*~*~*~*Official AMCAS Questions Thread 2018-2019*~*~*~*

Applying to Med School? Get In Or Your Money Back
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Boola Boy said:
Can I look at my application (i.e., read the essays that I wrote, check the designations that I put for classes, etc.) after I submit? I understand that I cannot edit it, but is the actual content of the application blocked from my viewing?

How does submitting letters after submitting your application work exactly? Do I just log back in and click the Letters of Evaluation tab, and then make my designation? My school does a committee letter, so I'm not worried about this, just curious to know how it will all work.

Thanks so much to gonnif and others for answering questions!
Click to expand...

Yes you can still look at the application / download the pdf created by AMCAS.

For letters, you can make the entry and designation before you submit. Then you give the letter request form to your committee, and they can upload the letter. But yes you can also create letters later.
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I am interested in getting an MD/MPH degree, and am selecting it as an option on AMCAS when adding schools. Does selecting option mean that I won't be considered as a candidate for the regular MD program?
 
owlsandturtles said:
I am interested in getting an MD/MPH degree, and am selecting it as an option on AMCAS when adding schools. Does selecting option mean that I won't be considered as a candidate for the regular MD program?
Click to expand...
I don't know the answer to this specifically. However, AAMC does have info regarding every MD/MPH program, and many allow you to apply at a later point in time, including after matriculation.

https://students-residents.aamc.org...e/directory-md-mph-educational-opportunities/
 
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Chenpachi said:
My physics classes (combined lab and lecture) show up on my transcript with the titles of PRINCIPLES I and PRINCIPLES II.

The title gives no indication that these classes had both lecture and lab. Will I be at risk of AMCAS verification mistakenly thinking they are only lecture and changing the classification from combined lab and lecture to lecture only?
Click to expand...

I don't think so. My school is the same way and no one before me has had trouble.
 
This is a really helpful thread!

Two quick questions:

1) on my transcript there are some credit/no credit courses. The grade for completion is "CR" for "credit received." Is it okay to enter CR as the grade? none of the AAMC codes in the guidance document really work for this scenario.

2) for one of my courses the full name appears on two lines in the transcript (i.e. "teaching assistant" on one line and "course name" on a second one). However, AMCAS/AACOMAS only have one line for courses. Is it okay to consolidate both lines from transcript into one line on the application forms?

Thank you!
 
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gonnif said:
1) put CR as it appears exactly on transcript
2) you could call AMCAS and demand they redesigned the application immediately!!!! Or you could just put it in one line
Click to expand...
Thanks so much!
I'd just hate a reviewer come end of june to be like "EXCUSE ME what the eff is CR?!"
hope it's all good!
 
First post. Hope I can get some clarity. I was in the Air Force and earned my CCAF degree (Associates degree-Criminal Justice) prior to separation. Some of the courses are simply listed with a mark of (S) because they aren't actual college courses. After separating, I attended a community college (majored in bio) for two years and then transferred to a 4 year institution without earning another Associates. How should I go about entering my coursework? I'm currently listed as a lower senior with 111 credits at my current institution. Would I list all of the course/credits from the CCAF, which is 57 plus a CLEP course, and mark myself as freshman for first 35 hours and then as a sophomore until 65 hours and so on...Apologies for the rambling or any confusion. Thanks for the help.
 
gonnif said:
Your CCAF is a college degree. Therefore, you start from the first 35 credits as freshman, though you can include the CLEP. Thinking about it, I would list all the CCAF as freshman, then start the next CC as sophmore and Junior, then all 4 year will be listed as senior
Click to expand...

Ok, sounds. One more question regarding the CLEP. Would I need to provide any documentation other than the CCAF transcript? The CCAF degree is the only transcript it appears on since the other schools didn't accept it.

Again, thanks for the input.
 
My school sends in its committee letter in the order of submission date, so I am trying to submit it on May 31st.

If I'm abroad right now, does the submission date follow my time zone, or it follows EST? (Ex. June 1st 3AM here would be May 31st 9PM EST)
 
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"You have listed at least one letter that has not been assigned to any of your designated medical schools. AMCAS will
not send these letters until you make the school assignments and resubmit your application."

I have one letter I didn't send out on purpose, but it was uploaded to my amcas. Does the above mean AMCAS will not send any of my letters until I assign some even if I am not using it??
 
gonnif said:
It is a misleading message. Then will send the letters currently assigned and then will send later assigned letters . I will let AMCAS know to clarify this "help" message
Click to expand...

