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Application Process
Health Professions Applicant Handbook
V. Financing the Application Process
The medical school application process is not only
lengthy and complex but also very costly. This is
another reason why you should give serious thought to
your goals and the strength of your candidacy before
embarking on it.
The following figures from 2008 will give you an
indication of how much you will spend on the application
process.
| MCAT $225 |
(this does not include the cost of a
commercial review course which is usually $1900) |
| AMCAS $430 |
(cost for ten schools) |
|
AACOMAS $220 |
(cost for three schools) |
| Secondary Fees $1000 |
(usually between $75-100 per piece) |
|
TOTAL: |
$1875 |
Additional costs will be incurred when you begin
interviewing. An appropriate interview outfit will be
necessary. More importantly there will be considerable
cost in travel - airfare, hotel, etc. If you interview
at 4 schools it is fair to estimate that you could spend
an additional $1000-$1500.
Fee waivers are available, to a very small number of
students, through AMCAS (now combined with MCAT fee
waiver) and AACOMAS and once a student qualifies,
schools will generally waive their secondary fees. Be
sure to read the information about fee waivers on the
MCAT, AMCAS and AACOMAS websites carefully and submit
your request early.
A very important financial step students should take at
this stage of the application process is to have a clean
credit rating. Increasingly medical school financial aid
offices are requiring that students prove
credit-worthiness. Without this you may not be eligible
for loans - the major means of financing your medical
school education. Take care of this important step now
before it can affect your admissions status.
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