2-week rule?

[bhop]

For those of you that were succesful in the application cycle last year, how strictly did you follow the advice to send secondaries back within two weeks. Were any of you a day or two late in getting back to schools and still go far in the application process at the school?

Thanks!

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[Apparition]

It doesn't really matter. As long as you submit all secondaries by the end of september, you're good. Some have deadlines though.

 

[BMW M3]

The earlier you send it in, the higher up on the applicant pool list you will be filed. It is def. to your advantage to get the apps in as early as possible to secure an early interview.

 

[burntfries]

The earlier you send it in, the higher up on the applicant pool list you will be filed. It is def. to your advantage to get the apps in as early as possible to secure an early interview.

this applies only if your secondary file is complete, i.e. essays and LOR's, right?

 

[TMP-SMX]

For those of you that were succesful in the application cycle last year, how strictly did you follow the advice to send secondaries back within two weeks. Were any of you a day or two late in getting back to schools and still go far in the application process at the school?

Thanks!

It's really a guideline so you don't get lazy. Of course none of it matters if you don't have your LORs to schools that require it before a review.

 

[BMW M3]

this applies only if your secondary file is complete, i.e. essays and LOR's, right?

correct. Most schools file you when your secondary is COMPLETE. LORs are the limiting factor in this whole process.

 

[Wookey]

For those of you that were succesful in the application cycle last year, how strictly did you follow the advice to send secondaries back within two weeks. Were any of you a day or two late in getting back to schools and still go far in the application process at the school?

Thanks!

A few days late is fine for most schools.

 

[Zuerst]

Wait what? I was under the impression that if you recieved the secondary application say sometime in July and if the deadline for secondary is in October, you'll have 3 months to complete the secondary. Of course the earlier the better, but there is no 2 week rule else the schools would state such timeline.

 

[TMP-SMX]

Wait what? I was under the impression that if you recieved the secondary application say sometime in July and if the deadline for secondary is in October, you'll have 3 months to complete the secondary. Of course the earlier the better, but there is no 2 week rule else the schools would state such timeline.

Correct. If there is a deadline they tell you... However by October you are cutting it close to getting stuck without an interview spot.

Secondaries complete by the end of July are great. (Of course some schools fail to send out secondaries before the end of June on occasion).

 

[sentrosi]

Hmm. I didn't even know such a rule existed. Guess it didn't matter much.

Just get it back in as soon as possible. I suppose it might make a tiny difference if you send it in a day earlier than some other applicant, but probably not very important.

 

[greendot]

I tried to get every secondary back the day they came, so that they wouldn't pile up. A couple of times it took me a couple of days, but worked very well for the most part. I was never overwhelmed, and was done with most of my secondaries before the end of august and had interviews starting in early september.

 

[tacrum43]

Wait what? I was under the impression that if you recieved the secondary application say sometime in July and if the deadline for secondary is in October, you'll have 3 months to complete the secondary. Of course the earlier the better, but there is no 2 week rule else the schools would state such timeline.

Yes, officially you have that much time, but if you take two months to send in your secondary, it might give the impression that you're not very interested in that school. It also makes it harder to stand out from the other applicants when your app is the 500th that an admissions member has read and there are a limited number of interview invites remaining.

 

[Zuerst]

Yes, officially you have that much time, but if you take two months to send in your secondary, it might give the impression that you're not very interested in that school. It also makes it harder to stand out from the other applicants when your app is the 500th that an admissions member has read and there are a limited number of interview invites remaining.

Well of course, as my post implied. Not saying I'm going to wait till the last minute. Just saying there is no such thing as a 2 week "rule." Guideline maybe, but not rule.

 

[LauraPaz]

I tried to get every secondary back the day they came, so that they wouldn't pile up. A couple of times it took me a couple of days, but worked very well for the most part. I was never overwhelmed, and was done with most of my secondaries before the end of august and had interviews starting in early september.

This was basically my strategy too. For my own sanity I tried to stick with getting them done within a week, so I wasn't staring at 8 secondaries all at the same time. I did have a bit of a hold-up on an LOR though, so I suppose my file wasn't complete within the two-week period, but at least my part of the work was done.

 

[notdeadyet]

Well of course, as my post implied. Not saying I'm going to wait till the last minute. Just saying there is no such thing as a 2 week "rule." Guideline maybe, but not rule.

The "2 week rule" is another self-inflicted rule made up in the minds of nervous premeds.

Repeat after me: there is no two week rule. The guideline is to send secondaries back as quickly as you can. The sooner your app is complete, the better.

The sooner your app is complete. If you're an August MCATer or do not have your LORs in, this will hold up your app from being complete, so the rush diminishes.

The deadline is the one that the school tells you. Why turn it in in two weeks if you can get it in in one? There's no cliff at 2 weeks. 2 week rule? Premeds kill me.

