## 2008-2009 Application Season ## Post AACOMAS questions HERE!!!

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My father attended KCUMB and i'll most likely be following his footsteps in a year or two (even though it's 12 hours from home 🙁 ). But the campus is absolutely beautiful and is VERY close to arrowhead stadium (home of the chiefs) and the baseball stadium for the Royals. He loved it there and apparently the city is awesome. It definitely gives you the big city feel that some DO schools lack.

that sounds really nice. KCUMB what does it stand for completely?
 
While I'm not knocking your wanting to impress some of the allopathic schools, I think you are taking too big of a risk. What if you have a bad test day? Not that you will but there is that chance. Be happy and proud of your 32. Besides you can have a 45 and it really doesn't guarantee that you would get in soem schools. Also an osteopathic school looks at the whole package and wouldn't you want that? Since you are a nontraditional student, they are more interested in you than just your scores (GPA and MCAT). Yes, they are important, but you can have the best grades and MCAT, but if you have a sucky personality, it won't get you anywhere.

32👍

Good luck!:luck::luck::luck::luck:
 
I'll make this short.

Was registered for August 5th MCAT.
Put on AMCAAS and AACOMAS that I was taking on this date.
Already completed and submitted a good MCAT score from May 31st.
Did not show to August 5th due to my cousin being very ill from cancer.

What does one do in this situation. They have my score from the 31st. I am content with it for the most part, but I did put I was retaking but alas did not...so I am not so sure what to do right now. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks.
 
OK, seriously...I don't get it. What is it with people and not wanting to report their scores??? First of all, I am frustrated by this because it is so dishonest I can't even comprehend even considering doing such a thing, but not only that, you people need to read (directly from the AAMC website):

Select which scores you want to send. The next page will ask you to select where you want them sent.

Please note that some schools and programs will not accept only a subset of your scores. To send your scores to these Include-All-Scores institutions, you must use the Send All My Scores form.

AMCAS note: If you are applying to medical school through AMCAS, the preferred process for providing your scores to AMCAS schools is to release your scores to AMCAS. Unless instructed otherwise, do not use this page to send AMCAS-released scores to your designated AMCAS schools. They have already received or will be receiving your scores as part of your AMCAS application.

If you have MCAT scores from Series 25 (April 2003) or later, they will automatically be included whenever you send any scores to a school or program. This is indicated by a Check mark next to these scores.


and from the 'help' heading:


Send selected scores to medical schools ...

This option appears if you have at least two sets of MCAT scores.

This option is exactly the same as the "Send all my scores" option, but allows you to exclude selected scores from the report. You cannot exclude scores from April 2003 and later. Please note, that the score reports that goes to the recipients includes the test date (but not the scores or the test conditions) for each MCAT you excluded. Some schools and programs do not accept score reports that exclude scores. To send your scores to these programs, termed Include-All-Scores Institutions, you must use the "Send all my scores" option instead.


So, if you excluded scores on your application and thought that if you did 'send selected scores' excluded scores then you better be prepared to explain to the school why you excluded that score because when they get the official score report they will see ALL of your scores (even the one you thought you excluded) and thus, you will have been caught in your dishonesty and all it will do is raise huge red flags...if you lie about a stupid score, what else did you lie about on your application?? This of course is my .02$ on this topic and I just want you to know that I think you are being dishonest by doing this (especially when schools ask for ALL of your scores..not just the ones you like).
 
I'll make this short.

Was registered for August 5th MCAT.
Put on AMCAAS and AACOMAS that I was taking on this date.
Already completed and submitted a good MCAT score from May 31st.
Did not show to August 5th due to my cousin being very ill from cancer.

What does one do in this situation. They have my score from the 31st. I am content with it for the most part, but I did put I was retaking but alas did not...so I am not so sure what to do right now. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks.

You can log back into AACOMAS and delete a test date previously entered. For AMCAS I think you can do essentially the same. I think you will "resubmit" both. Are you verified for either? This might send you to the back of the line if you change it now.

Either way I'd email both to make sure the schools will receive this info and to determine how this will affect your place in line (if applicable).
 
