*~*~* Official AACOMAS Questions Thread 2019-2020 *~*~*

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How many of each kind of letter do I need? So far two science professors, 1 D.O. physician, and 1 non-science. If I got one from my professor who taught calculus and pre calculus would that be a science or non-science letter? What if I got one from my hospital volunteer advisor or a nurse who saw me volunteer in the department or my tutor supervisor at center where I tutored? Those count as non-science letters?

The first from the math professor would count as a science, however some schools are picky so carefully read their letter requirements. (Source: I am a Math Major re-app)
As for the others, I would say it would not hurt your application to include all of them, if you are at your 6 letter limit, I would choose the hospital volunteer adviser if you have a strong relationship/nurse if they are someone you report to during your volunteering.

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Thank you! What about TA experience? Also, I feel like I do not have much for the achievements section... Is this a concern? Would I be able to list high school accomplishments, such as being Valedictorian/ earning the highest grade in the country on an AP exam or is that too far back? I have things such as Deans List for College, but not much else

For my paid TA positions I put it as Non-Healthcare employment, otherwise you could put it under extracurricular activities. I suppose you could put the Valedictorian under your past achievements, but I would avoid most high school things. It is okay if you don't have a ton of things under achievements because quality > quantity, and you also don't want appear like you're trying to stretch it out.
 
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When doing description for Achievement and experiences sections would it be fine to be like in full complete sentences

1. I did this and this
2. My duty also involved such and such
3. Etc. Or do I have to write in paragraph form sentence after sentence?
 
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When doing description for Achievement and experiences sections would it be fine to be like in full complete sentences

1. I did this and this
2. My duty also involved such and such
3. Etc. Or do I have to write in paragraph form sentence after sentence?


Hey Fuarky,

I would probably write it up in complete sentences, but since you have a limited amount of space, you want to prioritize the most important information you want to relay to the committees. You don't have to make it super pretty or anything.
 
Sorry for this ignorant question, but how do we get our application verified? Is it just by submitting our application? And how exactly does submitting our app to a throwaway school work? Do we just pick one DO school, submit our app, then resubmit another application to other schools?
 
Sorry for this ignorant question, but how do we get our application verified? Is it just by submitting our application? And how exactly does submitting our app to a throwaway school work? Do we just pick one DO school, submit our app, then resubmit another application to other schools?

Once you submit your application to at least one school it will get verified. So I would pick a school you planned on applying to rather than just a random school you had no intention of applying to for the cycle. You can select however many schools you want to send your primary application to and then you pay the associated fees specified for each school.
 
For anyone putting in presentations under achievements, is it possible to upload a pdf of the presentation somewhere? Am I supposed to put down the poster title under "Name"? And generally speaking, is it a good idea to put down that I've done a presentation if it was only at a school research symposium? Are schools only looking for official conferences and published things or do they want to see anything you've done if you've done research?
 
Anyone know if AACOMAS offers fee assistance like AAMCAS does? I feel like I have read that they do not, but just figured I would ask since I am planning to apply to 21 schools. LOL.
They do, you have to apply for it and once you get approved you have 14 days from that approval date to submit the application so make sure you're ready to submit by the time to apply for it!
 
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Hey Fuarky,

I would probably write it up in complete sentences, but since you have a limited amount of space, you want to prioritize the most important information you want to relay to the committees. You don't have to make it super pretty or anything.
but can I still do 1. 2. 3. format in full sentences or sentence after sentence format like writing a paragraph.
 
Is there any difference between me submitting my application, say, tomorrow, vs June like 5th or 6th?
 
but can I still do 1. 2. 3. format in full sentences or sentence after sentence format like writing a paragraph.

Whatever you feel will look the most organized should be fine. I think it would look odd with the numbers but like I said, as long as you have the information you want to relay to the committees, you’re golden.

Is there any difference between me submitting my application, say, tomorrow, vs June like 5th or 6th?

No you’re fine either way.
 
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Has anyone's fee waiver been successfully processed? I have been waiting 3 weeks and the live chat person claims I never filed one. The person I called said they could not help me and were waiting on AACOMAS
 
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Hi all - I'm somewhat uncertain about how to enter honor societies under achievements, specifically when it comes to the "name" section of the entry. Since there's both "name" and "presenting organization" boxes to fill in, should something like "membership" or "induction" go under the name box and the name of the honor society itself is listed under organization?

For example:

Type - Honors
Name - Membership
Presenting Organization - XYZ Honor Society


Thanks in advance!
 
