Back-to-school is a time of excitement and anxiety for both parents and students. How can you make the most of this new academic year? In this article, you will find some tips and tricks to help you get a strong start to the semester and embrace the challenges and opportunities of going back to school.

It’s been a little while since we posted about the Casper Test, and there have been some noteworthy changes for the 2023-2024 medical school application cycle. Through our carefully curated FAQs, this article will get you up-to-date on the format, participating schools, test dates, etc for this situational judgment test.

On Game of Thrones, “Winter is coming” is a catchphrase used to warn characters of impending doom. But in the case of medical school admissions, “Summer is coming” would be far more apt. Summer means you'll be getting secondaries soon, and you better not underestimate them!

We analyzed the secondary essays for all US allopathic medical schools and US osteopathic medical schools to see which common essays you can expect to receive this coming 2023-2024 application cycle. Check out our advice for each of these secondary "greatest hits" so that you can streamline your writing and be optimally prepared!

Should you answer the optional or additional information secondaries? If you ask certain advisors, they will tell you not to write anything unless you need to explain some red flag in your application. I would say that I partially agree with this take, but I also don't think it's that simple, so I came up with an "Order of Operations" to help pre-meds decide whether it was worth answering these troubling secondary prompts.

“Voila! Magnifique! It’s perfect - my masterpiece, my opus - it’s finally complete!” I’ve never once heard these words come out of a pre-med’s mouth. Since the personal statement is challenging and the stakes are high, pre-meds usually struggle to know when their essays are finished.

The dreaded “diversity question.”Each year, as students fill out their secondary applications, they’re bombarded with essay prompts about their “diverse qualities,” “unique insights,” or “unusual life experiences.” Schools will usually ask how these qualities, insights, or experiences will contribute to their campus or environment.

Making a good first impression at your medical school interview is vital, but it’s only half the battle! Just like physicians with their patients, you not only have to instill confidence and trust right away, but maintain those feelings throughout the conversation.

One year from today, your life will be over. When you start medical school, you will be consumed by academic and extracurricular responsibilities, and your free time will effectively end. And of course, while it's hard to think about that day when you haven't yet gotten in, it's important to plan for it nonetheless.