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[RizKhan]

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hey guys
just wanted to know if its posssible to get round the exorbiant fee AMCAS charges for its "tremendous" service betowed upon student ( def said with a grin/smirk )
unfortunately my funds capacity is limited so on my own i can afford to apply to about 4-5 allopathic schools, and ill apply to about 7 osteopathic ones. A applied to about 13 allopathic schools last year and did not get accepted but got 2 interviews for my pain. So if any of you have bypassed AMCAS, id appreciate the info......or otherwise if u guys could apply to only 4 schoools which ones would they be
many thanx and best luck to all out there waiting to get their hands on fresh cadavers

 

[Daredevil]

Apply for a fee waiver with AMCAS. However, the deadline for this year's has gone and passed...

 

[SMW]

There is no way to bypass AMCAS except to apply to non-AMCAS schools. The only bypass that is possible is to send out paper copies of AMCAS to certain schools who've indicated they'll take them, thus speeding up the process that you've paid AMCAS to do but they're not doing. All schools that have instituted alternative pathways still indicate that you have to complete the AMCAS app.

 

[gower]

98% of medical schools participate in AMCAS. The exceptions are almost all of the Texas medical schools which have their own centralized application system: Texas Medical and Dental School Application Service. Those schools accept mostly Texas residents.

Applying for a fee waiver from AMCAS is possible but I understand the bar is set quite high. An alternative is to be very selective and limit the number of allopathic schools applied to. By selective I mean applying only to those medical schools you might be in range of (GPA, MCAT scores, residence, for example) not necessarily coinciding with your wish list. Admission to medical school is something Santa Claus is not empowered to bring to deserving boys and girls. "Might be in range of" is not that easy to determine from published statistics because the specifics are hidden in statistical data. Despite wide-spread belief, abetted by the self-protective practice of professional schools publically denying that college attended is material, it is. On that point, the most knowledgeable person to ask where you should apply, because he/she should know the history of applicants from your college, is your premedical advisor, if you have one.

 

[SMW]

Columbia is a non-AMCAS school. McGill and, I'm asuming, all the other Canadian schools are non-AMCAS. It's impossible to give you advice on which 4 schools to apply to without knowing your stats, undergrad school, post-secondary experiences, writing ability & how well you displayed it on your essays, and your personality. Gower's advice to get advice from your pre-med advisor is sound.