 

[McMD]

At one school I applied to, there was a 2 week RULE...the secondary was computerized and your account expired after the 2 weeks...so in some instances, it is *mandatory* that you fill out the secondary within 2 weeks. As far as other schools, you don't have to do them within 2 weeks if it's not specified in the instructions, but it is to your advantage to do them as quickly as possible.

 

[jackieMD2007]

At one school I applied to, there was a 2 week RULE...the secondary was computerized and your account expired after the 2 weeks...so in some instances, it is *mandatory* that you fill out the secondary within 2 weeks. As far as other schools, you don't have to do them within 2 weeks if it's not specified in the instructions, but it is to your advantage to do them as quickly as possible.

It's a rule of thumb, you guys. It's personal.

I can't give myself two weeks. That doesn't promote a sense of urgency for me. I need to make it more like 10 days. But I know what sort of deadlines I need to get my stuff done.

For example, Robizzle has a five-minute rule for secondaries. He completes them in five minutes or less.

 

[steppwolf]

The "2 week rule" is another self-inflicted rule made up in the minds of nervous premeds.

Repeat after me: there is no two week rule. The guideline is to send secondaries back as quickly as you can. The sooner your app is complete, the better.

The sooner your app is complete. If you're an August MCATer or do not have your LORs in, this will hold up your app from being complete, so the rush diminishes.

The deadline is the one that the school tells you. Why turn it in in two weeks if you can get it in in one? There's no cliff at 2 weeks. 2 week rule? Premeds kill me.

If the 2-week turnaround recommendation is a myth, it's not just the premeds who are perpetuating it:

There are some intangible factors that are very important in the application process. Primary among these is your motivation. First of all, with the competition to gain admission to medical school, it is very important that you submit your AMCAS application close to the earliest possible date or as soon as you have received your MCAT scores in June, to show you are highly interested in going to medical school. (Normally the first date on which you can submit your AMCAS application falls in early June.) Apply early! When you receive a secondary application from an AMCAS school, mail it back within two weeks. Many medical schools write down the date that the secondary form was sent to you and if they do not receive the form back within two weeks, they decide that you are not really interested in their school. Return all secondary material promptly!

http://www.swarthmore.edu/Admin/health_sciences/guide_for_applying_to_med.html

 

[Dov]

The only schools i got interviews to were the ones that I followed the two week rule for!!!! I am very happy how everything turned out but it is essential to get everything out in a timely manner. I didn't know what I was doing when I was applying.

Actually, in an interview at one of my schools, my interviewer asked where else I was applying (this was in november) I said i still had a bunch of secondaries still out and he yelled (actually yelled) at me saying I was shooting myself in the foot and that interviews were given on a rolling basis etc etc. So ya... do NOT hold on to secondaries for too long.

 

[Dov]

The "2 week rule" is another self-inflicted rule made up in the minds of nervous premeds.

Repeat after me: there is no two week rule. The guideline is to send secondaries back as quickly as you can. The sooner your app is complete, the better.

The sooner your app is complete. If you're an August MCATer or do not have your LORs in, this will hold up your app from being complete, so the rush diminishes.

The deadline is the one that the school tells you. Why turn it in in two weeks if you can get it in in one? There's no cliff at 2 weeks. 2 week rule? Premeds kill me.

um... how would you know? you haven't completed an application cycle yet.

 

[notdeadyet]

If the 2-week turnaround recommendation is a myth, it's not just the premeds who are perpetuating it:

Maybe I read this wrong, but this is just recommendations from a pre-med group, right?

I reread my post and I sounded irate. My apologies. Late hour and too much MCAT study. I just get depressed at how often the premed culture is to make so much black and white when it's shades of grey. There is no 30 MCAT cliff that separates doctors from waiters, for instance.

If schools have a deadline, be it December or two weeks, meet it. Regardless of the deadline, turn it in as soon as you absolutely can to get it read as early in the process as possible. Anything more structured than that is voodoo.

 

[skimmer]

At one school I applied to, there was a 2 week RULE...the secondary was computerized and your account expired after the 2 weeks...so in some instances, it is *mandatory* that you fill out the secondary within 2 weeks. As far as other schools, you don't have to do them within 2 weeks if it's not specified in the instructions, but it is to your advantage to do them as quickly as possible.

I remember one school said to apply within 2 weeks. I'm in the process of prioritizing my secondaries to complete and want to put that one at the top. But, I can't figure out which school it was. Which school(s) was it?

 

[PBandJ]

I remember one school said to apply within 2 weeks. I'm in the process of prioritizing my secondaries to complete and want to put that one at the top. But, I can't figure out which school it was. Which school(s) was it?

Miami definitely has a 2 week rule from the date that they send the secondary to you via email.

 

[Dr Durden]

Northwestern has a two week deadline too.

 

[PBandJ]

Northwestern has a two week deadline too.

thank goodness northwestern's MSTP doesn't have a 2 week deadline...that one is a killer!