Get a leg up on the med school application and apply early
In the medical school application process, I know of only one leg up/give away/freebie.......applying early. Not everyone takes advantage of it so it's a great opportunity to seize.
Applying early means you need to apply by July 4th. This means you will be verified earlier by AMCAS and on your way to filling out secondary applications in July. Hopefully you turn them around in 2 weeks and wait for an interview invitation in August. If all goes well, you may well be scheduled for an interview in September and COULD have an acceptance by mid-October. If the same applicant waits until August or September to apply, they may not realize an interview until well after Christmas. Ouch.
AMCAS publishes the verification timeline of applications and there is a sharp increase in wait time in July and August. (Follow AMCAS twitter account for up to date verification times.) Earlier in the application cycle, you can be verified in less than a week. By the time August rolls around the verification times climb to a 3-4 weeks if all transcripts are in. You MUST be verified before your application is forwarded on to the medical schools....that means no secondaries until you are verified. No secondaries means no interviews.
The goal is to complete all secondary applications by the time school starts.
What you DON'T want to happen is to have secondary applications arrive in late August/early September when you are first starting the fall semester. Juggling multiple secondary applications and the beginning of school is the WORST scenario because something is going to get shortchanged.
So the moral of the story is APPLY EARLY. Take the bonus, free spin, leg up, freebie. Early is still NOW so apply by JULY 4th!
(By the way, as soon as you submit, start your detailed medical school research in preparation for the secondary applications that will flood in once your application is verified.)
Links:
