The College Fix

Fix contributor Elaina Plott reports for the NY Observer on a big fat case of–I can’t believe he said that, Twitter edition:

It seems that for NYU’s PhD programs, fat people need not apply.

Geoffrey Miller, a visiting evolutionary psychology professor at NYU, is under fire for divulging his distasteful feelings yesterday on the PhD application process.

The since-deleted tweet read: “Dear obese PhD applicants: If you don’t have the willpower to stop eating carbs, you won’t have the willpower to do a dissertation. #truth.”

Miller’s tweet sparked instant outrage across internet news blogs and opinion sites, and among his colleagues at NYU.

…Dr. Miller quickly backtracked, subsequently tweeting that “Obviously my previous tweet does not represent the selection policies of any university, or my own selection criteria…sincere apologies to all for that idiotic, impulsive, and badly judged tweet.”

Not everyone has been quick to accept Miller’s apology. As Elizabeth Brown of Blistree.com wrote, “I love when people publicly say something stupid and then insist that it doesn’t reflect their true “views, values or standards.” So you’re a dolt and a hypocrite, then? Cool; glad we got that covered!

Our prediction? Fat-bashing was probably not a very good career move for “visiting professor” Miller–especially in an age when words live forever online, following you from one academic job interview to another for the rest of your life.

As The Daily Caller recently reported, 1 in 10 young people are denied jobs because employers look at social media accounts (like Twitter) and don’t like what they see.

Click here to Like The College Fix on Facebook.  /  Twitter: @CollegeFix.