Scary Article about Harvard Interview

[rudi]

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http://www.salon.com/books/it/1999/04/28/interview/print.html

Man, this article is pretty scary...

 

[CaMD]

Thanks for the link, it was a fun read.

Not that it did anything for my sanity.

 

[DoctorMalki]

Damn, that really sucks !

 

[xanthines]

This article has been hashed and rehashed on this site. The article IS from 1999, after all. If you read her other articles it seems that she either has a grudge against medicine in particular, or is just being dramatic for showmanship. Either way, I'd take anything I read off of a website with a grain of salt. That includes posts like mine! 😉

-X

Damn, that really sucks !

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

You're right, the story has been changing. The last time I read it, they shot her. 😀

 

[Haybrant]

You're right, the story has been changing. The last time I read it, they shot her. 😀

i heard they wanted to bone her...

 

[BeatArmy]

She does seem a little dramatic.
However, I'm sure the basics are true and I think this could happen just about anywhere.
Who interviews you, how well you mesh with them, what kind of mood they're in, etc. can have a large impact on your chances.
That's why even the best applicants should apply to at least a handful of schools.

 

[IndyZX]

Honestly, it sounds more like a singularly bad experience than anything else.

 

[cooldreams]

if i may, i would also like to toss in my 2 cents...

it may outwardly appear that she was in an unique situation, but realize what she did, and see how they took that and analysised some underlying thoughts.

for example in talking about the surgery that she observed for just one day. how was that one day so spactacular that she needed to reference it in her interview as opposed to all of the "other" incidents she observed. in fact she says it was not spactacular and she only briefly saw the doctor there. what is the point in talking about something so insignificant if she had a two years of much more interesting experiences?? just little things like that that you may want to look at....

 

[CarleneM]

i went to harvard for my undergrad years although I had a horrible interview exerience and assumed i would never get in. it wasn't as bad as the writer's but i was interviewed by an older, very rich and powerful male CEO who wouldn't get off the fact that i had no family connections to harvard (my parents went to state schools) and that I didn't do any team sports. He didn't care about any of my accomplishments. And he concluded the interview by saying "well, there are a lot of applications, I just don't know how well you'll stand out". yeah well f*ck him. worst interview i have ever had but hey, don't get discouraged by a bad interview because I got in anyway....


my current boss, on the faculty at harvard med, always jokes about how so many people are just at harvard to get their "crimson underwear", crimson being the school's color. there was a psychologist here who like stole a harvard chair because he was so obsessed with being part of harvard faculty. i have enjoyed my experiences here and have lived in massachusetts my whole life but I do think it gets very surreal/hollywood-ish at times.....

 

[Nuel]

Of course the applicant's experience is singular, but I have never been a fan of Harvard, unjustifiably though. I guess you know James Watson, co-discoverer of DNA structure. He applied to Harvard for his PhD but ended up at Indiana U-Bloomington. After his discovery he went to Harvard and reached full professor status at Harvard within 10 years--a very impressive record. As you can see, this is what Harvard thrives on--"Home to Nobel laureates and distinguished researchers." Don't get me wrong, Harvard is in itself a very good school. So how does this digression pertain to med school interviews?

 

[cooldreams]

Of course the applicant's experience is singular, but I have never been a fan of Harvard, unjustifiably though. I guess you know James Watson, co-discoverer of DNA structure. He applied to Harvard for his PhD but ended up at Indiana U-Bloomington. After his discovery he went to Harvard and reached full professor status at Harvard within 10 years--a very impressive record. As you can see, this is what Harvard thrives on--"Home to Nobel laureates and distinguished researchers." Don't get me wrong, Harvard is in itself a very good school. So how does this digression pertain to med school interviews?

dah... dont get me started on those genetics 'founders'.. that is sooooo over hyped... what did they really do?? ummm stumble onto work done by hundreds of other ppl?? hello... and what kind of respect does he have for himself if he goes back to harvard only because he is 'recognised' for being a key player in possiblly the biggest 'discovery' of the century?? too much bs to see through...