Edit: I found it.......yeesh!
 
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After 5 months of practice I officially bombed my MCAT on July 10th, and need to release that highly impressive 19 of mine to AACOMAS.

Also in July I submitted my primary apps, and currently I'm registered for Sept. 13th MCAT.

My question is do I:

A) Release my 19 now to AACOMAS, while indicating retake of 9/13.

or

B) Wait until mid-October, and send both scores (7/10 and 9/13).

Obviously that 19 is only going to hurt me, and not help me. So I'm leaning towards option B. Is the correct thing/helpful thing to do in my situation??
 
After 5 months of practice I officially bombed my MCAT on July 10th, and need to release that highly impressive 19 of mine to AACOMAS.

Also in July I submitted my primary apps, and currently I'm registered for Sept. 13th MCAT.

My question is do I:

A) Release my 19 now to AACOMAS, while indicating retake of 9/13.

or

B) Wait until mid-October, and send both scores (7/10 and 9/13).

Obviously that 19 is only going to hurt me, and not help me. So I'm leaning towards option B. Is the correct thing/helpful thing to do in my situation??

Off the bat I say B. My only concern is that a lack of MCAT score might keep you from getting any secondaries, slowing you down a little later. However, the flip side is that the 19 could get you early rejections, even though schools are supposed to notice that you're retaking.

Anyone have experience with this?
 
Hey guys,
Once your application is processed by aacomas and you decide to add a couple more schools to your list do those schools quickly receive your aacomas application or do you have to wait for a period of time before the additional schools will get your application?
 
Hey guys,
Once your application is processed by aacomas and you decide to add a couple more schools to your list do those schools quickly receive your aacomas application or do you have to wait for a period of time before the additional schools will get your application?

After AACOMAS verifies you, your schools will be instantly electronically notified, and your app will be mailed to schools very shortly thereafter (during the weekly-or-so mailing).

If you're still being verified, all schools will find out at the same time. This also should not affect the speed of verification.
 
Just curious, are the AACOMAS ID #s assigned sequentially according to when you initiated your AACOMAS application? As I am typing this thread I am realizing that time of initiation in no way correlates with time of submission, which I had initially thought would be a cool way to see how "early" your application was, but does my ID# of 10008XX-2008 mean that eight hundred some people started their applications before me?
 
When specifically did you apply? I could compare it to my ID#; I applied on 8-14.
 
On AACOMAS, what comes after "verified"? How long is the wait at this point? When can I hope for secondaries to come?
 
This may have already been adressed somewhere, but just today my AACOMAS application went from submitted to processing. Is this significant? All my stuff is in (transcripts, MCAT, payment, etc.). Does anyone know how long it takes after this new status to be verified? Just curious, thanks ahead of time for the help.
 
okay so i got my score back from my July 8th exam and had it sent to aacomas last tuesday, and they got it the same day. today, i contacted dmu, and they say they still havnt gotten my new score..
was i supposed to do something other than having aamc send it to aacomas???? liek i was supposed to press submit again or something...i getting kinda worried b/c dmu has been waiting on my score for a couple of weeks......
please help! thanks
 
This may have already been adressed somewhere, but just today my AACOMAS application went from submitted to processing. Is this significant? All my stuff is in (transcripts, MCAT, payment, etc.). Does anyone know how long it takes after this new status to be verified? Just curious, thanks ahead of time for the help.

i noticed the same thing happened to me today, too. but i was thinking that it's just to let you know that they received all your stuff, so that now it will be in line for verification. but i'm not sure...someone please correct me if i'm wrong 😕
 
This may have already been adressed somewhere, but just today my AACOMAS application went from submitted to processing. Is this significant? All my stuff is in (transcripts, MCAT, payment, etc.). Does anyone know how long it takes after this new status to be verified? Just curious, thanks ahead of time for the help.

This just happened to me the other day too. I had been 'submitted' for about 5 weeks, thinking that my verification would be coming any day (based on the 3-6 week timeframe frequently quoted). But now I've just been updated to 'processing' phase...so is THIS where my 3-6 weeks begin??? If so, that means my total time from submission of everything to verification could be 11 weeks??? Sounds a little crazy.
 