Yeah, it sounded like they had a hold on ALL my letters with that message. I added the letters to a school lower on my priority list and re-submitted the whole application. Does this change my "spot in line" for verification?


edit: so in my app status history it seemed it was actually on hold until i re-submitted
 
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Hey! Quick questions regarding LOR.

1) some of the schools I am applying to require that at least one LOR comes from a non-science faculty. One of my prof was going to write it but unfortunately he is having some issues and won't be able to do it. I will be providing enough letters just none from non-science faculty. How strict are they with this? Will they even review my application?

2) Now, say I can get a LOR from a non-science class I took but the Prof is still a graduate student. Will they consider it?

Thanks in advance!
 
Furont said:
Hey! Quick questions regarding LOR.

1) some of the schools I am applying to require that at least one LOR comes from a non-science faculty. One of my prof was going to write it but unfortunately he is having some issues and won't be able to do it. I will be providing enough letters just none from non-science faculty. How strict are they with this? Will they even review my application?

2) Now, say I can get a LOR from a non-science class I took but the Prof is still a graduate student. Will they consider it?

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

If you are not using a committee letter process, then you need to meet the individual letter requirements of each school to be considered. I don't think anyone can tell you how firm they are, but I would assume that not meeting their base requirements is a good way to be rejected.

It's best if all letters are cosigned by a professor (I mean a real professor, someone with the title or Professor, Lecturer, etc), as opposed to a graduate student.
 
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If I have taken classes during a Fall semester, and a subsequent summer semester at the same institution but not the spring in the middle or any subsequent semesters (I transferred for the spring and returned home for a single class the summer after) would I fill in two college entries and select one to be summer only or do I just fill in from the start of the Fall to the end of the summer
 
Question:

Is a freshman-level Astronomy lecture and lab considered "Physics"? AMCAS 2019 guide says Astronomy falls under Physics, however the course catalog states the course is designed for liberal arts majors. Same question about a junior-level Cosmology course--designed for non-majors.
 
Can I add a new letter of recommendation after I submit my application. I know the writers can submit the letter even after my application is verified but I'm not sure if I can ADD a new writer after I submit my application. Thanks!
 
If I submit to 20 schools today, then want to add schools in like 3 weeks. If my application is already processed will those schools get my app at the same time as the first 20? Or will it take a while to reach them as well?
 
@gonnif

I had a question regarding this whole early submission perception.

I am a student applying this cycle, and taking my MCAT on June 30th.

Originally, I planned to submit my application this month, with a throwaway school to get verified by the end of June. After being verified at the end of June, I would wait for my MCAT scores to come back on July 31, and then add schools.

Recently, I learned that if you submit in the first few days of July , you can get verified by the end of July, before the score even comes back.

What is the benefit of submitting and getting verified this month, if I won't even know the schools I'm applying to until my score comes back on July 31th?

I would understand the possible benefit if students submitted their app early before taking MCAT, and indicated their schools on it. But I don't think this is a smart move considering they wont even know their score until later, and they can get verified after taking MCAT and before their score comes in, like my situation.

Could you explain if my thinking/logic is correct, or is there a benefit still of submitting this month if I am mistaken?

Thanks in advance!
 
Thanks very much for your reply @gonnif . So even though I have my MCAT June 30, you would still recommend me to submit 3rd week of June?

If I submit 3rd week of June, I will probably get verified by mid-July, scores don't come back until July 31, so whats the point?

What's the reason I can't just submit July 1-2 or so, and get verified by end of July (July 27-30), which is still before scores come back?

I totally agree with your philosophy on splitting the time, it's the only practical way to see it.
 
@gonnif

I have my CCAF listed in my coursework. I have a CLEP or two that I used for my CCAF, but on my official CCAF transcript under transfer credits accepted it says, "College Level Testing." How would I report this under my CCAF transcript on AMCAS?
 
gonnif said:
All special course types are reported like AP. See p29 then 26 of guide under AP for details. You can report these as “lump sum” or split it up
https://aamc-orange.global.ssl.fast...b-d574221bf6e3/2019-amcas-applicant-guide.pdf
Click to expand...


"To claim AP credit, the credit hours must be listed on your transcript."

There are no hours listed on my transcript. It just says that "College Level Testing" credits were accepted with a date next to it. I don't mean to be so repetitive with my questioning, but this is the last piece I need before I submit.
 
gonnif said:
It doesnt say how many credits were accepted? So if there are no credits, it doesnt have to be reported
Click to expand...

