Applicant Session 2: The AMCAS Application

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Applicant Session 2 The AMCAS Application
Office of Pre-Professional Advising David
Verrier, Kirsten Kirby, David Trabilsy, Ana
Droscoski Mrs. Krause, Mrs. Harding, Mrs.
Sanders, Mrs. Decker 3rd Floor Garland Hall,
516-4140, preprofessional_at_jhu.edu http//web.jhu.e
du/prepro
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What is the AMCAS?

• A service of the Association of American Medical
  Colleges (AAMC)
• Non-profit, centralized application service
• Collects applicant information
• Collects one set of transcripts
• Verifies academic records
• Provides standardized grading information to
  participating schools

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In mid-May, the 2010 AMCAS button will appear
here
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Click here to create a username password

• Use real information your legal name, your
  Social Security number, etc. Inconsistent or
  inaccurate information can delay processing of
  your materials.
• Use a professional email username that will not
  expire prior to the end of the application cycle.
  We recommend against names like
  divapremed06_at_gmail.com

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Main Page

• You can navigate through the application using
  the buttons at the top or the links in the
  middle. A button at the top is shaded for
  incomplete sections, solid green/teal for
  complete, and red if you are currently working in
  that section. You may have to complete some
  sections before youre allowed to work on
  others.
• Clicking on Details under Status will give
  you more detail on where you are in the AMCAS
  process, and the status of your transcripts.

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• SUBSECTION 1 IDENTIFYING INFORMATION
• Preferred Name This is where you can enter your
  nickname, or if you go by your middle name, you
  can list that here. It goes without saying that
  they mean nickname as in shortened or alternate
  version of your name, not as in something you
  dont need med schools to know that your friends
  call you.
• Alternate Names If your name has changed, enter
  your previous name here. If your name is going
  to change during the application process, Id
  recommend using one name and sticking with it for
  the entire process.
• Alternate IDs Enter any other ID numbers youve
  had at JHU or other schools. This helps with
  transcript matching.

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ADVISOR RELEASE Please click YES
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• SUBSECTION 2 SCHOOLS ATTENDED TRANSCRIPT
  REQUESTS
• You must request a transcript from every school
  that you attended EXCEPT some foreign
  institutions.
• To request a transcript, you should submit two
  forms to the Registrars Office
• - The JHU Transcript Request form
• - The AMCAS Transcript Request form, which AMCAS
  will generate for you to print as you complete
  this section of the application.
• You should have the Registrars Office hold your
  transcript for your Spring 09 grades. Fill in
  the AMCAS address listed on their transcript
  request form.
• If you have pursued a bachelors/masters
  combined degree program, please refer to the
  Guidelines for Dual Degree Students document on
  the Applicant Forms page of the Pre-Prof. website

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• STUDY ABROAD SPECIFICS
• If you directly enrolled into another
  institution, and the credits transferred to Johns
  Hopkins (e.g., Tel Aviv)
• - Enter the institution as one that you attended
• - Request a Transcript Exception, marking
  Foreign College - Independent attendance -
  credits transferred to a U.S. or Canadian
  institution. as the reason for the request.
• - When filling out the Course Work subsection,
  list the courses under the Foreign institution,
  using their course names, credits, grades, etc.
  These grades will not be calculated into your
  AMCAS GPA.
• If you participated in a study abroad program
  sponsored by another US school (eg IFSA Butler)
• - Enter the foreign institution and the
  sponsoring US institution as schools that you
  attended.
• - Request a transcript from the sponsoring US
  institution.
• - Request a Transcript Exception for the foreign
  institution, marking Foreign College - Study
  abroad program sponsored by a U.S., U.S.
  territorial, or Canadian college. as the reason
  for the request.
• - When filling out the Course Work subsection,
  list the courses under the name of foreign
  institution, but use the notation (name, credits,
  grade) that appears on the sponsoring US
  institution transcript. If you received letter
  grades, these grades will be calculated in your
  AMCAS GPA.
• If you enrolled in an institution through a
  study abroad program that was sponsored by a
  foreign agency (eg DIS Copenhagen)
• - Enter the foreign program that you attended as
  it appears on your JHU transcript (eg, Denmark
  International Study).
• -Request a Transcript Exception for the foreign
  institution, marking "Foreign College -
  Independent attendance - credits transferred to a
  U.S. or Canadian institution" as the reason for
  the request.
• -When filling out the "Course Work" subsection,
  list the courses, grades and credits as they
  appear on your DIS transcript, under the name of
  the program as it appears on your JHU transcript,
  in the semester that they're listed on your JHU
  transcript. These courses will not be verified by
  AMCAS, and if you received letter grades, these
  grades will not be calculated in your AMCAS GPA.