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

I'm not very surprised at all. First of all, the applicant in this case is an excellent writer and the article is extremely effective because she gives you the dialogue of the conversation as if you were standing in the room with her while the dialogue was occurring. In addition, her writing style just reads like that of...well..for lack of better words here...a movie script. This was a pretty damning evaluation of Harvard's interview process. I'm inclined to agree with the writer because many of the faculty members and members of admissions committees at elite schools know that they are one among a very selective group...and their arrogance carries over into their speech, demeanor, and general behavior around others. I could see how an interviewer who has conducted hundreds of interviews over many years could feel threatened by having a former Hollywood executive sitting in front of them...to make matters worse, said executive has a BA in French from Stanford.

The interviewer was probably so accustomed to sitting down with 20-22 year old people with freshly minted biology degrees. I'm guessing the interviewer was just much more comfortable with the cookie-cutter premed (bio major, hospital volunteering, lab research, and **insert EC that well over 50% of premeds do here**)...as opposed to a Hollywood exec that was already 10 years out of undergrad. I'm not surprised this happened.

 

[calstudent]

Not that it did anything for my sanity.

i'm with you!

 

[nontrad314]

BerkeleyPremed
That is very well said.

 

[JDAD]

I am still applying, they give aid to international students!

 

[Shaz]

hey berkeleypremed, nevertheless, a person should be given a fair chance.

 

[W222]

Lets take what someone previously here stated, she wrote her entire personal statement about one shadowing experience. Thats like me watching an episode of Cops and running out and joining the force. She sounded like she wanted a red carpet roled out to her. Also, take into account the fact that she is in the entertainment biz, she may have been trying to grab press for herself by trashing a school. People wouldnt care if you wrote about an interview at Smuck U Med school, but Harvard tends to perk people's ears.

 

[W222]

One final note: She didn't make it through Stanford Medical School. No mention as to why on her website.

 

[doc05]

why is this so "scary?" these things happen. the writer is too "hollywood," with an enormous (and undeserved) sense of entitlement.

frankly, I was not impressed with the essay.

 

[stinkycheese]

I was surprised that she didn't find it inappropriate to make jokes in front of the admissions director. Her attitude was too callous or playful for interview day. I dont think we should approach the day like its a funeral or anything, but making dumb jokes is not a great idea.

 

[hy2026]

I guess that is life, (if her story is true),sometimes no matter how hard you try you give wrong impressions, meet wrong people and bad things happen.

you have to laugh and move on, hope it will look better in the morning.

 

[45408]

cookie-cutter premed (bio major, hospital volunteering, lab research, and **insert EC that well over 50% of premeds do here**)

that's not all of SDN

 

[delchrys]

3.9 undergrad GPA, 36 MCAT, and about 5 SOLID years of sincere work in a number of volunteer activities, most of which in a leadership capacity. research done with a harvard MD/PhD published while still in undergrad. the person i just described was told by a member of the harvard admissions personnel that their grades, MCAT, and experiences were great. then they asked this person what undergrad they were attending, and when they answered <noname local college> the harvard woman's attitude shifted immediately into icy cold and that was that.

i realize it's not everyone or everywhere, but for all the "diversity" harvard claims to emphasize and love, refusing a woman with the background i described, with two parents who have only high school educations, harvard, in that one incident, revealed itself to my friend and those very close to her to be extraordinarily superficial.

 

[Mumpu]

Oh no, a snooty French major from Stanford didn't get into Harvard. The horror! The horror! 😛

 

[constructor]

you're missing the point... it was harvard that was snooty and didn't give her a fair chance to represent herself to the adcom. i don't think her comment at the beginning was appropriate, but the folks at harvard seemingly felt threatened throughout the interview by the fact that she was overqualified and a real person with real experiences who would probably make a better doctor than most of the people they usually accept. typical of harvard... superficial airheads... all talk, no game...

 

[Dr.LeoSpaceman]

you're missing the point... it was harvard that was snooty and didn't give her a fair chance to represent herself to the adcom. i don't think her comment at the beginning was appropriate, but the folks at harvard seemingly felt threatened throughout the interview by the fact that she was overqualified and a real person with real experiences who would probably make a better doctor than most of the people they usually accept. typical of harvard... superficial airheads... all talk, no game...

