2025-2026 Oregon Health and Sciences University (OHSU)

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2025-2026 OHSU Secondary Essay Prompts

Note many of these are changed from prior years

1. Tell of a patient experience that influenced your perspective on becoming a physician. (1550 characters)

2. Describe the effect of an endeavor that didn't go according to your plan. (1550 characters)

3. Discuss a time in your life that demonstrated your resilience and ability to overcome adversity. How did this change you? (1550 characters)

4. How does intellectual and academic struggle fit into your identity as a future physician? (2050 characters)

5. Discuss your experience of recent personal feedback that was difficult to receive. (1550 characters)

6. Describe a time when you had to reconsider or change a deeply held belief or perspective. What prompted this change? (1550 characters)

7. Describe a time personal obligations had to be prioritized over school/work. What did it teach you about managing competing priorities? (1550 characters)

8. Optional: Are there any additional ties to the state of Oregon you wish to share? If yes, use the space below. If no, leave blank. Please note that this does not factor toward your consideration as an Oregon resident or Oregon Heritage.

9. Optional: We know that many of our applicants in the OHSU UME Program may have familial relationships with individuals who are OHSU faculty, residents, staff, or current students who serve as evaluators in our admissions process. We have added this question in hopes to prevent perceived or actual conflicts of interest that can occur when an applicant has a family member (or someone with a similar close personal relationship) they may encounter through the admissions process. If you have any such connections, please list those individuals’ names and departments below. If no, leave blank.

Supplemental:

Based on your own experiences or the experiences of family and friends, do you believe that the area in which you grew up was adequately served by the available health care professionals? Were there enough physicians, nurses, hospitals, clinics, and other health care service providers and how did that affect your experience and relationship with health care? Please explain. (4000 characters)

While you were growing up, did you experience any of the following types of adversity? (Economic, Educational, Ethnic/Cultural, Family).
Please describe the nature of the adversity and how social, economic, academic, or other circumstances affected you and your opportunities (4000 characters)

We acknowledge that our application is not fully comprehensive. If there is anything additional you would like to let us know about you, please briefly state it here. (550 characters)

Good luck to all applying!

Interview Feedback:

www.studentdoctor.net

Oregon Health & Sciences University School of Medicine - Admission, Tuition, Ranking & Overview | Student Doctor Network

Detail information of Oregon Health & Sciences University School of Medicine including admission, tuition, ranking, and overview.
www.studentdoctor.net www.studentdoctor.net
 
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Unfortunately only half are from the previous year.

-----
1. Tell of a patient experience that influenced your perspective on becoming a physician. (1550 characters)

2. Describe the effect of an endeavor that didn't go according to your plan. (1550 characters)

3. Discuss a time in your life that demonstrated your resilience and ability to overcome adversity. How did this change you? (1550 characters)

4. How does intellectual and academic struggle fit into your identity as a future physician? (2050 characters)

5. Discuss your experience of recent personal feedback that was difficult to receive. (1550 characters)

6. Describe a time when you had to reconsider or change a deeply held belief or perspective. What prompted this change? (1550 characters)

7. Describe a time personal obligations had to be prioritized over school/work. What did it teach you about managing competing priorities? (1550 characters)

8. Optional: Are there any additional ties to the state of Oregon you wish to share? If yes, use the space below. If no, leave blank. Please note that this does not factor toward your consideration as an Oregon resident or Oregon Heritage.

9. Optional: We know that many of our applicants in the OHSU UME Program may have familial relationships with individuals who are OHSU faculty, residents, staff, or current students who serve as evaluators in our admissions process. We have added this question in hopes to prevent perceived or actual conflicts of interest that can occur when an applicant has a family member (or someone with a similar close personal relationship) they may encounter through the admissions process. If you have any such connections, please list those individuals’ names and departments below. If no, leave blank.

Supplemental:

Based on your own experiences or the experiences of family and friends, do you believe that the area in which you grew up was adequately served by the available health care professionals? Were there enough physicians, nurses, hospitals, clinics, and other health care service providers and how did that affect your experience and relationship with health care? Please explain. (4000 characters)

While you were growing up, did you experience any of the following types of adversity? (Economic, Educational, Ethnic/Cultural, Family).
Please describe the nature of the adversity and how social, economic, academic, or other circumstances affected you and your opportunities (4000 characters)

We acknowledge that our application is not fully comprehensive. If there is anything additional you would like to let us know about you, please briefly state it here. (550 characters)
-----
 
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This secondary has taken me so long! I'm thinking of talking about a learning disability I've navigated while in my undergrad. I did well in college and on the MCAT, so it didn't hold me back, but I'm not sure if I should include it for question 4. I know admission committees are moving past stigmas like this, but if anyone has any input on whether they would or wouldn't answer the question that way, I would appreciate it.

