You want to become a medical doctor. You’ve taken all the necessary prerequisite classes and mapped out your desired career path. Acceptance to medical school is the only thing that stands in your way.
The medical school admissions director to whom you will be “selling yourself” evaluates thousands of applications each year and is particularly interested in applicants with excellent academic abilities, strong interpersonal skills, a clear motivation for medicine and demonstrated compassion and concern for others.
The reason this sounds so formulaic is because it is. Admissions officers are looking at hundreds of applications each week, so, in order to get through the bulk of the applications in a sensible amount of time, there are specific criteria that will help weed out the strong candidates from the ones who just won’t make the cut.
Your goal is to stand out.
Capture the attention of that weary admissions officer who has the power to place you in their incoming class. Even if you fall within the high part of the applicant pool when it comes to your MCAT and GPA, chances are, you could still get denied if your application does not tell your story effectively in a memorable way.
The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) aggregate data from 2008 to 2010 shows that 8.5 percent of applicants with GPAs of 3.8 to 4.0 and MCAT scores between 39 and 45 were not accepted to medical school. Ultimately, medical school admissions committees want to ensure you have the personal attributes and meaningful experiences essential for practicing medicine.
Let Apply Point help you translate your volunteer, leadership and employment experiences into a strong case for your ability to connect with diverse groups of people through genuine compassion and concern; Your involvement in medical settings into a captivating story about your passion and motivation for medicine.
We look forward to meeting you, putting together a plan of action for achieving your educational goals and, ultimately, translating your abilities, accomplishments and aspirations into a convincing case for admission into one of the world’s premier institutions for medicine. Please see Services & Fees and Why Apply Point? for more information.
Before we meet, it is important to note some particulars regarding the medical school application process.
MCAT Prep
While you are allowed to take the MCAT up to three times in each calendar year, we advise you to take the exam only once, if possible. Read more
Some medical schools average the scores, some take the highest score earned from each section across multiple tests, while others say they consider the highest composite exam score. Regardless, it is important to remember that every MCAT score, taken since 2003, is seen and reviewed. We also advise you to take the exam as early as you can. A winter or early spring exam is preferable because it allows your medical school application to be reviewed earlier in the admissions cycle. This will give you time to formulate a list of schools you are targeting and also devise a retake strategy if necessary.
Timing
We want to begin working with you as early as possible, ideally the winter of the year you plan to apply, as we advise all of our medical school applicants to apply early in the admissions cycle. Read more
You can submit your AMCAS application in early to mid-June, and that is what you should aim for, no matter when the actual medical school deadlines are. Most schools evaluate applicants on a rolling basis, so it is best to have your application complete when there are many empty seats left.
Casting A Wide Net
Applying early is also beneficial because it is crucial in the medical school application process to apply to a broad set of schools. Read more
If you are highly competitive, we recommend applying to only 15 schools, however, most applicants will need to submit 20-25 applications in order to yield a solid number of interview invitations. Not only do you want variety of scope in terms of selectivity, but also in teaching style and culture. You may know that you would prefer a case study approach to learning, or a focus on research, or an urban setting, and these considerations should enter into your decision-making process. Too often, applicants apply to only a few schools initially and limit their chances.
Application process
For most U.S. medical schools, you can use the AAMC's American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS) , a centralized application service. Read more
The service collects, verifies, and transmits application information and Medical College Admission Test (MCAT®) scores to each school you identify.
A small number of schools require application through different processes. For the public medical schools in Texas, you'll need to apply through the Texas Medical and Dental Schools Application Service (TMDSAS). You must also apply separately to the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine, and the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Supplemental applications
Once schools have received your initial application, and you pass the first selection round, they may contact you to request additional information in the form of a supplemental application. Read more
Supplemental application materials vary from school to school and may include additional letters of recommendation, another essay, other school forms, a fee, or a combination of additional information.
Interviews
Most medical schools require an interview. Interviews can take place on or off campus and can be conducted by an admissions committee member or by off-campus interviewers, such as practicing physicians. Read more
The interview is a very important piece to the puzzle that has the power to make or break your candidacy. Therefore, you must prepare and practice as much as possible. A face-to-face mock interview with Apply Point is a good place to start. We can stimulate the multiple formats used in the medical school interviewing process including the one-on-one, panel as well as the multiple mini-interview. See services and fees for more information.
The above information focuses on applications to allopathic medical schools, however, Apply Point can assist with Osteopathic and off-shore medical school applications as well.