Past Alcohol Abuser - 31 MCAT- 3.82 sGPA

[erndawg54]

My main question is to people who have been in this situation before: How did your obvious problem with alcohol affect your interview and where you got in?

About Me:

I have admitted I have a problem with drinking alcohol, and have been clean & sober for 1 year and 8 months at this time. By interview time I will have over 2 years. I go to twelve step meetings and am committed to staying dry no matter what. However I hope the admissions committee also sees this.

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[CrimsonKing]

If there's nothing alcohol-related on your record, I don't see how this would matter to them.

 

[aspiring20]

My main question is to people who have been in this situation before: How did your obvious problem with alcohol affect your interview and where you got in?

About Me:

I have admitted I have a problem with drinking alcohol, and have been clean & sober for 1 year and 8 months at this time. By interview time I will have over 2 years. I go to twelve step meetings and am committed to staying dry no matter what. However I hope the admissions committee also sees this.

what's a 12 step meetings? are they court ordered as a result of a conviction? if not, dont mention the alcohol problem and it wont matter diddly squat. but if you have a record involving alcohol violations, then it depends on what that record is.

if it's something like MIP, then no need to worry. but if it's a DUI, then you'll have difficulties.

and it is an unsaid rule to never disclose mental health/alcohol problems on your app.

 

[erndawg54]

what's a 12 step meetings? are they court ordered as a result of a conviction? if not, dont mention the alcohol problem and it wont matter diddly squat. but if you have a record involving alcohol violations, then it depends on what that record is.

if it's something like MIP, then no need to worry. but if it's a DUI, then you'll have difficulties.

and it is an unsaid rule to never disclose mental health/alcohol problems on your app.

When people say 12 step meeting sometimes they mean AA, sometimes they don't (often people say "12 steps" because they don't want to break their anonymity).

I have pretty extensive record:

2 minors, 1 open container,1 dropped obstruction of justice (it really wasn't this); and recently an unrelated reckless driving ( I was going 15 over in a 40). However, I have no other traffic tickets.

 

[erndawg54]

If you've been in this situation, by all means message me so you may speak more frankly about this.

I have brought this up in my personal statement, and I believe I addressed it sufficiently.

Did anyone have any questions about their past alcohol use in interviews?

 

[aspiring20]

When people say 12 step meeting sometimes they mean AA, sometimes they don't (often people say "12 steps" because they don't want to break their anonymity).

I have pretty extensive record:

2 minors, 1 open container,1 dropped obstruction of justice (it really wasn't this); and recently an unrelated reckless driving ( I was going 15 over in a 40). However, I have no other traffic tickets.

are these misdemeanor convictions? if you weren't convicted, then these don't have to be reported.

i dont have any personal experience w/ alcohol, but it is a general consensus on SDN that minor alcohol infractions aren't big deals. however, it seems that you have multiple instances involving alcohol, and that can be an issue because it indicates a pattern.

having said that, the instances do seem like nonsense stuff (mip, open container, etc.) that shouldn't matter at all.

the best thing you can do, imo, is to have some extensive community service activities that demonstrates your maturity, responsibility, and other desirable qualities. i wouldn't lose sleep about a few minor alcohol blemishes, but you should be prepared to address this elephant in the room during interviews.

 

[aspiring20]

If you've been in this situation, by all means message me so you may speak more frankly about this.

I have brought this up in my personal statement, and I believe I addressed it sufficiently.

Did anyone have any questions about their past alcohol use in interviews?

not sure that this is a wise decision. you generally dont want to give negative aspects of your app any more attention that you have to. and having a few MIPs isn't an issue serious enough to warrant a discussion in the personal statement.

 

[erndawg54]

not sure that this is a wise decision. you generally dont want to give negative aspects of your app any more attention that you have to. and having a few MIPs isn't an issue serious enough to warrant a discussion in the personal statement.

I did because when I quit drinking I was depressed, and had to drop physics and physiology that semester, then retake them. So I had to bring it up.

I was convicted of a total of 2 minors and an open container, which happened at separate incidents.
Reckless driving might be a misdamenor but I'm not sure.

 

[Omppu27]

I did because when I quit drinking I was depressed, and had to drop physics and physiology that semester, then retake them. So I had to bring it up.

I was convicted of a total of 2 minors and an open container, which happened at separate incidents.
Reckless driving might be a misdamenor but I'm not sure.

You seriously got a reckless driving for 15 over in a 40?....

 

[aspiring20]

I did because when I quit drinking I was depressed, and had to drop physics and physiology that semester, then retake them. So I had to bring it up.