Best of luck to everyone!
 
Yuhsee said:
This secondary has taken me so long! I'm thinking of talking about a learning disability I've navigated while in my undergrad. I did well in college and on the MCAT, so it didn't hold me back, but I'm not sure if I should include it for question 4. I know admission committees are moving past stigmas like this, but if anyone has any input on whether they would or wouldn't answer the question that way, I would appreciate it.

Best of luck to everyone!
Click to expand...
If any school is going to be chill about this, it is OHSU.
 
Jpondys said:
How do you know if you fit the OOS mission
Click to expand...
They say on their site:

Admissions | OHSU

Admissions
www.ohsu.edu www.ohsu.edu

I have multiple relatives who have attended this school. In practice, you need to meet the definition of Oregon resident or Oregon Heritage (graduated from Oregon college or high school, or a parent/guardian living in the state) to be considered.

They do have two other pathways but my understanding is that those bars are pretty high if you don’t fit the above.

The dual degree programs are also open to nonresidents.
 
No they also say superior extracurricular achievement which is very vague
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Jpondys said:
No they also say superior extracurricular achievement which is very vague
Click to expand...
Yes, that is one of the "two pathways with a very high bar." In all reality, most people do not fit this profile.

A 5% interview rate and 0.7% OOS matriculation rate is very low. And that includes students who have Oregon Heritage and thus are considered as "in-state" by the process.
 
did they really ask the adversity question twice
 
Any IS people still have yet to receive a secondary? Was verified on the 15th and still have not gotten one.
 
tennis4217 said:
Yes. I’m in state and was verified on 7/21 and have not received a secondary. I’m getting nervous.
Click to expand...
They are using what looks like a homegrown platform. I wouldn’t be surprised if they are entering people by hand.
 
"Recommendations from three college or university teaching faculty from any department. (It is recommended that at least one be from a science department teaching faculty member.) A Letter Packet containing at least three individual teaching faculty letters or a premedical committee evaluation report (Committee Letter) may be submitted in lieu of the three separate recommendations."


The letters I have are from one volunteer coordinator, one science professor, and one physician. Is this suitable to their requirements? I don't know what a letter packet means.
 
To all those OOS people thinking of applying, you MUST, I repeat, MUST, be in one of their mission fit groups in order to have your file seriously reviewed. Otherwise, your time is better spent on other schools.

Admissions | OHSU

Admissions
www.ohsu.edu www.ohsu.edu
 
secondary_struggler21 said:
To all those OOS people thinking of applying, you MUST, I repeat, MUST, be in one of their mission fit groups in order to have your file seriously reviewed. Otherwise, your time is better spent on other schools.

Admissions | OHSU

Admissions
www.ohsu.edu www.ohsu.edu
Click to expand...

I would add this post, which was posted seven years ago. Now, I understand that admission committees can change over such a long time, but they explained that they had never even screened an applicant for an interview if they weren't part of their mission fit. With such a strict stance, I doubt it has changed significantly while their applicant volume has increased.
 

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I was going to try my luck with them, but seeing their strict stance on their mission fit, I think I will probably spend that energy elsewhere. Do you know if there is a specific process for withdrawing OHSU applications? Or can I just not submit the secondary? (Ghosting them on secondaries feels bad to me)
 
onlinefartz2 said:
OOS secondary. might not complete, no strong ties
Click to expand...
Is just not filling out their secondary application fine? OOS no Oregon tie, was going to try, but seeing those prompts and the 100+ dollar fee makes me want to die. Do you know if there is a formal process for withdrawing OHSU application on their secondary website? Or do I just ghost them on my secondary?
 
is anyone else confused by 4. How does intellectual and academic struggle fit into your identity as a future physician? I don't understand what they're looking for
 
tennis4217 said:
Yes. I’m in state and was verified on 7/21 and have not received a secondary. I’m getting nervous.
Click to expand...
Please let me know when you hear back. I was verified on August 1st and still have not heard anything. Best of luck to every applicant!
 
sshawn said:
Please let me know when you hear back. I was verified on August 1st and still have not heard anything. Best of luck to every applicant!
Click to expand...
was verified on the 15th and got my secondary yesterday. Its coming, just very slowly.
 
On my AMCAS primary application, I listed one of my parents as living in California, but they recently moved to Oregon. As a current applicant, I believe I can claim Oregon Heritage for OHSU's application, but if anyone has any insight, please let me know!

Not sure if I need to write adcom a separate email to say this or upload a letter onto the secondary portal.
 
sshawn said:
Please let me know when you hear back. I was verified on August 1st and still have not heard anything. Best of luck to every applicant!
Click to expand...
I got a secondary today! Your's will come soon, don't worry.
 
