4. The CASPer Test
The Computer-based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics (CASPer) is a situational judgment test that rates your professionalism, ethics, and people skills in comparison to other applicants. The two-hour CASPer test involves written responses and recorded video responses to situational prompts and open-ended questions.
Like the MCAT, the CASPer exam is a computer-based assessment that is scored according to a percentile scale. Each of your CASPer responses receives a score, and these are used to calculate your overall percentile ranking as compared to other test-takers.
However, unlike the MCAT, you won’t ever get to see your CASPer percentile rank. You will only receive a quartile rank that indicates roughly how well you compare to other test-takers. A good CASPer score is a fourth-quartile score because it means you responded better than 75-100% of your peers.Â
Not every school requires you to take the CASPer, but more schools are using this assessment every year. You’ll need to have your score distributed to prospective institutions before submitting your application. Prepare for the CASPer test by taking practice tests, learning about the exam format, and talking to advisors.
5. Choosing Where to Apply
You can and should apply to more than one MD program when you apply to medical school. The AMCAS is designed to distribute your application to multiple schools of medicine, so have a list of institutions you prefer.Â
Applying to more schools will increase your chance of getting into an MD program. Because most MD programs extend offers to potential students on a rolling basis, have multiple backup institutions in mind in case your top preferences fall through. Most pre-med students apply to 15-20 med schools.
There are over 170 medical schools in the U.S. and Canada. You can find a list of current American med programs; or read the MedSchoolCoach list of the best med schools in the U.S. It’s worth doing some research here to figure out what programs will be a good fit for you
.As you research potential programs, be sure to check out their medical school admission requirements. The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) created this guide to outline major requirements like prerequisite coursework, GPA scores, and clinical experience.Â
The easiest medical school to get into are the ones that have the lowest GPA and MCAT score requirements, low tuition costs, good financial aid options, flexible acceptance stipulations, and high acceptance rates.