Withdrawing AMCAS does NOT=Re-applicant next cycle

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SoFreakedOut

SoFreakedOut

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This is a public service announcement, not a question.

I was glancing through old threads and noticed that a lot of people ask whether withdrawing their AMCAS application means they'll be considered a re-applicant next year. There's always lot of confusion and people give a lot of wrong answers (as absurd as, "there's no withdraw button").

So, FYI withdrawing your AMCAS application BEFORE it is verified (and the withdraw button is actually only active before it is verified) does NOT make you a re-applicant next year.

AMCAS Instruction book:
If you have a processed AMCAS application from a previous application year, you are considered a re-applicant to those medical schools. This is regardless of whether or not a secondary application was completed.

Processed=verified.

So if anyone is thinking of withdrawing this year remember that you will not be considered a re-applicant if it's done prior to verification (withdrawing from the process after verification is a whole other story).

Call AAMC to be reassured, but the answer is certain.
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So who the **** submits AMCAS and then withdraws it a few days later, before verification?

What kind of mental instability does that suggest?
 
flip26 said:
So who the **** submits AMCAS and then withdraws it a few days later, before verification?

What kind of mental instability does that suggest?
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Well obviously if they submit and then withdraw just for giggles there is some mental instability. Most people though are in these situations because of scoring poorly on practice MCAT exams after they submit or coming out of an MCAT test knowing for sure they really bombed (didn't get to 2 passages or something). There are likely many other circumstances. All I know is I saw a lot of posts about it and thought I'd clarify. Verification is also taking 3+ weeks, not just a couple of days. There's ample time for circumstances to change.
 
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SoFreakedOut said:
This is a public service announcement, not a question.

I was glancing through old threads and noticed that a lot of people ask whether withdrawing their AMCAS application means they'll be considered a re-applicant next year. There's always lot of confusion and people give a lot of wrong answers (as absurd as, "there's no withdraw button").

So, FYI withdrawing your AMCAS application BEFORE it is verified (and the withdraw button is actually only active before it is verified) does NOT make you a re-applicant next year.

AMCAS Instruction book:
If you have a processed AMCAS application from a previous application year, you are considered a re-applicant to those medical schools. This is regardless of whether or not a secondary application was completed.

Processed=verified.

So if anyone is thinking of withdrawing this year remember that you will not be considered a re-applicant if it's done prior to verification (withdrawing from the process after verification is a whole other story).

Call AAMC to be reassured, but the answer is certain.
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ACTUALLY... I called AMCAS and they gave me a different answer. They said that even though it's not verified, you are considered a reapplicant to the schools you have on your list. When you add a school to your list and hit "submit" on AMCAS, the schools are aware that you tried applying there, even though they will have not received your processed app until a few weeks later.

I'll give an example b/c this actually happened to me. I withdrew last year because of a poor MCAT. My AMCAS was NOT verified when I withdrew. However... BU has records of me applying so when I applied again this year, their message was "We have record that you have tried applying to our school last year." They go on to say that I can transfer my info from my secondary if I wanted to. If your theory is correct and I am not considered a "reapplicant", I would not be getting this message.

I can bust out that e-mail if you want hard evidence.
 
Well it seems they have contradicting instructions. But in all honesty, no one is going to ask you at interview, "So how have you improved in the last year?" even if you technically are a reapplicant.
 
wanderer100 said:
Well it seems they have contradicting instructions. But in all honesty, no one is going to ask you at interview, "So how have you improved in the last year?" even if you technically are a reapplicant.
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I agree that it will likely not come up at interviews. But just about every 2ndary asks you to explain why you are reapplying.
 
BullDog4Eva said:
I agree that it will likely not come up at interviews. But just about every 2ndary asks you to explain why you are reapplying.
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I've submitted over 10 secondaries, and I've only seen this a couple of times.
 
wanderer100 said:
I've submitted over 10 secondaries, and I've only seen this a couple of times.
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I may be displaying sample bias. It turns out I'm only applying to 6 schools that was on my list last year. Out of these 6 schools, 5 of them ask if I'm a reapplicant. As for the other 22 schools I'm applying this year, I didn't pay attention to whether they ask if I was a reapplicant... since I'm not to them. There has been two schools so far, Einstein and Stony Brook, that asks a blanket "Have you ever applied to medical schools before?"... so I have to say Yes.

Whether they ask or not... you have to check off "reapplicant" when you add the school on AMCAS. I specifically asked AMCAS this and that was their answer. This might do nothing to your candidacy... or it might harm you a little. Who knows. One might even argue it might help if they see it as a sign that you're really interested in their school and that you're persistent.
 
