What you need for secondaries is the following:
* A full list of your classes, possibly even your AMCAS primary. Highlight all the pre-med curriculum courses, such as Bio and Chem, as well as your BCPM GPAs and any other information you need.
* Passport Photos. There are plenty of places to make your own. Honestly, I don't see $10 for 2 as a good deal. A 4x6 photograph holds 6 passport photos. You should be computer-savvy enough with Google to be able to make these prints.
* 9x12 envelopes. Cramming your paper-based applications into letter envelopes is dopey. These big envelopes should do the trick. Remember your postage.
* Essays
* Parents' information if applicable: undergrad, grad, degrees, years, occupation, any legacy/family members at the med schools
The essay questions usually fall in the following categories:
* Why do you have a particular interest in this school?
* Adversity or hardships in your life?
* Academic dishonesty or criminal background?
* Explain bad grades.
* Your favorite volunteer job?
* Your favorite occupation?
* Your research?
* What are you doing this year?
* Gaps in education?
* A difficult ethical or moral dilemma?
* Where do you see yourself in X years?
* Anything else?
All of these essays are inherently simple to answer but almost impossible to compound on. I'll give basic advice for each. The rest is up to you.
Why this school? What have you done in your past that links to the school? Do you like their unique curriculum? Their mission statement? Their apples and their bananas? Have you been there? Their teaching style? What do you hope the school can give you that makes you interested in them, besides the MD/DO degree?
Adversity and hardships may or may not apply to you. Consider racial profiling, discrimination, tragedy, money difficulties, down-and-out periods of life. If you have problems talking about it at the interview, this is a NO GO to write about. Only write about what you can talk about.
Obviously, for academic dishonesty and criminal misconduct, simply state what happened, what resolved, and that's it. Don't weep, lament, and so on, if it asks you simply to describe it.
Bad grades are normally a slew of Cs, any Ds, Fs, or Ws that you may have had. Bs are not bad grades. Explain bad semesters if they are abnormal, like a whole wave of Bs and Cs.
Your favorites/research should be a summary of 5 Ws. Who did you work with, what did you work on (include responsibilities and roles), when you did it (including hours), where you worked at, and why it is important to you. Mention any publications/personal feelings.
What you're doing this year may be similar to above. If it's classes, simply write classes. As a graduate, I wrote all about what I'm doing this upcoming year. I am unsure of whether gap years contain gaps from application to matriculation, but when in doubt, use this essay if you are a recent graduate.
Ethical/moral dilemma is a fun one. This may also appear as a difficult decision which does not imply ethical/moral issues. Go back in time and look for a decision that was a difficult call. It does not have to be super-significant like turning in a puppy killer who was your best friend, but make it such that it has an impact more on people around you. If the topic says avoid academic dishonesty, avoid it. Please, try not to LIE. I'm pretty sure you've made such a decision in the past, and lying is pretty pointless at this point.
Where I see myself in X years is also nice. Make sure to mention that the school helped you get there. Talk about what you see yourself doing, whether it be family medicine, on a boat (...er) doing Mercy missions, and so on. This should flow naturally. If it doesn't, you haven't seen yourself yet, and need to work on that.
Anything else can be any arrangement of the above or something like, in my case, art background. Mix together what you can. Helping the homeless, publications, anything not already in your AMCAS, or not very well-explained in AMCAS is fair game.
Another thing you can try doing is simply writing your essay in a story-like fashion. I made some of my essays read out like short stories, using very creative methods of writing I normally associate with my favorite books, as opposed to the boring essay-style that reads like a molecular biophysics textbook manual. Make it flow, make it pretty, use adjectives. Make it capture the emotions. Don't throw grammar out the window, but such simple methods as restating or even simple quotes can do wonders. Quote an author if you must, but don't burn characters citing Hemingway unless it is INVOLVED in the essay. Don't cite because you can, but because you must. Hemingway was not there doing life-saving on the road surgery with you. He doesn't need to be mentioned. On the other hand, Sun Tzu was fighting an Italian in New Jersey with you and quoted Shakespeare? Go ahead and put that quote in, if it makes it more interesting.
