PASS Application Questions

[Yah-E]

To all upper classmen:

For those of you that have applied to Post-Doc dental residencies, I have some questions about PASS evaluation forms (e-forms). Alright, so I looked at the PASS application with the ADEA website and saw that there are these e-forms for evaluations.

3 e-forms for personal evaluations
1 e-form for institutional evaluation

How does this really work? The faculties will receive an email to inform them that I want an electronic evaluation from them? What were your experiences with faculties responding to these electronic requests? Were they (faculty and the e-forms) pain in the @ss? Are these e-forms required if you have letters of recommendation?

So lets say that I have all the e-forms requested and completed by the Dean and faculties, do I still request letters of recommendation if I wish to strengthen my application? How did you guys do it? E-forms AND letters of recommendation (with letters sent directly to residencies)?

I greatly appreciate all responses, but if OMFS residents and applicants can share, then that would be preferred.

Also, when applying to OMFS residencies, does it hold true like applying to dental schools? The earlier you apply, the better your chances? (I don't think it would, but I would like to your thoughts on this). Thanks in advance.

Please feel free to use this thread for all future PASS application questions. Most likely, if you have a question, then some of us have the exact same question in mind.

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[MAX-it]

the way it works is that you go to the PASS website and type in the names of the evaluators along with their email addresses and their titles, then PASS will contact them via email and provide them with a link that will take them directly to the evaluation form. The evaluator will answer the questions posted on the PASS website regarding your performance and then the evaluator HAS THE OPTION to type in a personalized recommendation letter in the Remarks section.

Some programs will accept those e-evaulation letters as a substitute to the typed recommendation letter, other program will still ask you for hard copies. It's safe to send hard copies to all the programs.

Good luck,

 

[Jediwendell]

I actually really liked the E forms. I have applied once with regular forms and once with the E forms, and found the E forms easier to deal with. You just email them to the profs, and then they respond to whatever it says. No problemo. PASS still sucks, though.

 

[simpledoc]

to YAH-E: this is a little out of the topic-- how do you think or know is the grad pros progrm at nova?

 

[gryffindor]

The e-forms are real simple to use and easy to manage. If you are thinking about having someone write you a letter, I would ask them what method they would prefer doing it by - e-form or traditional paper form (downloaded from the PASS website). Some of the non-computer savvy faculty may prefer the paper format or may never check their e-mail accounts. My program director wasn't familiar with the e-forms and got all confused and left a huge chunk of it blank. I actually had to sit down and show him how to fill it out and then he agreed it was really easy. Your PASS account shows what date you sent the request for an e-form and if the e-form has been completed yet. If it hasn't been completed, you can resend an e-mail directly from your PASS account reminding the faculty member to do the e-form. You can send as many reminder e-mails as you want. Ultimately, you can cancel your e-form request to a faculty member if they don't do it in time (I had to do this, and then scramble to find a third evaluator). You can also send more than 3 requests for e-forms, but then you will have to do a "custom" application through PASS to tell them which programs will get which 3 letters b/c I think they only process 3 letters per programs, not including the dean's letter.

As long as the faculty fills out the e-form correctly, there is no need to send a hard paper copy to the programs. Each application folder has too much paper in it anyways, and I'd bet money that they're only scanning those letters of recommendation to see if they know the letter writer or to see if it says anything bad about the candidate. If you want to send an additional letter of rec. to the program, go ahead and do it. They'll probably just shove it in the folder along with the rest of your stuff.

I agree with Jediwendell, PASS is a seriously annoying third party that makes the application process more stressful than it needs to be.

 

[Yah-E]

Thanks to all of you who have replied. I will definitely use the e-form evaluation from PASS for those OMFS residencies don't mind what version of letter of recommendations they receive. Here's my situation, I'm applying to OMFS residencies this upcoming June. I have my "recommendators" pick out (hopefully they'll agree to write a positive/supportive letter for me). I plan on asking my "recommendators" sometime in February for the letter of recommendation and/or if they're willing to do an e-form from PASS.

Now here are some more questions. For instance, if five OMFS residencies that I wish to apply to states they want the letters to sent directly to them and not through PASS, then do I ask my "recommendators" to print five copies each of their letters for me or send the letters to the five specified residencies for me (with prepaid envelope provided of course)? Since these OMFS residencies I want to apply to don't want PASS e-forms, is that what I do?

I want to avoid asking my "recommendators" for a letter more than once. For example, if I know five OMFS residencies wants letters of recommendation/evaluation sent to them directly, then I rather ask my "recommendators" for 5 copies of the letter right away than asking them for one and then asking them for another copy later for another residency, and then asking them for another copy later......you get the picture!

Mucha gracious amigos!