AMCAS is bizarre...

[eulogia228]

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I was reading the 2005 AMCAS instruction book (pasted below) and I noticed something that just made no sense whatsoever.

http://www.aamc.org/students/amcas/2005instructionbook.pdf

On page 20, the instruction book discusses transcript exceptions. In other words, instances where you may not have to provide a transcript from an institution that you attended. The booklet states that that, "If a school has placed a financial hold on your transcripts, AMCAS will not grant any exception under any circumstances." In other words, you're still responsible for submitting that transcript even if you and your university are having some sort of financial dispute or if you haven't fully paid your fees/tuition to the institution. This part makes perfect sense. Where it gets interesting is that the same page discusses that transcript exception requests are not automatically granted and are subject to the approval of AMCAS. Now, AMCAS requires that you send official transcripts from ANY institution you have EVER attended while you have been living on the planet. This includes transcripts from college courses you took in high school, extension courses, on-line/correspondence courses, military courses, any college courses you have ever taken any institution (whether or not that credit was used towards a degree or not), colleges where you registered but did not earn any credits (you withdrew), etc.

So my question is, given that AMCAS requires transcripts from every single institution you have ever attended while you have had a pulse, in what circumstance would they EVER grant a transcript request exception?? I'm guessing they might grant an exception for transcripts from non-US, non-Canadian institutions that do not use anything remotely similar to our letter system of grades. In other words, how could it EVER be possible for anyone to get any transcript "exempted" from AMCAS? It seems like they put that whole section in their information book for no apparent reason.

P.S.: Isn't a financial hold the ONLY type of hold that an institution places against your transcript? In what other circumstance would an institution hold your transcripts?

 

[gaf]

http://www.aamc.org/students/amcas/2005instructionbook.pdf

Now, AMCAS requires that you send official transcripts from ANY institution you have EVER attended while you have been living on the planet. ...
n what circumstance would they EVER grant a transcript request exception?? I'm guessing they might grant an exception for transcripts from non-US, non-Canadian institutions ...

I'm guessing you're right.
From AMCAS Instruction Book for the 2005 Entering Class:

"One official transcript is required from each U.S., U.S. Territorial, or Canadian post-secondary institution at which you have attempted course work..." (emphasis mine)

 

[burgers]

i used the exception for a foreign institution for which i didnt even have a transcript. It was actually a little scary that amcas wouldn't submit my application until they verified the school?!?! but they did in the end so it worked out.

 

[SRQGirl]

Yeah, I did a semseter abroad and they didn't need my official transcript from the foreign school, only the credit I got for it at my home school.

 

[biendesalud]

I studied abroad in Australia for a year. It was an exchange program, so my grades went onto my US school transcript and I did not have to provide a transcript for the Australia school.

I took an EMT class at a "Regional Occupational Training Center," which is not a community college, but the guy on the phone at AMCAS said I needed a "transcript" from them. It was a hassle to get and in the end AMCAS put big note on my written application that this was not necessary. 😡

One friend did poorly in a community college physics class and did not report it. When he sent his transcripts from his main university, somehow the comm college grade showed up He wrote a letter trying to expain this, but, as far as I know, he has not been admitted anywhere. DO NOT try to hide grades.

 

[pushkin]

I attended the extension school of the same university twice, ten years apart. The extension school changed names slightly during that time. Still, all my classes were listed on the transcript, and the classes were labeled with the exact name of the extension school at the time when I took the class. So the old classes had one name by them, and the new classes had a different name. Still, same university, same extension school, and all the grades were on one piece of paper. This university only has one registrar's office and only issues undergraduate transcripts from that one office anyway.

AMCAS demanded I submit separate transcripts! (And not just 2 transcripts, but 2 different ones with stationary indicating different schools.) I think they just didn't want to read the transcript they already had! I had to make 20 calls to sort it out with them. In they end they criticized my university for changing its name so as not to fit into one of their "categories" (as in Main Branch or whatever garbage they use).

Finally they agreed to give me a transcript exemption allowing me to use just the one transcript. I have seriously never dealt with a more inept system in my life.

Oh and they gave me an exemption for a foreign school too.

 

[Scottish Chap]

I did my undergraduate in the U.K. so the transcript was exempted. However, I had my undergrad send it to AMCAS anyway and I arranged for a professional agency to 'convert' my undergraduate degree to a U.S. equivalent GPA and credit list (sending that to AMCAS also). I entered the converted grades on the AMCAS form and, interestingly, AMCAS kept them there but did not "verfiy" them. Odd, but it worked out splendidly for me.

 

[biendesalud]

I arranged for a professional agency to 'covert' my undergraduate degree

I didn't know that the CIA had an academic branch. 😉

 

[Scottish Chap]

I didn't know that the CIA had an academic branch. 😉

It's news to me too but you're right - it looks like AMCAS is singling you out for 'special treatment' - perhaps because of your charming personality. 😉