Is there a way to get your application verified without applying to a school? I am applying EDP through AMCAS and don't want to mess with that by applying to a school through AACOMAS.
 
Hi all - I'm somewhat uncertain about how to enter honor societies under achievements, specifically when it comes to the "name" section of the entry. Since there's both "name" and "presenting organization" boxes to fill in, should something like "membership" or "induction" go under the name box and the name of the honor society itself is listed under organization?

For example:

Type - Honors
Name - Membership
Presenting Organization - XYZ Honor Society


Thanks in advance!

I know when I had entered the honor societies, I would include the specific chapter name as well. You could put the honor society as the name, then the presenting organization as the specific chapter at your university that presented it to you.
 
I was wondering about what the difference is between per diem, temporary, and part-time. Some of my activities were for a short period of time less than 20 hours. Someone said they thought temporary was if it was only during the summer. Can someone clarify the difference between these terms?
 
I was wondering about what the difference is between per diem, temporary, and part-time. Some of my activities were for a short period of time less than 20 hours. Someone said they thought temporary was if it was only during the summer. Can someone clarify the difference between these terms?

I guess they could mean different things depending on which category you choose. But for compensated experiences, my scale is:

full-time = 40hr week, implies a structured, contractual, and scheduled work week
part-time = 20hrs week, implies a structured, contractual, and scheduled work week
per-diem (per day) = any amount of hours, does not imply a structured scheduled work week. Usually still contractual, and total hours at one location do not exceed the aforementioned limits of full or part-time.
temporary = subbing, or very short work intervals (for me, that's sub 3 months). I guess the "other" category for work experience.

Like, there are nurses I know that work "full time" hours by working at 5 different places, per-diem. I work per-diem at ambulatory ORs that don't operate every day of the week. Temporary jobs, for me, have been limited to "working interviews" where I work for a week (or a few weeks) and either don't get hired, or I choose to not continue working there (find a better offer, etc).

These are just my definitions. Honestly, just fill out the application the best you can. Minutia like this doesn't mean jack-**** next to your MCAT score, GPA, etc.
 
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hey all! i have a question about a personal statement. i'm currently waitlisted at a DO school (pretty much only applying DO), not sure if im going to get off for this cycle, so I am just reapplying. I just graduated from undergrad, so I have not taken a year off. In rewriting my personal statement, is it better to reorganize and redo it, or just add a paragraph about what I have done since last years cycle and what I will be doing in my year off?
 
I think the consensus is that the PS should look different, even if it's the same message (shuffling sentences, etc) >> this is to show you cared enough to make changes this time around

or an overhaul, if your original is weak.

I would not just add a paragraph at the end.
 
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I think the consensus is that the PS should look different, even if it's the same message (shuffling sentences, etc) >> this is to show you cared enough to make changes this time around

or an overhaul, if your original is weak.

I would not just add a paragraph at the end.

bet, thanks!
 
Hey all, I have a couple questions about AACOMAS. Sorry if any of these are repeats.

1. I only have 2/5 LORs in so far. Can I submit my application now and add the rest in the next couple of weeks?
2. A current med student I'm working with on a research project presented a poster with our findings (has my name on it) - can I add this as an "Achievement"? It'd be the only thing I have in this section other than Dean's list.
3. Do I still have a shot even if I haven't formally shadowed a DO physician? (I have lots of clinical experience with MDs) I have seen a couple of osteopathic residents and med students do OMT while working as a scribe that influenced my decision to apply DO - I was planning on mentioning these in the secondary prompts.
 
Hey all, I have a couple questions about AACOMAS. Sorry if any of these are repeats.

1. I only have 2/5 LORs in so far. Can I submit my application now and add the rest in the next couple of weeks?
2. A current med student I'm working with on a research project presented a poster with our findings (has my name on it) - can I add this as an "Achievement"? It'd be the only thing I have in this section other than Dean's list.
3. Do I still have a shot even if I haven't formally shadowed a DO physician? (I have lots of clinical experience with MDs) I have seen a couple of osteopathic residents and med students do OMT while working as a scribe that influenced my decision to apply DO - I was planning on mentioning these in the secondary prompts.

1. Yeah you can continue to add letters throughout the cycle, then they will be updated for each school you had already submitted a primary application for in the cycle. However, keep in mind most schools won't look at your secondary application until it is marked as 'complete,' and usually they require certain types of LORs as part of that completion requirement along with questions, essays, etc.

