Doctor of Medicine

Applying to medical school is a year-long process that occurs through the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS). This means starting your application in the spring or early summer of the year before you plan to enroll. ​

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• Timeline Overview:

  • January-April: 

    • If eligible, apply for the AAMC Fee Assistance Program (FAP)

      • Eligibility: https://students-residents.aamc.org/fee-assistance-program/who-eligible-participate-fee-assistance-program

      • Application requirements: https://students-residents.aamc.org/fee-assistance-program/what-you-need-apply

    • Take or retake the MCAT if you have not already done so 

      • Take your MCAT no later than mid-May to ensure a score release date of late June.

    • Begin writing your personal statement

      • Prioritize storytelling, review examples from successful applicants, and get a few extra eyes on your draft before officially uploading it.

        • Find successful sample essays here:

          • https://studentaffairs.jhu.edu/preprofadvising/wp-content/uploads/sites/33/2023/11/MD.Essay_.Samples.2024.FINAL_.pdf

          • https://bemoacademicconsulting.com/blog/personal-statement-medical-school-example

    • Outline and write out all of your extracurricular activities and work 

      • You can list up to 15 extracurriculars in the Work & Activities section of the AMCAS. You’ll also be able to highlight up to 3 of these as “most meaningful”, so consider which experiences had the most impact on you.

        • Work & Activities section tips and examples:

          • https://www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/amcas-work-and-activities

          • https://blog.accepted.com/what-to-include-in-the-amcas-activities-section/

          • https://medicalaid.org/blog/amcas-work-activities-guide-40-inspiring-examples/

    • Ask for letters of recommendation

      • The AMCAS program accepts three different types of letters:

        • Committee Letter: A letter from a prehealth committee or prehealth advisor intended to represent your institution’s evaluation of you. A Committee Letter may or may not include additional letters written in support of your application. 

        • Letter Packet: A set of letters assembled and distributed by your undergraduate institution, often by the institution’s career center. Unlike a Committee Letter, a Letter Packet does not include an evaluative letter from your prehealth committee or advisor.

        • Individual Letter: A letter written by and representing a single letter author. If you have already included an Individual Letter within either a Committee Letter or a Letter Packet, do not add a separate entry for that letter.

      • The number of letters you need depends on the school you are applying to. In general, 4-5 letters of recommendation should be sufficient:

        • 3 academic letters written by undergraduate professors (2 science and 1 non-science)

        • 1-2 letters from extracurricular pursuits, most commonly research and clinical experience

          • Guide to acquiring strong letters of recommendation: 

          • https://medschoolinsiders.com/pre-med/medical-school-letters-of-recommendation-guide/

    • Decide which medical schools you’ll apply to

      • Then also confirm the specific admission requirements for each school on your list: https://students-residents.aamc.org/system/files/2025-07/MSAR002%20-%20MSAR%20Premed%20Course%20Requirements_0.pdf

    • If your undergraduate school has a pre-health committee or pre-health advisors, reach out to them.

    • If you plan on applying to a Texas medical school or a dual degree program (such as MD-MPH, MD-MBA, MD-PhD), you will also want to start brainstorming, outlining, and writing your additional essays for those applications.

  • May:

    • Start your AMCAS application as early as possible and begin filling out the required sections. AMCAS applications open May 1, and you can submit a full application as early as the end of May (exact date may change depending on the year)

      • Order your official transcripts from all colleges and universities you’ve previously attended to complete the coursework section of your application.

      • Send reminders to recommendation letter writers if they have not already provided the letters.

    • Prep for and take the PREview and/or Casper exams if they are required by the schools you’re applying to

      • These exams are both computer-based situational judgment tests meant to assess interpersonal communication skills, ethical decision-making, empathy, and problem-solving.

      • Learn more about the differences between the exams here: https://medschoolinsiders.com/pre-med/casper-vs-aamc-preview/

      • Schools requiring PREview: https://students-residents.aamc.org/aamc-preview/participating-schools

      • Schools requiring Casper: https://my.acuityinsights.app/dates-times

        • Navigate to the site, select US as the country, check “Allopathic Medicine” under programs, and then scroll down to see which schools require this exam

  • June: 

    • Submit the AMCAS primary application as early as possible if you have not already done so

      • After you have submitted your application and the AMCAS program has received all of your required transcripts, your application will enter the processing queue for verification of your coursework and transcripts.

      • The later you submit your application via AMCAS, the longer the verification process will take, so try to submit it as soon as you are ready.

    • Prep for and take the PREview and/or Casper exams as early as possible if you have not already done so.

    • Begin prewriting secondary essays for secondary applications, starting with your preferred schools first. 

      • Prewriting secondary essays can significantly reduce your time, effort, and stress. Secondary application invitations tend to all come in at once, and this intense, second phase of the application process needs a quick turnaround. Prewriting gives you the time and opportunity to write your secondary essays with less pressure.

      • Many medical schools send out secondary prompts that are similar to those they used in prior years, and many prompts are similar to those sent by other schools.

        • More information on the most common essay topics: https://www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/medical-school-secondary-essays

        • Find previous years' secondary essays for each school here: https://www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/medical-school-secondary-essay-prompts

  • July:

    • Submit your secondary applications as they come in. Secondary applications include essays and an application fee. 

      • While many schools automatically waive fees for Fee Assistance Program recipients, some might require you to contact them directly to request a waiver, especially if there are issues with the automatic system or if you don't qualify for FAP but have extenuating circumstances. You can explain your financial situation and ask if they can waive the fee.

    • Begin preparation for your medical school interviews. This includes reviewing common questions and answers as well as learning the traditional and MMI formats (depending on which schools you’ll interview with).

      • Interview resources:

        • https://students-residents.aamc.org/applying-medical-school/preparing-medical-school-interviews

        • https://www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/medical-school-interviews 

          • Traditional interview sample questions appear in Appendix B

        • MMI: 

          • https://students-residents.aamc.org/applying-medical-school/what-it-s-participate-multiple-mini-interviews-mmis

          • https://www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/mmi-interview

          • https://www.savvypremed.com/blog/tips-for-common-types-of-mmi-interview-questions-with-samples-and-examples

    • Monitor your application status via AAMC

      • Application statuses explained: https://students-residents.aamc.org/how-apply-medical-school-amcas/monitoring-your-application

• August-March:

  • Attend interviews

    • Interview invitations can happen anywhere between August and March. Once you are selected for an interview, you’ll move on to the next step in the medical school application process. These will most likely be virtual, but the format may change to in-person.

• October–April: 

  • Admissions decisions are released

    • Admissions decisions vary based on each school and may be made at any point between your interview date and March of your cycle year. Some schools do rolling admissions, meaning they will send acceptance letters a few weeks after your interview. Other schools will wait to make a final decision until March, after all candidates have been interviewed. 

    • Some schools may not immediately accept or reject your application and will put you on a waitlist, meaning you’ll have to wait longer for their decision.

    • Continue to follow through with interviews as requested so that you have the option to select between multiple offers if you get them.