Will this IA effect my chances of getting into med school?

[iamprophet]

In my freshman year of college, I made a post online directed as a joking matter toward a friend of mine. However, a girl down the hall from me perceived the post to be directed toward her, and since she was not in on the "inside joke," believed it to be a hurtful/threatening post I made against her. Because of this, I was charged as violating my school's student code of conduct for 1. Bullying and 2. Harrassment/threat. The situation resolved itself quickly after the girl and I talked it over and decided it was a huge misunderstanding, and to this day we remain good friends. This charge still remains on my disciplinary record though and I'm wondering how much this would impact my application.

I have a high GPA, volunteer hours, research lab experience, I work as a tutor, I've studied abroad, I'm involved in medical groups on campus and I have a lot of clinical experience.

I'm worried this blip in my record will affect my chances of getting into med school, because if this completely ruins my chances, I don't want to spend a ton of money on the MCAT and applications.

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[Goro]

If this was worked out, as you say, why is the IA still on your record?

Strongly recommend that you get a letter from the school stating that this has been resolved.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

If this was worked out, as you say, why is the IA still on your record?

Strongly recommend that you get a letter from the school stating that this has been resolved.

Yep. If not, maybe something extraordinary like starting a national-level nonprofit that deals with bullying or something plus ten years' exemplary behavior might redeem him...although he may simply be dead in the water.

 

[iamprophet]

If this was worked out, as you say, why is the IA still on your record?

Strongly recommend that you get a letter from the school stating that this has been resolved.

The issue has been resolved for over a year, however even so they can't expunge it from my record. It would have saved a lot of trouble if the girl and I could have talked it out before she reported it to the school, however since it was an incident that was reported it's not something they can take off despite being resolved solely between the girl and I. I'm wondering if talking about how the whole thing was a misunderstanding that I've grown from on my AMCAS would help my case, or if they'd just see it as a feeble attempt to save myself.

 

[Goro]

The issue has been resolved for over a year, however even so they can't expunge it from my record. It would have saved a lot of trouble if the girl and I could have talked it out before she reported it to the school, however since it was an incident that was reported it's not something they can take off despite being resolved solely between the girl and I. I'm wondering if talking about how the whole thing was a misunderstanding that I've grown from on my AMCAS would help my case, or if they'd just see it as a feeble attempt to save myself.

On the surface, cyberbullying does not look good. You need to somehow show that this was indeed a case of mistaken identity so to speak. And for that you're going to need a letter from your Schools administration.

Now just to verify, you say you worked this out with the girl, but does the school know that??? If not then the sanction is still is as it what it appears to be.

 

[iamprophet]

On the surface, cyberbullying does not look good. You need to somehow show that this was indeed a case of mistaken identity so to speak. And for that you're going to need a letter from your Schools administration.

Now just to verify, you say you worked this out with the girl, but does the school know that??? If not then the sanction is still is as it what it appears to be.

When I initially went in to the hearing for the situation, I explained how this was not how I meant the post to be taken and how it wasn't even directed toward her. They said they understand this and believed me, however they kept telling me "a person's perception is the reality" so despite my intent, her perception of the post was all that mattered in the final ruling. I also communicated that I planned to resolve the situation with the girl and that I had already apologized and explained the situation to her since she was a friend of mine for a long time, however all they said was "that's a great idea!" No mention of expunging it or changing anything.

Also, would you expect I'd just need the girl to write in to student conduct about how we talked it out? Or should I just discuss it with someone from the office myself.

 

[Goro]

When I initially went in to the hearing for the situation, I explained how this was not how I meant the post to be taken and how it wasn't even directed toward her. They said they understand this and believed me, however they kept telling me "a person's perception is the reality" so despite my intent, her perception of the post was all that mattered in the final ruling. I also communicated that I planned to resolve the situation with the girl and that I had already apologized and explained the situation to her since she was a friend of mine for a long time, however all they said was "that's a great idea!" No mention of expunging it or changing anything.