But now I've just been updated to 'processing' phase...so is THIS where my 3-6 weeks begin??? If so, that means my total time from submission of everything to verification could be 11 weeks??? Sounds a little crazy.

This sounds crazy and could probably only be the case if you did not have all of your materials in until weeks after submitting.
 
This sounds crazy and could probably only be the case if you did not have all of your materials in until weeks after submitting.

Nope. Application was done, and transcripts, MCAT and payment were in at time of submission. Perhaps a volume-related backlog?
 
I have been in processing since Monday... hopefully it will be verified soon....11 weeks would ridiculous!
Turned it in on July 10th.
 
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I have been in processing since Monday... hopefully it will be verified soon....11 weeks would ridiculous!
Turned it in on July 10th.

That's the exact date I submitted mine. Let's hope they move it along quickly!
 
AACOMAS Status

Current: Processing


I sent it in about five weeks ago.


Checklist:
Application Submitted
checkmark.png
Transcripts Received
checkmark.png
Payment Received
checkmark.png

AACOMAS begins processing when all have checkboxes


All three of those were done by five weeks ago. Like they said above, this better not be the start of 3-6 weeks waiting for verification.




Maybe its just a new feature of aacomas to give a slightly more detailed display without actually being helpful in any way.
 
This just happened to me the other day too. I had been 'submitted' for about 5 weeks, thinking that my verification would be coming any day (based on the 3-6 week timeframe frequently quoted). But now I've just been updated to 'processing' phase...so is THIS where my 3-6 weeks begin??? If so, that means my total time from submission of everything to verification could be 11 weeks??? Sounds a little crazy.


Cancel all of that. I'm verified as of 8/20.
 
I'm trying to look on the aacom site to see if I can find the answer to my question, but I thought I'd see if anyone here could help me as well.

I just got confirmation that I can shadow a DO, I just need to call her and schedule when I'd be able to do this. I haven't been verified with aacom yet (I submitted a few weeks ago), but it says it's processing.

Can I add this shadowing experience to my aacom application? Or should I just somehow add it when I start getting the secondaries? Thanks!
 
It took just over 6 weeks for me and I think most people who submitted mid June to mid July are experiencing this amount of waiting. There is a whole thread already started called "2008-2009 Verification Thread". Check it out for a better idea of times.
 
I'm trying to look on the aacom site to see if I can find the answer to my question, but I thought I'd see if anyone here could help me as well.

I just got confirmation that I can shadow a DO, I just need to call her and schedule when I'd be able to do this. I haven't been verified with aacom yet (I submitted a few weeks ago), but it says it's processing.

Can I add this shadowing experience to my aacom application? Or should I just somehow add it when I start getting the secondaries? Thanks!

I think this would require opening up your app and putting you in the back of the line for verification. This would be detrimental. Talk to a live person and ask if this would be the case.

I would plan on mentioning this in secondaries. This will not be possible for some secondaries, so you can send a brief letter with this info to those schools.

Plan on getting a letter from the DO, and nice work securing the opportunity!
 
Does anybody know the answer to this problem:


I took Exercise Physiology (PET 3351) 3 years ago and am planning on retaking it for DO school, but the course number has changed and is now titled PET 3353.

Will AACOMAS accept the new grade even if the course number has changed (still the same class though)?
 
Does anybody know the answer to this problem:


I took Exercise Physiology (PET 3351) 3 years ago and am planning on retaking it for DO school, but the course number has changed and is now titled PET 3353.

Will AACOMAS accept the new grade even if the course number has changed (still the same class though)?

I think if it has the same title, it will be fine. Just mark it as a "repeat" and they probably won't dispute it. If they do, you'll just email them. Go for it.
 
I had this same problem only the title changed more than the number. I sent an official letter from the department to AACOMAS and AMCAS explaining the change and stating that the courses were eqivelant. I had no problems with AACOMAS, but it completely blocked my AMCAS application from going through.
 
i just finished entering my science grades and im ending up with a 3.3 nonscience and a 2.95 science. I am disappointed because in when i entered my grades in the excel spreadsheet I had A 3.03 science gpa 🙁

I dunno what to do baaaaaaaaaaaah
 
Too slow. Just remember to check on the application because I didn't and well my application was delayed 4 or 5 weeks more.
 
