med school personal statement reuse

Medical School Reapplicant FAQs—13 Questions Answered

• By Med School Insiders
• February 13, 2023
• Reapplicant

Not being accepted to medical school the first time obviously isn’t what you were hoping for, but you’re far from alone. Of the upwards of 50,000 applicants who apply every year, about two thirds are rejected. When this happens, you have two choices. Do you give up, or do you reapply?

If you still want to pursue your dream of becoming a doctor, read our 13 reapplicant frequently asked questions to help you navigate the reapplication process.

Below we’ll answer the following questions:

• Are Reapplicants at a Disadvantage?
• When Do I Start the Reapplication Process?
• Should I Wait a Year Before Reapplying?
• Can I Reapply to Schools That Rejected Me?
• Should I Apply to Different Schools When Reapplying?
• What Can I Do to Improve My Application?
• Can I Use the Same Personal Statement When Reapplying?
• Do I Need New Letters of Recommendation When Reapplying?
• Do I Need to Update the Work and Activities Section?
• Is It Worth Retaking the MCAT?
• Can You Turn Down An Acceptance to Reapply to Preferred Schools?
• If You Didn’t Submit Secondaries, Are You a Reapplicant?
• Is There a Limit to the Number of Times You Can Apply?

1. Are Reapplicants at a Disadvantage?

Unfortunately, yes—reapplicants are at a disadvantage. This is because reapplicants need to demonstrate how they’re a stronger applicant this year than they were the previous year. The medical schools you’ve already applied to will expect to see growth and notable changes in your application. After all, there’s a reason they didn’t accept you the first time around. Have you made those necessary improvements?

Another disadvantage is burnout. Applicants often make the mistake of thinking they can simply reapply the next year if they don’t get in. They think it will be easier because they’ve already gone through the motions of applying once. However, let’s dispel that idea right now: Reapplying does not get easier.

By the point you need to consider reapplying, you’ve already invested over a year into the medical school application process. You will no doubt feel burnt out. Applying to medical school is an incredibly time-consuming and strenuous process. Starting it all over again after over a year of hard work puts you at a disadvantage compared to those going in fresh.

2. When Do I Start the Reapplication Process?

There are two options for reapplying to medical school. You can reapply right away a few months later, which, depending on what areas of your application you need to improve, is risky but possible. This means applying in June of the same year you received rejections from the schools you wanted to attend.

The other option is to wait a little over a year to apply again the following June. This will give you about 14 months to improve your application.

In either case, submitting your primary application in June when applications open is critical.

Applications work on a rolling basis , and since you’ve already been rejected once, you need to utilize every advantage you can. You lower your chances of acceptance the later you submit your application because you’ll continue to fall behind in each step. You’ll receive secondaries later than other applicants, which means you’ll also receive interview invites later than other applicants. After interviews begin, schools start sending out acceptances, and there are only so many acceptances they’ll send out.

Carefully assess the strengths and weaknesses of your application when making the decision of what year to reapply, and seek feedback from trusted mentors and people intimately familiar with the application process.

3. Should I Wait a Year Before Reapplying?

Whether or not you wait a year is a personal choice. Take time to assess your application and ask trusted mentors or one-on-one advisors to help you determine your weak areas. You need to determine if you can make the necessary changes in the limited time you have between when you find out you weren’t accepted and when new applications are due a couple of months later.

What you absolutely don’t want to do is to rush through the application without taking the time to improve it, which will ultimately result in another set of rejections.

That said, if you do take a year off, what will you do with that year? Ensure you are making the most of it and choosing activities that will augment your application.

For example, if you already have 800 hours as a medical scribe , gaining another couple hundred hours isn’t going to make that much of a difference on your application. How can you make a meaningful difference to the strength of your application? Were you missing a research component in your activities section? Were you missing clinical experience? Did you not cultivate enough meaningful relationships to provide you with strong letters of recommendation?

Think long and hard about how your application needs to improve—and the time you have to make those improvements—when deciding whether or not to take another year.

4. Can I Reapply to Schools That Rejected Me?

Yes. You can reapply to schools that rejected you, but they will know they rejected you. You’ll need to prove to the schools why you are a more qualified applicant now.

What steps have you taken to improve your application? What experience have you gained since applying the first time? It is imperative that you demonstrate adequate growth and maturity to any program that has already determined you don’t meet their qualifications. This may be a good reason to take a full year to reapply as opposed to only a few months.

5. Should I Apply to Different Schools When Reapplying?

Whether or not you apply to different schools or the same schools is a personal choice that also depends on the strength of your application.

It is perfectly okay to reapply to the same schools but only do so if you have made notable improvements to your application. Making the necessary changes may mean taking a full year to improve your application.

If you are not willing to wait another year before reapplying, you may want to consider applying to less competitive schools the second time around since you don’t have much time to make meaningful improvements to your application. You might also choose to include more safety schools than you did the first time you applied so that you have more backup options.

6. What Can I Do to Improve My Application?

Here’s the big question—how do you improve the second time around?

How to best improve your application is different for everyone. You only have so much time to make improvements, whether that’s a couple of months or a full year. The key is to critically assess your application to determine what changes will make the biggest difference.

What areas of your application were weak? What can you do in the limited amount of time you have to make the most impact on your application?

Carefully assess your own application as well as matriculant data for the schools you previously applied to. If you had an above average MCAT score and GPA for those schools, it means that other aspects of your application weren’t strong enough to merit an acceptance.

Do you know you had strong letters of evaluation from all of your letter writers? Did you take time to gather feedback on your personal statement from people with adcom experience?

If you didn’t receive any interviews, it indicates that an aspect of your application was not strong enough to move you forward in the application process. If you received a few interviews with schools but didn’t make it past the interview stage, it’s likely that your interview skills weren’t strong enough.

Do not leave your second application up to chance. If you don’t have someone with admissions committee experience in your network who can objectively help you assess your application, it may be time to seek out professional one-on-one advice .

7. Can I Use the Same Personal Statement When Reapplying?

How much of your personal statement you choose to reuse depends on the strength of the original essay. Did you take time and care in the editing process, and did you receive feedback from people with admissions committee experience?

The schools that rejected you want to see growth and maturity. They want to hear you understand why you were not accepted the first time and that you’ve made the necessary changes. Be sure to update the language in your application while not being self-deprecating or speaking about the rejection as a direct “failure.” Your previous rejection is now a part of your medical school journey, and what has that experience taught you?

While making improvements to your essay, be sure to stick to the same general themes. Why you want to become a doctor shouldn’t change from one personal statement to the next. Completely changing your story about the reasons why you want to study medicine and become a physician will come across as disingenuous—raising red flags.

Learn more from our Medical School Reapplicant Personal Statement Guide .

8. Do I Need New Letters of Recommendation When Reapplying?

Again, whether or not you need new letters depends on the strength of this area of your application. Do you know for certain that you received strong letters for your first application?

Remember, it’s not enough to simply secure four or five letters of recommendation if one or two of those letters are lukewarm at best. Just a single generic letter brings down this entire piece of your application, as well as your application in general.

If you did not have a meaningful relationship with your letter writers or if they expressed hesitation before writing your letters, you may want to obtain stronger recommendations. That said, if you choose to reapply only a few months after finding out you weren’t accepted, you won’t have much time to build stronger relationships.

Do not swap out your letters if you aren’t sure the new letters will improve your application. If you believe this is a weak area of your application, taking an extra year can help you build stronger relationships for letters.

Keep in mind that AMCAS requires you to resubmit any letters you choose to reuse when you reapply.

9. Do I Need to Update the Work and Activities Section?

You only need to update the Work and Activities section if you have new information to add. For the most part, this section of your application should stay the same, but be sure to add any notable new experiences that are relevant to your application.

If you think this was a weak area of your application, you might choose to rewrite some of your descriptions to add more depth and meaning to them. Did you adequately explain your role in each activity, what it meant to you, and what you learned over the course of the experience?

When considering your list of activities, are you showing length of commitment to your extracurriculars while including a variety of different types of experiences, including research, clinical experience, and volunteering/community involvement?

Did you include any hobbies? While you might think that medical schools don’t care about what you do with your spare time, including 1-2 hobbies in your list of activities can help them get to know who you are and what specifically you can add to the student body. Plus, it shows you know how to balance your studies with personal wellness—admissions committees are not interested in accepting applicants they think could burn out .

Learn more: AMCAS Hobbies—What Schools Look For and How to Stand Out .

10. Is It Worth Retaking the MCAT?

Retaking the MCAT is a stressful and time-consuming process, so the decision should not be made lightly. It is generally not worth your time and effort to retake the MCAT if you only aim to improve your score by a couple of points. In that case, you are better off putting notable effort into improving another area of your application since it takes so long to prepare for the MCAT. You also risk receiving an even lower score the second time around, and medical schools see each of your MCAT attempts .

If, however, you have a strong application with a poor MCAT score, it may mean it was your MCAT score that was holding you back from receiving an acceptance. Research matriculant data from the schools you applied to see how you compare. Do you need an improved MCAT score in order to be a competitive applicant?

Do you have the time and energy to commit to retaking the MCAT? It takes months to adequately prepare for the MCAT, even if you are retaking it. Another way to combat a low MCAT score is to apply to less competitive schools when reapplying. Look for schools that have a lower average MCAT score for matriculants.

Read our guide to learn more: Should I Retake the MCAT? 3 Critical Factors to Consider .

11. Can You Turn Down An Acceptance to Reapply to Preferred Schools?

Turning down an acceptance to reapply to different, preferred schools in another application cycle is possible but not advisable.

