Son of Republican admitted to med school without taking admission tests

The University of Florida has launched a privacy investigation, looking for students and faculty members who may have leaked confidential information about a controversial admissions decision.


"We have an obligation to maintain student privacy and patient care privacy, and depending on whether or not there's been a violation, there may be a sanction for an individual or a change in policy or procedure," said Dr. Douglas Barrett, UF's senior vice president for health affairs.


"We reserve the right to go through anyone's e-mail when there is an appropriate justification to do so, and in this case (there is a) potential violation of federal laws," said Janine Sikes, UF spokeswoman.


The investigation launched by UF is in part the result of stories that ran in The Sun in April, discussing the admission of a student who did not have the support of the committee that traditionally handles admissions decisions.

The student, Benjamin Mendelsohn, did not have basic qualifications, having never taken the Medical College Admissions Test, or MCAT, according to three members of the selection committee and two other sources close to the situation.

Mendelsohn is the son of a major Republican fundraiser, and a prior application he sent to UF's medical school contained letters of recommendation from Gov. Charlie Crist and Sen. President Ken Pruitt, R-Port St. Lucie.

Dr. Bruce Kone, dean of UF's College of Medicine, says he overruled the committee because the student was "exceptional."




http://www.gainesville.com/article/20080501/NEWS/805010346/0/entertainment

Hoo boy.

Not to cast aspersion on anyone.

it's all about the money.

The kid's dad is president of the Florida Senate, and one of his recommenders is the governor of Florida. If you do nice things for people who are in positions to positively affect your life, they'll do nice things for you.

Hopefully, they'll send him home if he's dangerous.

but I am a bit suspicious because of who the kid is. But, a student's admission info is protected under the privacy act.

Get into Med school without even taking the MCAT, just because daddy has connections. What a bunch of BS.

Initially reminded me of.

He graduated 5th from the bottom of his class at Annapolis. He was jumped over many better qualified Academy graduates to be admitted to Naval Aviator School. He turned out to be a poor pilot, losing a total of 5 planes before ending up as a POW.

only three of those plane losses were his fault!

:rofl:

McSame indeed !!!!!

Yale is a private institution. The University of Florida is not.

in Florida. Well, for everybody else.

It's not like we're entirely to blame, y'know. Besides, we toughened legacy admissions a bit in '69. Bush** is in the Class of '68. You figure it out.

K-A
Y'85, cum laude (Bush** wasn't even close)

the way they keep track of Affirmative Action students. Let them justify themselves to the rest of the student body, in the same way.

to favored charaties?

The article says he's a Republican fundraiser. I guess he could raise money for other purposes too though, like greasing the skids at UF to ensure a free ride for his son.

Usually, Daddy gives large sums of money to the school if they let his little prick son in a certain program that the little prick son is not qualified for. The school then distributes large sum to what ever programs that they think needs it. And you are right, there are lots of Repuke funded programs on campuses

"donate" labor or materials to skid the way for more controversial projects.

have jumped the admission standards to enter med school? If we have standards in order to assure the public that the doctors we graduate are the very best, then I say that we adhere to that policy. And if Republican slimes buy their double digit offspring into choice slots, they need to be exposed.

This will affect my health care down the road.

The saddest part is, there are many poor kids qualified for medical school and can not afford it.

If they're that well connected, they will continue to be so and that's how heinous things happen in this state and a poor sod is left with no recourse because the person who wronged him had strong enough ties within the state to stop the normal investigative process.

let me just say that if our Dean, who was highly politically connected had tried to thrust a candidate thru who had not taken the DAT, there would have been trouble of biblical proportions. They got folks in, but not without the candidate taking the requisite tests and courses.

This is arrogance of the highest order.

I wonder, now that this is out, how he is going to stand among his peers and professors.

:grr:

and let's throw away the key, but if one of THEM kills somebody while DUI, oh well.....let's just give him/her probation :grr:

transgressors. There are also old guard Dems who think this is a way of life.

this characteristic is not limited to rethugs ... Although this a characteristic of psychopaths and there certainly are more psychopathic repukes, there are a sad number of non-rethugs who have the same view. My very liberal boss, for one.

I think the difference is that the liberals who are like this think the rules don't apply to them but do apply to everyone else, the repukes think the rules don't apply to them or others of their type/race/class etc but do apply to anyone who is not like them (i.e., all democrats). Think Leona Helmsley with her "taxes are for the little people" - a liberal psycho would be more "taxes are for everyone else."

