New to SDN and Happy to Be Here!

[_StevoFlurane_]

Been on these forums for a long time but this year is finally my year to apply so I figured I'd make an account!

My stats are pretty eh even for DO but I'm going all in!

I do have a few questions for filling out my AACOMAS though...

1.) How many letters can we submit?
I currently have a committee letter, an MD letter and a DO letter and would like all of them to be submitted. Will any schools have an issue with this? Both docs want ME to write the letters though and they will edit accordingly, how do I go about this without having them sound too similar. The DO is my internal med doc and I've never even shadowed him. He just said "Just write your letter and send it to me, you don't need to shadow me". So what exactly should I say???

2.) I'm retaking my MCAT in a few weeks since my 1st attempt resulted in a 499 should I submit to AACOMAS before I get my second score back? I have heard of applying to 1 school to be verified and then add everything else before applying to all the other schools. Is this reasonable to do?

3.) For the experiences section, how long should the descriptions of our ECs be? I know AACOMAS has 1000s of these to read...

Sorry if this was long but hey, this process is a long one and I really would like to do things right!

Thank you everyone!!!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[DrStephenStrange]

Been on these forums for a long time but this year is finally my year to apply so I figured I'd make an account!

My stats are pretty eh even for DO but I'm going all in!

I do have a few questions for filling out my AACOMAS though...

1.) How many letters can we submit?
I currently have a committee letter, an MD letter and a DO letter and would like all of them to be submitted. Will any schools have an issue with this? Both docs want ME to write the letters though and they will edit accordingly, how do I go about this without having them sound too similar. The DO is my internal med doc and I've never even shadowed him. He just said "Just write your letter and send it to me, you don't need to shadow me". So what exactly should I say???

2.) I'm retaking my MCAT in a few weeks since my 1st attempt resulted in a 499 should I submit to AACOMAS before I get my second score back? I have heard of applying to 1 school to be verified and then add everything else before applying to all the other schools. Is this reasonable to do?

3.) For the experiences section, how long should the descriptions of our ECs be? I know AACOMAS has 1000s of these to read...

Sorry if this was long but hey, this process is a long one and I really would like to do things right!

Thank you everyone!!!

1) You can submit a maximum of 6 letters of Evaluation, and wow why would they have you write your own letter? I'm sure theirs would be way more professional and unbiased. Honestly you really only need that DO letter though as most COMs either prefer or require a DO letter, but make sure you shadow him/her at least a couple times because schools will literally ask you about your experience with osteopathic medecine either in the secondaries or the interviews. Also make sure your letters are on official letter head and signed. I've had so many schools asking me to resubmit my DO letter last year, so it would save you the trouble and not cause your application to be delayed in the reviewing process. Another advice, you should probably add a couple letters from science teachers you've had classes or research experience with as well. Some schools have that in their letter requirements.

2) Yes, your best and reasonable choice is to apply to one reach school, so your application can be processed first, then apply to the other schools once you receive you MCAT results. With a 499, and also depending on your GPA, I'd say apply to one or a couple new DO schools (ARCOM, ICOM) as your reach school(s). This strategy will save you money in case you don't get your desired score.

3) The description for experiences are usually not very long. Just a few sentences about what your roles were in the particular experience.

Good luck

Sent from my SM-G950U using SDN mobile

 

[_StevoFlurane_]

Thank you so much!!!!

I think the MD letter will be a bit stronger because the doc expressed far more interest in the process. I have shadowed a DO before but it was too long ago so I do have experience within the field. The problem is obtaining the letter which my internal med doc offered to help with.


***Also, yes my committee letter contains letters from other science profs too!

 

[DrStephenStrange]

Thank you so much!!!!

I think the MD letter will be a bit stronger because the doc expressed far more interest in the process. I have shadowed a DO before but it was too long ago so I do have experience within the field. The problem is obtaining the letter which my internal med doc offered to help with.

Just make sure you consider these physician letter requirements. Some new DO schools are not on the list though like ARCOM (require a DO letter) and ICOM (Prefer DO letters).

Sent from my SM-G950U using SDN mobile