That's the strange thing, they are not reported on my official transcript. However, I pulled up AFVEC and printed off my unofficial transcript, and it identifies the two courses accepted and their credit hours are listed. But, since that isn't what members of the admissions committee will see, I will happily leave them off. Thank you again, gonnif.
 
timephone said:
Question:

Is a freshman-level Astronomy lecture and lab considered "Physics"? AMCAS 2019 guide says Astronomy falls under Physics, however the course catalog states the course is designed for liberal arts majors. Same question about a junior-level Cosmology course--designed for non-majors.
Click to expand...

Did you take calc based physics for your prereqs? If not, you took physics that was designed for non-majors, but I’m betting you still listed it as physics. Just follow the guide and list it as physics. If they want to change it they will.
 
Hey I could use some advice in regards to applying as my MCAT date has taken a back seat since I'm not ready, I have pushed it to July 24th due to consistent low scores. Everything else I've been hustling with on my primary to have finished, but am still not done editing my work/activities section, I'd say that's about 85% done, and my personal statement needs editing, so I'm hoping to submit within 8 days or so.

I'm confident about my grades, EC's, letters of Rec are solid (not one in a million, but solid letters), my personal statement will be much stronger once I edit it. The only thing holding me back at this point is my MCAT as it's a beast of a test. My dream is to stay in California, but I know I may have to go out of state realistically if my MCAT isn't high enough. Moreover, AMCAS has yet to calculate my Cumulative GPA as well as my BCPM GPA since I haven't submitted my primary yet, but I believe my cGPA is strong at a 3.8, but not sure about BCMP (Science GPA). I'm also a non-traditional applicant, resident of California, not URM.

My questions are:

1. Would submitting within 8 days (June 10th) still allow me to get verified rather quickly?

2. Considering I'm from California, does anybody have any good suggestions as to what school I can use as my "throwaway school" just for the purposes of getting my primary verified?

3. Considering I won't be taking my MCAT till July 24th (I know it's very late) but if I took it as I had planned on June, based on my performance thus far I would've gotten a 500-501 at best, what would be the best course of action to take in terms of filling out secondaries once I have my primary application verified? More specifically, I know you shouldn't apply to schools without an MCAT score (with the exception of the throwaway school), but in terms of my timeline since I won't be getting my results till August 23rd, how should I strategically plan writing my secondaries? Should I start writing them for the schools I want to apply to right after finishing my MCAT (assuming I feel like I scored at least a 507-509 ish) in order to still have chances of putting myself in the best position in terms of the timeline? Overall, I'm looking at the best way to use my time efficiently to maximize my chances of getting interviews/acceptances since I'll be taking a late MCAT and that puts me at a disadvantage since lots of schools are on a rolling admissions. What would be the best steps to take at this point in terms of applying/filling out secondaries and everything else in between?

If you need more information let me know and I'll post it up so you guys can help me out to the best of your ability (negative comments aren't appreciated). Thank you in advance.
 
AquaticSunrise13 said:
1. Would submitting within 8 days (June 10th) still allow me to get verified rather quickly?
Click to expand...

Yes that is fine.

AquaticSunrise13 said:
2. Considering I'm from California, does anybody have any good suggestions as to what school I can use as my "throwaway school" just for the purposes of getting my primary verified?
Click to expand...

A school that is such a reach that it wouldn't matter if you were considered a reapplicant in the future. I don't have any specific suggestions.

AquaticSunrise13 said:
3. Considering I won't be taking my MCAT till July 24th (I know it's very late) but if I took it as I had planned on June, based on my performance thus far I would've gotten a 500-501 at best, what would be the best course of action to take in terms of filling out secondaries once I have my primary application verified? More specifically, I know you shouldn't apply to schools without an MCAT score (with the exception of the throwaway school), but in terms of my timeline since I won't be getting my results till August 23rd, how should I strategically plan writing my secondaries? Should I start writing them for the schools I want to apply to right after finishing my MCAT (assuming I feel like I scored at least a 507-509 ish) in order to still have chances of putting myself in the best position in terms of the timeline? Overall, I'm looking at the best way to use my time efficiently to maximize my chances of getting interviews/acceptances since I'll be taking a late MCAT and that puts me at a disadvantage since lots of schools are on a rolling admissions. What would be the best steps to take at this point in terms of applying/filling out secondaries and everything else in between?
Click to expand...

My suggestion would be:
  • Study full time for the MCAT right now. There is nothing worse than having a subpar MCAT score holding you back
  • Once you take the MCAT, you could start pre-writing some secondaries, but without an MCAT score how are you going to make a school list? I would say based on your GPA/ECs/supposed MCAT, you could start applying to any lower tier schools that you believe you would apply to no matter the score, as well as writing the secondary for your throwaway school.
  • Once you get your score back, work like hell.