BullDog4Eva said:
I may be displaying sample bias. It turns out I'm only applying to 6 schools that was on my list last year. Out of these 6 schools, 5 of them ask if I'm a reapplicant. As for the other 22 schools I'm applying this year, I didn't pay attention to whether they ask if I was a reapplicant... since I'm not to them. There has been two schools so far, Einstein and Stony Brook, that asks a blanket "Have you ever applied to medical schools before?"... so I have to say Yes.

Whether they ask or not... you have to check off "reapplicant" when you add the school on AMCAS. I specifically asked AMCAS this and that was their answer. This might do nothing to your candidacy... or it might harm you a little. Who knows. One might even argue it might help if they see it as a sign that you're really interested in their school and that you're persistent.
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Yea, I just got invited the first day of a school's invitations, after getting rejected pre-interview there last year, so reapplying can't hurt THAT MUCH. I think as long you show some improvement, and show that you've used your time productively, you'll be fine.
 
Because this was such a controversial topic I made sure to call several times before posting. AAMC always said not to check re-applicant and I even asked to speak to the manager, who said the same thing.

BullDog4Eva, you said that BU wrote that you can "transfer [your] info from [your] secondary if [you] wanted to". So then you submitted a secondary to them during that cycle? Perhaps that is why they had record of you having applied before.

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Edit: The whole point of this thread was to demystify the "re-applicant" status with withdraws. I know it's a source of angst for people. So, I emailed AAMC/AMCAS to get a statement from them in writing rather than just a verbal confirmation. Here's their statement:

If you have a processed AMCAS application from a previous application year, you are considered a re-applicant to those medical schools. Your application will not be processed if you withdraw, so you would not be considered a re-applicant.

Again, verified=processed=re-applicant, withdrawn=NOT processed=NOT re-applicant. I chose a school at random to see if they would agree, a particular Ivy Leauge school's admissions office reiterated this and said that even if you start a secondary (say you got an invite pre-verification) you are still not a re-applicant since nothing was submitted to them (no secondary or primary, they only get it once it's verified).

BullDog4Eva, I'm not sure who told you to mark re-applicant or if your circumstances were that you submitted a secondary to that school but the official AMCAS policy is that you don't have to mark re-applicant.
 
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SoFreakedOut said:
Because this was such a controversial topic I made sure to call several times before posting. AAMC always said not to check re-applicant and I even asked to speak to the manager, who said the same thing.

BullDog4Eva, you said that BU wrote that you can "transfer [your] info from [your] secondary if [you] wanted to". So then you submitted a secondary to them during that cycle? Perhaps that is why they had record of you having applied before.

----------
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No. I did not submit my 2ndary to them. I didn't even fill it out, in fact.

I wanted to not have to check off "reapplicant"... but I called AMCAS and they said I have to. Now I'm afraid the schools will be confused on why I checked it off when they have no records of me applying. In the "are you a reapplicant" box, I do explain that I withdrew my application shortly after I submitted it. I hope they can make the connection that it was not verified yet.
 
BullDog4Eva said:
No. I did not submit my 2ndary to them. I didn't even fill it out, in fact.

I wanted to not have to check off "reapplicant"... but I called AMCAS and they said I have to. Now I'm afraid the schools will be confused on why I checked it off when they have no records of me applying. In the "are you a reapplicant" box, I do explain that I withdrew my application shortly after I submitted it. I hope they can make the connection that it was not verified yet.
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Wouldn't worry about it. Even though they don't consider you a re-applicant once they read your explanation of why you checked the box they'll get that it was a misunderstanding and not a big deal. It's very different than having applied and gotten rejected by all schools. Don't sweat it. This thread was meant to help people not sweat it, ironically. lol
 
SoFreakedOut said:
Wouldn't worry about it. Even though they don't consider you a re-applicant once they read your explanation of why you checked the box they'll get that it was a misunderstanding and not a big deal. It's very different than having applied and gotten rejected by all schools. Don't sweat it. This thread was meant to help people not sweat it, ironically. lol
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Thanks. I actually do feel much better now. That's a big thing to say, since I've been carrying this huge guilt on my shoulders ALL THESE TIMES. The pre-health advisors at my school are really good most of the time, but when they mess up, boy do they mess up. They were the ones who convinced me all these times that I am a reapplicant so when AMCAS mistakenly confirmed this, I didn't put up a fight.

I can imagine that one way that it will hurt me to admit that I'm "technically a reapplicant" is that they think I was premature about submitting my apps. If I had not revealed this at all, they would have never known. Oh well... no point dwelling on something that I can't do anything about at this point.

The biggest problem of being considered a "reapplicant" is the stigma of being rejected by ALL your schools. However, that was not the case for me.
 
Thanks for the information! I previously tried doing a search and couldn't find any clear answers. :thumbup:
 
No problem. It's a really sticky subject and that's exactly why I wanted to post about it. If anyone ever needs the email from AMCAS/AAMC as proof feel free to PM me. Or, you can always email them and get the same answer for peace of mind.