Schools will know that you received an acceptance and rejected it, and as we’ve already covered, reapplying is a stressful and time-consuming process with no guarantees. Medical school is extremely competitive, so there is the chance you could reapply only to receive no acceptances the next time.

If you receive an acceptance, you should take it once you get that far into the process. If the school really isn’t the right fit, you can work on trying to transfer to another program after you gain more experience.

This brings us to another important point: Only apply to schools that you would be willing to accept an offer to. As you make your school list, ensure you have a variety of target, reach, and safety schools. Your safety schools may not be your first option, but they should still be schools you would be willing to attend if you do not receive an acceptance anywhere else.

Learn How to Decide Which Medical Schools to Apply to (12 Important Factors) .

Not gaining an acceptance at your top choice schools is a tough reality check, but it’s not the end of the world. There are many, many strong medical programs across the country, and you may find you’re actually a better fit at a school you didn’t consider before. And again, there’s always an option to try to transfer after you’re in medical school.

12. If You Didn’t Submit Secondaries, Are You a Reapplicant?

You become an applicant once you hit submit on your primary application. If you choose to stop the process after that, you will still be considered a reapplicant since the schools you applied to will have seen your initial application.

This is why it is so important to submit your primary application as soon as applications open and to plan ahead for your secondaries. Preparing in advance will help you submit your secondaries within 1-2 weeks of receiving them.

Learn more: Medical School Secondary Application Guide .

13. Is There a Limit to the Number of Times You Can Apply?

Whether or not there is a limit to the number of times you can apply depends on the medical school. Some medical schools do have limits on the number of times you can apply. For example, you may only be able to apply twice.

Other schools do not have limits on application attempts, but most applicants only reapply once (two attempts total). A third application attempt with no acceptance should be a clear sign that you will not be accepted into medical school.

If you have reached this point, take time to assess your other options. You may be able to gain an acceptance at a DO school if you are interested in osteopathy , though DO schools are still quite competitive.

You might consider a Caribbean medical school, though there are both pros and cons to this path. Learn more: Caribbean Medical School Pros & Cons .

You also have options to pursue a medical career in another field, such as becoming a nurse, a paramedic, or an EMT.

Reapplicant Resources

If you are reapplying to medical school, check out our Reapplicant Guide , which includes 6 steps to reapplying, as well as our 9 Reapplicant Mistakes You Can’t Afford to Make .

Don’t leave your second application up to chance. Med School Insiders has a team of one-on-one advisors who can help you assess your unsuccessful application, choose what to focus on, make decisions about when to apply, and, ultimately, gain the acceptance you always wanted.

Med School Insiders

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Learn what admissions committees are looking for from reapplicant letters of recommendation, including strategies for second-time success.

2024 Reapplicant Guide — 6 Steps to Reapplying to Medical School

Rejection from medical school doesn’t have to be the end of the road. When reapplying to medical school, here’s how to improve your application for acceptance.

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Reapplying to Medical School

Ohio State offers advice for those reapplying to medical school. Learn more about your portfolio and reusing your personal statement.

Finding out that your medical school application was rejected can be discouraging. Before you reapply, ask yourself some tough questions: When you imagine yourself in that white coat, what aspect of being a physician leaves you feeling good inside? Is it the fulfillment of a deep desire to help others by curing, treating and preventing illness? Is it the high esteem in which doctors are held, or imagining how proud your family will be?

Although your time in medical school and residency training can be exhilarating and life-affirming, it can also be exhausting. You’re making a commitment to years of sacrifice and service — so be sure your motivation will sustain you on this journey.

If you’re confident that you want to be a doctor, then hold your head high and reapply. Know that you aren’t alone: Many current physicians were once in your place before experiencing the joy of ultimately gaining acceptance to medical school.  Every year, Ohio State accepts about 200 future doctors into medical school and, because there are far more applicants than there are seats in a class, some of these students will inevitably be repeat applicants.

As you reapply, here are some tips for success based on the experiences of repeat applicants.

Reapplying to medical school

Ask the question: Where did I go wrong in my medical school application?

Now’s not the time to be shy. It’s your responsibility to find out why you were rejected. Consider reaching out to your premedical advisor to discuss your possible shortcomings:

• Did you apply late in the cycle? 
• Did you present an application that was light on community service or research? 
• Are your GPA and MCAT scores competitive? 
• Did your essay make it clear that you’re passionate about becoming a physician?
• Did you convey to the admissions committee that you are well-rounded?
• Did your communication style fail to impress the interview committee?

Consider contacting the schools that rejected you, and ask for their advice on ways to strengthen your application. Draft a plan with their input, and then — and this is important to avoid insulting the school that took time to counsel you —  follow that plan .

