Section 8 of the AMCAS® Application: Essays

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Here you will upload your Personal Comments essay.

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Every applicant is required to submit a Personal Comments essay. The available space for this essay is 5,300 characters (spaces are counted as characters), or approximately one page. You will receive an error message if you exceed the available space. Click the "What information should I consider including in my personal comments?" link in the application or see Section 8 of the AMCAS Applicant Guide for suggestions of things to think about when writing this essay.

  • If you're applying to an MD-PhD program, you must complete two additional essays: the MD-PhD Essay and the Significant Research Experience Essay.
  • To avoid formatting issues, we recommend that you type your essay directly into the AMCAS® application rather than copying and pasting your essay from other software.
  • Alternately, you can draft your essay(s) in text-only word processing software, such as Microsoft Notepad or Mac TextEdit, then copy and paste your essay(s) into the application. Copying formatted text into the application may result in formatting issues that you will not be able to edit after your application is submitted.
  • Proofread carefully! There is no “spellchecker” in the AMCAS application, and no changes will be permitted to this section after you have submitted your application.

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2024 AMCAS® Application

The 2024 AMCAS application is now open. If you wish to start medical school in Fall 2024, please complete and submit the 2024 AMCAS application. 

As of March 28 AMCAS is:

Marking transcripts as "Received" that were delivered on or before:

Paper (mailed) – March 28

Parchment – March 27

National Student Clearinghouse – March 28

Processing applications that reached "Ready for Review" on March 27.

Processing Academic Change Requests submitted on March 28.

2024 AMCAS® Applicant Guide

Outline of the current AMCAS application process, policies, and procedures.

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2024 AMCAS® Application Workbook

This resource is designed to help you prepare your materials for the 2024 AMCAS® application but does not replace the online application.

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Fee Assistance Program

If approved for the Fee Assistance Program, you will receive a waiver for all AMCAS fees for one (1) application submission with up to 20 medical school designations ($1,030 value). Benefits are not retroactive.

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