I recall a sociological study back in the 70's of a Florida med school, revealing that once admitted, the only reason anyone failed to complete the program was if they died before graduation. Wonder if that's changed.

Several of Hubby's classmates dropped or flunked out at Case Western. It was a constant concern for most students.

"exceptional"

The same people that will scream bloody murder over affirmative action (in which the applicants in question MUST be qualified, but they don't want to cloud the issue with facts) have no problem with this? Write a big endowment/donation check and all is well, to hell with education and qualifications. :grr:

Also, aren't these the same people that say that you can't solve a problem by throwing money at it? I guess that really means we can't solve YOUR problem by spending money, we solve OUR problem by spending money on it.

Hypocrisy, thy name is republican. :puke:

Affirmative action for the wealthy and connected is just fine with these folks. And it is doubly outrageous because one purpose of affirmative action for minorities is to provide opportunities that they have not been given in earlier stages of their lives, to ensure those with the ability to succeed aren't denied an opportunity because of economic disadvantages that might understate their real abilities. The wealthy and connected had no such disadvantages and in fact had every advantage on the middle class and lower class students, e.g., not coming to school hungry at a minimum--and also, the best teachers in well-equipped public schools, possibly private schools, tutoring if needed, trips and other experiences that expand learning opportunities, etc.

they consider it their due.

wealth and privilege is no guarantee of qualifications. Remember the stories of the boss' idiot offspring (see movie "Tommy Boy", Paris Hilton, or G.W. Bush*) where the correct family name was the only qualification required.

Priceless.

admitted without taking the tests everyone else must take, let's investigate to find the person who leaked the outrage.

Priceless, indeed.

...the White House being the only place that will protect your email privacy by smashing up all the hard drives.

Hekate

to the next generation of rich families, one must hunt down the dogs that would bark and expose the self-entitled trespasses.

How could this fall under "patient care"?

Also!. . The "Federal Family Education and Privacy Act" is the law that the repugs think is worthy of their enforcement? Really?

jesus

is that his application to medical school included references from 'Gov. Charlie Crist and Sen. President Ken Pruitt, R-Port St. Lucie'.

Since when have they been doctors, science teachers, or in any way qualified to provide such a reference? I wouldn't want a doctor who'd got into medical school through a reference from the local Tory MP - or even the local non-Tory MP.

And do you mean he didn't get a reference from Jeb Bush?!

that getting IN to Med School is harder than Med School itself.
This really reeks.

I know very smart people who have had to try several times to get in to a decent school.

:)

Getting in was hard, sure, but med school was brutal. Residency was worse.

just imagine all the unqualified bastards out there in various professions. think about it. :scared:

If he was so "exceptional" he would have taken the MCAT and aced it.

has to treat me or mine.

Or as Jimmy Buffett put it:
"Were stayin' in a Holiday Inn full of surgeons
I guess they meet there once a year
They exchange physician stories
And get drunk on Tuborg beer
Then they're off to catch a stripper
With their eyes glued to her G
But I don't think that I would ever let them cut on me"

I've never heard of that happening in med school. Heck, even the Dean's son had to take all the tests and apply and interview like everyone else at Hubby's med school. This makes that school third tier in my book.

I hope everyone watches him like a hawk and rides him hard so that he quits in disgust. In med school, they're trying to kill you, and if you live, you get MD after your name, and if you don't (high rate of suicide, actually), they don't care. They'd better not care about that guy any more than they do any other students.

couldn't get into any US medical school could still earn a degree...

Well, they at least didn't start a splendid little war for this kid...

One other point, perhaps that is why the GOP is so keen on getting rid of medical malpractice so their spawn will not face any repercussions from "errant" medical situations...

and they're fussing about his privacy being invaded? Would you like like some tartar sauce on that red herring?

:eyes:
rocknation

After all we shouldn't expect rich repukes to have to strain their precious little brains, now should we?

:sarcasm:

That way, they can kill them off faster so they won't have to pay them Social Security.

That is some scary shit...

:scared:

e-mail" :crazy:

Did you ever think you'd see this shit happening in the USA?

We live in INTERESTING times, my friend.

For decades, I've worried this shit was lurking right under the thin skin of American exceptionalism

...guaranteeing that only the most highly qualified get into the professions.

Now, see, if he was a (just for instance) female of color with "only" a B+ or A- average and good MCATs, it would be wrong to apply affirmative action to her admission process. Rich white men need doctors of their own class to serve them. Women of color (just for instance) -- why bother?

Hekate
:argh:

Edit -- forgot my Sarcasm Smilie

:sarcasm: