Students who lost admission or an offer over old posts
Incoming and current students, most of them admitted students whose offers were rescinded. 6 published news cases, 2017 to 2023.
Scan yours first Every case links to its news source. Names left out on purpose.
- 6 of 6cases ended with the person losing the job, seat, admission or license.
- 2 of 5cases with a known age involved content a year or more old.
In all 6 the person lost the role: 5 had an offer or admission rescinded, 1 resigned. The content most often concerned race (5), politics (2), religion (1).
By type: post or comment (3), private messages (2), video (1).
2 of the 5 cases with a stated age involved content a year or more old.
These counts come from cases collected here. They are not a survey and say nothing about how often this happens. Names are left out, and each case links to its source.
For how screening works for this group, see the Guide for students and new grads.
The 6 cases
Lost the role2023Law student bar association president with a full-time offer, New York, NYA student newsletter post about the Oct. 7 attack that the law firm called “inflammatory” and “profoundly in conflict” with its values
- What surfaced
- A student newsletter post about the Oct. 7 attack that the law firm called “inflammatory” and “profoundly in conflict” with its values
- How old it was
- Days
- How it came out
- The text spread on social media and was covered by Reuters and Bloomberg Law
- Outcome
- Firm rescinded the full-time offer; the student bar association's board began removal proceedings
- What to look for in your own history
- Posts or comments a stranger could read as demeaning a group, mocking a tragedy or wishing harm on someone.
Source: ABA Journal, The Forward
Lost the role2021Newly elected student union president, Oxford, UKInstagram captions including a "Ching Chang" caption and a Holocaust-memorial reference, per the outlet
- What surfaced
- Instagram captions including a "Ching Chang" caption and a Holocaust-memorial reference, per the outlet
- How old it was
- 3 to 4 years
- How it came out
- Surfaced days after she won
- Outcome
- Resigned as president-elect; she apologized
- What to look for in your own history
- Posts or comments a stranger could read as demeaning a group, mocking a tragedy or wishing harm on someone.
Source: PTI via Business Standard
Lost the role2020Incoming first-year student, University of Richmond, VAA Snapchat video the university called "offensive, racially charged"
- What surfaced
- A Snapchat video the university called "offensive, racially charged"
- How old it was
- Days
- How it came out
- The video was shared on Twitter and sent to the university's account
- Outcome
- Admission rescinded; the university said violating its standards led to a "review and reconsideration of the admission decision"
- What to look for in your own history
- Videos aren't read by the scan today. Review public videos by hand.
Lost the role2020Incoming first-year athlete, Xavier University, Cincinnati, OHTweets the university called "offensive, racially charged"; outlets reported a racial slur and remarks about protesters
- What surfaced
- Tweets the university called "offensive, racially charged"; outlets reported a racial slur and remarks about protesters
- How it came out
- Screenshots of his now-deleted account were published by local news
- Outcome
- Admission revoked by the university, before he enrolled
- What to look for in your own history
- Posts or comments a stranger could read as demeaning a group, mocking a tragedy or wishing harm on someone.
Source: WCBE (NPR affiliate), Inside Higher Ed
Lost the role2019Incoming college freshman, HarvardTexts and documents with racial slurs, per NPR
- What surfaced
- Texts and documents with racial slurs, per NPR
- How old it was
- About 2 years, written at 16
- How it came out
- Former classmates gave screenshots to HuffPost
- Outcome
- Admission rescinded
- What to look for in your own history
- Private chats and messages aren't in account exports. Assume anything you send can be screenshotted.
Source: NPR
Lost the role2017Incoming college freshmen (at least 10), HarvardMemes NBC called obscene, some targeting ethnic and racial groups
- What surfaced
- Memes NBC called obscene, some targeting ethnic and racial groups
- How old it was
- Recent
- How it came out
- Harvard learned of the chat
- Outcome
- Admissions rescinded
- What to look for in your own history
- Private chats and messages aren't in account exports. Assume anything you send can be screenshotted.
Source: NBC News
More cases by group
- School boards and local office (15)
- Athletes (10)
- Teachers (9)
- Police (9)
- Media and entertainment (9)
- Candidates and appointees (8)
- Executives (8)
- Healthcare (7)
- Fire, EMS and military (7)
- Finance and banking (7)
- Coaches (5)
- Law (5)
- Volunteers (4)
- Clergy and religious employers (4)
- Tech and corporate (4)
- Nonprofit and university leaders (4)
- Likes (11)
- Memes (23)
See all 127 cases and the key numbers
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PruneSocial scores the text in your own account exports, including likes and comments, against published screening categories and gives you one cleanup action for anything flagged. It also lists political, news-event and workplace commentary separately as reputation flags. Try a free 50-item preview.
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