Also, would you expect I'd just need the girl to write in to student conduct about how we talked it out? Or should I just discuss it with someone from the office myself.

You need to get this IA off your record. What I'm worried about is if you check the box and explain as you do hear that my colleagues will simply say " but if it was all worked out why is the IA still on the transcript?"
So yes, your friend has to contact the school as well as you!

 

[candbgirl]

If you can’t do a better job of explaining this on your application than you are doing here you will have problems. Do you really consider this a little blip on your record? Why didn’t this person go immediately to the committee and ask to withdraw the complaint? Has she ever withdrawn the complaint? In your mind it is settled but it certainly isn’t settled in the eyes of the school. I don’t understand why you think it was settled last year. The only person(s) who think that are you and maybe the girl. I am so confused as to why you let it go so long. No amount of explaining on your application is going to override that great big IA on your records. If it has really been settled you need to do everything in your power to get it off your record. But I think it needs to start with the person who filed the complaint. The complaint has to be formally withdrawn.

 

[iamprophet]

You need to get this IA off your record. What I'm worried about is if you check the box and explain as you do hear that my colleagues will simply say " but if it was all worked out why is the IA still on the transcript?"
So yes, your friend has to contact the school as well as you!

I've contacted my school's conduct office about having her retract the report or about expunging it from my record. They said there's no way to expunge it from my record, and that although it's great that things have worked out between the girl and I, that the incident still happened and there's nothing they can do about it. In addition, they said this won't show up on my academic transcript and that they would need my legal permission before releasing any conduct information to any schools.

 

[iamprophet]

If you can’t do a better job of explaining this on your application than you are doing here you will have problems. Do you really consider this a little blip on your record? Why didn’t this person go immediately to the committee and ask to withdraw the complaint? Has she ever withdrawn the complaint? In your mind it is settled but it certainly isn’t settled in the eyes of the school. I don’t understand why you think it was settled last year. The only person(s) who think that are you and maybe the girl. I am so confused as to why you let it go so long. No amount of explaining on your application is going to override that great big IA on your records. If it has really been settled you need to do everything in your power to get it off your record. But I think it needs to start with the person who filed the complaint. The complaint has to be formally withdrawn.

I wouldn't consider this a little blip...I know it's a huge flaw, I guess I just considered it a little blip in my path considering the whole thing was a huge misunderstanding that just escalated before I was able to explain myself. According to my school, complaints cannot be withdrawn. I've contacted them personally and while we may have resolved any issues, "the incident still happened" so nothing can be done to change my record. My friend who initially filed the complaint went into the office as well, however they said there's nothing they can do. I feel like I'm just trapped in this situation.

 

[Goro]

I've contacted my school's conduct office about having her retract the report or about expunging it from my record. They said there's no way to expunge it from my record, and that although it's great that things have worked out between the girl and I, that the incident still happened and there's nothing they can do about it. In addition, they said this won't show up on my academic transcript and that they would need my legal permission before releasing any conduct information to any schools.

This may be your saving grace.

You are obligated to disclose IAs when you apply to med school. There's a box for explanations.

 

[iamprophet]

This may be your saving grace.

You are obligated to disclose IAs when you apply to med school. There's a box for explanations.

Would you suggest I'd be fine then if I explained the situation, discussed how it's been resolved, and then what I've learned from it? I guess I'm not too sure how NOT having the IA on my transcript would help me much since I'm still going to have to disclose the information.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

If our hero's IA appeared on his transcript and he couldn't get it expunged, is there anything on God's green earth that could save him? The Medal of Honor? A personal recommendation from the President?

 

[Goro]

Would you suggest I'd be fine then if I explained the situation, discussed how it's been resolved, and then what I've learned from it? I guess I'm not too sure how NOT having the IA on my transcript would help me much since I'm still going to have to disclose the information.

Adcoms will see that by not having it on your transcript, the school didn't think it was that bad a situation.

How you laid it out will be fine.