An example: A rejected applicant met with an adviser to go over his application. It was clear that his undergraduate GPA was the problem. He had excellent experiences, including volunteer, community service, leadership and research. His MCAT score was only slightly lower than the school's average. His interview performance hadn’t been stellar, but it wasn’t bad either, and he would have had a significant chance of being offered an acceptance were it not for his low grades. The admissions committee liked him overall but was concerned that he would not be able to handle the medical school curriculum.

The adviser suggested he enter a one-year master's degree program in biomedical science, retake the MCAT and wait to reapply until he had completed the full year of graduate study. While this route would delay his medical school matriculation by two years, it would also significantly improve his chance of acceptance. Performing well in the courses, with at least a 3.5 GPA, would prove to admissions committees that he had the cognitive ability to master graduate-level biological science work — and studying these graduate science courses would also be excellent preparation for the MCAT.

Seeking advice is the first step, and following it can be the difference between achieving a goal and continuing to daydream about it.

Take time to positively impact your portfolio before you reapply to medical school

Think twice before reapplying immediately. The reason you weren’t offered an acceptance is because medical schools perceived shortcomings in your application. Most shortcomings are remediable and, given proper emphasis, your weaknesses can become strengths.

You want it to be obvious to anyone reading your file that you made a turnaround. To maximize the chances of giving off this perception, you must allow enough time before reapplying. This may prove to be the hardest part of the process, but be patient — if you rush it, you may join the ranks of those who are applying for a third time.

If your plan is to improve your chances by engaging in a meaningful research project, and you obtain a full-time research assistant position the summer after your unsuccessful attempt, wait at least one year before reapplying. One year of full-time, meaningful research is very powerful, and you may have the opportunity to present your research at a meeting — or, more impressively, co-author a scientific publication.

Even if you don’t publish or present at a national meeting, performing research for one solid year will give you plenty to discuss during your interview. If you reapply immediately the next cycle, you’ll still be too new in the research lab to have developed a sound knowledge of what you’re doing.

Another example: Say you were on a medical school waiting list until a week before classes started in August before you were finally rejected. You decide, with the school's input, that a higher MCAT score will make you competitive. Some candidates in this position retake the MCAT the very next time it is offered so they can reapply the very next cycle. But with this rushed approach, it’s unlikely that your MCAT score would improve much. It would be wiser to forget about the next cycle and plan to take the MCAT in January or the next spring after months of preparation, possibly including a formal MCAT prep course or a course or two in advanced biology that will hone your skills at problem-solving and reading comprehension. Then, apply the following summer for an entering class two years after your rejection.  

Another option you can pursue is an  online degree  to supplement your knowledge in area you are interested and passionate in. An online degree can give you the flexibility to earn a degree while participating in other activities such as research or clinical experience to supplement your application. Don’t get discouraged with the additional time it may take to pursue your goals. Everyone has 24 hours in a day — what you do with your time is what is important.

Can you reuse your personal statement for medical school when you reapply?

As a reapplicant, you must change something. You don't want to be a “boomerang applicant” — someone who responds to a rejection by simply sending out the same application the very next cycle. This is disrespectful to the medical school to which you are applying, and gives the impression that you don’t care about the process. It’s also a missed opportunity to show what you’ve learned. Even if you don’t apply to the same medical school, the admissions committee will likely know that you were unsuccessful the last time around.

You have an excellent opportunity here to take the negative and turn it into a positive. Consider these questions in your revised personal statement:

• Since being rejected from medical school, what did you learn about your perceived shortcomings?
• What have you done to improve upon them?
• In the interval between your medical school rejection and your reapplication, what did you learn about yourself?

Maybe you learned that you’re a person of great resilience and persistence — someone who simply won’t give up on their dreams. All of this is great material for your essay. Use it.

Many applicants in this position never mention that they were rejected the first time around. Some mistakenly think medical school reviewers are unaware of this fact, and if you don't mention it, they’ll never know. Most of the time they’ll know. In fact, if you’re reapplying to the same school, they’ll likely review your old application and your new application side by side to see what you’ve improved upon.

So step up to the plate, bare your feelings about being rejected, and paint a picture of how you methodically went about improving your portfolio. The admissions committee likely will be impressed.

Use the interview to show how you have improved as a medical school reapplicant

Should you receive an interview, you can be sure that you’ll be asked about your medical school rejection. If you’ve followed the advice above, this is the time to talk about it.

It’s uplifting to hear a reapplicant describe how they methodically went about preparing to reapply. When you describe how you contacted the schools that rejected your application to find out where you went wrong, you sound mature — someone who’s on a mission and won’t let one bump along the way stop them. Talk about how you drafted a new plan and put it into action.

Show them your persistence, determination and commitment to your goal of becoming a physician.

Helpful Links

• American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS)

For help with any step along the way, contact: Office of Admissions The Ohio State University College of Medicine 614-292-7137 [email protected]