2012 AMCAS Changes

By Jessica Freedman, MD
President of MedEdits

Many premedical students, most of whom are “planners,” complete their medical school personal statement and application entries well in advance. This year, however, such advance preparation will require these people, who worked hard to get ahead of the crowd, will have to do some extra work. The American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS®) recently instituted application changes that are taking some applicants by surprise. In an effort to communicate these changes to as many applicants as possible, I thought it would be wise to write an article summarizing them.

Here are the changes:

1)  Childhood information

In previous years, only students who designated themselves as “disadvantaged” were required to complete information about parents’ salary, the type of area in which they grew up, and other childhood information. Because disadvantaged status is self-determined, many applicants who grew up with extremely modest means yet did not consider themselves disadvantaged were “missed.” In fact, some students with whom I work might be considered disadvantaged by certain standards but feel grateful for their opportunities and family support and make a conscious decision not to check off the “disadvantaged” box, despite ample justification. By requiring all applicants to provide childhood information, AMCAS® can now identify such students. Applicants who do designate themselves as disadvantaged will still be allowed 1325 characters (with spaces) to explain why.

2)  Experience Descriptions

In the past, applicants had up to 15 opportunities to write about their experiences. Each of these descriptions could be up to 1325 characters (with spaces). This year, applicants still have up to 15 opportunities to write about their experiences but are allowed only 700 characters per description (with spaces, hard returns count as two spaces). Of these 15 experiences, applicants may choose up to three experiences that they consider “most meaningful.” When applicants click the, “This is one of my most meaningful experiences” box, they will then be given an additional 1325 characters (with spaces, hard returns count as two spaces) to explain why the experience was significant to them. In this space, applicants should demonstrate insight and must reflect on why the experience was valuable. As stated in the AMCAS® instructions, applicants should write about the “transformative” nature of the experience. I suggest that applicants select activities that are truly significant to them rather than select those experiences that they think admissions committees would want them to select. Authenticity in the medical school admissions process is key and, typically when I speak with applicants, they can say with confidence which experiences are the most valuable to them.

Applicants are also required to include a contact name, phone number and/or email address for each entry.

3)  Certification

Finally, applicants are now required to check a box in the final certification statement that reads as follows: “I certify that all written passages, such as the personal statement,  essays required for MD/PhD applicants and descriptions of work/activities are my own and have not been written, in part or in whole, by a third party.” This means that you can’t have your university writing center, your parent, your professor, your friend, or a professional editing service compose your documents. The difference between “editing” and “ghost writing” is obviously a grey area, and applicants must be careful when seeking out help on their documents.

So, be alert, and don’t complete your application based on last year’s instructions.  For additional information, please see the following YouTube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzrtG4rReNU.

Dr. Jessica Freedman, a former emergency medicine associate residency director and medical school admissions member at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, is president of MedEdits Medical Admissions. MedEdits offers advising and professional editing for applicants to medical school, residency, fellowship, and post baccalaureate and special master’s programs. Like MedEdits on Facebook.