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Original post by Surprises!
I know somebody who lied about everything at their MMI interview, from their extra curricular activities to what they did and experienced and who they met at their work experience placements, and i'm not sure what to do about it.

I've known this for a week (she told me) and it's really bothering me. I truly believe that she doesn't deserve the offer because doctors should be honest and trustworthy, and lying about every minute detail about ones application,and getting away with it, is not, so I feel inclined to notify the admissions team and allow them deal with it (if).
Should I?

P.S: I don't want any replies telling me that this isn't any of my business - it bothers me that she's lied about so much, and subsequently holds an offer. It's almost as if the interviewers met a mask instead of the person and I feel like she's snatched an offer away from other potential borderline applicants who may or may not have excelled at their interview.


Omgosh...I don't know why you're getting so many dislikes :s I would totally feel the same...especially if this person is going into a career such as medicine :/ However, I wouldn't be so extreme as to contact the admissions team because as a friend that really quite harsh!!!..Try and see things from your friends perspective - what she did was wrong, but medicine is a really hard, competitive course to get into, so as a friend you should be understanding despite what she did was wrong. I would say just either keep it to yourself, or just speak to your friend and tell her how wrong this all feels to you...
Original post by blueray
If you don't want to be viewed as a snitch then don't.
If you believe in karma you know this person will be caught out later on for what they did and trust me they will.
People lie all the time and the true hardline facts are that not all doctors are trustworthy etc and all the stuff they teach you in medicine school. Many of them are crooks.
Their time will come.

Focus on what you have to do and what you need to do to succeed.


Well said blueray:smile:
Original post by Tabris
If you didn't get in, it's your own doing for not being good enough. I know this a bit too well.

At the end of the day, when you apply. You're the one who takes the UKCAT, BMAT, GAMSAT or whatever. You're the one who goes to interview. You're the one who sits your final exams.

The OP said "I feel like she's snatched an offer away from other potential borderline applicants who may or may not have excelled at their interview." Who's to say that the girl in question is a borderline candidate? If your place were to be by someone who fibbed, you'd never know anyway and it'd still be your own doing for not being good enough at some stage and putting yourself in a position where you are on the borderline.

It isn't fair, but few things are. You've just got to push yourself so that you're seldom in a position where a hair is what separates you from obtaining your goal and missing it.


You argument seems poor tbh.

People who are borderline shouldn't be unfairly punished just because they are borderline. You can't justify someone losing their place at Med school by saying "It's your fault for being borderline". That's bull****, especially since this is Medicine we're talking about. It just encourages people to try and play the system. Yes everyone has areas that can be improved etc. etc. But an honest borderline candidate still deserves a place more than someone who out rightly lies about personal development.
firstly as loads of people have mentioned its your word against hers and without proof it means less than nothing
secondly if she meant she embellished the truth, the admissions tutors are bound to be sceptical of every applicant, I got that vibe from one of my interviews as I was questioned and they are no doubt well versed in ways to catch applicants out, Im convinced they take everything applicants say, with a pinch of salt
Original post by HeavyTeddy
Honestly, I know where you are coming from. This is what I would do:

This is a dishonest person who doesn't feel remorseful that she cheated the system to get what she wanted. She probably feels proud of getting an offer she didn't work for. Subsequently, this isn't the type of person you should be hanging around with. Confront and break all contact with her because quite simply, she's a bitch.

She'll get what she deserves one day, just be there so you can relish it (hopefully it's results day).


I wouldn't wish that on anyone to be honest
Original post by janet9
David, it's just the rush and madness to get into medical school that drives people to lie. I know many medics who shared their lies at some point once they got in, and they all happily laughed it off but still, they're not going to be useless doctors who are unable to maintain a sense of professionalism later on in their careers. Nearly all weren't total, outright liars; it was insanely exaggerated hyperbole.

And it's not a case regarding the tragedy that not all applicants are golden and shining with celestial auras emitting from every word they say and with everything they do, to get in. It was just the stress and the strategic plan some applicants made to get in - and there are some very smart plans. And once you get into medical school, nothing really matters about what steps you took to get in - a concept you can only comprehend once you get into medical school. I have more respect for those who deserved 100% their place in medical school, but you will, without a doubt, come across others where you're like, "how the hell did you get in?!".


