2025-2026 Howard

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chilly_md

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2025-2026 Howard Secondary Essay Prompts

There is a long background section where you did indicate either with checkboxes or simple selections things like education and history of misdemeanor. Then some short answer prompts followed by some more purely yes/no questions it appears.

1. Was your childhood home located in a rural, urban or suburban area? (250 words/3000 characters)

2. Have you lived in communities which are medically underserved, or where the majority of the population is economically and/or educationally disadvantaged? (250 words/3000 characters)

3. Have you worked (volunteer or paid employment) with medically underserved, economically disadvantaged and/or educationally disadvantaged populations? (250 words/3000 characters)

4. After residency, do you plan to practice medicine in an underserved or disadvantaged community? (250 words/3000 characters)

5. Please provide below any additional information you believe is important in evaluating your application (e.g. additional coursework, problems with academic record; disadvantaged, etc.) (250 words/3000 characters)

6. Did COVID-19 Impact you preparing your AMCAS application for fall 2026? (i.e. volunteer/work experience, financially, course registration, MCAT testing, etc.) (250words/2000 characters)

7. Why Howard University College of Medicine? (2500 characters)

Good luck to all applying!

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Howard University College of Medicine - Admission, Tuition, Ranking & Overview | Student Doctor Network

Detail information of Howard University College of Medicine including admission, tuition, ranking, and overview.
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Last edited:
Good Afternoon all, I am a re-applicant this year, shooting for Howard as my target school. I was wondering if I could get some advice on my secondaries and my application to increase my chances of receiving an interview? The biggest change in my app was my MCAT score increase from 497 to 502, which I understand isn't necessarily competitive for other MD schools, but I will still be trying for HBCUs, as they were already my first choice.

If you need any more context and information, feel free to PM me!! Thank you so much once more.
 
Just got an email stating primary was received but not verified. Submitted primary 6/7 and still waiting to get verified.
 
Hey guys! I applied last cycle with no luck and was thinking about retaking my MCAT this January. Do y’all think it would be ok to reapply this July/August? Or better to wait until next cycle?
 
aangela9 said:
Has anyone gotten a secondary invite from Howard?
Click to expand...
Nothing yet so far from the hbcu's. Only hbcu that has started sending secondaries is Charles r drew. I think howard will send theirs next week. Morehouse usually sends last week of july and meharry around august. This is what i've seen looking at last year threads.
 

@chilly_md​

Applicant Background Information​

Please complete your background Information. If a question does not apply, please type N/A.
1. Mother's Highest Level of Education (i.e. High School Graduate, BA/BA (Bachelor's), MA/MS (Masters), Professional Degrees (PhD, MD, JD, DDS, PharmD)

2. Father's Highest Level of Education (i.e. High School Graduate, BA/BA (Bachelor's), MA/MS (Masters), Professional Degrees (PhD, MD, JD, DDS, PharmD)

3. Guardian's Highest Level of Education (i.e. High School Graduate, BA/BA (Bachelor's), MA/MS (Masters), Professional Degrees (PhD, MD, JD, DDS, PharmD)

4. Applicant's Highest Level of Education (i.e. High School Graduate, BA/BA (Bachelor's), MA/MS (Masters), Professional Degrees (PhD, MD, JD, DDS, PharmD)

5. Have you ever participated in any Howard University Summer Programs (SHPEP, BePARP, ACSEP, HSSESA, Upward Bound, etc.)? Please indicate below or type N/A.

6. What were your SAT and/or ACT scores? (Please respond providing your total score on the 400-1600 scale or the 200-800 scale depending on whether you took the old SATs versus the new SATs AND/OR the ACT Composite score on a 1-36 scale).Please indicate below or type N/A if you did not take either

Criminal Background Checks/Drug Screens​

To maintain the safety and well-being of patients, maintain the ability of accepted applicants and enrolled medical students to become licensed as physicians, and reduce liability concerns affecting medical schools and their affiliated clinical facilities, AAMC recommends a criminal background check for all enrolled medical students. Students conditionally admitted as incoming freshmen into the Howard University College of Medicine (HUCM) will be subject to a Criminal Background Check (CBC) through the AMCAS facilitated CBC of the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC). In order to matriculate into the COM, all new entrants MUST satisfactorily pass the criminal background check. Additionally, a second background check and drug screening will be administered, and must be satisfactorily passed, prior to matriculation into the junior year of study.
7. By completing and submitting this application, I understand that, if accepted, I will be subject to a criminal background check and/or drug screening.

[] I understand

[] I do not understand

8. Have you ever been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor in any jurisdiction?

[] Yes

[] No

If yes to question 2, please indicate here which conviction.

[] Misdemeanor

[] Felony

[] Both

[] N/A

Employment and Volunteer History​

Please explain/describe briefly (250 words or less):
9. Was your childhood home located in a rural, urban or suburban area?

[] Rural

[] Urban

[] Suburban

10. Have you lived in communities which are medically underserved, or where the majority of the population is economically and/or educationally disadvantaged? (Please indicate, Yes or No and then explain/describe briefly in 250 words or less)

11. Have you worked (volunteer or paid employment) with medically underserved, economically disadvantaged and/or educationally disadvantaged populations? (Please indicate, Yes or No and then explain/describe briefly in 250 words or less)

12. After residency, do you plan to practice medicine in an underserved or disadvantaged community? (Please indicate, Yes or No and then explain/describe briefly in 250 words or less)

13. Please provide below any additional information you believe is important in evaluating your application (e.g. additional coursework, problems with academic record; disadvantaged, etc.) (Please indicate, Yes or No and then explain/describe briefly in 250 words or less)

14. Did you work at least 20 hours a week for at least one academic year during your undergraduate/graduate program?

[] Yes

[] No

Current Status​

Please complete these questions so we can capture what you are doing while applying to medical school. If a question does not apply, please indicate N/A.
15. Are you now currently working or plan to work in Biomedical or Clinical Research?