2. You took part in the research so definitely mention it, especially since you have your name associated with it.

3. Some schools require an LOR from a DO, but besides that, you don't need to have formally shadowed a DO physician before applying to DO schools. However, shadowing experience with a DO/letter only ever helps, but it is not necessary for most schools.
 
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I was in the quarter system in university. Do I have to convert my quarter units to semester hours when inputting my grades into the transcript entry section?
Also, how do you report classes you withdrew from and pass/no pass classes? Do you list the grade as "W" for withdrew and "P" for pass?
 
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I am in a weird residency situation... I qualify as a Wyoming resident for AMCAS because according to WWAMI (and state law) either I or my parents have to have lived in the state for the past 5 years. Easy, I can mark Wyoming residency on AMCAS. The problem is that I personally haven't lived in Wyoming for almost 10 years so I can't really put that on AACOMAS.

Is it going to be a problem if I put a different state of residence on AMCAS than AACOMAS? I won't be in a state that can claim any in-state advantage for AACOMAS. When I asked the AACOMAS support people that's what they said to do.
 
I was in the quarter system in university. Do I have to convert my quarter units to semester hours when inputting my grades into the transcript entry section?
Also, how do you report classes you withdrew from and pass/no pass classes? Do you list the grade as "W" for withdrew and "P" for pass?

I’m not really sure about the conversion part, but I’ll try to find something. Whatever it states on your transcript enter it. So if you had a withdrawal, put a ‘W.’ Otherwise they will have to go back in and edit it before it’s verified. If you have questions about that part you could call their number, they’re usually very helpful as well.
 
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Hi all :) I posted something yesterday, but nobody has answered yet and so I thought it might be more appropriate to ask my question in here. I have a single course that I took as dual credit in High School, but it was a year-long course for 4 credit hours. How would I go about entering that into AACOMAS?

Thanks! :)
 
I have a quick question about listing experiences. If I have shadowed say, 4 physicians, in different specialities for several days each.... Should I list these each as an individual experience in the AACOM application? Or should I simply list one "shadowing" experience and briefly mention these under one "experience"?
 
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I know when I had entered the honor societies, I would include the specific chapter name as well. You could put the honor society as the name, then the presenting organization as the specific chapter at your university that presented it to you.

Makes sense, thank you!
 
I have a quick question about listing experiences. If I have shadowed say, 4 physicians, in different specialities for several days each.... Should I list these each as an individual experience in the AACOM application? Or should I simply list one "shadowing" experience and briefly mention these under one "experience"?

Great question. I'd also like to know this
 
Great question. I'd also like to know this
Applying now, but I've seen on AMCAS thread that it's okay to do all under one for at least them, and I saw another post where someone accepted just split up MD and DO.
 
So I already submitted my primary app and I just noticed a typo... It must have copied over from somewhere, but there are 2 random question marks in the middle of one of the sentences in one of the biographic explanations.... is this a death sentence?
 
So I already submitted my primary app and I just noticed a typo... It must have copied over from somewhere, but there are 2 random question marks in the middle of one of the sentences in one of the biographic explanations.... is this a death sentence?
You're fine.
 
If we plan to continue an experience through the application cycle should we put the end date as August 2020? OR should we just not list an end date at all (I just realized that was an option)?
 
More questions:
1) if I'm putting multiple activities into one entry, should I just do the entire time period from when the first activity began? And would the organization/supervisor info be for the most recent?
2) for extracurricular hobbies and sorority involvement, what do we put for hours? 0? And for the organization name can we put N/a?

Thanks peeps!
 
More questions:
1) if I'm putting multiple activities into one entry, should I just do the entire time period from when the first activity began? And would the organization/supervisor info be for the most recent?
2) for extracurricular hobbies and sorority involvement, what do we put for hours? 0? And for the organization name can we put N/a?

Thanks peeps!


1. Yeah that would be fine, as long as there is someone to contact if they ever chose to contact them.


2. You could always add the specific Sorority chapter for the organization name. As for the hours you could give a rough estimate per week how much you spent doing things with the chapter. For example, weekly chapter meetings, volunteering events, etc.
 
1. Yeah that would be fine, as long as there is someone to contact if they ever chose to contact them.


2. You could always add the specific Sorority chapter for the organization name. As for the hours you could give a rough estimate per week how much you spent doing things with the chapter. For example, weekly chapter meetings, volunteering events, etc.

Cool cool. What do you suggest putting as the organization name for hobbies? And for continuing activities should we just leave the end date blank?
 