Does anybody know the answer to this problem:


I took Exercise Physiology (PET 3351) 3 years ago and am planning on retaking it for DO school, but the course number has changed and is now titled PET 3353.

Will AACOMAS accept the new grade even if the course number has changed (still the same class though)?

I tanked calc 1 the first time I took it and ended up retaking it. Technically though I took it with two different departments. The first being MAT 131, the second being AMS 151. The difference was one was from the pure math department and the second was from the applied math department. AACOMAS doesn't seem to have a problem with it.
 
Okay, I just checked my application status and it shows as 2/3 transcripts received. I submitted my application on 8-14 and sent transcript requests on 8-15. Just today they updated it and show that two of them were received on 8-18 but it didn't show it until today (8-25).

My question is, if my third transcript comes a lot earlier than they report it on the homepage, will they begin processing when the transcript is received or when they update it on their site?

Sorry if the question makes no sense I can try explaining again lol..
 
About the recommendation letters...

I'm still waiting to be verified (submitted 07/28) but should I go ahead and ask the pre-med committee at my school to send the letters to the schools?

Or at least, give them a heads up that they need to start sending letters by the end of this month?

I just don't want to wait any longer than I have to. 👍
 
About the recommendation letters...

I'm still waiting to be verified (submitted 07/28) but should I go ahead and ask the pre-med committee at my school to send the letters to the schools?

Or at least, give them a heads up that they need to start sending letters by the end of this month?

I just don't want to wait any longer than I have to. 👍

Don't snail mail letters to a school until you get a secondary from them. This way they have a file with your name on it to put stuff in. A heads up couldn't hurt--just don't annoy them!
 
Okay, I just checked my application status and it shows as 2/3 transcripts received. I submitted my application on 8-14 and sent transcript requests on 8-15. Just today they updated it and show that two of them were received on 8-18 but it didn't show it until today (8-25).

My question is, if my third transcript comes a lot earlier than they report it on the homepage, will they begin processing when the transcript is received or when they update it on their site?

Sorry if the question makes no sense I can try explaining again lol..

This is hard to answer. On one hand, you would think that they'd be fair and put you in line as soon as all your materials were received. However, if it took them a while to even realize they had all of your stuff, I'm not convinced that they'd move you up in line as soon as they figured out when they actually received everything.

A week may seem like a lot of wasted time, but just be productive and be ready to go when secondaries come to you. Also, start raiding your friends' couches for change to help pay for interviews! 👍
 
About the recommendation letters...

I'm still waiting to be verified (submitted 07/28) but should I go ahead and ask the pre-med committee at my school to send the letters to the schools?

Or at least, give them a heads up that they need to start sending letters by the end of this month?

I just don't want to wait any longer than I have to. 👍

I'm in the same situation. I'm going to get everything read that I need to and give my letter writers the addresses necessary. As soon as they send me requests for secondaries, I'll just tell them to drop them in the mail so it won't waste any time. They should be getting everything they need at about the same time.

Chocolate Bear said:
Also, start raiding your friends' couches for change to help pay for interviews! 👍
Definitely not looking forward to that! lol..
 
I was verified today, and was trying to figure out how to see my official GPA?? Anyone know how I can find this out?

Also I repeated 7 classes to boost my GPA. How do I know if AACOMAS counted all the those classes as repeats? In other words how do I know if AACOMAS didn't dismiss them as repeats? As always thanks in advance.
 
I was verified today, and was trying to figure out how to see my official GPA?? Anyone know how I can find this out?

Also I repeated 7 classes to boost my GPA. How do I know if AACOMAS counted all the those classes as repeats? In other words how do I know if AACOMAS didn't dismiss them as repeats? As always thanks in advance.

Repeats: Login, click Application --> Colleges and Coursework --> under Classification you should see R01-R07 for the first time you took each of the seven classes and L01-L07 for the last time you took each of them.

