Timeline Help!!!!

[ocwaveoc]

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Hello everyone.
I will be applying for med schools for 2008 matriculation and had some questions regarding the timeline for the application process.
I'm aware of when the applications for AMCAS and AACOMAS become available (May for both, right?). However, I'm not going to be taking my MCAT until August of this year while I'll still fill out the application.
Some of my questions are:
1) When should I ask for letters of recommendations from my professors and doctors?
2) How does my MCAT date of Aug affect when my AMCAS and AACOMAS applications get processed? I ask this since if my applications don't get processed until MCAT scores are received (September), do I even need to rush to get them filled out in May when they become available?
Thanks in advance.

 

[HemaOncoDoc]

Hello everyone.
I will be applying for med schools for 2008 matriculation and had some questions regarding the timeline for the application process.
I'm aware of when the applications for AMCAS and AACOMAS become available (May for both, right?). However, I'm not going to be taking my MCAT until August of this year while I'll still fill out the application.
Some of my questions are:
1) When should I ask for letters of recommendations from my professors and doctors?
2) How does my MCAT date of Aug affect when my AMCAS and AACOMAS applications get processed? I ask this since if my applications don't get processed until MCAT scores are received (September), do I even need to rush to get them filled out in May when they become available?
Thanks in advance.

Last year, the AMCAS and AACOMAS were both out in May but applicants were not allowed to submit them until early June.

1) You should be asking for your LORs now or at least contacting potential letter writers at this point. Sometimes it may take months to write them. It is better to have them earlier than later. Make note of the requirements set forth by each school as to how many letters and/or the types of letters that are needed (two science and one non-science LOR, plus a letter from a D.O.). Your LOR should be from professors or doctors that have gotten to know you over the past months-years.

2) The MCAT is in a different format this year, so the processing time is shorter. I do anticipate that scores will be released in September vs. October for this past cycle. Many medical schools will not send out the secondary application until the MCAT scores have been posted on your AACOMAS or AMCAS. That may pose a problem since most schools accept by rolling admissions. My advice is to take the MCAT earlier if possible. If not, make sure that your AMCAS and AACOMAS is submitted as soon as possible and you star working on essays for the secondary applications before you receive them. You can find the previous year's essay prompts on SDN. Be vigilant and kick butt on the MCAT and you'll be okay. Best of luck.