[] Yes

[] No

16. Are you now currently working or plan to work Full or Part time in medicine or a medical-related field (Nursing, EMT, PA, Office Assistant, Scribe, Pharmacy Technician, etc)?

[] Yes

[] No

17. Are you now currently working or plan to work Full or Part time in a field outside of medicine?

[] Yes

[] No

18. Are you now currently volunteering or providing community service OR plan to volunteer or provide community service?

[] Yes

[] No

19. Are you currently taking classes full time or part time OR plan to enroll in classes full time or part time in the next 6 months?

[] Yes

[] No

If yes to 5, please list each course, along with the number of credit hours which you will be taking for fall, spring or both semesters. Optional

Other Information​

Please answer these legacy questions.

20. Is any member of your family currently or previously associated with Howard University College of Medicine (HUCM) OR any Howard University College or Department? [OPTIONAL] Please respond Yes or No. Optional

21. If Yes to Question 1, please list their full name, relationship to you, and what their relationship/association is to HUCM [OPTIONAL] (i.e. John Doe, Father, HUCM Class of 1975; Jane Doe, sister, HUCM Faculty; etc.) OR list their name, relationship to you and what their association is with Howard University (i.e. John Doe, Father, College of Business Graduate; Jane Doe, cousin, College of Dentistry Student; employee, graduate, administration, etc.) OR Indicate N/A (not applicable) if No to Question 1. Optional

22. Did COVID-19 Impact you preparing your AMCAS application for fall 2026? (i.e. volunteer/work experience, financially, course registration, MCAT testing, etc.) [Please respond Yes or No and then explain/describe briefly in 250 words or less, indicate N/A is not applicable]

23. Why Howard University College of Medicine?

24. Have you ever been enrolled at Howard University?

[] Yes

[] No

If yes to previous question, please provide your Student ID Number. If no to previous question, please type N/A.
 
ScrubLife247 said:
14. Did you work at least 20 hours a week for at least one academic year during your undergraduate/graduate program?

[] Yes

[] No
Click to expand...
Was the work question above and the current status section all just yes/no without the 250 word explanation? Is Why Howard also 250 words?
 
I graduated High School a million years ago. My SAT scores aren't available. Does anyone know if I can put that or if I have to figure out my score?
 
chilly_md said:
Was the work question above and the current status section all just yes/no without the 250 word explanation? Is Why Howard also 250 words?
Click to expand...
Why Howard was 2500 characters. The COVID essay was 250 words or 2k characters max. The other essays are 250 words or 3k characters max
 
ajaxmonkey said:
I graduated High School a million years ago. My SAT scores aren't available. Does anyone know if I can put that or if I have to figure out my score?
Click to expand...
You can put N/A thats what I did. The SAT scores isn't used for your application. Schools that ask for that use it for research purposes to see correlation between SAT scores and MCAT scores.
 
Kobeleo62 said:
You can put N/A thats what I did. The SAT scores isn't used for your application. Schools that ask for that use it for research purposes to see correlation between SAT scores and MCAT scores.
Click to expand...
Awesome! Thank you ☺️
 
chilly_md said:
Was the work question above and the current status section all just yes/no without the 250 word explanation? Is Why Howard also 250 words?
Click to expand...
The employment and current status was radio button selection with no option to expand. I concur with the rest of papriika’s response
 
I know howard is HBCU school. But how difficult would it be to get accepted there as an asian applicant?
 
HSim87 said:
I know howard is HBCU school. But how difficult would it be to get accepted there as an asian applicant?
Click to expand...
If you fit the mission and truly want to help underserved communities they will give you a chance. Last year they had 14 asians get in. If you are just applying just because their stats are lower than other MD's then don't apply because they can usually tell when applicants only apply because of that.
 
ajaxmonkey said:
Weird question, but are there any like theater or chorale groups lol?
Click to expand...
None that I know of, but absolutely nothing is stopping you from founding your own student group around that. Even if it isn't an official school org (which you can attempt to apply to make it school official), you can also just have it as an unofficial org too, nothing wrong with that, just will have to get the initial funding yourself, but even most official student organizations have to fundraise additional funds anyway. We've had choirs and other performances organized for specific campus events occasionally (class Christmas party, anatomy lab cadavers end of year ceremony, etc), but they were as needed, not part of a specific group or organization. Our school has a "work hard, play hard" culture, so students do like to host a lot of fun events and activities that aren't strictly related to medicine. Heck, we've even hosted a fashion show last year
 
P.B. Anne Jay said:
None that I know of, but absolutely nothing is stopping you from founding your own student group around that. Even if it isn't an official school org (which you can attempt to apply to make it school official), you can also just have it as an unofficial org too, nothing wrong with that, just will have to get the initial funding yourself, but even most official student organizations have to fundraise additional funds anyway. We've had choirs and other performances organized for specific campus events occasionally (class Christmas party, anatomy lab cadavers end of year ceremony, etc), but they were as needed, not part of a specific group or organization. Our school has a "work hard, play hard" culture, so students do like to host a lot of fun events and activities that aren't strictly related to medicine. Heck, we've even hosted a fashion show last year
Click to expand...
Okay! This is awesome 🤩. Thank you for the information. Sounds really cool lol.
 
This might be silly but if we said NO to any of the questions where you have 250 words to explain, are we still supposed to explain? For example, if I did not live in an underserved community, do I instead explain where I did live or just leave it blank?
 
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