What you've said seems very reasonable and realistic. I guess I'm just angry that people are more upset by the snitching than they are the lying.
Original post by clad in armour
I wouldn't wish that on anyone to be honest


Yeah, in fact, that is harsh.
Original post by HeavyTeddy
Yeah, in fact, that is harsh.


????

I swear people's sense of morals seem to be oddly calibrated here.
Reply 68
I wonder if it was the OP who had lied, whether there would be a lot of neg rep and hate mail towards her :curious:
But isn't that how some interviews for medicine are? She might have gotten flustered and maybe changed a few facts (which quite a lot of people do as it's hard to remember pre-prepared answers when you're in that interview scenario). And honestly, you have no case without any proof unless you decide to get a confession out of her on tape, and even THAT would border on desperation. I think you should forget about it and just hope that karma does its work (if what you're saying IS true). Medics have to competitive by nature, especially during uni, so honestly, she probably just realised her whole future was on the line and decided to do whatever it took to make sure it didn't slip away.
Are you sure that 'your friend' is not you?
You have so much info about the whole situation...
Original post by jedi-master
Are you sure that 'your friend' is not you?
You have so much info about the whole situation...


doubt it, she/he would hardly report themselves.
Reply 72
Original post by HeavyTeddy
Oh no, exaggeration is completely different to a blatant white lie. When you exaggerate, at least there is some truth to what you're saying regardless of how much truth is in there. What the OP has said is that she has lied. She has completely fabricated something that never happened, and that there is no truth to it.

I'm sure everyone who has applied for medicine is working hard for A's. It isn't a good enough excuse, in fact, that's a very bad excuse.

If she applied for work experience but it was cancelled, she could have well stated that. I'm sure admissions would have taken into account that she couldn't take part in work experience. But then again, EVERY medical student has taken part in work experience and if she can't find work experience, then why should she be considered?

I'd much rather have friends that tell me the truth, regardless of it being what I want to hear or not, than a person who is going to encourage me or accept that I've lied to get into something. I'm not happy for her. Why? Because it's unfair to the thousands of applicants who worked for their application and did everything the way it should be. Frankly, I don't think you would be happy if you applied for medicine with a legit application, got rejected, whilst she got an offer with bullsh*t lies.

I'm sorry, but if she doesn't even feel bad that she lied or recognizes that she's wrong, it seems like she's a self-indulgent, selfish, greedy bitch.


Perhaps she slipped up on the interview, saying that she had done a bit of work experience, slightly exaggerating her efforts in the field of medicine. She could have then told her so-called-friend that she lied, people do tend to do this, say that their interview went worse than expected, and that she said things she shouldn't have, even though she didn't. If her work experience was cancelled last minute, it isn't her fault and University's are not going to say "aw well if you planned to do it, that's okay" no, they are going to say that it isn't good enough. Anyway, I'm not here to justify her case, I simply think that it has been completely taken out of proportion, she lied, to make herself stand out. So? it's a tough world, sooner or later you are going have to exaggerate in order to achieve. Yeah, maybe I would be a bit annoyed if I got rejected and she didn't but the thought of going behind her back and phoning the admissions team wouldn't even enter my mind, it is such a sneaky thing to do, and far worse then a lie. She didn't have to tell her friend that she lied but she did, she confided in her, told her the truth "regardless of it being what [she] want to hear or not" and through that trusted her. All it was, was a bit of work experience, she will eventually have to do work experience anyway, she's already showed dedication and determination for the course by just applying. Really, would you want friends who would snitch on you because they morally thought it the right thing to do? no. You'd want friends whom you could trust, regardless of if they thought you were in the wrong. It's a very bitter reaction to an achievement of a friend and if I were her, yes I would be proud that I'd gotten into to medicine, even by lying.
Original post by internet tough guy
don't hate the player, hate the game


Ha PERFECT response!
Original post by Davidragon
What you've said seems very reasonable and realistic. I guess I'm just angry that people are more upset by the snitching than they are the lying.