BullDog4Eva, so you were premature, so what...the fact that you pulled out knowing that you didn't think you were at your best to apply showed maturity. I'm sure they can appreciate the magnitude of you putting on the breaks and waiting a year because you knew you wanted to be the best version of yourself before applying. You miscalculated by starting the app process but did the right thing by stopping, I don't think they can fault you very much for that.

As a side note, people who withdraw get their money back for all the schools minus the ones whose deadlines have passed and minus $160 of AMCAS processing, that was also in the email and can be found on their FAQs on their website.
 
I'm not sure if this thread is exactly right. Schools get your name before you're verified for certain, because quite a few of them send out secondaries in between submission and verification. Given that at least some people have been told by AMCAS that submitting and withdrawing makes you a reapplicant, I'd err on the side of that. Better to fill out the form with extra information on how you've improved in the last year than to leave that blank IMO.
 
Raryn said:
I'm not sure if this thread is exactly right. Schools get your name before you're verified for certain, because quite a few of them send out secondaries in between submission and verification. Given that at least some people have been told by AMCAS that submitting and withdrawing makes you a reapplicant, I'd err on the side of that. Better to fill out the form with extra information on how you've improved in the last year than to leave that blank IMO.
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Not everyone is aware of every policy at a company. I called AMCAS several times before posting. Several operators had me on hold and looked it up and then told me that it does not make you a re-applicant. One time though an operator immediately told me with the utmost confidence that you ARE a re-applicant if you withdraw prior to verification. He was totally sure. I asked him to check with a supervisor because it was a very important question. He came back and said he was sorry but he was totally wrong and the policy is that one is not a re-applicant. It is their official policy but there's always going to be an employee or two that gets it wrong. That's why you get the answer in writing and you talk with a top level person who will know the answer.

If someone wants to classify themselves as a re-applicant after having withdrawn and fill out why they improved, that's their prerogative but definitely not policy.
 
I received an email from a school thanking me for applying, and stating that I would be receiving secondaries once AMCAS verifies my application and they are able to review it. This appears to be an automated email.

Schools may be aware that you intended to apply, but never did. It makes sense to me that if you withdraw your primary application, you will never have submitted an application at all and therefore never applied, making you a new applicant next year, but who knows? :shrug:

I think the best idea is to contact each individual school you are applying to, rather than AMCAS.
 
Contacting individual schools definitely will give you piece of mind. As I've said, I did that for this thread and the schools collectively said, "if we send you a secondary and you make a login it all doesn't matter so long as we never get your primary (which they get after verification) and you don't submit a secondary". You're non-existent to them this year so far as they're concerned until they get that primary and/or your secondary money/app.
 
Hey guys,
Sorry to bump this old thread...but a pertinent question.

I have submitted my AMCAS, though it hasn't been verified yet. My AACOMAS application, however, has been verified.

As of right now, I am planning to withdraw my AMCAS application, but am confused as to whether I should answer Yes or No to the question (something along this line) " Have you ever applied to a US medical school?"
 
nindra said:
Hey guys,
Sorry to bump this old thread...but a pertinent question.

I have submitted my AMCAS, though it hasn't been verified yet. My AACOMAS application, however, has been verified.

As of right now, I am planning to withdraw my AMCAS application, but am confused as to whether I should answer Yes or No to the question (something along this line) " Have you ever applied to a US medical school?"
Click to expand...

God bless you for using the search function. You should be enshrined.
 
nindra said:
Hey guys,
Sorry to bump this old thread...but a pertinent question.

I have submitted my AMCAS, though it hasn't been verified yet. My AACOMAS application, however, has been verified.

As of right now, I am planning to withdraw my AMCAS application, but am confused as to whether I should answer Yes or No to the question (something along this line) " Have you ever applied to a US medical school?"
Click to expand...

Did you ever apply for a US medical school in 2011, 2010, 2009, etc?
 
Contemplating said:
Did you ever apply for a US medical school in 2011, 2010, 2009, etc?
Click to expand...

Nope, never before.

This has been my first application cycle. I actually just withdrew my AMCAS application (before it being verified), and according to the AMCAS representative I talked to, I will not be considered as a re-applicant.

But my AACOMAS application is already submitted...(planning to withdraw from that as well)...am I considered as a reapplicant still in this case when it may refer to MD schools?

Thanks.
 
