second thing you would like to do other than medicine and start pursuing it. Continue volunteering. A few years down the road, with added maturity, life experience, professional experience and the ability to talk about your plagarism as something you did 5 years ago, apply again. If you still find the door slammed shut on you, enjoy the career you have.

 

[RoadRunner17]

Had a good friend from HS fail an English class because of plagiarism. He got an F, but he was able to get everything else off the record. He interviewed with one of the in-state schools, they asked about it, he owned up to his mistakes. Accepted.

 

[littlealex]

I know a guy from a great school with great GPA/MCAT that got caught cheating in 2 separate classes at once (plagiarizing on papers), got Fs in both of those classes and a note was placed in his record. He went on to medical school, but instead of being a top20 med school candidate (3.8GPA despite the Fs, 39 MCAT), he ended up in some negligible crappy unranked state school.

 

[LizzyM]

You have to list the IA on the AMCAS. The committee wants to know about this and may address it in their letter. What they might say is "thrills4ever received an repremand for his work on a laboratory report in biology 101. In our conversation about the incident he is contrite and notes that he learned a very hard lesson about taking short-cuts. He has had no other academic disciplinary actions in his time here at Supergreat College."

This should mesh with what you will have written on the AMCAS and can assure an adcom that what you wrote on the AMCAS is accurate.

 

[tdsbird2]

I got caught plagerizing one sentence in a lab report three weeks before graduating undergrad. It was cited, but it was verbatim and not in quotes. I got a zero on the paper, and ended up with a C in the class. There was a letter, similar to yours, in my file for interal reasons only. The pre-med committee was about to bump up my rank b/c of my increased gpa since my first app, but they refused and the teacher retracted her letter of rec. And the way they handled it made me hate the Zoology department at Miami of Ohio (that is right I named names).

the thing is, your AMCAS will ask you about it. You could lie because they will never know. But as said before, do you want to lie again and to get into a noble and honest field? I admitted it and they give you a space to downplay it. I was honest but downplayed it as much as possible and to date have had two interview offers (no acceptances so far). In my first interview, I unpromptedly brought it up. If you hide it, they will find it and then wonder why you were not going to talk about it.

Furthermore, I talked with the dean of admissions at school i just interviewed at and he said that something around 7 to 9% of graduates have an IA on their file and that if it was minor should not play a big role in their decision.

So long post short. Be honest because that is what a (future) doctor should be.