Today is the first day to submit the AMCAS application. For those about to click, I salute you.
I’m working my way through the process, behind where I’d hoped to be but still optimistic. Right now I’m working on my school’s internal packet, the AMCAS application, and preparing for an August MCAT. In my spare time, I parachute into Zimbabwe to breastfeed premature infants, and I’m a semi-professional mountaintop soccer player.
… just kidding. I don’t have spare time 
.
Trying to answer a few questions and figure out where I stand, I’ve read through the AMCAS instructions and done a search here. The former answered a bit, and the latter was somewhat sentimental - and if there’s a way to share “favorite” topics, I’d love to point out a few of my favorites.
I’m still trying to figure out: how early is early? How late is late?
AMCAS will take 4-6 weeks to verify my transcripts, but they will start doing it before the rest of my app is complete - is this correct? Or do they need to wait until my app is complete, or just until I enter my coursework?
If I’m going to be taking the MCAT in August, and I complete my application prior to this - how much does the exact timing matter?
That is, will there be a difference between finalizing the PS and coursework in June, as opposed to early August?
Schools that automatically send secondaries will do so as soon as my application is received - even before my MCAT scores are made available? Or will they not get anything until the MCAT is in?
I’ve got a few other AMCAS type questions, but I’m going to dig deeper to find the answers a bit first.
Thanks :).
- pi1304 Said:
I'm still trying to figure out: how early is early? How late is late?
AMCAS will take 4-6 weeks to verify my transcripts, but they will start doing it before the rest of my app is complete - is this correct? Or do they need to wait until my app is complete, or just until I enter my coursework?
They don't verify your transcripts until you have submitted your application. However, you can have all of your transcripts submitted and there waiting for when you do hit submit. How long it takes AMCAS to verify them depends on two things: whether or not they have all of your transcripts and how many other applications are ahead of yours. They tend to take the longest in June (because of the thousands that all submit their applications on the same day).
If you don't submit your application until August, it may only take them a week or two to verify it if they already have all of your transcripts. I submitted mine in September, I think, (maybe later) and it took them less than a week to verify it.
- Quote:
That is, will there be a difference between finalizing the PS and coursework in June, as opposed to early August?
It probably doesn't matter that much. Do you want your summer grades to be on your application? If so, you might consider waiting to submit that school's transcript until the grades are in. I guess it depends on if you think those grades will be helpful to your GPA/application. I took summer organic chemistry (in addition to the August MCAT), so I definitely wanted those grades on my application. If your summer transcript is going to be available in August sometime, you might as well wait to submit your application until you can get those grades on it.
- Quote:
I believe it depends on how they are set up to receive data from AMCAS. I talked to the admissions office a little about this, and there are a few options the schools have on when/how they receive applications from AMCAS. I believe that they can choose to not receive applications until the MCAT score is also complete, but I think that a lot of them are now getting there data in "real time" so to speak. That is, once they start downloading applications in July, they receive any updates to your application (MCAT scores) as soon as they are updated to your application.
Yes, many schools WILL send out secondaries before receiving the MCAT. So, if you have your AMCAS application submitted and verifies, you will get secondaries that you can submit and send in your LORs for. Then, the minute your MCAT scores are received, your application would be moved to the "complete" pile, assuming the school has received all of your other required materials.
So - its kind of a crapshoot. Do you decided to have some applications complete before you get your scores or not? I originally had intended to submit mine before I got my MCAT scores, but for other reasons, ended up not submitting until after I got them. If you have your LORs ready to submit via a service such as Interfolio, it might not take you that much extra time to complete your (secondary) applications after your MCAT score is complete
The reality of it is that by virtue of waiting for August MCAT scores, your application is going to be "late" no matter what. Fortunately, MCAT scores are processed much faster now, so that will allow your application to be complete sooner than in the past.
Make sure you have those LORs ready to roll as soon as you get a secondary - in some cases, I requested my LORs to be sent before I even submitted the secondary. If you have control over when your LORs get sent out by using a service such as interfolio, your applications will be complete much sooner. For many late MCATers, their application ends up being excessively late more because their file is still waiting on LORs than any other reason.
Hope that answers your questions. Let me know if you have more!
Also - I believe Judy Colwell will be at the conference, so if you get a chance, maybe you can take a few minutes with her and get some insights as to the best strategy for you.
Good luck!
