Mailing out secondaries

I would send it in a way that gives me delivery confirmation... so FedEx, UPS, or Priority Express (or whatever it's called) from USPS.

Using FedEx and/or UPS gets really expensive... so I'm going to use USPS (priority express?) for mine.

 

Just lick a stamp, put it on the envelope, and drop it in the mail. Save the money for the courier services until later, unless you need it to meet a strict deadline. I returned quite a few secondaries by regular mail with no problem.

If you really want delivery confirmation, the post office can do that. It costs like $0.30 and you get a postcard in the mail when your letter arrives.

 

I agree with Smoke This. There is no reason to pay extra money when sending out secondaries. Some schools will notify you when your application is complete with them, and for those that don't, you can always call the school and ask for a confirmation. I called schools, and for the most part, the people I spoke to were very nice. I never had a problem with lost secondaries (now AMCAS was another story last year). When it comes time for you to send letters accepting a spot in a class that has been offered to you, then you can splurge on FedEx or UPS. However, it is not required, but it may offer you peace of mind.

 

I do EVERYTHING with Priority mail w/delivery confirmation. I do not take any chances of letting anything to get lost.

 

Do priority mail at your local post office for peace of mind. It's only a couple bucks, I think like $3 or so. Not really a big price to pay so it's silly to risk it through the regular mail. It gets to your school in 2-3 business days.

 

I did this with every secondary

then again, i applied late, so every day counted against me....

 

Dr. Foxy,

Just out of curiosity how late did you apply? I have to take the August MCAT so I guess I'm really applying in October. Is this what you did?

Thanks!

UCLA Paratrooper

 

Like others said...............I would say go with tracking, I know its a little bit more but worth the peace of mind.....................atleast for me.

 

I sent my secondaries via certified/return receipt mail via the USPS. Its a bit less expensive than priority mail and you get a postcard sent back to you from the medical school stating it was received.

Even if you send the secondaries with some sort of tracking service, I would follow-up with phone calls later on to make sure the school put it in your folder. I had one school receive my secondary and then got it mixed up in someone else's folder!!!

 

I'm with a lot of the others on this. I highly recommend that you send in your secondaries via certified mail w/ returned receipt. If you do Priority on each secondary, it'll get expensive, and IMO it's unnecessary. One or two days isn't going to make a big difference. Just make sure to follow up w/ a phone call as Rezul recommended. Be cool and go w/ certified.

 

FYI: There's a new curier out there called "AIRBORNE EXPRESS" It's ~exactly~ like FedEx or UPS but it only costs <$6. I've just started using this. I love it. I get the speed and the confirmation and it costs only $5.50.

I just learned about this and it's AWESOME!!! I mailed my Cornell secondary last night and it got there THIS MORNING!!

AIRBORNE EXPRESS