As superficial as it seems...if I got accepted, I wouldn't hesitate to go there.

 

[cooldreams]

As superficial as it seems...if I got accepted, I wouldn't hesitate to go there.

maybe... depends how much it cost ME... think about it... a school like that... its all about YOU for wanting to go there, so why not think about numero-uno in deciding to go there.

 

[constructor]

i always wonder why the people at ucsf (a better school overall in my opinion) are so down-to-earth and friendly but that's not the case at harvard...

 

[39094]

It's really easy to embellish a story and make it sound a lot worse than it really was. I don't know if that's what happened in this case, but it seems likely. I was interviewed at Harvard by a rather rude doctor who made several inappropriate comments, but I just laughed them off and explained that part of my background. I ended up getting accepted, but didn't attend. Why? Because it wasn't the school for me. Having the big H on your resume is not the most important thing in the world. If you really like the school and it's for you, more power to you. I just wish people would get over the whole "aura" thing associated with Harvard. To me it was just another school, and quite frankly I had a MUCH worse interview at UCLA. Bad things can happen at any interview, but if it's HARVARD, it's immediately assumed that the person who got rejected had a life-calling to be there that was somehow snubbed......give me a break.

 

[JattMed]

maybe... depends how much it cost ME... think about it... a school like that... its all about YOU for wanting to go there, so why not think about numero-uno in deciding to go there.

You have a real knack for stating the obvious!
Hello........anyone in there?
It is always about the individual concerned.
Oh damn I hate Harvard.......but I'm only going there because mommy is forcing me to--------yah F&*#-off!
Hmmmm so you are implying that no one considers their own motives before deciding on medschool. It is always about you!
Every decision you make is yours.
Unless of course the DEVIL made you do it.
Are you behind on something...........have you not been reading...........now go to your room and get on your knees BOY!

Charlie don't surf...............

 

[morganlefay]

You have a real knack for stating the obvious!
Hello........anyone in there?
It is always about the individual concerned.
Oh damn I hate Harvard.......but I'm only going there because mommy is forcing me to--------yah F&*#-off!
Hmmmm so you are implying that no one considers their own motives before deciding on medschool. It is always about you!
Every decision you make is yours.
Unless of course the DEVIL made you do it.
Are you behind on something...........have you not been reading...........now go to your room and get on your knees BOY!

Charlie don't surf...............

Wow. Isn't this a brilliant piece of insight. 🙄

 

[JattMed]

Wow. Isn't this a brilliant piece of insight. 🙄

Ya really really really think so??
Awww schucks!
Ya might wanna include this on your application
Good luck on your application!

 

[ShyRem]

I am not surprised at all. When I first went to college 20 years ago (I was VERY young back then), I went to a very prestigious Ivy league college. They promised the world, left a warm fuzzy impression that they would help me along given my age, and when I accepted, they left me in the dirt. It was a cold nasty aloof place. And this was not an isolated incident: I visited several other colleges and universities (all Ivy league) while I was a college student: they were all the same. If you don't fit the "regular" mold, you're given the cold shoulder. Make that the arctic shoulder.

Mind you, the college I went to back then is a very fine institution: you just have to be the right kind of person to go there. If you're not, they're not gonna help you and will probably do everything they can to hinder you. I'm not surprised to hear that the Ivies haven't changed since then. After all, they have traditions to uphold.

 

[palmtree]

putt jatt de soniyeeeeeeee

 

[frantic983]

.

 

[gujuDoc]

Well I'm not too surprised.........everyone has their fair share of good interviewers and bad interviewers if you look at interviewfeedback.com


However, I will say that I don't feel sympathy for this lady if she didn't even end up making it through med school.

 

[SanDiegoSOD]

I dont get it... The story isnt even that bad, just an a**hole interviewer giving her a hard time. I expect maybe one or two interviews will be like that for me. So what? She was given a special interview by the Dean, and wasnt admitted.