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INSTITUTIONAL ACTION Advising Guidelines for
Johns Hopkins A high standard of academic
honesty, social conduct, and personal integrity
is expected from all applicants to medical school
from Johns Hopkins. When all applicants apply,
they are required to answer the following
question "Were you ever the recipient of any
institutional action by any college or medical
school for unacceptable academic performance or
conduct violation even though such action may not
have interrupted your enrollment or required you
to withdraw? Furthermore, You must answer
Yes even if the action does not appear on or
has been deleted from your official transcripts
due to institutional policy or personal
petition. Clearly, medical schools expect
applicants to answer this question truthfully, in
a completely forthcoming and honest manner. In
all cases, it is the explanation that places the
conduct violation in context. When admissions
committees come across these situations, they
carefully read the explanation, placing the
violation in the broad context of the applicants
overall achievements. You should realize that
disclosing an academic or behavioral violation
will likely not compromise your candidacy. When
otherwise well-qualified for admission to medical
school, a single minor violation will rarely keep
an applicant from attaining admission. Medical
schools understand that individuals learn from
the past , from mistakes, and emerge stronger as
a result. What is important is your ability to
demonstrate evidence of reflection, personal
growth, and very high personal integrity in
dealing with the situation. It should be noted ,
however, that a pattern of violations will likely
raise serious concerns.  Procedure At Johns
Hopkins, all academic and/or behavioral
violations are processed through the Dean of
Students Office. Regardless of whether you have
a prior or current prior or current academic
and/or behavioral violation with the University,
you are advised to answer Yes to the
Institutional Action on the AMCAS application and
to inform Dr. Verrier If you have questions
about whether or not the violation in question
should be reported, however, a three way meeting
will be set up. If it involves an academic
violation, a meeting will be set up for you with
Dr. Verrier and Dean Bill Conley. If it involves
a behavioral violation, a meeting will be set up
between Dr. Verrier and Dean Susan Boswell. Dr.
Verrier and one of the Deans will consider your
specific situation and advise you how to proceed.
If you are advised by Dr. Verrier and Dean
Boswell or Conley to answer Yes to the
Institutional Action question, it is ultimately
your decision as to how you will report your
violation. Unless you are told otherwise,
your violation will not be reported in the
Committee letter accompanying your letters of
recommendation from the University. Following
this meeting you will receive a letter
summarizing the outcome and advice.
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• Medical schools require you to answer this
  question accurately and provide all relevant
  information.  Medical schools understand that
  many individuals learn from the past and emerge
  stronger as a result.  Full disclosure will
  enable the Medical schools to more effectively
  evaluate this information within the context of
  your credentials.
• You must answer Yes to this question if you were
  ever the recipient of any institutional action
  resulting from unacceptable academic performance
  or a conduct violation, even if such action did
  not interrupt your enrollment or require you to
  withdraw.  You must answer Yes even if the action
  does not appear on or has been deleted from your
  official transcripts due to institutional policy
  or personal petition. 

• If you are not certain whether or not you have
  been the subject of an institutional action,
  contact the registrar, student affairs officer,
  or other appropriate party at the institution for
  confirmation of your record.
• Applicants who become the subject of an
  institutional action after certifying and
  submitting the AMCAS application must inform
  their designated medical schools that an action
  has occurred.
• If you answer Yes, you may use the provided
  space beneath the question to explain this space
  is 1325 characters or approximately one-quarter
  of a page in length.  You will receive an error
  message if you exceed the allotted space.
• Failure to provide accurate information in
  answering this question or, if applicable, in
  completing the form provided by the school, will
  result in an investigation.

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• SUBSECTION 3 BIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION
• Be sure that you keep your preferred address
  current, as all correspondence will be sent
  there.
• You can only choose one state of legal
  residence. If youre deciding between two, it
  may help to investigate the residency
  requirements of both states to ensure that you
  would indeed qualify for residency. On
  secondaries, you can note any significant ties to
  states that you cant list as resident states
  on AMCAS.
• If you think Disadvantaged status may pertain
  to you, click yes and then read the prompts
  that appear. Medical schools take this status
  seriously if you have questions, contact Dr.
  Verrier or Ms. Kirby for more clarification/discus
  sion.