What are you doing next year? School? Work? You're going to need to devote significant time to this process through August.
 
I've heard from Gonnif that there's definitely no point in submitting a secondary to your throw away school so I probably won't be doing that. Not sure what I'll be doing next year, probably spend time working and saving up some money for medical school. I will definitely be working on this process through August-September of this year so I can finalize everything including interviews. I'm not sure about the school list as I can only go based off of "how I feel I did after my MCAT" exam. Let's say I get a 507-509 MCAT, I'm definitely going to be applying to California schools (with the exception of Stanford, Loma Linda, and one of the DO schools as I'm only applying to MD schools) since I'll be within the 10-90% range of the matriculated students with a particular MCAT score for that/those schools.

I think that considering everything else is strong on my application besides not knowing my MCAT score and since I'm a resident, that gives me some slight advantage. Problem is however is that CA schools screen you based on GPA/MCAT, so they won't be giving me an automatic secondary.

I'm planning on applying to 21 schools. 7 reach: All California, 7 mid tiers (all out of state), and 7 safety schools-low tier (all out of state). So you're saying pretty much write secondaries for all the 7 low tier schools I want to apply to? How about the mid tier schools since a 507-509 is probably good enough for Mid tier schools? I probably won't write secondaries for the CA schools since A. They won't give them to me, and B. I might not get a shot with that MCAT score, but I'm hoping that my GPA and all the other parts of my application will carry me through. Tell me what you think, thanks!
 
I did running start where I attended community college full time my junior and senior year of high school and earned college credits that were transferred to my 4 year university. I spent 3 years at my 4 year university after graduating high school (and the community college).
FIRST, the program level should be junior level right? I just really want to make sure of that.
SECOND, when assigning status for the college courses I took. Should the 2 years worth of courses I took at community college assigned as HS or FR and SO and put my 3 years at my 4 year university as JR, SR, SR?
OR would it be like HS for 2 years I attended community college and 3 years of 4 year uni as FR, SO, and SR?

These community college courses are actual college courses and not AP/IB just taken when I was in high school...
I guess im not sure what exactly is the difference between College-level course and college courses I took in high school...
 
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If the courses I took are credit/no-credit grades which should be pass/fail on AMCAS, but do I put credit (like it appears on my transcript) or Pass?
 
gonnif said:
NO!

1)Any college course taken before you have earned your HS diploma is listed as as HS
2) You can start FR SO JR SR only after you have earned a diplomia
3) You can either start as FR via credits (about 35) or actual calendar year, which will mean you will skip JR and go to senior OR
4) You can start with advance standing as SO and work your way up

https://aamc-orange.global.ssl.fast...1bf6e3/2019-amcas-applicant-guide.pdf#page=31
If you have a significant number of AP or college-level coursework credits before entering college, you
may list your entire first college year as FR status. In doing so, you will most likely exceed the 0 through
35 credit hour guideline for freshman year, but your AMCAS GPAs will reflect your “true” first year in
college; in these cases, AMCAS will not change your academic status. However, if you would rather
base your academic statuses on credit hours only, your application will be accepted and verified as such.
The following rules will help you determine the appropriate AMCAS Year in School for all of your
coursework (including foreign coursework):
• Do not assign more than one status to an academic term.
• Assign HS status to college-level courses taken before the high school graduation date you entered
in the Schools Attended section, regardless of the physical location of the college-level course. This
does not include AP, Exempt, or CLEP credit.
• Assign FR status to AP, Exempt, or CLEP credit awarded when you first entered college.
• Once your undergraduate Year in School (FR, SO, JR, SR) has advanced, do not assign the previous
status; continue to enter your completed coursework from that point.
Click to expand...

Another questions, if I took a community college course after HS graduation and before entering my fall quarter of 4 yr uni, (so basically summer quarter) is that considered HS or FR?

I think I will assign HS to all the community college credits I earned and assigned FR, SO, SR to my 3 years spent at the 4 yr uni.

Thank you!
 
Have a question regarding inputting in grades for the AMCAS coursework section of the primary application. I know you are supposed to input in things "the way they are" on your transcript to ensure verification. Does that mean if the course name is capitalized on the transcript I need to do the same in my entries?

I know it is somewhat of a "stupid" question but just trying to make sure that I have prompt verification and no problems in that process.
 
gonnif said:
Not only should it be capitalized but in exactly in the same font and point size

Only kidding...... its fine in lower case
Click to expand...

HAHA, you scared me there for a second because I only saw the first line initially.
 
