Talking about Alcohol in Secondaries/Interviews

[SMPThrowaway2017]

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Hey guys,

I wanted some advice about talking about Alcohol in secondaries and in interviews. I appreciate any feedback that you guys have.

Background: I drank heavily throughout college and didn't do as well as I could have. I subsequently went to an SMP program and thought I could control my drinking with a change of scenery, which did not happen. I reached a low point where I was drinking 4/5 nights a week even during the SMP program. I failed a class and I finally realized that I was ruining my life and I attempted to get myself back on track. I starting going to counseling and AA meetings and stopped drinking completely. My grades really improved and I also retook my MCAT. I graduated with a final SMP GPA was X and my MCAT retake was X.

Question: I recently had a practice interview to prepare for some of my upcoming interviews and I was asked about the sudden change in my grades and MCAT. My question is whether I should talk honestly about my issues about Alcohol or whether I should just say that I had some private issues that I had to take care of before I could truly succeed.

 

[LoveBeingHuman:)]

Don't say alcohol.

Alcoholism usually has an underlying factor: depression, anxiety, stress, loneliness. Take about these personal issues you were having and then mention how you changed things around.

 

[ndafife]

If you don't have legal issues that are going to require disclosure, then don't bring it up. You can talk about the changes you made in your life (regaining focus on school, lifestyle changes, etc....) without bringing up alcoholism which carries a more negative connotation.

 

[Goro]

Hey guys,

I wanted some advice about talking about Alcohol in secondaries and in interviews. I appreciate any feedback that you guys have.

Background: I drank heavily throughout college and didn't do as well as I could have. I subsequently went to an SMP program and thought I could control my drinking with a change of scenery, which did not happen. I reached a low point where I was drinking 4/5 nights a week even during the SMP program. I failed a class and I finally realized that I was ruining my life and I attempted to get myself back on track. I starting going to counseling and AA meetings and stopped drinking completely. My grades really improved and I also retook my MCAT. I graduated with a final SMP GPA was a 3.3 (3.85 after quitting alcohol) and my MCAT retake was 519.

Question: I recently had a practice interview to prepare for some of my upcoming interviews and I was asked about the sudden change in my grades and MCAT. My question is whether I should talk honestly about my issues about Alcohol or whether I should just say that I had some private issues that I had to take care of before I could truly succeed.

It's a fair subject to address, and don't forget that people really like come-from-behind stories. It's in our national DNA.

 

[rilte4]

Hey guys,

I wanted some advice about talking about Alcohol in secondaries and in interviews. I appreciate any feedback that you guys have.

Background: I drank heavily throughout college and didn't do as well as I could have. I subsequently went to an SMP program and thought I could control my drinking with a change of scenery, which did not happen. I reached a low point where I was drinking 4/5 nights a week even during the SMP program. I failed a class and I finally realized that I was ruining my life and I attempted to get myself back on track. I starting going to counseling and AA meetings and stopped drinking completely. My grades really improved and I also retook my MCAT. I graduated with a final SMP GPA was a 3.3 (3.85 after quitting alcohol) and my MCAT retake was 519.

Question: I recently had a practice interview to prepare for some of my upcoming interviews and I was asked about the sudden change in my grades and MCAT. My question is whether I should talk honestly about my issues about Alcohol or whether I should just say that I had some private issues that I had to take care of before I could truly succeed.

I vote no. I think when substance abuse and addiction come up, people automatically start wondering about the possibility of relapse when you're put in extremely stressful situations (difficult rotations, residency, ethical dilemmas on the job, etc.). I would personally keep the exact issue (alcohol) private, admit you had some personal issues that affected school performance, and really emphasize the upclimb - especially that you voluntarily sought counseling. State that the changes you made in your personal life gave you confidence in yourself to establish a support system and deal with any future roadblocks in a healthy way.

FWIW I think it's an awesome story.

 

[LoveBeingHuman:)]

Long story short, it's high risk. If it goes the wrong way, it will cause significant damage. Your call.

 

[jkmnop]

Leave it out unless you have to. Don't give them a reason to doubt that you could handle the pressures med at school


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[HomeSkool]

It's reasonable to talk about it if you do so carefully. Say that you fell into bad habits with alcohol, causing multiple areas of your life to suffer. Tell them you had a "come to Jesus" moment when you realized what was happening and took steps on your own to correct it. Say that your multifaceted strategy helped you stay sober in the face of considerable stress in your SMP, and that it will similarly help you face the pressures of medical education. Talk about how your own experiences gave you empathy for those who battle addiction.

The fact that you recognized the problem and proactively set about correcting it (rather than being court-ordered to rehab after your third DUI or something) works strongly in your favor.

 

[Med Ed]

Hey guys,

I wanted some advice about talking about Alcohol in secondaries and in interviews. I appreciate any feedback that you guys have.

Background: I drank heavily throughout college and didn't do as well as I could have. I subsequently went to an SMP program and thought I could control my drinking with a change of scenery, which did not happen. I reached a low point where I was drinking 4/5 nights a week even during the SMP program. I failed a class and I finally realized that I was ruining my life and I attempted to get myself back on track. I starting going to counseling and AA meetings and stopped drinking completely. My grades really improved and I also retook my MCAT. I graduated with a final SMP GPA was a 3.3 (3.85 after quitting alcohol) and my MCAT retake was 519.

Question: I recently had a practice interview to prepare for some of my upcoming interviews and I was asked about the sudden change in my grades and MCAT. My question is whether I should talk honestly about my issues about Alcohol or whether I should just say that I had some private issues that I had to take care of before I could truly succeed.

Third option: just say you got your act together, took charge of your studies, and the results speak for themselves. Lots of people party their asses off into their 20's and then stop when the risk/reward profile becomes, shall we say, untenable. Lots of people get their acts together for reasons that have nothing to do with alcohol. We're used to it.

 

[Mad Jack]

Good way to have your app end up in the trash

 

[TeddyBears]

Like a few of the posters have already mentioned you can still address turning your studies around without breaching your confidentiality around your relationship with alcohol and your AA program etc. You don't necessarily need to go into all of the specifics especially if you are not entirely sure how it might play out - you already have enough pressure in these situations to add more. Just try not to second guess yourself too much.

 

[SMPThrowaway2017]

I vote no. I think when substance abuse and addiction come up, people automatically start wondering about the possibility of relapse when you're put in extremely stressful situations (difficult rotations, residency, ethical dilemmas on the job, etc.). I would personally keep the exact issue (alcohol) private, admit you had some personal issues that affected school performance, and really emphasize the upclimb - especially that you voluntarily sought counseling. State that the changes you made in your personal life gave you confidence in yourself to establish a support system and deal with any future roadblocks in a healthy way.

FWIW I think it's an awesome story.

It's reasonable to talk about it if you do so carefully. Say that you fell into bad habits with alcohol, causing multiple areas of your life to suffer. Tell them you had a "come to Jesus" moment when you realized what was happening and took steps on your own to correct it. Say that your multifaceted strategy helped you stay sober in the face of considerable stress in your SMP, and that it will similarly help you face the pressures of medical education. Talk about how your own experiences gave you empathy for those who battle addiction.

The fact that you recognized the problem and proactively set about correcting it (rather than being court-ordered to rehab after your third DUI or something) works strongly in your favor.

Without mentioning that is was Alcohol related directly, would there be any stigma associated with writing/talking about attending counseling and how that helped get my life back on track? I would prefer to write about me proactively realizing what I was doing wrong and the steps I took to fix these problems

 

[HomeSkool]

Without mentioning that is was Alcohol related directly, would there be any stigma associated with writing/talking about attending counseling and how that helped get my life back on track? I would prefer to write about me proactively realizing what I was doing wrong and the steps I took to fix these problems

I wouldn't think anything of it, but I'm a person who suffered from unrecognized depression for more than a decade before getting it diagnosed and treated (so I'm very sympathetic to folks with the same sort of problems). Others may feel differently.

 

[rilte4]

Without mentioning that is was Alcohol related directly, would there be any stigma associated with writing/talking about attending counseling and how that helped get my life back on track? I would prefer to write about me proactively realizing what I was doing wrong and the steps I took to fix these problems

I don't think there'd be stigma, but you never know what someone's biases are. I would hope that someone selected to interview students isn't averse to discussing mental health, but you never know. I think schools are looking for students who are resilient and capable of finding the support they need when the going gets tough. You've proven that you can.

 

[TeddyBears]

I don't think there'd be stigma, but you never know what someone's biases are. I would hope that someone selected to interview students isn't averse to discussing mental health, but you never know. I think schools are looking for students who are resilient and capable of finding the support they need when the going gets tough. You've proven that you can.

Very well put! Your strengths are displayed by you having the courage to find the support you need and finding ways to recognize issues you have to deal with in your everyday life. Most of us do not do that.

 

[CyrilFiggis]

Interviewer: "it seems that you had a sudden turn around in your grades, what happened?"

You: "For a while I was struggling with some issues in my life. I was frankly stubborn and felt that I could handle them on my own and push through. As my app shows, I failed Class X during my SMP and that really became a wake-up call that I couldn't do this on my own. I found support through friends and professional help and have been able to turn things around. I feel really great about where I am now and I only regret that I was so stubborn and could have made these changes earlier."

 

[Welshman]

As had been said, I think there are many ways to handle it without labeling yourself as an alcoholic. I would take those routes.