GPA: Click Home for the main page --> click View next to a school --> open "last name""school name".pdf or download it if prompted --> the first page has your GPA breakdown.
 
Repeats: Login, click Application --> Colleges and Coursework --> under Classification you should see R01-R07 for the first time you took each of the seven classes and L01-L07 for the last time you took each of them.

GPA: Click Home for the main page --> click View next to a school --> open "last name""school name".pdf or download it if prompted --> the first page has your GPA breakdown.

Turkelton,
What CBear explained was very helpful about finding the verified GPA and repeats. But don't be surprise if you can't find the verified GPA yet since you've just been verified today. It might take a few more days (in my case and in others like myself) for the verified gpa to be located. Besides, depending on when the batch get sent out, the schools only says "submitted to AACOMAS" without having list the actual dates released, so you can't click "VIEW" next to the school.

By all means, CBear is DA-BOMB!
 
Turkelton,
What CBear explained was very helpful about finding the verified GPA and repeats. But don't be surprise if you can't find the verified GPA yet since you've just been verified today. It might take a few more days (in my case and in others like myself) for the verified gpa to be located. Besides, depending on when the batch get sent out, the schools only says "submitted to AACOMAS" without having list the actual dates released, so you can't click "VIEW" next to the school.

This is true. Maybe a week or so after verification occurs, all of these things should be visible.
 
Ok so I submitted my primary app. on AMCAS and ACCOMAS on Aug 8. I received verification from AMCAS yesterday, but nothing from ACCOMAS yet... what's the deal???

Also i am taking the MCAT for the first time in Sept., if I do poorly, hopefully not, and get rejected from some schools because of MCAT score, can i retake in Jan and get looked at again this cycle? A friend of mine didn't even take his mcat for the first time until jan 08 and he got accepted to a bunch of schools. (3.4 gpa, 25 mcat)

Thanks guys
 
Ok so I submitted my primary app. on AMCAS and ACCOMAS on Aug 8. I received verification from AMCAS yesterday, but nothing from ACCOMAS yet... what's the deal???

Also i am taking the MCAT for the first time in Sept., if I do poorly, hopefully not, and get rejected from some schools because of MCAT score, can i retake in Jan and get looked at again this cycle? A friend of mine didn't even take his mcat for the first time until jan 08 and he got accepted to a bunch of schools. (3.4 gpa, 25 mcat)

Thanks guys
Just a heads up. AACOMAS takes like six weeks to process. So I advise you to work on the essays now. I submitted mine on July 14 and I am still not verified...

Its a whole lot a waiting. I'll tell you that much.
 
Ok so I submitted my primary app. on AMCAS and ACCOMAS on Aug 8. I received verification from AMCAS yesterday, but nothing from ACCOMAS yet... what's the deal???

Also i am taking the MCAT for the first time in Sept., if I do poorly, hopefully not, and get rejected from some schools because of MCAT score, can i retake in Jan and get looked at again this cycle? A friend of mine didn't even take his mcat for the first time until jan 08 and he got accepted to a bunch of schools. (3.4 gpa, 25 mcat)

Thanks guys

a) The deal is that you'll be waiting another 3-4 weeks for AACOMAS to verify you

b) Most/all schools have said that they will look at January scores (source). However, most schools will be close to full by February, when your score will come out. Try to avoid this situation (obviously). If you do have to do this, make sure to tell the schools immediately after getting an unsatisfactory score back in October, so they don't make the "final" decision on you.
 
a) The deal is that you'll be waiting another 3-4 weeks for AACOMAS to verify you

b) Most/all schools have said that they will look at January scores (source). However, most schools will be close to full by February, when your score will come out. Try to avoid this situation (obviously). If you do have to do this, make sure to tell the schools immediately after getting an unsatisfactory score back in October, so they don't make the "final" decision on you.

How do you do this? Do you just call the school and tell them or enter planned mcat on aacomas? my score was 23 so I'm pretty sure I won't get in, but it is still possible. I didn't want to report my retake because i didn't want to get put on hold. I guess it would be wise to go ahead and tell them though. what do you think?
 
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