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• SUBSECTION 4 COURSEWORK
• This section takes a long time. Try to do it
  from a computer with a reasonably fast internet
  connection.

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SUBSECTION 4 COURSEWORK

• Keep the Course Classifications help screen open
  in a window, to help you decide what courses fall
  within what classifications.
• For AMCAS, a school year runs from Summer
  through Spring, so if you took courses in Summer
  2006, for example, they would be part of the
  06-07 academic year.
• AP Courses may be included if they were listed
  on your JHU transcript. List the exact titles on
  your transcript as their titles. Include them
  within the semester for which theyre listed on
  your transcript. Check the Advanced Placement
  box on the Course page.
• Enter coursework in the exact order that appears
  on your Hopkins transcript. Use your discretion
  for the titles put yourself in the shoes of an
  outside evaluator, and make sure that they can
  connect the names of classes on the transcript
  with the names you enter keeping the
  abbreviations is okay, unless you think something
  really should be expanded.
• You will utilize your own discretion when
  designating course classifications. Dont call
  Organic Chemistry an English class, but if you
  took a Neuroscience course, for example, that you
  think was very Biology-based, you can classify it
  as Biology. AMCAS processing may or may not
  change your course classifications based on their
  judgment of the courses. As a general rule, a
  course must have over 60 of the course material
  in the area of designation.
• See Study Abroad Specifics on the prior slide
  if needed.
• Make your best guess at what courses youll take
  next year. This is particularly critical if you
  have not yet completed some of the premedical
  requirements.
• Grades received after you submit your AMCAS will
  need to be sent to schools directly (as a rule of
  thumb, sending a quick update is fine well get
  into more details of post-secondary application
  communication with med schools when the time
  comes focus on this step for now).

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• SUBSECTION 4 COURSEWORK
• AMCAS says When entering course work, you must
  include information and corresponding grades for
  every course you have ever enrolled in at any
  U.S., U.S. Territorial or Canadian post-secondary
  institution, regardless of whether credit was
  earned, and including any courses removed from
  your transcripts or GPA as a result of academic
  bankruptcy, forgiveness, or similar institutional
  policies. This includes, but is not limited to
• Courses from which you withdrew.
• Courses for which you received a grade of
  "Incomplete" and for which no final grade has
  been assigned.
• Courses that have been repeated.
• Courses that you failed, regardless of whether
  they have been repeated.
• Courses in which you are currently enrolled or
  expect to enroll in prior to entering medical
  school.
• Remedial/developmental courses.
• College-level courses you took while in high
  school even if they were not counted toward a
  degree by any college.
• Courses taken at an American college overseas.
• Courses removed from your transcripts or GPA as
  a result of academic bankruptcy, forgiveness, or
  similar institutional policies.
• This means you have an ethical obligation to
  enter the original grade for all repeated
  courses. The original grade and retake grades for
  repeated courses will be averaged together.

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• SUBSECTION 5 WORK/ACTIVITIES
• Enter as many as apply to you (up to 15) do not
  stretch info. to try to reach 15 entries)

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• SUBSECTION 5 WORK/ACTIVITIES
• High school activities should only be included
  if they were very important/significant and show
  continuity into college activities.
• Do not cut and paste pieces of your personal
  statement into your activities list. Each entry
  should be unique, and say something new about
  you.
• Use up to 1,325 characters to describe what you
  did in the activity, but dont repeat the
  information youve already included (e.g., name
  of PI, name of organization), and dont be overly
  flowery or melodramatic. State the organization,
  the nature of your association, what you did, and
  for the most meaningful activities, you might
  expand on what you gained from the experience,
  why it was so meaningful, etc.
• Brevity and conciseness are preferred.
  Basically, remember that youre balancing the
  amount you want someone to know about you, and
  the chance that theyll lose interest if they
  read a lot of overly long entries.
• If you list a publication, make sure it's been
  accepted for publication and cite it properly. If
  the paper is just being "prepared for submission"
  or "submitted," include this fact as part of the
  research description in the part where you listed
  the research activity.
• If listing a research experience that extends
  through the academic year as well as summer, use
  the description area to indicate the amount of
  time spent in each time period.
• If you participated in a student group and then
  moved into a leadership position, note that in
  the description and label it as Leadership.
• The majority of honors can be listed under one
  experience description. If you made Dean's list
  (or any type of honor like that) for more than
  one semester, use the description area to list
  the other semesters.
• If you received any scholarship, fellowship or
  other honor that is not nationally recognizable,
  describe it briefly.
• Quality is more important than quantity.
• You can creatively combine activities if you
  want to include more and are running out of space
  work with your advisor to brainstorm good
  activities to combine.
• Remember that each experience you list is "up
  for grabs" if you are invited to interview -- you
  might be asked anything about it, and places
  where you may have embellished beyond your actual
  participation will become painfully obvious.
• This is the first text-heavy section. Be sure
  that youre proof-reading, and having someone
  else double-proof, all of your text. Print out
  the section when its complete and go over it
  carefully!

