Table 3 Quotations from Applicants & Assessors

The process is not as objective and fair as it is presented.

The way to beat a random process is to increase your numbers.

Effect of Prior Application

My first application I was very honest, and modest. I got sliced and diced. Whereas my next one, I learned the game, I definitely exaggerated, it would hold up in a court of law, but it was completely exaggerated.

Are you just getting better at going through an admissions process or are you becoming a better candidate?

Perceived Expectations of the Process

In the professionalism essay, they definitely had an expected answer--because, in hindsight, I don't think I wrote what they wanted.

Conforming to the Perceived Expectations of the Process

I do agree that there is a force to make you conform--I'm not an A Type personality, but I became one in premed and that's what stressed me out.

You think about what they would want to hear and try to use it to your advantage... you're gonna try to sell yourself and think what do they want to hear.

Volunteerism was the topic, but my approach was: this is a chance to sell myself. Bottom line: I didn't really think of it as an essay--it was more like "How can I adapt why I would be a good candidate into this essay and mould it into the topic that they gave me?" You sell yourself and want them to want you.

Addition of information perceived likely to make application more successful

I tried to pack in things I had done so they could distinguish me from other applicants.

I definitely exaggerated.

You only have that chance to say one thing, so you want to say one thing that will make an impact.

Censoring of material perceived a unlikely to be acceptable

- You know what they want from that question--volunteerism is a good thing. No-one is going to say volunteerism is a bad thing.

- That's not what they want to hear--even if you had good justification, you're not going to take the risk of saying it.

The anticipated behaviour of peers

- A lot of people don't take it as seriously as others. I know people who haven't prepared, who don't realise how much effort other people put into it. If they did realise it, they would obviously prepare more.

- If I know that she's using her Nepal story whenever she gets the chance, then I've gotta exaggerate and slide in my stories as much as I can.

Quotations from Applicants contd.

Tension between genuine and expected responses

- There's like the truth, and then people tend to embellish--you'll bring certain things to the forefront that, maybe you didn't spend as much time doing, but that's like your only volunteer thing, so you're going to really like bring up, so you're not necessarily lying.

The applicant's approach

- I did that constantly through the entire interview process, thinking: "What would they want me to say?"

Quotations from Assessors

Conforming to expectations

- They know that you have the power, they know their job is to impress you, whatever it takes. All that matters is that I get in here. I don't care if I'm true to anything, I'll worry about that stuff later.

- There's so much at stake for people to be dishonest or use whatever means... and I know the medical students get together to coach next year's group on what to say--you know like the Olympics and drug doping--like we're always trying to outsmart them or whatever and I don't know even the right way at all.

Concerns about exaggeration & truthfulness

- The impression I got was applicants were exaggerating--you read their accounts and got quite cynical... it goes against the grain of what a young doctor should be.

-I think that honesty doesn't even come into it, because the stakes are so high. "I sold my soul last night, but you know what, I'm gonna help people in surgery, so I'll make it up there, I'll buy it back". I think our system forces people to do that.