I do agree, it's not the snitching that puts me off, it's the fact that he has no proof. I can see why he would be annoyed to see her deceit advance her career plans and morally she shouldn't get the place. However I do think that the fact many applicants exaggerate truths in their interview has to be taken into account. I think it shows a failing on the part of the system more than anything
Original post by emclme
Perhaps she slipped up on the interview, saying that she had done a bit of work experience, slightly exaggerating her efforts in the field of medicine. She could have then told her so-called-friend that she lied, people do tend to do this, say that their interview went worse than expected, and that she said things she shouldn't have, even though she didn't. If her work experience was cancelled last minute, it isn't her fault and University's are not going to say "aw well if you planned to do it, that's okay" no, they are going to say that it isn't good enough. Anyway, I'm not here to justify her case, I simply think that it has been completely taken out of proportion, she lied, to make herself stand out. So? it's a tough world, sooner or later you are going have to exaggerate in order to achieve. Yeah, maybe I would be a bit annoyed if I got rejected and she didn't but the thought of going behind her back and phoning the admissions team wouldn't even enter my mind, it is such a sneaky thing to do, and far worse then a lie. She didn't have to tell her friend that she lied but she did, she confided in her, told her the truth "regardless of it being what [she] want to hear or not" and through that trusted her. All it was, was a bit of work experience, she will eventually have to do work experience anyway, she's already showed dedication and determination for the course by just applying. Really, would you want friends who would snitch on you because they morally thought it the right thing to do? no. You'd want friends whom you could trust, regardless of if they thought you were in the wrong. It's a very bitter reaction to an achievement of a friend and if I were her, yes I would be proud that I'd gotten into to medicine, even by lying.


There's so much wrong with this

If those improbable circumstances were the case then it would be known to OP.
Even if you failed to get work experience, volunteering in caring role is pretty easy to find.

You don't need to go behind their back. The right thing to do would be to tell them what you are going to do and then do it.

Revealing a lie is not worse than lying, I don't see how you can think that.

I don't see how you could take pleasure out of deceit. You might still enjoy the course, but you lied to get in and I don't see how anyone can be proud of that.

If the lies are on the level that OP suggests, I don't see how you can defend it.
Reply 76
Aha! So that's where I 've been going wrong all this time. From actually being honest in applications and interviews! It's all so very clear now.
So much for honesty being the best policy :unimpressed:
Reply 77
Original post by Davidragon
What you've said seems very reasonable and realistic. I guess I'm just angry that people are more upset by the snitching than they are the lying.


It's clear why snitching would be the worst possible thing to do - imagine if your offer got ripped away from you like that. It's simply a case of not doing that which you wouldn't want someone to do to you. And most medics are not totally-100% truthful; that's something noone really talks about. I'm guessing the girl who got her offer tried to humble herself, maybe (unintentionally) in a really patronising way to the OP that made her really angry. And it's understandable - every medical applicant wishes themself over every single other applicant out there, but that said, we all put on a brave face in the application process and smile at friends who got in, when inside, we're cringing and angry that there's one less golden ticket to the chocolate factory (but that's assuming the same medical school, if that's the case). To sum up, think why the applicant lied in the first place and how the OP let her emotions get the better of her.... This can become philospohical! --> Life is so messy!
Reply 78
Your friend will go far in life.
Original post by Surprises!
I know somebody who lied about everything at their MMI interview, from their extra curricular activities to what they did and experienced and who they met at their work experience placements, and i'm not sure what to do about it.

I've known this for a week (she told me) and it's really bothering me. I truly believe that she doesn't deserve the offer because doctors should be honest and trustworthy, and lying about every minute detail about ones application,and getting away with it, is not, so I feel inclined to notify the admissions team and allow them deal with it (if).
Should I?

P.S: I don't want any replies telling me that this isn't any of my business - it bothers me that she's lied about so much, and subsequently holds an offer. It's almost as if the interviewers met a mask instead of the person and I feel like she's snatched an offer away from other potential borderline applicants who may or may not have excelled at their interview.


If you want to get above you have to be willing to break some rules.