Should I mention I won $5400 with a research award? Some people told me the amount is not necessary but I'm reading a book on how to write my work/activities section, and the examples in the book have the amount of cash prizes listed
 
LACMA said:
Should I mention I won $5400 with a research award? Some people told me the amount is not necessary but I'm reading a book on how to write my work/activities section, and the examples in the book have the amount of cash prizes listed
Click to expand...

I won an award like that and asked in the activities thread and catalystik said it's ok to mention. I started mine as "I received XXXX amount in funding to continue research..." and then described the project is be working on.
 
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I am just about to submit my application but wanted to clarify one thing before doing so: I took a course at a community college to fulfill pre med requirements but had already received my BS - should I list this as a postbac program, or junior college? Thanks!
 
My university will be sending a committee letter on my behalf, but it wont be until the end of the summer. I would like to submit in a few weeks, so for the letter of evaluation section should I indicate " i have no letters to add" or do i make the entry for the committee letter now?
 
What other monetary things should be included? Should stipends for research programs be included? What about academic scholarships awarded? For instance, a presidential scholarship that is the highest award available? Should I be writing what the scholarship is for in my description? I've just lumped them all in one category "honors/awards"

Thank you so much!
 
So I know AP classes should be entered for your freshman year of college, but mine are listed on my official transcript under Fall 2015 aka when I was still in high school, so it is only allowing me to select High School for "Year in School." However, when I do that, it won't let me choose Advance Placement under the special course thing. It like grays out and won't let me click it. If I change the academic year to Fall 2016 when I was actually in college, it lets me click AP, but that would be incorrect with what's listed on my transcript. What should I do?
 
@gonnif

Say I submit on June 8th and have two transcripts (that have already been received). What is the latest one can assume verification would occur? I am trying to determine if I submit in the next few days, what are the chances that it will get verified by transmission date.
 
Considering I'm not Christian and wouldn't be able to get a letter from a pastor, I'm thinking there's no point in applying to Loma Linda, even if I am a CA resident, so I can just simply use that as my throw away school for verification purposes right? I got this advice and just wanted to confirm, as I'm thinking that sounds like a good plan.
 
A few quick questions:

1. I am creating two entries that involve the same organization: one that involves my leadership duties and another that focuses on my roles as a "regular" member. Do I need to explain what the organization does, describe its size, etc. in both descriptions, or is it enough to just do it for one since they have the same name? When I printed out my application, it looked slightly confusing because the first entry for that organization did not have the detailed description, while the second entry that came later did. It is the school band, so it shouldn't be anything that is too "out there" that would require a detailed explanation, but I wanted to make sure.

2. In general, do we have to list the time commitment/typical schedule in the description in addition to listing total hours for every activity? I have seen some descriptions that say something like "volunteered for 2 hours each week for X semesters", but I have some activities that did not follow a set schedule where I would go every week, but rather some months I would go once a week, while other months once every three weeks for example. Is it OK to just list my hours and not go into detail about the exact schedule?

3. For listing future hours, is there a preference from adcoms between listing 2 separate date ranges with completed hours and future hours or instead writing about what the expected future engagement is with the activity in the description? Can you mix and match both methods based on the activity? I was going to just describe what I expect to do going forward for the activities that I still do, but then that was taking up valuable characters for some entries, so I wanted to see what the thoughts on that are.

4. For my hobbies, I put the start date as the start date of my earliest hobby listed on there (which itself is just an estimate since I cannot remember for sure when I started doing it) and the end date as 8/2019, which is when I plan to start medical school. Is this an OK way to do it, or is there a better method?

Thanks a lot!
 
Golfer94 said:
3. For listing future hours, is there a preference from adcoms between listing 2 separate date ranges with completed hours and future hours or instead writing about what the expected future engagement is with the activity in the description? Can you mix and match both methods based on the activity? I was going to just describe what I expect to do going forward for the activities that I still do, but then that was taking up valuable characters for some entries, so I wanted to see what the thoughts on that are.

4. For my hobbies, I put the start date as the start date of my earliest hobby listed on there (which itself is just an estimate since I cannot remember for sure when I started doing it) and the end date as 8/2019, which is when I plan to start medical school. Is this an OK way to do it, or is there a better method?

Thanks a lot!
Click to expand...
3) No preference. Mixing and matching is fine. If you're not completely sure, it might be best to put future projected hours or just hours/week in the narrative.

4) or you could just enter a 999 or 9999 to indicate the Total Hours are too high to matter. For hobbies, no one will care about an accurate count. A contact isn't required for confirmation, after all.
 
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Quick question about course classification: I took some foreign literature classes, but they were completely taught in English, and we read and wrote everything in English as well. Would I classify this as English lang/lit, or foreign lang/lit?
 
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