- How do you successfully apply to 30+ programs as a reapplicant?
Assuming you've already chosen the schools to apply to, and you already have the stats of an average matriculant, part of it comes from being like a
Boy Scout, and part of it comes from remembering the
three R's.
First there's the
control point of the application process, AMCAS (DOs-to-be, modify my ideas as necessary for AACOMAS). This is the part of process is key because
you cannot alter it, and there are important steps that have to occur before and after you submit your AMCAS application. AMCAS is available for entering your data on May 1st (or least it was when I did it) and you can begin to submit it on June 1st. You submit ASAP to give yourself time to write secondaries before a school's deadline. And as re-applicants, you don't need to give a school another reason to file your app into the
round file. Before May 1st, you want a few things prepared:
1) A curriculum vitae (CV). You'll need one of these as a doc, and anything you'll apply for in the future will require one. You'd better get used to writing and updating your's as you go along.
AAMC has a good example CV, but it is directed towards academics, so delete categories as needed. For now, it'll help you clarify your extracurriculars (ECs) for AMCAS.
2) Letters of Recommendation (LORs). SDN is full of information on getting these and who to ask, but the important thing in this article is time. You need to
ask writers for letters about 4-6 weeks before you need them. Since most schools will not accept LORs until they have your AMCAS, that means you need to ask 4-6 weeks before June 1st, or early- to mid-April. When you talk to writers, always give them a current copy of your CV so that they remember you and can laud your accomplishments.
I found the best way to arrange letters is to give writers stamped envelopes addressed to the places you want to apply. I also sent writers emails with the addresses of each institution so they only had to cut & paste the address from the email into the header of their letters.
Then the writer can put each letter into the envelope and seals it (usually with their signature across the flap). I never read my letters, and I usually asked for the stack of sealed letters back, so I could mail them when I needed, but if you've got the timing down well, your writers can just mail the letters themselves.
Interfolio makes all of this academic.
3) Transcripts. Remember to get two copies of your transcripts, one for AMCAS to verify, and one for you to enter yourself. This is pretty easy - just make a stop at your Registrar a month before AMCAS opens, but it gets harder (and your start date gets pushed back further) the more schools you've attended.
4) Personal Statement/EC Essays. This one's optional. Your school may have a premedical committee that makes you write your PS earl anyways. I say just have a good idea of how you're going to start and the themes of your PS at this time.
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Now that you have your LORs, CV, and transcripts in hand, open up your AMCAS and start filling it out. Since there's no bonus here for finishing quickly, take your time and work on your application essays and make them count. One thing - always save your essays, no matter if you use them in your submitted application or not.
Once you've submitted, it is time to reduce, reuse, and recycle. What does that mean? Well, if you have 30+ applications out, you'll probably get close to that number of secondary applications. Secondaries ask questions
similar to the ones in your AMCAS application, but you will need to come up with
new answers.
Or do you? If you've saved everything you wrote during May, chances are you'll have a bunch of half-written essays or ones describing ECs that didn't make the final cut. These essays will often answer those secondary application essays, saving you time and emphasizing the same themes you wrote about in your PS. Just cut & paste and rework as needed. Often two different schools will ask very nearly the same question on their secondary - and so you can very nearly cut & paste one answer for both of them.
As the year goes on, you accumulate more essays, and filling out secondaries goes from answering 3-5 essay questions with thoughtful one-paragraph answers, to searching through files to find the ones that fit well-enough and doing a few line edits. Secondary completion time goes from 3-5 hrs to 20 minutes.
I made it a rule to get secondaries out two weeks after I received them. I had a full-time job, so I'd be writing late into the night to get one secondary completed early in the season. As time went on, it got much easier and I would spend a few hours once a week getting 5-6 secondaries completed.
- Hold up, that's 30+ schools! How do you know which ones you completed secondaries on and which ones you haven't?
I made up a spreadsheet and marked down the progress of each school's application. There were spaces for each step of the process - asked for LORs, received LORs, received secondaries, completed secondaries, application deadlines, etc. I just checked them off as each happened. It also became useful when I asked for LORs, and weeks had gone by, but I hadn't heard from a letter writer (which can easily happen if you are employed). I would know to email that writer and (kindly) ask what was going on. It also helps you keep track of
your progress - if you have a school's deadline coming up, it's a good idea to prioritize that school's secondary, even though it may have been sent to you later than another school's.