 

[morganlefay]

Ya really really really think so??
Awww schucks!
Ya might wanna include this on your application
Good luck on your application!

Ummm, thanks?! If I put that on my app., adcoms might think I needed medication. LOL 😛 😉

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

hey berkeleypremed, nevertheless, a person should be given a fair chance.

I think you missed the point of my point...I was placing the fault on the interviewer...not on the young (or not so young) lady that was being interviewed. I agree, everyone should be given a fair chance at the interview. However, we must keep in mind that there is a "lucK" factor that comes into play here because I'm sure some interviewers are more receptive, better listeners, better equipped to carry on a conversation, more forgiving, etc...as compared to other interviewers...right?

 

[JattMed]

Ummm, thanks?! If I put that on my app., adcoms might think I needed medication. LOL 😛 😉

I rolled around on the carpet in the Dean's Office once...........he wasn't impressed........I tried to say it was due to a vestibular problem.

 

[JattMed]

I love those interviewers that make girls cry..........
I just dont wanna see another classmate 'crying' because the gross anatomy lab was too hard and the cadaver was nothing like the book-it is so clear in the book......waaaaaaaahhhhhhh!
Thank god the interviewer breaks them down first.
Still waiting to see if a guy cries in anatomy lab.........if he does.........we're gonna zip him up with the donor 👍

 

[constructor]

what're you talking about?

 

[cooldreams]

he is in his own little world... dont pay any attention hehe...

 

[Nuel]

dah... dont get me started on those genetics 'founders'.. that is sooooo over hyped... what did they really do?? ummm stumble onto work done by hundreds of other ppl?? hello... and what kind of respect does he have for himself if he goes back to harvard only because he is 'recognised' for being a key player in possiblly the biggest 'discovery' of the century?? too much bs to see through...

you are missing the point. The solution to DNA structure has revolutionized biology. Before then what we had was merely speculation on the nature of DNA as the possible inheritance factor, Hershey/Chase come to mind here. What was left was knowing the exact nature of this factor. And it is the so called genetics' founders who laid the foundation and accurately predicted the process of DNA transfer as was later confirmed by Meselson and Stahl, I think they were the women. The fact is the solution to DNA strucuture required a concatenation of different talents. For instance Watson having done his thesis on X-ray effect on viral multiplication was well supplemented with Franklin's, Crick's and Wilkin's expertise on the theoretical/biophysical nature of the topic under investigation. As you should know, research is mostly collaboration since science is too wide so as to allow for singular expertise. After discovering DNA structure Watson was also involved in elucidating mechanisms of gene expression. Do a search in pubmed or Scifinder and you will see Watson's name on papers beyond the classical 1952 paper. This shows he was not just known for his seemingly trivial involvement in elucidating DNA structure. Have you even read the 1952 paper by Watson and Crick?

 

[JattMed]

you are missing the point. The solution to DNA structure has revolutionized biology. Before then what we had was merely speculation on the nature of DNA as the possible inheritance factor, Hershey/Chase come to mind here. What was left was knowing the exact nature of this factor. And it is the so called genetics' founders who laid the foundation and accurately predicted the process of DNA transfer as was later confirmed by Meselson and Stahl, I think they were the women. The fact is the solution to DNA strucuture required a concatenation of different talents. For instance Watson having done his thesis on X-ray effect on viral multiplication was well supplemented with Franklin's, Crick's and Wilkin's expertise on the theoretical/biophysical nature of the topic under investigation. As you should know, research is mostly collaboration since science is too wide so as to allow for singular expertise. After discovering DNA structure Watson was also involved in elucidating mechanisms of gene expression. Do a search in pubmed or Scifinder and you will see Watson's name on papers beyond the classical 1952 paper. This shows he was not just known for his seemingly trivial involvement in elucidating DNA structure. Have you even read the 1952 paper by Watson and Crick?

dont bother with him/her......it will never sink in

 

[KUMC_MD]

dont bother with him/her......it will never sink in

you're a happy fellow aren't you? can anyone say "troll" ?

 

[JattMed]

you're a happy fellow aren't you? can anyone say "troll" ?

I can.........you are a troll