The TRUTH about AMCAS processing habits

[lady in red]

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ok people i got it all figured out. AMCAS has several priority lists and they rank them based on exactly how pissed you are. I called the first time, was really nice--result? I was never placed on the priority list. Then I got just a little angry, contacted NAncy, threatened her a bit, she said, ok, I'll put you on the list, again, so I was on "that list" for a month!!
Now, I was royally, ROYALLY pissed off, called Nancy, her bodyguards, or the specialsts, in short, I harassed EVERYBODY for the whole week. result? I was placed on a "high priority" (read really pissed off applicant) list, and will SUPPOSEDLY be processed by the end of this week, wherenever that is according to AMCAS. 😡 😡 😡

 

[lady in red]

by the way, the lawyer threat does not work anymore, I tried. Now, you have to use logic and very firm words. I sent a lawyer letter, she just ignored it. I will let you know if the "high priority" list is in existence.

 

[jargon124]

I have only contacted AMCAS on one occasion -I emailed Nancy (politely, no lawyer threats) and I was processed within about a week of doing so. Lucky I guess.

 

[spacecadet]

I think I have the record for going the longest between submission and verification. I submitted on 7/5 and I don't even have red X's yet. I sent several emails (including two to Nancy) and was told that I should call. When I called, they didn't know why I wasn't processed, but they confirmed that I'm on the "priority" list. The guy I talked to was afraid to touch my application because it might mess up my "status". Whatever.

I sent them a really nasty, sarcastic email and got a reply the next day. My nice emails get ignored. I guess think you are right that they are dealing with the really PO'd people first.

 

[E'01]

i submitted June 26th and got verified on October 19th AFTER sending an email to Nancy about hiring a lawyer

 

[slptodoc]

What do you think about going to the media with all of the troubles???? OR, maybe that would be a good "NEW THREAT" since the lawyer thing doesn't seem to scare them anymore!
NO group likes to be thrown to the wolves of the media!!! Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm
.......and you KNOW the media, any exploitation or thought of a scandal/scam etc
is appealing to them!
Food for thought!
L 🙂

 

[GS]

Nope, I have not been verified even though I submitted 7/03 but I can't complain because I have been admitted to Pritzker and UIowa. At this point, don't even bother about verification. It makes no point to raise your blood pressure that way, and schools are making decisions without AMCAS verification (although they are contigent on verification). Just relax, and the only thing to do probably is concentrate on more important things (like assignments in my case hahaha). 🙂

 

[none]

Okay, here's what I'm sort of sure happened, it excuses nothing, but perhaps it'll bring a greater level of understanding. The people who submitted very early on in July/June had bugs in their application that AMCAS hadn't really noticed before, but which made their applications quite impossible to process without major work. It was moderately easy to fix the problem so that future apps didn't have the bugs, but harder to fix each previous submitter's app seperately. So, they had people working on fixing those initially submitted apps, most of which took a very long time to be verified. In the mean time, they couldn't just sit on their hands and drag out this whole process further into the winter, so they started verifying later submitters first as their apps had no bugs in them. Now I still believe that many of the bugs have not been worked out in early apps and to compound this, there apparently was a bug where applications began to be verified in order of AAMC number instead of submittal date.

 

[Olsen]

I submitted on 7/20, was verified on 10/22 and realized on 11/2 that the verified form of my AMCAS had a major GPA error. (They erased the credit hours of one of my courses. Of course they left the course on the form, they just didn't include it in my GPA calculation).
I contacted AMCAS and they said I would have to submit it to the "Verification Team" and it would take AT LEAST 2 weeks to process. Meanwhile my "verified" AMCAS was probably sent out with a VERY wrong GPA. I had to PERSONALLY e-mail each school. That is weird because I seem to remember paying AAMC about $800 to do this for me. I haven't received a check in the mail from them compensating me for my time. I don't expect one either.
Sorry for the negative tone of this note. I just had to vent and where better to do it than SDN? I hope it is going better for all of you 🙂!

 

[Mage]

I submitted Oct. 1 and apparently was verified last monday..got the red X's, email, and my app shows "date processed" etc...Since Oct. 1., I sent a bunch of emails asking normal questions, and changed my tone with the last email...so I don't know why my application was verified so soon. However, I did log in around 5-10 times a day, everyday, since submitting my application ... maybe they noticed that or something (doubtful, though.)

Then again, they did say something about getting everyone verified by Nov. 1, right?

 

[none]

um, no...pretty sure they never mentioned everyone by November 1st...would be amazingly impressive and AMCAS isn't into that sort of thing.

 

[sundevil1]

I don't think we'll ever know how amcas works, what they are thinking or smoking. If somebody could unveil this great mystery there may be a nobel prize.

 

[lady in red]

my god, they verified me in one day!!! i did not even have the blue slashes thing--I opened the app and saw red x's, then date processed, and an email from nancy--all in the period of about 2 hours, I am serious!! i think the secret is--if you bug them enought, they will move, especially if you say stuff like, "well, you promised me this for 3 weeks straight and nothing was done" and NAME the person who promised you verification/correction. NAncy will then get on their case and you will be verfieid.

 

[Derby]

The "truth" about AMCAS is the same truth as many things -- they oil the doors that squeak the loudest.

 

[justDOit]

I was verified yesterday, it took 11 weeks. I was happy until I scrolled down my application and found they had deleted 32 hours of post-bac pre-med coursework, and any record of my attendence at that university.

 

[none]

Quite honestly, I've had a relatively good experience regarding AMCAS which I'm pretty sure was a result of me submitting my application quite late in the cycle. Anyone have similiar experiences?

 

[Ceelo]

I submitted late (oct 1) and I was verified Nov. 7. Like a lot of people I didn't have a good experience. Not only did they misplace some of my transcripts, they screwed up my FAP app too, as if ****ing up my primary app wasn't enough. 😡 😡

 

[spacecadet]

I'm sure nobody cares, but I have red X's! 🙂

Only 18 weeks! I guess AMCAS likes really nasty, sarcastic emails.

 

[riopsedm]

i actually paid a visit to AAMC office in DC today. it was actually quite funny because they wouldn't let me come upstairs and talk to them, so i ended up having to talk to them on a phone from the security guard's desk!! i asked if i could come up and talk to them in person, and the guy was like 'we're not allowing that this year'. (gee, i wonder why... 😀 😀 ). but at least i didn't have to wait on the phone for hours and the guy claimed that action was being taken on my app 'as we speak'.

 

[lady in red]

I am sure they were scared for their lives... 😀 😀 😀

 

[Mystique]

riopsedm,

I am so tempted to visit the AAMC office in person while I'm in DC next week. Unfortunately, I'm not very inimidating appearance-wise, so I doubt that would do any good! Why waste the cab fare to visit their office when I can use it towards something else...


lady in red, your reasoning should get you into the hall of fame. 😉 😉 😉

 

[riopsedm]

pendulum,
depending where you are in dc, it may not be a bad idea. the aamc office is not too far (half a mile) from the foggy bottom/gw metro stop on the orange line. even though you can't talk to someone in person, the guard was able to get through to let us speak to someone right away rather than have to wait on the phone for hours.

good luck either way.
riopsedm