AMCAS changing admission process for 2018-19 cycle

[WayOutWestMom]

Here’s the new AMCAS traffic rules for 2018 (Issued today)–

https://www.aamc.org/admissions/admissionslifecycle/409120/trafficrules.html

The biggest changes are in items # 6, 7 & 9:

The AAMC recommends the following guidelines to ensure that MD and MD-PhD applicants are afforded timely notification of the outcome of their applications and timely access to available first-year positions and that schools and programs are able to reasonably anticipate accepted applicant matriculation in order to avoid unfilled positions in their entering classes. For the purposes of these protocols, matriculation means that a student has begun a pre-matriculation program, attended orientation immediately preceding enrollment, or enrolled in classes at a medical school.

1. After April 30 –

a. Permit all applicants:

1. A minimum of five business days to respond to an acceptance offer. This may be reduced to a minimum of two business days within 30 days of the start of orientation.
2. To submit a statement of intent, a deposit, or both.

b. Recognize and respect the challenges of applicants with multiple acceptance offers, applicants who have not yet received an acceptance offer, and applicants who have not yet been informed about financial aid opportunities at schools to which they have been accepted.

1. In addition to any condition included in a school’s offer letter, **after April 30, each school may exercise its school-specific procedures to confirm an accepted applicant’s intention to matriculate to ensure that it fills each seat in its entering class. If a school is unable to confirm an applicant’s intention to matriculate, the school may choose to rescind the acceptance.**
2. Making an offer of admission to an applicant who has already matriculated at another school could result in the other school having an unfilled slot in its class. **Each school is encouraged to take reasonable measures, including asking applicants under consideration whether they have already matriculated at another medical school, and carefully consider that information when deciding whether to make an offer to an applicant**.

So, it appears LOIs will be binding and the failure to supply one may result in having an admission rescinded. And that a school may require a large post-April 30th deposit may be required by a school as proof of’ intent to enroll’.

Med schools are now allowed to ask waitlisted students what their matriculation status is before they extend an acceptance off the waitlist.

Although the Multiple Acceptance Reports will no longer be automatically sent to all med schools next, it’s still unclear whether med school admission offices will no longer have access to a specific student’s acceptance & matriculation status since that information is permanently linked to the student’s AMCAS ID. Theoretically, adcomms could simply send an inquiry to AMCAS for a status check of a specific AMCAS ID before making any waitlist offers.

An option that you may be seeing in the upcoming cycle–matriculation alternates. These are 1-2 extra (surplus) students who are allowed attend orientation and the first few days of classes in case anyone drops out/withdraws to attend another school. (In case there are no withdrawals, the alternates would be guaranteed a place in next year’s class.)