The makers of the CASPer, Altus Assessments, have decided to create their own version of the AAMC Video Interview Tool for Admissions (VITA), so that they can cash in on this new market (even though they’re a bit late to the party). Now Altus will have two CASPer tests that it can charge applicants for. Maybe they should spell it CA$$$Per…

You might be wondering if there are any strategies that can give you an edge and help you crush the VITA. It’s smart to review the AAMC’s VITA guide, but we want to offer you some additional strategies that you might not be able to find elsewhere.

Even if you practice for the VITA until you’re blue in the face, it might feel like you’re alone in an echo chamber, with no objective way to gauge the quality of your responses. That’s why we wanted to place you in the position of the evaluator by showing you a sample VITA response and inviting you to participate in our critique. By seeing the negatives and positives of someone else’s sample, you can hopefully improve the quality of your own answers.

In the AAMC VITA, you will be presented with complex questions aiming to gauge your ability to address the AAMC pre-med competencies. Don’t panic quite yet! We’re here to cover some tips for how to ace your responses.

In last week’s post, we covered how to look your best on screen during virtual interviews, including wardrobe, lighting, and backdrop. Now we’re back with more tips to ensure that your virtual interview isn’t jeopardized by faulty technology.

The AAMC House of Horrors has instituted a definitely not new and probably not improved virtual interview tool (VITA), to be used as yet another way for medical schools to evaluate you. We’re here to answer all the questions about aesthetics and appearance that you’re dying to ask.

Imagine having to record an 18-minute speech about your qualifications for becoming a physician. Now imagine that speech being sent to all the medical schools you’re applying to, without being able to make any edits or start over. Sounds pretty terrifying, right? Well, that’s essentially how the new AAMC Video Interview Tool for Admissions (VITA) is going to work… more or less.

It was recently announced that two medical schools - University of California Davis School of Medicine and University of Minnesota Medical School Twin Cities - will be participating in the AAMC’s pilot Situational Judgment Test (SJT). If you’re applying to either or both of these schools, you probably have a lot of questions: Is the pilot test mandatory? Will the test affect my admissions chances? What kinds of questions will be asked? We’re here to help get those questions answered!

When we Googled “how to talk to parents,” the results were all over the map. Some were quite serious: depression, dating, moving out, etc. What we didn’t find was how to talk to your parents about applying to medical school. In our experience, this task can range from laidback to very stressful, depending on the pre-med, family, and numerous factors like income or culture. Regardless of where you fall on that spectrum, we have some helpful tips to prepare you for this pivotal conversation in your pre-med journey.

With recent changes to the MCAT start times to 6:30am, 12:15pm, and 6:00pm each day, some people may find that adjusting their biological clock has been added to the test-day preparation list. Good news - we have some tricks that will make adjusting your sleep much easier.

We’re facing a shortage of doctors in the United States, anywhere between 40 and 100,000 by the year 2030. And yet, getting into medical school is harder than ever. What gives?

The AMCAS opens for submissions in two days on May 28. Are you ready?