Has anyone received an interview offer yet? IS, submitted secondary 7/22
 
chilly_md said:
2025-2026 OHSU Secondary Essay Prompts

Note many of these are changed from prior years

1. Tell of a patient experience that influenced your perspective on becoming a physician. (1550 characters)

2. Describe the effect of an endeavor that didn't go according to your plan. (1550 characters)

3. Discuss a time in your life that demonstrated your resilience and ability to overcome adversity. How did this change you? (1550 characters)

4. How does intellectual and academic struggle fit into your identity as a future physician? (2050 characters)

5. Discuss your experience of recent personal feedback that was difficult to receive. (1550 characters)

6. Describe a time when you had to reconsider or change a deeply held belief or perspective. What prompted this change? (1550 characters)

7. Describe a time personal obligations had to be prioritized over school/work. What did it teach you about managing competing priorities? (1550 characters)

8. Optional: Are there any additional ties to the state of Oregon you wish to share? If yes, use the space below. If no, leave blank. Please note that this does not factor toward your consideration as an Oregon resident or Oregon Heritage.

9. Optional: We know that many of our applicants in the OHSU UME Program may have familial relationships with individuals who are OHSU faculty, residents, staff, or current students who serve as evaluators in our admissions process. We have added this question in hopes to prevent perceived or actual conflicts of interest that can occur when an applicant has a family member (or someone with a similar close personal relationship) they may encounter through the admissions process. If you have any such connections, please list those individuals’ names and departments below. If no, leave blank.

Supplemental:

Based on your own experiences or the experiences of family and friends, do you believe that the area in which you grew up was adequately served by the available health care professionals? Were there enough physicians, nurses, hospitals, clinics, and other health care service providers and how did that affect your experience and relationship with health care? Please explain. (4000 characters)

While you were growing up, did you experience any of the following types of adversity? (Economic, Educational, Ethnic/Cultural, Family).
Please describe the nature of the adversity and how social, economic, academic, or other circumstances affected you and your opportunities (4000 characters)

We acknowledge that our application is not fully comprehensive. If there is anything additional you would like to let us know about you, please briefly state it here. (550 characters)

Good luck to all applying!

Interview Feedback:

www.studentdoctor.net

Oregon Health & Sciences University School of Medicine - Admission, Tuition, Ranking & Overview | Student Doctor Network

Detail information of Oregon Health & Sciences University School of Medicine including admission, tuition, ranking, and overview.
www.studentdoctor.net www.studentdoctor.net
Click to expand...
for the two 4,000 character supplemental questions, are they optional if they dont apply to you? or should I still try to write something in there. This secondary never ends ahhh
 
dblshotespressoplz said:
for the two 4,000 character supplemental questions, are they optional if they dont apply to you? or should I still try to write something in there. This secondary never ends ahhh
Click to expand...
I'd say the first one about healthcare professionals in the area you grew up is not optional based on the wording. The second one about adversity I would consider optional. I am a reapplicant who interviewed at OHSU last year and I only put a few sentences in the one about adversity since I felt like I had already covered it in other areas.
 
pleasehelpme12 said:
I'd say the first one about healthcare professionals in the area you grew up is not optional based on the wording. The second one about adversity I would consider optional. I am a reapplicant who interviewed at OHSU last year and I only put a few sentences in the one about adversity since I felt like I had already covered it in other areas.
Click to expand...
This is how I approached it.

I almost put N/A in the first one, but wrote about 1000 characters in the end. Basically saying that my family was adequately served, that I was sure that there were people in my area that were not adequately served, and mentioning recent personal and volunteer experiences that have increased my awareness how socioeconomic and geographic factors can limit care.

I put nothing in the second box as I indicated "None" for all categories.
 
For the Employment/Activities History section did you all add your current + projected hours for the Hours (total) box? For example on AMCAS app if current hours is 100 and projected is 200, did you guys put 300 in the OHSU section? Thank you!
 
LuckyLion415 said:
For the Employment/Activities History section did you all add your current + projected hours for the Hours (total) box? For example on AMCAS app if current hours is 100 and projected is 200, did you guys put 300 in the OHSU section? Thank you!
Click to expand...
I only put completed hours as they did not specifically state to put anticipated.
 
dblshotespressoplz said:
I only put completed hours as they did not specifically state to put anticipated.
Click to expand...
I agree, its definitely confusing, especially since the box is "Hours (Total)", and in the direction it says "include projected activities to the point of matriculation to medical school". Also no differentiation between a 'present' activity and one that is 'present' but will end before matriculation. I think I'm leaning towards doing total hours (so current + anticipated until matriculation), but honestly feel like it could go either way. Also definitely wont make our break our apps. Best of luck!
 
waiting to see when they start sending out IIs 👀
 
did anyone include like pubs/posters/awards in the activities section?
 
did anyone not receive a confirmed/under review email after submitting the secondary?
 