Hey guys,
So I used the search function but couldn't find any definitive answer so thought I'd post here:

Let's say you submit a primary application in early June to school X and your application is verified (with the intention of applying to school A, B, C, and D in early July after receiving your MCAT scores). You receive your score in early July, but for some reason your MCAT score was not where it should have been. Because you've already submitted your primary to a single school X and it has been verified, school X will know that you are a re-applicant for next cycle (from my understanding). How about school's A, B, C, D etc. which never received a primary from you b/c you decided to withdraw your primary AMCAS (which only school X has received) after receiving your MCAT score in early July? I heard somewhere that AMCAS considers you a reapplicant even if you've only sent out one primary to school X....so you'd have to check off the box as a re-applicant the following cycle in the primary (does this apply to school's A, B, C, D etc) ? And that there are secondary questions that sometimes generally ask "did you apply to medical school" etc. (if you submitted a single primary to school X, would you have to say yes to these schools's secondaries)? I'm not sure how many school's secondaries ask "did you apply to medical school previously?" Could someone please clarify?

And I'm guessing if you don't check off the reapplicant box on AMCAS, there's no way for medical schools to know that you are a reapplicant for their particular school unless you indicate it on their secondary, correct?

Thanks!
 
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dudewheresmymd said:
Hey guys,
So I used the search function but couldn't find any definitive answer so thought I'd post here:

Let's say you submit a primary application in early June to school X and your application is verified (with the intention of applying to school A, B, C, and D in early July after receiving your MCAT scores). You receive your score in early July, but for some reason your MCAT score was not where it should have been. Because you've already submitted your primary to a single school X and it has been verified, school X will know that you are a re-applicant for next cycle (from my understanding). How about school's A, B, C, D etc. which never received a primary from you b/c you decided to withdraw your primary AMCAS (which only school X has received) after receiving your MCAT score in early July? I heard somewhere that AMCAS considers you a reapplicant even if you've only sent out one primary to school X....so you'd have to check off the box as a re-applicant the following cycle in the primary (does this apply to school's A, B, C, D etc) ? And that there are secondary questions that sometimes generally ask "did you apply to medical school" etc. (if you submitted a single primary to school X, would you have to say yes to these schools's secondaries)? I'm not sure how many school's secondaries ask "did you apply to medical school previously?" Could someone please clarify?

And I'm guessing if you don't check off the reapplicant box on AMCAS, there's no way for medical schools to know that you are a reapplicant for their particular school unless you indicate it on their secondary, correct?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

You are not a re-applicant to A, B, C, D. Don't check re-applicant for those schools. They will never know that your primary was verified last year nor will they know you had school X added. You also don't have to say "yes" to those secondary questions. Just don't select "re-applicant" in the primary and don't apply to school X.
 
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ranson said:
You are not a re-applicant to A, B, C, D. Don't check re-applicant for those schools. They will never know that your primary was verified last year nor will they know you had school X added. You also don't have to say "yes" to those secondary questions. Just don't select "re-applicant" in the primary and don't apply to school X.
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Schools though so ask if you applied before and year. So wouldn't school x count as applying? They don't know you applied to school x?
 
When withdrawing AMCAS application, it asks for withdrawing reason:
Does this get reported to medical schools?
Are they aware if an applicant withdrew?
 
SoFreakedOut said:
This is a public service announcement, not a question.

I was glancing through old threads and noticed that a lot of people ask whether withdrawing their AMCAS application means they'll be considered a re-applicant next year. There's always lot of confusion and people give a lot of wrong answers (as absurd as, "there's no withdraw button").

So, FYI withdrawing your AMCAS application BEFORE it is verified (and the withdraw button is actually only active before it is verified) does NOT make you a re-applicant next year.

AMCAS Instruction book:
If you have a processed AMCAS application from a previous application year, you are considered a re-applicant to those medical schools. This is regardless of whether or not a secondary application was completed.

Processed=verified.

So if anyone is thinking of withdrawing this year remember that you will not be considered a re-applicant if it's done prior to verification (withdrawing from the process after verification is a whole other story).

Call AAMC to be reassured, but the answer is certain.
Click to expand...

i have a question, i understand this reply was from a while back, in my case i started the application but did not finish or clicked submit, it says Not Submitted to AMCAS. i dont wish to apply this cycle, do they know i have applied? do i have to do something to delete the non submitted application? does it submit automatically a specific day?
 
thedoctor_miami said:
i have a question, i understand this reply was from a while back, in my case i started the application but did not finish or clicked submit, it says Not Submitted to AMCAS. i dont wish to apply this cycle, do they know i have applied? do i have to do something to delete the non submitted application? does it submit automatically a specific day?
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See my response in the Work/Activities Tips thread where you also posted your question. The Withdrawal option does not apply to you since you did not Submit.
 
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flip26 said:
So who the **** submits AMCAS and then withdraws it a few days later, before verification?

What kind of mental instability does that suggest?
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Sometimes there is a 4 week gap between submission and verification. During that period the student's mcat score may have released and been much lower than anticipated....so withdrawing before verification.

IMHO, it's too risky to apply before the student has a competitive mcat in hand.
 
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