<p>Does anyone know the difference? Also a lot of people say EDP is bad because it puts you behind in applying for other medical schools but AMCAS says it shouldn’t out you behind at all. From what I understand from AMCAS is that you apply Early Decision before you apply normally and if you don’t get in you apply normally that following spring.</p>
<p>Early assurance programs offer you guaranteed admission to medical school usually at the end of your sophomore year. You will have to continue to meet all the program’s minimum GPA and other requirements and most require you to earn a minimum MCAT score for your admission to be finalized. (Exact GPA and MCAT will vary by program.) </p>
<p>The downside-- early assurance programs will not allow you to apply to other schools. (Applying elsewhere negates your contract with the school. You lose your admission place and your deposit.)</p>
<p>Early decision is a single binding application made to one medical school during the regular admission cycle. In return for applying early and guaranteeing you will attend if accepted, you will received a decision early-- usually around Sept 1. But you may not apply elsewhere until you’ve recieved a rejection from your ED med school.</p>
<p>ED applications have an earlier application deadline than regular decisions: August 1. ED allows to apply to only one school and you cannot apply elsewhere until you have recieved a [negative] decision for that school.</p>
<p>The downside: If rejected ED, you are now very, very late into the application cycle and have damaged your chances for getting accepted to any other school during that cycle. (Most med schools work on a kind of rolling admissions systems. Deadlines may say Oct 15, but in reality many of the interview slots have already been filled before the application deadline.)</p>
<p>Both early assurance and early decision are binding programs. Early assurance tends to be with the medical school associated with one’s own university (or an affiliated medical school in the area). You apply during your sophomore or junior year, and it does not put you behind if you get denied. </p>
<p>With early decision, you can apply to the medical school of your dreams. The application cycle is held concurrently with those applying regularly, though it is shortened. There is a requirement that the medical school releases its decision by October 1st. However, if you are rejected this late in the game, you will be very behind in getting other applications together. To avoid this, some schools (like Jefferson) offer EDP advising, where you can schedule an appointment with the Dean or Director of Admissions prior to applying and they will give you insight as to whether or not you would be competitive. Only apply ED if you are ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that this is where you want to go for medical school, or if you have an extenuating circumstance like a sick family member or young children nearby.</p>
<p>^^ Early Assurance programs aren’t necessarily binding</p>
<p>Sorry, I went with the majority of cases. If the OP is lucky enough to find one that’s NOT binding, take it and run!</p>