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(No Transcript)
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On this screen, click Committee letter
Click on this option
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In the Drop Down menu, select Johns Hopkins
University.
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Complete the screen as shown below using Dr.
David Verrier as the Contact person. DO NOT PUT
YOUR COMMITTEE MEMBERS NAME UNLESS DR. VERRIER
IS YOUR COMMITTEE MEMBER.
JHU Committee Letter
Johns Hopkins University
Director, Pre-Professional Programs Advising
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When the following screen appears, click Yes.
Click YES
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Once your Letter Request Form is generated,
please print it out and either drop it off, fax,
or mail it to the Office of Pre-Professional
Programs and Advising.
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• SUBSECTION 7 MEDICAL SCHOOLS
• When deciding where to apply, make sure to
  review the MSAR. You can also review the
  Pre-Prof. web page on choosing schools at
  http//web.jhu.edu/prepro/health/Applicants/choosi
  ng_schools.html
• More than 100 medical schools are participating
  in the AMCAS Letters of Evaluation program. These
  schools are indicated with a small LOE icon.
• Many medical schools perform a criminal
  background check on applicants. These schools
  are indicated with a small CBC icon.
• You can only apply to one type of program at
  each institution (e.g., MD, MD/PhD). If you
  decide to change the type after submitting your
  application, notify the school directly.
• You can add schools after youve submitted your
  AMCAS, but you cannot delete schools.

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After completing the letters of evaluation
section, proceed to the Medical Schools
section. You will be able to select the medical
schools you want to apply to. Below is a sample
list showing different elements you will see when
you begin entering schools. To add a school,
click Add Another Medical School.
Criminal Background Check
Letter of Evaluation
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When you select a school, you may see the LOE
(Letter of Evaluation) icon underneath it.
Finish completing the page by indicating what
type of program you are applying to and then
click Continue.
Indicate Program Type by Clicking Here
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If the school you are adding is participating in
the AMCAS letter program, you will see the
following screen. This is when you assign a
letter of evaluation to the school. Dr. David
Verrier should be the only name listed. Check
the box next to his name and then click
Continue. You will then be returned to the
main school list screen and you should then see
his name listed underneath the school.
Dr. David Verrier
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• SUBSECTION 8 ESSAYS
• Most applicants will only have to complete the
  1 essay (why do you want to go to medical
  school)
• MD/PhD applicants have to complete 2 additional
  essays (why MD/PhD, significant research
  experience)
• To cut paste from a Word document, first cut
  paste into a plain text program like Notepad
  and then cut paste into the AMCAS text box
• Please double-check/proofread your work!

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• SUBSECTION 9 STANDARDIZED TESTS
• For most of you, your MCAT scores will already
  be loaded
• If you plan to take or re-take the MCAT in the
  future, indicate that in the Next MCAT section
• You can list other test scores (GREs, etc.) in
  the Other Tests section

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Common AMCAS Pitfalls

• Missed application deadlines
• Delayed processing/missed transcript deadlines
• - Late shipping
• - Incomplete or inaccurate
• - Missing
• - Unofficial
• Typos and other errors in essay, experiences,
  etc.
• Failure to receive and respond to AMCAS
  notifications
• Course work errors
• - Missing course work
• - Missing grades / credits
• - Incorrect academic status

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How to Complete the AMCAS Successfully

• Be certain to download and read the AMCAS 2010
  instruction manual in its entirety! This manual
  will address many of the questions that will
  arise as you fill out your AMCAS application.
  Additionally, when you submit your AMCAS
  application, you certify that you have read this
  document!
• The FAQ section on the AMCAS website is also a
  source of helpful information http//www.aamc.org
  /students/amcas/faq/start.htm
• The Pre-Prof. office has developed AMCAS FAQ
  forums http//z10.invisionfree.com/Interview_Feed
  back/index.php?
• Dont rush through the applicationmake sure to
  complete all sections thoroughly!
• Aim to submit the AMCAS in June or July