{"id":18350,"date":"2021-06-17T15:19:06","date_gmt":"2021-06-17T15:19:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kaptest.com\/blog\/prep\/?p=18350"},"modified":"2021-06-18T12:38:08","modified_gmt":"2021-06-18T12:38:08","slug":"medical-school-admissions-secondary-applications","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpapp.kaptest.com\/study\/mcat\/medical-school-admissions-secondary-applications\/","title":{"rendered":"Medical School Admissions: Secondary Applications"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since dominating the MCAT, everything has gone smoothly in your medical admissions journey: You\u2019ve crafted a masterful personal statement<\/a>, chosen your favorite 15 activities<\/a>, meticulously entered every class you\u2019ve ever taken, and finally hit the \u201csubmit\u201d button on your AMCAS application<\/a>.
\nNow it\u2019s time to turn your attention to that growing pile of emails\u2014no, not acceptances (just yet!), but secondary applications. These school-specific applications feature a host of essays comprising the next step on the path to medical school<\/a>. As part of our continuing series on holistic review in admissions<\/a>, let\u2019s look at a few FAQs about secondaries.
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What are secondary applications?<\/h3>
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\nUnlike your AMCAS application\u2014which is standard across all the medical schools you\u2019re applying to\u2014secondary applications are directly sent to you by each school on an individual basis. As such, they are focused on the interests of that particular school.
\nSecondary applications run the gamut in terms of length and involvement: Some are only a handful of yes-or-no questions, while others require up to four full-length essays. On the more annoying side of things, some secondary applications can involve 20 short answer questions and ask you to re-enter every class you\u2019d taken that met the prerequisite criteria. However, the \u201caverage\u201d secondary application (if there really is such a thing) has one to two short essays and asks for a bit of additional biographical or academic data.
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Will I get a secondary from every school I apply to?<\/h3>
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\nThe short answer is: probably. Few schools turn down applicants before the secondary application stage. For the most part, an application is not really considered \u201ccomplete\u201d until the secondary has been received, and thus will not be reviewed until that point.
\nThere is anecdotal evidence that some schools do screen before distributing secondaries, but you should expect to receive a secondary from pretty much all of the medical schools to which you apply.
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How much do secondary applications cost?<\/h3>
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\nThis also varies from school to school, but secondary applications are about $100 apiece on average. The cheapest will run you about $30, whereas the most expensive can be $250. If you have not checked it out yet, make sure to query AAMC\u2019s Fee Assistance Program (FAP)<\/a>. They can help reduce the cost of applications.
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What are common questions on secondary applications?<\/h3>
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\nThe essay prompts and\/or short answer questions you encounter will be school-specific, but here are a few common ones:<\/p>\n