What to do if I have a DUI???

[futuremd45]

Do to some poor judgement, I was convicted of a DUI (driving under the influence...) two years ago. It is a misdemeanor and I paid my debt to society. However, I am wondering how this effects my med school chances? Will the better med schools shy away from me? Are there any students that have had to deal with this problem???

Thanks for advice.

 

[Amy]

You only have to reveal if you've been convicted of a felony on med school apps. The schools will never know about your misdemeanor. I do hope that you've matured since then and will never drive while intoxicated again... people expect doctors to be above that sort of behavior.

 

[Spidey]

Originally posted by Amy
You only have to reveal if you've been convicted of a felony on med school apps. The schools will never know about your misdemeanor. I do hope that you've matured since then and will never drive while intoxicated again... people expect doctors to be above that sort of behavior.

You know I'm told there are studies that show if you drive while extremely sleep deprived it is just as bad as driving drunk. And there are many doctors who are guilty of driving home after a 36 hour shift with no sleep, so maybe doctors aren't so smart after all :0 What's my point? uhh no point really just saying, no one is perfect I guess.

 

[pwrpfgrl]

I think it depends on the schools - some only ask if you've been convicted of a felony, some ask about misdemeanors, and some, like UVM ask if you've ever gotten a speeding ticket!! what, like doctors never drive above the speed limit?? anyway, i don't know if you can really call up the school and ask what level of crime is ok to get in ... actually, you could, just don't give your name!

 

[futuremd45]

Thanks alot for the advice guys.

Is there any way for me to check which schools ask about felony vs. misdemenour??? Also, do AMCAS ask that on the primary application???



P.S. Trust me, I have learnt my lesson!

 

[fourthyear]

I had a friend who went to an undergrad place with a super-strict honor code. She was accused of stealing a bagel from the cafeteria - only she didn't steal it, she ate off her friend's try and the friend had an all-you-can-eat meal plan, which was the ONLY way you could buy any food at that cafeteria - no a la carte. Anyway, someone reported her to honor board, she had to go through all the trials, and it was reported on her final transcript that she was brought up on an honor code violation, which was dismissed with only probation. So when she applied to law schools she actually had to explain it to them all! It worked out though, she got into several schools, got a scholarship to one, and graduated last year.

 

[Spidey]

Originally posted by fourthyear
She was accused of stealing a bagel from the cafeteria - only she didn't steal it, she ate off her friend's try and the friend had an all-you-can-eat meal plan, which was the ONLY way you could buy any food at that cafeteria

jeez what kind of a frickin lamer would you have to be to report someone for eating a bagel like that.

 

[FutureM.D.]

HEY!! I'm the Future MD around here bucko! Who do you think you are just coming on here like the newbie you are using my name with a 45 attached??!
What are people supposed to call you?! future45 or something? Definetly not future, that's my nickname!

 

[LoveDoc]

I left the campus I attended school at and moved back home one year. The next year I drove back to campus (1 hour away) to attend a upper-level bio class.

My schedule consisted of getting to work at 6am leaving for class at 8:30 attending class and driving back and working til 6pm. On Friday's I had a 4 hour lab.

I drove home sleep every day. I did everything I could to stay awake. Turned the air on full blast, music up as loud as possible, and thought about putting toothpicks in my eyes.

IT WAS HORRIBLE.

Anyone within 10 feet of my then 91' Chevy had a 90% chance of getting hit. Did I learn anything? Yes, when you have class you better be on time. No sense fooling each other. People who drive sleepy are just as dangerous as DUIs but society is tolerant of the sleepers b/c an overwhelming majority of us do it. AND...it doesn't involve drugs/alcohol.

WE ARE ALL SUCH HYPOCRITES (at times).

If you are meant to be a doctor you will be a doctor regardless of your DUI...Keep the faith!

 

[none]

Not specific to this case as I don't see any hypocrisy above...but hypocrites are better than no crites at all. If something is inherently wrong, then a person should be praised for criticizing it regardless of whether they personally do it or not. This is not to say that they their bad action should be ignored, simply that it should not be grouped with their own criticism of the action to somehow make both of them lesser. This is my own pet peeve...

 

[Zoobaby]

Originally posted by Amy
You only have to reveal if you've been convicted of a felony on med school apps. The schools will never know about your misdemeanor. I do hope that you've matured since then and will never drive while intoxicated again... people expect doctors to be above that sort of behavior.

People also expect doctors not to be judgemental, especially after someone has admitted a mistake and made up for it.

 

[CaNEM]

Doesn't AMCAS ask about "institutional action"? This would include misdemeanors right?

 

[DarkChild]

i wouldnt qualify the misdemeanor as an institutional action...

Originally posted by CaNEM
Doesn't AMCAS ask about "institutional action"? This would include misdemeanors right?

 

[DW]

Originally posted by CaNEM
Doesn't AMCAS ask about "institutional action"? This would include misdemeanors right?

i think this only refers to disciplinary actions from the school (which can usually seen readily on your school records).

 

[CaNEM]

OK. That seems like of strange, though, that they want to know if you were caught by your school for something like underage drinking as a freshman, but don't care if you were convicted of a DUI.