Potential IA -- Advice?

[vivogie]

Hi -- I'm new to SDN but I was just wanting to get an idea of the severity of my misconduct.

I'm in my freshman year of undergrad. I made a mistake, and lied about getting an assignment in to my professor before a certain date when I hadn't. The professor caught me out and filed a report on me. I owned up to my mistake and let her know that I regretted a poor decision I had made instead of just being honest about being unable to get something submitted on time. In our meeting she seemed sympathetic to my situation (there are some details I'd rather not disclose here for privacy) but I know she is still filing the report which I believe is fair. I actually have no idea if this will be an IA that will be on my transcript/file yet -- but I know it's something I should keep in mind as I continue my education and prepare to apply for medschool since I know that AMCAS expects you to report ANY academic misconduct, saved in my student files or not.

Either way, I was just wanting to know what adcoms may think of this mistake. I know what I did was wrong and I will be owning up to my mistake on the application, and I know it won't happen again. Reporting it is not the issue here; I would just like an idea of how much it may harm my chances of getting into a medical school, especially since it's in my freshman year.

Thanks so much!
- Viv

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[Mr.Smile12]

Don't do it again. Own up to it. Not "I will."

Ask your student conduct office, but I presume if there is a hearing, it goes on your record.

 

[LizzyM]

Did this go any further than the conversation with the professor? Did you receive any confirmation that this was even reported?

The rule is not that you must report all misconduct (otherwise, the number of people who would need to report being in a place where underage drinking was taking place would skyrocket) but you must report all INSTITUTIONAL ACTION. This means if the school took any action, even issuing a warning. The SCHOOL, not just the professor. If the professor reported it to administrators, a note would go in your academic record and, in all likelihood you'd receive a message warning you that further infractions could result in sanctions.
Under a federal law called FERPA, you have the right to examine your academic record. You can (and should) determine if anything has been recorded in your record. In some cases, the school will wipe your record after a set period of time or after you graduate and in those cases you still have to report but if the school never had a record of the conversation between you and the professor and never issued you so much as a warning, then you really don't have an "institutional action" (IA) to report.

 

[Goro]

Don't do it again. Own up to it. Not "I will."

Ask your student conduct office, but I presume if there is a hearing, it goes on your record.

This. 1,000 times over. And do not f****** up again

 

[vivogie]

Not "I will."

Of course. The future tense is in reference to the AMCAS application — I know what I did was wrong now and I will be working on myself to ensure the line of thinking that led me to be dishonest with my professor is something that never happens again. I know honesty is important especially in the medical field and it’s something I want to be especially when it comes to my future application.

 

[LizzyM]

You could read Forgive and Remember by Charles Bosk. It is a pretty short book, a sociologist's study of two teams of surgeons and their trainees. There are several types of errors that a surgical trainee can make and the most egregious is lying about something that was done (or not done). Getting caught and learning this lesson early, and realizing that you cannot repeat such an act and maintain your integrity, could be an important point in your moral development. Consider it your homework assignment this summer.

 

[vivogie]

Thank you so much for the recommendation! I will definitely look into it this summer 🙂

 

[vivogie]

Did this go any further than the conversation with the professor? Did you receive any confirmation that this was even reported?

My professor mentioned in an email to me that she would be filing an “academic integrity report” but that I shouldn’t have to worry about it unless I’m a repeat offender. I asked an advisor about what this report is since I couldn’t find anything about it on my school’s website and I’ve also emailed my school’s head of student services about it since I was recommended to contact her by the advisor. I’m currently waiting for a response.

As of now I’m just thinking to wait and see if I get any contact from the school about this incident and make a request for my records so I know exactly where this is filed (if it is anywhere).