I was convicted of a total of 2 minors and an open container, which happened at separate incidents.
Reckless driving might be a misdamenor but I'm not sure.

doesn't sound like something i'll be overly concerned about. be honest on your app, own up to them if asked during interviews, and you should be a-okay. however, make sure that you apply early and broadly.

keep us posted on how your app goes if you apply this june

 

[aspiring20]

You seriously got a reckless driving for 15 over in a 40?....

not too surprised. i got a friend (from Arizona) who was charged with something similar (minor traffic/speeding misdemeanor) because he was driving 60 mph on a 50 mph road. Even crazier...all the other cars on that section of the road were going just as fast as his car if not faster! however, the police only pulled him over.

fortunately, my friend's a warrior and actually fought off the charge in court.

 

[WompyWomperton]

This is a huge taboo. Even if you have maintained sobriety for years, there is always the fear of a relapse. Alcoholism is commonly accepted as a disease (ie. hardwired into the individual). There is no guarantee that under the extremely stressful nature of medical training, you won't relapse.

Realistically, you don't want to bring it up on an application. However, you do have prior behavior that is best explained by your disease. I'm curious to see what other SDNers think; unfortunately, there is no easy answer.

 

[DokterMom]

Sadly, I'm with Wompy. You sound like a high-risk candidate. I'd suggest that more time sober and maybe some work with substance abuse counseling would be helpful.

Not that an acceptance isn't possible -- But the first round of application cuts is made to weed applicants out. I'm sorry to be so judgmental, but if I were on the AdCom, with only 2 years sober, I'd probably weed your app. out...

 

[aspiring20]

I did because when I quit drinking I was depressed, and had to drop physics and physiology that semester, then retake them. So I had to bring it up.

I was convicted of a total of 2 minors and an open container, which happened at separate incidents.
Reckless driving might be a misdamenor but I'm not sure.

no you don't. unless you had to withdraw/interrupt your studies for a semester or more, there's absolutely no need "justifying" dropping two courses in one semester. if they ask you about it (which they most likely wont given your high sGPA), just say you had some personal stress issues during that semester.

it seems to me that the only alcohol-related records you have are the MIPs. honestly, a couple MIPs does not indicate a disease of alcoholism. now, if those incidents were "disorderly conduct", "damaging public property", "fighting" etc associated with alcohol, then it would be a bigger issue.

just report the MIPs if you have to and LEAVE IT AT THAT. why in the universe would you want to mention your 12 step meeting/personal struggles with alcohol?

now i could be wrong, but two MIPs really dont say anything particular about alcohol abuse. and that reckless driving charge doesn';t have anything to do with alcohol, right? from what you said, it was simply a speeding thing.

 

[erndawg54]

no you don't. unless you had to withdraw/interrupt your studies for a semester or more, there's absolutely no need "justifying" dropping two courses in one semester. if they ask you about it (which they most likely wont given your high sGPA), just say you had some personal stress issues during that semester.

it seems to me that the only alcohol-related records you have are the MIPs. honestly, a couple MIPs does not indicate a disease of alcoholism. now, if those incidents were "disorderly conduct", "damaging public property", "fighting" etc associated with alcohol, then it would be a bigger issue.

just report the MIPs if you have to and LEAVE IT AT THAT. why in the universe would you want to mention your 12 step meeting/personal struggles with alcohol?

now i could be wrong, but two MIPs really dont say anything particular about alcohol abuse. and that reckless driving charge doesn';t have anything to do with alcohol, right? from what you said, it was simply a speeding thing.

I really don't think this is the best approach. My question was if you have been in a similar situation, how did you handle it? And if you really told the admissions committee "personal issues" were the problem that semester this seems like a much worse idea. What? Girlfriend issues?? Yeah it was "personal" but I imagine they would want me to elaborate, and springing the idea that I had to quit drinking for the first time in the interview seems like a bad idea.

I do not want someone who has never been in my position to give me advice on something they have never done. They have no experience doing it and thus no real useful information for me. Yeah we all know that ideally this shouldn't be brought up, but I think it's unavoidable.

I have wrote my PS and did not mention 12 step meetings, I do not label myself as and alcoholic or alcohol abuser, but I did address it my bad semester while tying it in with alcohol--I'm not going to change it either.

I hoped the admissions committee would see that I addressed the elephant in the room, and give me a shot because I have a high cGPA and sGPA (3.81, 3.82) decent MCAT (31, 11 PS, 09 VR, 11 BS), 5 years CNA, great letters, and mission trip all under my belt and give me a shot at explaining the red flag in the interview.


