Physical fitness affecting interview/acceptance?

[Skrubs]

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What do you guys think about a person's physical fitness/appearance affecting whether or not they get accepted?

Example: A committee interviews 2 people for the last spot and one is in good shape while the other one is overweight. Would the overweight person be frowned upon because of their weight/health?

I've heard this theory before and wondered if it is true or not.

 

[ShinyDome19]

I would doubt a persons physical fitness plays too much of a role in the admissions process, as long as you are capable of doing the manual parts of being a physician and arnt so obese that your out of breath just walking into the admissions office for your interview. And from the medical students that I see on a daily basis, most are of normal physical stature, a few are overweight and a few are in excellent shape.

But, I could definately see where it would come into question that if a person claims to be interested in health/medicine and taking care of others, but dont appear as if they cant really take care of themself.

 

[forrealz]

yeah, I was wondering about this too. I read an article a year ago but it was about job interviews though. employers were selecting mostly physically fit people.

 

[YA7ES]

I'm sure they try to look solely at the stats and how well rounded the person is, but I'm sure physical appearance has some sort of weight in the decision process...
If a pretty young female with the same stats as a 300 pound male got interviewed... i'd assume the pretty young female has a better shot.

 

[JanikeyDoc]

What do you guys think about a person's physical fitness/appearance affecting whether or not they get accepted?

Example: A committee interviews 2 people for the last spot and one is in good shape while the other one is overweight. Would the overweight person be frowned upon because of their weight/health?

I've heard this theory before and wondered if it is true or not.

I think people will pay more attention to your dress and grooming, look neat clean and professional. I heard of a friend who got an interview at one school, went to the interview in "business casual" and got rejected. I would not be surprised though if they did look at physical appearance, some supplemental applications ask for a recent photograph, maybe it could be for ID purposes but who really knows.

 

[apumic]

Appearance matters. Research has shown repeatedly that the way you look, dress, etc has a profound yet subtle & subconscious effect upon others' perceptions of you. Since human beings cannot attend to all available stimuli, we must attend to only the most salient. Physical appearance tops this list in virtually all human interactions. Sure a beautiful female candidate w/ few ECs & 3.4/29 probably won't get an offer over an ugly male w good ECs & 3.8/37, but all other things being nearly equal, the beauty is much more likely to get the offer.

 

[TexasTriathlete]

I think that the next person to use the phrase "frowned upon" on this website should be banned.

 

[RG73]

Appearance matters. Research has shown repeatedly that the way you look, dress, etc has a profound yet subtle & subconscious effect upon others' perceptions of you. Since human beings cannot attend to all available stimuli, we must attend to only the most salient. Physical appearance tops this list in virtually all human interactions. Sure a beautiful female candidate w/ few ECs & 3.4/29 probably won't get an offer over an ugly male w good ECs & 3.8/37, but all other things being nearly equal, the beauty is much more likely to get the offer.

This is unavoidable. There is also a height bias: taller people get paid more than shorter people. Natural selection has worked on our brains to respond to certain stimuli despite our best attempts at being completely neutral.

Now if a committee is making a decision between two otherwise equal candidates, but one radiates health and the other not so much, the person who looks healthier is going to win every time. If you asked people to explain their decision afterwards, it is unlikely any of them would consciously admit that was the reason. However, one guy fills out his suit with broad shoulders and pecs, and the other one is sporting a gut, the big shoulders instill confidence in people more than the gut. Again, all else being equal.

Of course, I'd be a little puzzled that someone who iss seriously obese is trying to go into medicine. From just my experiences shadowing doctors and volunteering, medicine isn't something you want to undertake with a severe fitness problem. You're often on your feet all day long, and if you're in a hospital, you're rounding, walking all over the place for hours upon hours. I would think that by the time you've gotten to an interview you have enough exposure to medicine that you know what it entails physically. I mean I've had times shadowing doctors where literally from 8 to 6 we were sitting maybe a grand total of 45 minutes including a lunch break. I know my experience isn't unique. So I can't really fathom how someone with a BMI of say 35 is even going to make it to an interview. No doctor is going to stop and wait for you to catch up or catch your breath if they have to walk to another wing of the hospital to see a patient. Therefore, it seems this scenario is fairly improbable from first principles.

 

[Chocolate Bear]

I think that the next person to use the phrase "frowned upon" on this website should be banned.

Threatening other users is frowned upon.

In fact, here's me, frowning upon your attitude. --> 🙁

 

[MossPoh]

I doubt anyone consciously makes the decision based on something like weight, but it does happen. The biases are in normal practice, so I don't know why they'd disappear all of a sudden.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

Fat Chicks need acceptances too... but they gotta pay

 

[123165]

I also think that how healthy/attractive an individual is will influence their interview. I don't think any admissions members would admit to this, or perhaps even be consciously aware of it.

 

[Sinfest]

Fat Chicks need acceptances too... but they gotta pay

Hahahahaha Tyrone Biggums..."You know, Joe Rogan, this is not the first time I've tasted penis"

This is unavoidable. There is also a height bias: taller people get paid more than shorter people. Natural selection has worked on our brains to respond to certain stimuli despite our best attempts at being completely neutral.

Now if a committee is making a decision between two otherwise equal candidates, but one radiates health and the other not so much, the person who looks healthier is going to win every time. If you asked people to explain their decision afterwards, it is unlikely any of them would consciously admit that was the reason.

+1

 

[gomango]

Of course, I'd be a little puzzled that someone who iss seriously obese is trying to go into medicine. From just my experiences shadowing doctors and volunteering, medicine isn't something you want to undertake with a severe fitness problem. You're often on your feet all day long, and if you're in a hospital, you're rounding, walking all over the place for hours upon hours. I would think that by the time you've gotten to an interview you have enough exposure to medicine that you know what it entails physically. I mean I've had times shadowing doctors where literally from 8 to 6 we were sitting maybe a grand total of 45 minutes including a lunch break. I know my experience isn't unique. So I can't really fathom how someone with a BMI of say 35 is even going to make it to an interview. No doctor is going to stop and wait for you to catch up or catch your breath if they have to walk to another wing of the hospital to see a patient. Therefore, it seems this scenario is fairly improbable from first principles.

Are you kidding me? Yes, there is an obvious bias in society towards obese people. Especially among doctors, studies have shown obese patients receive LESS care than other patients and the care they do receive is sub-par, when in actuality they should be receiving MORE care to help combat obesity. I am considered obese, yet I am still applying to medical school. My health problems are one of the reasons I have wanted to become a doctor. I am not hailing obesity as 'lifestyle' it is UNHEALTHY, I fully 100% realize this, but this is not an over night thing I can change, in fact several factors are beyond my control. I have been misdiagnosed twice for two different disorders and it took over 8 years to be correctly diagnosed. I was dismissed by countless physicians who thought I was a lazy person who stuffed fried food, cheeseburgers and what not into my mouth every day, all day long. Yet the complete opposite was true, however no one took the time to actually figure out what was wrong! If all you people are wanting to be physicians and you cannot sympathize with your patients and think they are lazy and fat then why the heck are you going into healthcare? I feel my situation is going to give me that edge in UNDERSTANDING what my patients are going through. Losing weight, especially when factors are stacked against you (genetics, disorders, medications causing weight gain, etc), is probably the hardest thing I have ever done and it is a LIFE TIME BATTLE!!

Get off your soap boxes people. You look at obesity as the worst thing in the world, and yes it is horrible for your body, but how many doctors smoke, drink, have unprotected sex, or participate in "dangerous" sports (mountain climbing, rafting, horseback riding, 4-wheeling, etc). Any number of those things can kill you or cause serious injury. There are so many programs out there to help you stop smoking or drinking, but name ONE program to help you lose weight....that is FREE. My husband's employer has two stop-smoking programs, plus free counseling for drinking and smoking, but NOTHING for overcoming obesity.