A few miscellaneous things I wish I'd known when applying:
  • They do not have classic "rolling admissions." This means:
    • Applying early to OHSU should not give you a better shot. As long as it's before the deadline and you fit the mission, 100% submit that application.
    • They are famously slow to get back to many applicants (and it's kind of on purpose). A long wait does not mean rejection. You may go months without hearing anything, so brace yourself for that and try not to worry over literally nothing.
    • As I understand it, after some amount of interviews, they give an A or R to the extreme high- and low-scoring candidates and a Hold to everyone else. As more interviews are done, they continue like this, gradually expanding the threshold for A/R decisions as they go. The upshot is that a ton of people end up on Hold until April when most/all of the interviews are done. This is why it takes so long.
    • After the interview, you may be accepted, rejected, or placed on the hold list at any time. I believe that most people who've been accepted have been on the hold list at some point.
  • Around the end of April, they'll make 150 acceptance offers, and create an alternate list of like ~100 people (those on the AL will be given their numbers at that point). Typically 50-70 people are accepted off the alternate list after being placed on Hold. One recent year they had 90-something people accepted off the alternate list, which means a substantial majority of the class was both on Hold and waitlisted before receiving an A. I definitely became anxious while waiting and found it grounding to remind myself "No news is no news."
  • I guarantee they know the secondaries are challenging, prying questions, and that for a lot of people it will kinda suck to answer them. However, as interview season approaches, reflect on why they ask these particular questions. This can give you some insight that will help in interviews.
    • A small but important side note: giving a "what-they-want-to-hear" answer will likely be clocked and is absolutely not what they want to hear. You really should be and show yourself, at least at OHSU.
  • If it doesn't work out this year, it's not over, and they look favorably on reapplicants who've been rejected then got back on the horse and put in effort to grow as people and future physicians.
Hope at least some part of this helps.
 
For the question "Tell about a patient experience that influenced your perspective on becoming a physician", does that mean that I have to talk about a patient that I directly helped? I have a story I want to use about a patient that came into my volunteer clinic the day I was volunteering but someone else helped them. Their doctor just told me about them. Is that okay? Thank you!
 
MediumSizedDog said:
A few miscellaneous things I wish I'd known when applying:
  • They do not have classic "rolling admissions." This means:
    • Applying early to OHSU should not give you a better shot. As long as it's before the deadline and you fit the mission, 100% submit that application.
    • They are famously slow to get back to many applicants (and it's kind of on purpose). A long wait does not mean rejection. You may go months without hearing anything, so brace yourself for that and try not to worry over literally nothing.
    • As I understand it, after some amount of interviews, they give an A or R to the extreme high- and low-scoring candidates and a Hold to everyone else. As more interviews are done, they continue like this, gradually expanding the threshold for A/R decisions as they go. The upshot is that a ton of people end up on Hold until April when most/all of the interviews are done. This is why it takes so long.
    • After the interview, you may be accepted, rejected, or placed on the hold list at any time. I believe that most people who've been accepted have been on the hold list at some point.
  • Around the end of April, they'll make 150 acceptance offers, and create an alternate list of like ~100 people (those on the AL will be given their numbers at that point). Typically 50-70 people are accepted off the alternate list after being placed on Hold. One recent year they had 90-something people accepted off the alternate list, which means a substantial majority of the class was both on Hold and waitlisted before receiving an A. I definitely became anxious while waiting and found it grounding to remind myself "No news is no news."
  • I guarantee they know the secondaries are challenging, prying questions, and that for a lot of people it will kinda suck to answer them. However, as interview season approaches, reflect on why they ask these particular questions. This can give you some insight that will help in interviews.
    • A small but important side note: giving a "what-they-want-to-hear" answer will likely be clocked and is absolutely not what they want to hear. You really should be and show yourself, at least at OHSU.
  • If it doesn't work out this year, it's not over, and they look favorably on reapplicants who've been rejected then got back on the horse and put in effort to grow as people and future physicians.
Hope at least some part of this helps.
Click to expand...
Are you a student at OHSU now?
Their application procedure seems needlessly complicated and drawn out, compared to any other school.
 
Should I include things in the activities section of the secondary that I already mentioned in my amcas application or should I mention stuff that I did not get the opportunity to mention in my amcas app, or should I do a combo of both. I know the general rule of thumb is not to repeat, but I feel like they might want repeats here. thank you.
 
sshawn said:
Should I include things in the activities section of the secondary that I already mentioned in my amcas application or should I mention stuff that I did not get the opportunity to mention in my amcas app, or should I do a combo of both. I know the general rule of thumb is not to repeat, but I feel like they might want repeats here. thank you.
Click to expand...
Definitely repeat! They want us to list out all activities I think just in a more condensed version than on our primary. I used this section to list all of my AMCAS activities but also included a few more since they give us 20 spots instead of 15. Best of luck
 
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