Again, if you have had a similar experience as mine I'd love to hear it.

 

[aspiring20]

I really don't think this is the best approach. My question was if you have been in a similar situation, how did you handle it? And if you really told the admissions committee "personal issues" were the problem that semester this seems like a much worse idea. What? Girlfriend issues?? Yeah it was "personal" but I imagine they would want me to elaborate, and springing the idea that I had to quit drinking for the first time in the interview seems like a bad idea.

I do not want someone who has never been in my position to give me advice on something they have never done. They have no experience doing it and thus no real useful information for me. Yeah we all know that ideally this shouldn't be brought up, but I think it's unavoidable.

I have wrote my PS and did not mention 12 step meetings, I do not label myself as and alcoholic or alcohol abuser, but I did address it my bad semester while tying it in with alcohol--I'm not going to change it either.

I hoped the admissions committee would see that I addressed the elephant in the room, and give me a shot because I have a high cGPA and sGPA (3.81, 3.82) decent MCAT (31, 11 PS, 09 VR, 11 BS), 5 years CNA, great letters, and mission trip all under my belt and give me a shot at explaining the red flag in the interview.


Again, if you have had a similar experience as mine I'd love to hear it.

or, you can just NOT mention anything about that semester at all unless you are asked about it during interviews.

if i were in your shoes, i would not say anything about that one semester (with two dropped courses) in any part of my application.

you dropped two courses in one semester, and adcoms understand things happen. why would you explicitly TELL them that you dropped those courses partly because of alcohol? that serves no benefit to your application. if they ask you during interviews about what happened with that semester, then you can tell them the truth. but i really wouldn't mention it in the personal statement.

once again, it is your decision. but regardless of what i say, you should PM some of the adcoms on here and get their take. did you ask LizzyM yet?

 

[Silverflash]

The folks here are just giving you honest advice. They may not have experienced a similar situation, but they are pretty knowledgeable about med school admissions. I wouldn't dismiss their opinions so quickly.

For what it's worth, I don't think you should mention alcoholism in your app or personal statement. I would mention your MIP's in your statement, but spin it in a positive way, focusing on how you've turned things around and made improvements in your life since then. But the alcoholism isn't something that will show up on your app unless you mention it, and since it will hurt your app, i'd avoid it.

Regardless, best of luck.

 

[penguinism]

I really don't think this is the best approach. My question was if you have been in a similar situation, how did you handle it? And if you really told the admissions committee "personal issues" were the problem that semester this seems like a much worse idea. What? Girlfriend issues?? Yeah it was "personal" but I imagine they would want me to elaborate, and springing the idea that I had to quit drinking for the first time in the interview seems like a bad idea.

I do not want someone who has never been in my position to give me advice on something they have never done. They have no experience doing it and thus no real useful information for me. Yeah we all know that ideally this shouldn't be brought up, but I think it's unavoidable.

I have wrote my PS and did not mention 12 step meetings, I do not label myself as and alcoholic or alcohol abuser, but I did address it my bad semester while tying it in with alcohol--I'm not going to change it either.

I hoped the admissions committee would see that I addressed the elephant in the room, and give me a shot because I have a high cGPA and sGPA (3.81, 3.82) decent MCAT (31, 11 PS, 09 VR, 11 BS), 5 years CNA, great letters, and mission trip all under my belt and give me a shot at explaining the red flag in the interview.


Again, if you have had a similar experience as mine I'd love to hear it.

First, you need to figure out what is actually going to show up on your criminal background check. If multiple alcohol-related offenses are there, then you will need to explain them somewhere on your application. If it's only reckless driving, then I wouldn't mention alcohol at all.

Many people withdraw from classes. Unless a school asks specifically why you withdrew from 2 classes, then don't bother. If it was a constant string (i.e. 2 every semester), then it would be a bigger issue.

If you choose to ignore everyone's advice, that's your prerogative.

 

[erndawg54]

or, you can just NOT mention anything about that semester at all unless you are asked about it during interviews.

if i were in your shoes, i would not say anything about that one semester (with two dropped courses) in any part of my application.

you dropped two courses in one semester, and adcoms understand things happen. why would you explicitly TELL them that you dropped those courses partly because of alcohol? that serves no benefit to your application. if they ask you during interviews about what happened with that semester, then you can tell them the truth. but i really wouldn't mention it in the personal statement.

once again, it is your decision. but regardless of what i say, you should PM some of the adcoms on here and get their take. did you ask LizzyM yet?

Messaging the adcoms is probably best. I take it lizzym is one? I'm unfamiliar with how to get ahold of them on here, being I'm new to SDN.

 

[RockinRoll]

If you have no alcohol abuse on your record or DUI then you should keep this to yourself. Your stats will do the talking, don't throw your alcohol business out there. If anything ADCOM will be wary about your sobriety. They could see this situation as alright med school is tough this guy might get back to drinking again and that would be huge.
Follow my advice keep this to yourself.

 

[MaenadsDance]

I have had multiple withdrawals for reasons other than alcohol dependence, but am familiar with 12-step programs through Al-anon; I hope my perspective will be useful to you.

The personal statement is the place where you highlight your strengths, not try to make excuses for your weaknesses. Think of it as your elevator pitch: this is the five minutes you get (or minute and a half, really) to pique someone's interests. Write about your strengths. Write about what makes you so fabulous and interesting that someone will want to know more about you, regardless of the issues with your transcripts or background check. Every sentence you spend talking about your weaknesses is a sentence you have not spent talking about what would make you an asset to the medical school. The personal statement is not a confessional, or really "personal" in any sense - it is a place to sell yourself, in as sophisticated a fashion as you can.

I'm not suggesting that you write a five-paragraph essay in high school English format titled "Why I Would Be a Good Doctor," but rather that you reconsider what the ultimate purpose of the PS is. It is not to give people an honest insight into your soul and your process of self-discovery!

For myself, I know I have spent a lot of time agonizing to people how I am going to explain the weird gaps in my record. But what I have found is that in conversation with people in my daily life, people are attracted to me for what I bring, what I have to offer, and only mildly curious about my flaws provided I do not allow myself to highlight those flaws due to some underlying insecurity.

 

[Lil Mick]

I have experience applying to medical school as someone in recovery (3 years when I interviewed), and I'm happy to help anyone with specific questions--send me a PM. Here's a bit of my experience with it:

I wound up having to disclose it in some way or another on my applications (legal). Applied to 15 schools, interviews from 10, accepted 5. Most interviewers never brought it up, and most of those who did saw it as more of a positive than a negative. One was a psychiatrist interested in the recovery process for young people. Another had a son in recovery...

I wouldn't bring it up unless you've had legal problems or it has influenced your decision to pursue this career, as there definitely is still a stigma in the medical field about people in recovery (found that out during medical school). Also, I tried to look at schools in cities with strong recovery communities or counseling resources for students (PM me for specifics), which helped me during some of the difficult times in medical school.

 

[coolingglasses]

I did because when I quit drinking I was depressed, and had to drop physics and physiology that semester, then retake them. So I had to bring it up.

I was convicted of a total of 2 minors and an open container, which happened at separate incidents.
Reckless driving might be a misdamenor but I'm not sure.

Your space on the personal statement is already limited. You don't need to waste precious space talking about even the most glaring parts of your application--there will be a place for you to mention convictions and explain them in detail. Your personal statement is a place for you to talk about your interest in medicine.

If your experience with alcoholism played directly into your drive to pursue medicine, you can frame it like that (this is how I framed my experience with obesity and, I suspect, borderline diabetes, which just happened to coincide with a period in which I did poorly in classes).

 

[deeproots]

Hi erndawg. While I haven't specifically had your problem, I wanted to share a relevant piece of advice with you that was given to me by my pre-med advisor.

Medical schools must be careful when selecting students who have any risk of leaving medical school (e.g., for health reasons, sick family members, disgruntled spouses, etc.) because, as bad as it sounds, any student who can't finish med school is a waste of a seat (i.e., waste of time and money). So, they look for red flags in applications and consider the risk of a student being unable to finish medical school. My pre-med advisor actually recommended that I remove my wedding ring during my interview and not mention my marriage because med schools might be consider me a flight risk (I guess if my husband didn't like the new city, if I got divorced, etc. but I'll be damned if I hide my marriage just to appease some adcoms).

I'm telling you this because, like some people mentioned, alcoholism is considered a life-long struggle and the risk of relapse is much higher during stressful times. Medical schools will consider this and they might fear that the stress of medical school (or the stress of a career as a physician) might drive you back to drinking. Actually, there is a surprisingly high number of physicians who abuse drugs and alcohol due to its accessibility and the high stress of the job: http://jonathanturley.org/2007/12/2...ent-of-doctors-have-substance-abuse-problems/

You should be very proud of your sobriety and what you've overcome, but you may want to keep this in mind.