I suppose you could put an estimated date, but you won’t be able to edit it once it’s submitted. So that’s your call. It would be okay if you leave it as continuous.

You could leave the organization name blank if it’s just a hobby.
 
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I have an institutional action at my school that has since been removed from my disciplinary record, and there's no record of it on my transcript. Am I still required to disclose this on aacomas?
 
What type of experience should I list TA and research as?

Research would be considered an extracurricular activity. If you have a publication tied to that research, make sure to mention that under achievements. TA would depend if you were paid or not, assuming you were, it would just be a part-time job position.

Also- What is Per Diam?

‘Per-day,’ so something that is less that full-time or part-time.

how many activities can we list for aacomas

You can list quite a few, but I’m not sure on the max limit. I would just remember that it would be better to have quality > quantity when listing your activities.
 
I have an institutional action at my school that has since been removed from my disciplinary record, and there's no record of it on my transcript. Am I still required to disclose this on aacomas?

@gyngyn would you be able to lend some advice on this question? I imagine they would still have to report it if asked correct?
 
I'm having a really difficult time finding an answer for this-- If I take a course between freshman and sophomore year summer, is it sophomore or freshman?

Edited-- there is no Winter 2019 so does Winter mean the December part or January part of Winter?

Also, side note- has anyone had issues with getting transcripts in slower to AACOMAS than AMCAS? My AMCAS went in a few days ago but AACOMAS still hasn't updated.
 
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My application was verified yesterday, where do I find my calculated GPA? I want to make sure it matches with what I have.
 
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When you're entering prerequisites into aacomas, do you need to put just the bare minimum to show you met the requirement or should you list all additional course work for the subject? Haven't been able to find a solid answer for this one.

I have the same question but specifically for repeats of classes.... I did a post-bacc where I retook some classes from undergrad. Do I need to include all of the grades I got for that class (undergrad and post-bacc), or can I just include the better grades that fulfill the requirement?


I was also wondering about submitting my application before my MCAT score is in. I've already taken it once last year but I just retook it at the end of May, and I don't necessarily want schools to see just my old score when deciding to send secondaries but I don't want to wait too long to submit my application...
 
I'm having a really difficult time finding an answer for this-- If I take a course between freshman and sophomore year summer, is it sophomore or freshman?

Edited-- there is no Winter 2019 so does Winter mean the December part or January part of Winter?

Also, side note- has anyone had issues with getting transcripts in slower to AACOMAS than AMCAS? My AMCAS went in a few days ago but AACOMAS still hasn't updated.

For your first question...it depends on the school. I had the same situation and called AACOMAS and they said whatever the school's policy is. So for a class I took over the summer of 2016, my school considered that as the 2015-2016 year.
 
Am I able to send my application to one school in order for it to be verified and then add in schools after i get my MCAT score in? I know this is possible for AMCAS but didn't know if it was different with AACOMAS. Taking MCAT June 15th so I wouldn't get my score back until mid-July.
 
Am I able to send my application to one school in order for it to be verified and then add in schools after i get my MCAT score in? I know this is possible for AMCAS but didn't know if it was different with AACOMAS. Taking MCAT June 15th so I wouldn't get my score back until mid-July.
Yes you can
 
Does anyone know if AACOMAS sends your verified application to schools before receiving your MCAT scores? I'm trying to figure out if I'll need to have my secondaries pre-written before my MCAT scores are in, or if I won't be receiving any secondaries until after they have my scores.
 
Hi everyone-
I have two major questions.
So, I know for AMCAS, a "W" does not count in the GPA, is this also the case for ACOMAS since they got rid of grade replacement?( Not a "WF", just a "W").I would think a W does not count in the GPA, but I just want to be sure.

Also, I've been volunteering at a nursing home since Aug 2017, and have gotten about 170 hours. I plan on doing around 50 more hours this summer ( 2X week for 3 hrs, until the fall semester starts in Sept, So doing it June/July/Aug). I plan on entering, under complete activities
Nursing Home Volunteer Aug 2017-Aug 2019, 220 hours

The issue is, I'm hopefully submitting my primary by July/first week of July, so those July/Aug hours won't be done. But it doesn't make sense to put them under perspective, they are just a continuation of what I've already done. The AMCAS guide says I can put them under complete, but there is no such, comprehensive, ACOMAS guide. ( there is the website, but it's still not as thorough as the AMCAS guide.)

Thanks
 
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