Undergraduate Premed Committees

[coincidental]

Hi Everyone,

I'm a first time poster, but I wanted to hear from people from a variety of schools, not just my own. So..uh...here I am.

My school, like many others, has a premed committee board. In Feburary, they sent all the potential premeds a letter describing the upcoming process (well, the part they have a role in). Apparently, once we give them our grades, MCATS, essay and recommendation letters, they will write us a composite letter.

So far, so good.

My concern is the timeline. The premed committee does not begin writing letters until Late August. So...while I have requested my reccommendations, they will not send off the letter until the board convenes at the beginning of the fall semester. Which, if I correctly understand the application process, means that I cannot possibly complete my secondaries until September.

The Questions:

1)Is this how other schools do it? Or is my school really behind schedule?
2)Am I at a disadvantage because of this?
3)How are med schools going to look upon this? Would it help if I write a letter to my first choice schools explaining the situation? I don't want to miss out on interviewing opportunities because I got my secondaries in late.
4)When can I expect secondaries? I'm planning on submitting my app. in two weeks and most of my schools (except Pitt and Northwestern) send secondaries to everyone.

Wow, this was longer than I expected. Question #1 is the one I'm most interested in, but I'd love to hear from people about their experiences.

Thanks!

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[Scubadoc]

I'm bummed b/c our school has NO pre-med committee & we are on our own to figure this all out! Good luck with yours...I wish I could help you out!

 

[coincidental]

Hi,

I graduated from Duke and we had a premed committee...well actually it was one person but was basically the same thing. She sent out the recommendations as she completed them and the earlier you completed your secondaries, the quicker she sent them out. She basically sent them throughout July and August. You may be at a slight disadvantage because of your delay but it's not huge...however, DO NOT WAIT for the premed committee to send out the letters. Go ahead and complete your secondaries, because that definitely counts and the schools take note of how quickly you complete them. And it really helps to get those secondaries in FAST (aka within a week or two of receiving them). Oh, and make sure you have enough money to cover it all. That was a problem for me cause with 12 secondaries, it ended up being very pricey and I had to wait to send in some of the applications because I had no money!

I sent in my AMCAS at the beginning of July and got a few secondaries starting in late July/August and the rest trickled in gradually. Incidentally, the school that was my first choice was also the first secondary I received and I sent it in within a week and now I'm headed there this fall!

Good luck with everything, and feel free to PM me if u have questions.

wow, thank you so much. This really helps, because it sounds just like my situation. I have no idea when I'll get secondaries, but if they aren't sending them out until late-July, then I don't feel so bad. I'll definately follow your advice though.

And yeah...the cost really, really sucks. I sat down and calculated it out (and consequently removed a couple schools...heh.) and the news was not good. But...I figure that's just the way it is.


(Thank you to the other person who replied as well...I just assumed premed committees were the standard, but honestly, I have no idea what's typical. I appreciate the input though!)

 

[mikedc813]

I fully agree with bluedevilchica. I went to Brandeis U and our process was the same. Just get your stuff in ASAP and when your committee gets the letter into them you'll be all set. In terms of being at a disadvantage I'd say there's probably none because a lot of places take a while to screen through the AMCAS before giving secondaries anyways.

 

[TheRussian]

My pre-med committee didn't send out my letter till like the third week of september. Partly my fault for turning my stuff in a bit late but still I was pretty upset about it. In terms of secondaries, you don't need to wait for the letter to complete them. I had more than half of mine submitted before the letter went down. I don't think I was at a disadvantage in terms of gaining admission to med school although I feel that some of my interviews were later in the season than they would have been otherwise. Don't worry about it, it won't affect you that much. Good luck

 

[pratik7]

I thought that you send in the committee stuff after you submit the secondaries??

 

[TheRussian]

I thought that you send in the committee stuff after you submit the secondaries??

The way it works is that on your secondaries you indicate that your LORs will come in the form of a committee letter from Blank University and your committee mails the letters themselves. In some cases the letter may be at the school before you even complete your AMCAS depending on when you complete it and when they send out your letter.

 

[coincidental]

The way it works is that on your secondaries you indicate that your LORs will come in the form of a committee letter from Blank University and your committee mails the letters themselves. In some cases the letter may be at the school before you even complete your AMCAS depending on when you complete it and when they send out your letter.

Oh! Okay, that really clarifies things. I thought it was all some package deal...like, I can't mail in the secondaries until I have the committee letter.

Bluedevilchica: oh jeez...I've been avoiding thinking about interviewing costs and the prep-course. I think it's a defense mechanism.

I appreciate everyone's input too! I feel a lot better about things. I heard a story about someone who finished everything by early July and was accepted by October (of course, this particular person also had a 4.0/37 in a tough major, so I've been trying to keep it in perspective) but now I'm rambling. Thanks everyone!

 

[Termwean]

Hi,
I go to LSU. We have a board that really does alot for us. All info has to be turned in to them by 15June. 15 may if EDP. They do 25 apps at a time, then send them on. They have been very helpful.

Hi Everyone,

I'm a first time poster, but I wanted to hear from people from a variety of schools, not just my own. So..uh...here I am.

My school, like many others, has a premed committee board. In Feburary, they sent all the potential premeds a letter describing the upcoming process (well, the part they have a role in). Apparently, once we give them our grades, MCATS, essay and recommendation letters, they will write us a composite letter.

So far, so good.

My concern is the timeline. The premed committee does not begin writing letters until Late August. So...while I have requested my reccommendations, they will not send off the letter until the board convenes at the beginning of the fall semester. Which, if I correctly understand the application process, means that I cannot possibly complete my secondaries until September.

The Questions:

1)Is this how other schools do it? Or is my school really behind schedule?
2)Am I at a disadvantage because of this?
3)How are med schools going to look upon this? Would it help if I write a letter to my first choice schools explaining the situation? I don't want to miss out on interviewing opportunities because I got my secondaries in late.
4)When can I expect secondaries? I'm planning on submitting my app. in two weeks and most of my schools (except Pitt and Northwestern) send secondaries to everyone.

Wow, this was longer than I expected. Question #1 is the one I'm most interested in, but I'd love to hear from people about their experiences.

Thanks!

 

[Jason110]

Some schools specifically state not to send in LORs (letters of recommendation) until they specifically ask for it. So I wouldn't send them before they ask for them.

In the secondaries, there will probably be a spot for you to mention that the LORs will come in the form of a committee letter. These are sent separately from the secondary (unless any of you know of schools that ask for LORs sent with the secondary).

That 4.0/37 kid must've finished his secondaries really early. On a similar question, what's the earliest secondaries might arrive? Secondly, where can I get a copy of previous year's secondary essay prompts?

Jason

Oh! Okay, that really clarifies things. I thought it was all some package deal...like, I can't mail in the secondaries until I have the committee letter.

Bluedevilchica: oh jeez...I've been avoiding thinking about interviewing costs and the prep-course. I think it's a defense mechanism.

I appreciate everyone's input too! I feel a lot better about things. I heard a story about someone who finished everything by early July and was accepted by October (of course, this particular person also had a 4.0/37 in a tough major, so I've been trying to keep it in perspective) but now I'm rambling. Thanks everyone!