Amy
Late June is okay, but in my opinion August is not so hot. You don’t know how long AMCAS will take to verify your information (which starts when you press the blue SUBMIT! button), and ideally you want your application complete and verified except for MCAT scores before the end of the summer, because some schools will send secondaries (including some time-consuming ones) before your score shows up. Having your application complete except for your MCAT score is an advantage, because as soon as your score shows up, they’re ready to roll.
Except for writing the personal statement (ugh!) the AMCAS application isn’t as bad as it seems when you first sit down and read it. You just sit down with your transcripts, old resumes, and perhaps a box of cookies and crank it out. You’ll have a few details you want to edit and putz with (like exactly how to describe this particular volunteer gig), but once you’ve done the bulk of the entry, those little cleanup tasks go quickly.
It’ll be okay. Just put on your Nikes and do it.
Thanks, Amy and Denise. I actually got about that impression about the AMCAS - mostly busywork, except the PS. Still, there’s work to be done, and I’m moving forward with doing it.
I’d like to wait until my Summer session grades are available, but that will be in late June/early July. I’m planning on using my university’s pre-health advisement office for the letter-writing and composite service - but that wouldn’t be complete until about September. Now, I believe they’ll act as a “clearinghouse” for my LoRs which could be quicker, but then I’d have to explain why I didn’t use the committee letter. Hm.
Given that you are waiting on an August MCAT anyways, I don’t see why you couldn’t wait for your summer grades. Enter them in your AMCAS as completed, get your transcript request in so that as soon as the grade will appear it is sent, and then hit submit on your AMCAS. That will still get it verified and sent out to schools around the time you have take the MCAT, and then you can spend the time between taking the MCAT and score release working on any secondaries you might get prior to scores and etc.
There is wide variation in secondaries. Some require essays, some require entering crap that they should already have from your AMCAS (which irritated me no end), some require filling out simple forms, some require not much more than sending in your secondary fee.
That sounds reasonable, thanks 
.
If my LoRs are not ready until late September / early October, will that be problematic? It seems that my MCAT scores won’t be released until mid-Sept anyway, so it may coincide well enough.
I suppose it just seems like a better idea to, as you suggest, “Make sure you have those LORs ready to roll as soon as you get a secondary.” It would seem like secondaries not being complete until around October would further slim my chances.
Also, don’t many secondaries have explicit time limits - e.g. “this must be submitted within 2 weeks of its receipt?” If so, would it be a problem if they were delayed due to LoRs from the advisement office?
Thanks again!
You really do want to submit your AMCAS application in June if at all possible. If your summer grades aren’t critical to your gpa or trendline of your gpa, then you might not want to wait for them. You’ll begin getting secondaries as soon as the schools get your application from AMCAS, well before your MCAT scores are released. In fact, you may already have secondaries returned by the time you take the Aug. MCAT. Your LORs can go in to the school(s) once you have a secondary to submit.
Remember, the early bird gets the interview.
Cheers,
Judy
Early is very important. Do not wait until all elements of your app are complete - send everything in as you complete it. Usually, I would avoid the first 3 to 5 days of chaotic submission activity - seems that is when they run in bandwidth problems. However, the processing of your app by AMCAS/AACOMAS is lengthy & involved; so give them everything you can as you can.
And, do not delay in getting stuff to them. That may mean some gentle, and not so gentle, reminders to your LoR authors & other clerical staff. Be sure to be polite & professional in ALL of your dealings with EVERYONE. But, sometimes you may have politely assert yourself to get things done in a timely fashion.
This is an exercise in diplomacy between you, who has everything invested in this, and a large group of others who have minimal to zero invested in it. It is a learning experience that can potentially yield benefit later in your career when stuck in between rocks & hard places - and it will happen again…again…again
Curious…what is it that AMCAS does when they are verifying your transcripts?
Kris
At least part of the verification process is matching the courses on your transcripts with the courses you entered and also making sure that you classified them appropriately. AMCAS actually re-classified my pre-paramedic A&P to biology, which surprised me. I didn’t think it met their criteria for “biology” since it was listed as a “Fire Science Technology” class and according to their definitions courses like that (i.e. a biology course that has a nursing course number) aren’t supposed to count as biology. They also check and make sure that you listed the correct grades and hours and correct type of term (quarter hours, semester hours), so they can calculate your GPA correctly. Beyond that, I’m not sure what they do with them.