A misleading online fundraiser: a medical school interview question
- Kind
- Ethical dilemma
Prompt
A coworker is running an online fundraiser for a neighbor whose house burned down, and it has raised $40,000. You happen to know that the neighbor's insurance has already agreed to pay for the rebuild, and the page doesn't mention it. What would you do?
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How to approach this question
What this question tests
- Ethical reasoning
- Professionalism and integrity
- Communication
How to approach it
This panel interview question tests whether you'll act on a possibly misleading fundraiser when you're unsure of the full story and the people involved are a coworker and a neighbor in crisis. Start by naming what you don't know: the insurance may not cover everything, such as temporary housing, lost belongings or the gap before payment arrives. Show that you'd raise it privately with the coworker or the neighbor before assuming anyone is being dishonest. Name the donors' interests too, since they gave based on what the page said. Weigh staying silent, a private conversation and a more public step, and land on a clear plan that protects the donors' trust without humiliating a family who just lost their home.
More on honesty and disclosure of error
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