When you grow up in a household that enjoys food and eating, with parents who are also overweight, it is nearly impossible to develop good eating habits. Give obese people a break, there are so many factors that go into obesity. If it were just as easy as stop eating food or start exercising, more people would be thinner. If you were lucky enough to grow up in a household that exercised and ate in moderation, kudos to you....I wasn't. I did overcome my background and maintained a healthy weight for 5+ years until I developed my disorders and since then it has been a living hell for me. It is easy to stop smoking, you can quit totally, but you cannot live without food. To learn to eat in MODERATION is ridiculously hard, especially with the culture we live in where "bad" food is every where and in everything!

I feel sorry for the obese patients who will come your way looking for help and all they will get is you guys judging them. Do you realize that if I wanted to be judged I would go look in the mirror, because that is what I do every damn day! I love it when fellow students or professors judge me based upon my looks and I crush any misconceptions they have based upon the thought "fat people are stupid". When I get the highest score in the class or tell people I have a mater's degree and going for a second bachelors degree and applying to med school, they look at me like "you?".

Saying that obese people shouldn't be doctors is ridiculous....that's like saying someone with cavities shouldn't be a dentist or someone who wears glasses shouldn't be a opthamalogist or a dermatologist shouldn't have acne. C'mon people! The next time you see someone who is obese, look beyond the weight and realize the daily struggle we deal with. Maybe it isn't just as simple as someone who eats too much food. Also realize that just because I am obese now, doesn't mean that I'm not trying like hell to become healthy. I only hope my life struggles and experiences will make me a better doctor that will help my patients....ALL my patients....to become healthier.

 

[teacherman84]

I dont think anyone here was expressing a lack of sympathy for the obese...in some cases there is a lot that is out of the patients control and I agree, it would be nice for a physician to be able to sympathize having experienced the struggle firsthand. But I think the issue would be having an overweight physician give dietary or lifestyle advice to a patient. Although the physician may have a good reason they cant lose the weight, the patient will still have a hard time following advice from someone who looks like they arent themselves doing. Appearance is everything for some people, so while the doc may eat 1500 calories and spend an hour at the gym each day, patients see what they see will judge as well.

There is a degree of discrimination, I dont think anyone could deny that. But I think there are those who equally discriminate against other destructive lifestyles like you mentioned...but some arent as outwardly visible. If I see an obese physician or nurse cramming a burger for lunch I do think that person is being hypocritical...but it is the same criticism I would have for one smoking outside. As a teacher, it would be like me speaking to my students with awful grammar and never spelling anything right and yelling at them for the same errors...its hypocritical. I dont look down on them as people, but its hard to respect someone in such a position behaving so poorly.

Learning to eat in moderation is hard...especially when youve always eaten more than you should. You see the same thing with professional athletes who transition from a life of intense training to retirement and baloon up. They are used to cramming as many calories in as possible, and its hard for many, but its possible to overcome habits. While it is true that "bad" food is every where and in everything and cheaper, how can a doc encourage patients to make right choices when they cant do the same for themselves.

Im sorry you have been treated so poorly. There are idiots out there who arent going to be sympathetic or that think obese people are less intelligent...and no one is saying obese people shouldnt become doctors, but rather that there is going to be discrimination regardless of how fair it is.

 

[dozitgetchahi]

Are you kidding me? Yes, there is an obvious bias in society towards obese people. Especially among doctors, studies have shown obese patients receive LESS care than other patients and the care they do receive is sub-par, when in actuality they should be receiving MORE care to help combat obesity. I am considered obese, yet I am still applying to medical school. My health problems are one of the reasons I have wanted to become a doctor. I am not hailing obesity as 'lifestyle' it is UNHEALTHY, I fully 100% realize this, but this is not an over night thing I can change, in fact several factors are beyond my control. I have been misdiagnosed twice for two different disorders and it took over 8 years to be correctly diagnosed. I was dismissed by countless physicians who thought I was a lazy person who stuffed fried food, cheeseburgers and what not into my mouth every day, all day long. Yet the complete opposite was true, however no one took the time to actually figure out what was wrong! If all you people are wanting to be physicians and you cannot sympathize with your patients and think they are lazy and fat then why the heck are you going into healthcare? I feel my situation is going to give me that edge in UNDERSTANDING what my patients are going through. Losing weight, especially when factors are stacked against you (genetics, disorders, medications causing weight gain, etc), is probably the hardest thing I have ever done and it is a LIFE TIME BATTLE!!

Get off your soap boxes people. You look at obesity as the worst thing in the world, and yes it is horrible for your body, but how many doctors smoke, drink, have unprotected sex, or participate in "dangerous" sports (mountain climbing, rafting, horseback riding, 4-wheeling, etc). Any number of those things can kill you or cause serious injury. There are so many programs out there to help you stop smoking or drinking, but name ONE program to help you lose weight....that is FREE. My husband's employer has two stop-smoking programs, plus free counseling for drinking and smoking, but NOTHING for overcoming obesity.

When you grow up in a household that enjoys food and eating, with parents who are also overweight, it is nearly impossible to develop good eating habits. Give obese people a break, there are so many factors that go into obesity. If it were just as easy as stop eating food or start exercising, more people would be thinner. If you were lucky enough to grow up in a household that exercised and ate in moderation, kudos to you....I wasn't. I did overcome my background and maintained a healthy weight for 5+ years until I developed my disorders and since then it has been a living hell for me. It is easy to stop smoking, you can quit totally, but you cannot live without food. To learn to eat in MODERATION is ridiculously hard, especially with the culture we live in where "bad" food is every where and in everything!

I feel sorry for the obese patients who will come your way looking for help and all they will get is you guys judging them. Do you realize that if I wanted to be judged I would go look in the mirror, because that is what I do every damn day! I love it when fellow students or professors judge me based upon my looks and I crush any misconceptions they have based upon the thought "fat people are stupid". When I get the highest score in the class or tell people I have a mater's degree and going for a second bachelors degree and applying to med school, they look at me like "you?".

Saying that obese people shouldn't be doctors is ridiculous....that's like saying someone with cavities shouldn't be a dentist or someone who wears glasses shouldn't be a opthamalogist or a dermatologist shouldn't have acne. C'mon people! The next time you see someone who is obese, look beyond the weight and realize the daily struggle we deal with. Maybe it isn't just as simple as someone who eats too much food. Also realize that just because I am obese now, doesn't mean that I'm not trying like hell to become healthy. I only hope my life struggles and experiences will make me a better doctor that will help my patients....ALL my patients....to become healthier.

+10. I agree completely, and I'm still fairly shocked by the number of doctors that smoke and/or drink hard. As for the admissions issue, I wonder if there isn't a degree of discrimination against overweight applicants; among my first-year classmates there are an awful lot of slender, shapely girls and guys so ripped they look like Schwarzenegger during his glory days. Being a somewhat chubby guy myself, I often look around at these people and feel completely outclassed physique-wise.

 

[MarieMarie]

As a teacher, it would be like me speaking to my students with awful grammar and never spelling anything right and yelling at them for the same errors...its hypocritical.

This isn't a very good analogy. How about: In your private life you post on the internet with questionable grammar, but when working as an educator you use perfect English. It's not part of a doctor's job to be a perfect specimen of health for their patients, or BMI would be included on the primary application. I think a doctor needs to be able to determine what plan of action is most likely to be effective with that particular patient.

I think it's valid to wonder if perceived "hypocrisy" would undermine a physician's authority, but I also think that these problems help a patient relate to their doctor. I've heard family members say things like "What would she know about losing weight" in reference to our rail-thin PCP. You really can't win.

So, the best doctor would be a formerly 400lb, smoking, crack addicted alcoholic who has turned his life around to become a clean and sober marathon runner.😉

Edit:

+10. I agree completely, and I'm still fairly shocked by the number of doctors that smoke and/or drink hard. As for the admissions issue, I wonder if there isn't a degree of discrimination against overweight applicants; among my first-year classmates there are an awful lot of slender, shapely girls and guys so ripped they look like Schwarzenegger during his glory days. Being a somewhat chubby guy myself, I often look around at these people and feel completely outclassed physique-wise.

There's no doubt there's a negative bias towards the overweight, but different races, sexes, religions are also affected. Don't get me started on being just plain ugly.