Preparing Your Application

An application to health professions schools is a holistic representation of you reflected in personal statements, experiences, letters of recommendation, and interviews. The Health Professions Advising Program provides support for preparing all aspects of your application from the first draft to the final interview.

Eligibility

Working with the Health Professions Advising Team

The Board of Health Professions Advisers provides support for applicants applying to a range of health professions programs. Medical, dental, optometry, and podiatry programs will accept a letter packet, which consists of a cover letter and all individual letters of recommendation. Applicants to these programs who are seeking a letter packet are expected to meet all deadlines as stated in the “Important Dates to Put in Your Calendar” section. Applicants who fail to meet one or more of the following deadlines will not be eligible to receive a letter packet, but can still apply to these programs and submit their letters of recommendation directly.

All Smith students and alums are eligible to receive support for health professions programs and participate in our preapplication process.

Please note: Alums who graduated more than five years prior to their intended application year should meet with the director of health professions advising prior to the month of December in advance of the intended application year, in order to discuss their particular circumstances. In addition, if you have completed a graduate degree or postbaccalaureate program since your graduation from Smith College, it may be to your benefit to work with that institution and/or program.

Important Dates to Put in Your Calendar

Please note: Optometry applicants: OptomCAS opens in June. Podiatry applicants: AACPMAS opens in August. If you are applying through one of these application services, please contact the director of health professions advising to discuss your timeline from this point forward. The deadline for application submission schedule may differ for you.

Due Date

Material(s) Due

December 11

Preapplication due for alums. Earlier submission is encouraged!

December 18

Preapplication due for current students. Earlier submission is encouraged!

March 26

Complete your first preapplication and personal statement review meetings.

April 23

Complete your required interview with a member of the Board of Health Professions Advisers.

May 25

All individual letters of recommendation are due in Interfolio.

June 30

5 p.m. EST: Deadline for primary application (with exam score) submission in order to be eligible for a letter packet.

Application Cycle Timeline

Applying to health professions graduate programs typically takes 12 to 18 months from start to finish. Many programs require an application to be submitted a full year before you intend to start your education. Our preapplication process starts in October of the year before you plan to apply.

No later than April (for medical school applicants) or May (for dental school applicants) of the year in which you’re applying, take your entrance examination and share your official score with the director of health professions advising. We recommend earlier exam dates if possible; April (medical)/May(dental) is the latest possible time you can take your exam and remain eligible for a letter packet.

  1. Attend the presentation on the preapplication process (required) in early to mid-October.
  2. Prepare to submit the preapplication:
    1. Alums: Register and set-up your profile in Handshake.
    2. Current students: Complete your Handshake profile.
    3. Revise your CV or résumé.
    4. Draft your personal statement.
    5. Gather copies of unofficial transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended.
    6. Sign and date Request Form and Waiver.
    7. Work on the preapplication itself.
    8. Submit a complete preapplication in mid-December. Exact date is listed on Preparing Your Application by December 11.

January–March

1. Meet with the health professions advising team to review your preapplication documents and to discuss your overall readiness to apply. 

2. Participate in an interview with a member of the Board of Health Professions Advisors. Interviews will be held between early February and April in person, over Zoom, or by phone. Please make every effort to schedule your meetings and interviews for the soonest possible dates. A Board member will provide open and honest feedback and advice about your candidacy. This interview will not determine whether or not you will receive a letter packet, but the Board as a group will recommend either applying in the current cycle or delaying your application by at least a year in order for you to take action to improve your qualifications.

3. Create an Interfolio account*

  • Request four to six letters of recommendation** (NO later than spring break. Letters are due in Interfolio by May 25)
  • Revise your application materials after meeting with the health professions advising team.
  • Research your list of schools

*You will receive a link to Interfolio when you submit your preapplication. If you are creating your Interfolio account before completing the preapplication, please email prehealth@smith.edu to request the link.

**We suggest two letters from science faculty and the remainder from faculty outside the sciences, internship or research supervisors and/or other employers. A letter from someone who works in the profession you hope to enter (e.g., a physician, dentist, optometrist or podiatrist) is strongly recommended and may be required by some schools. The final makeup of your individual letters will be based on your experiences; discuss your choice of letters with a health professions adviser. You must provide all individual letter writers with the Board’s Letter to Recommenders.

January–May

1. Continue working on primary application materials

2. Continue preparing for your entrance exam as needed

May

  1. Begin your primary application online
    1. Current students: Request official Smith transcripts so that they include your spring semester grades.
    2. Alums: Request official transcripts from all postsecondary institutions. If you have taken spring semester courses, request the relevant official transcript after grades post.
  2. Refine your list of schools (unless still awaiting test results)
  3. Schedule your CASPer Suite and other Situational Judgement Tests (SJTs) if needed (complete the tests preferably around mid-June)
  4. Follow up with the director of health professions advising to ensure your file is complete
  5. Ensure all of your individual letters of recommendation are in Interfolio by May 25; earlier is recommended.

May–June

Submit your primary application and then send a PDF of that submitted application to the director of health professions advising. June 30 at 5 p.m. EST is our final deadline for medical and dental school applicants. Letter packets will be available within 30 to 45 days of our receipt of your submitted application, provided that your individual letters of recommendation are all in Interfolio by May 25 AND your entrance exam score appears in your primary application. 

  1. Complete secondary applications, ideally within two to three weeks after they are received.
  2. Prepare for and complete CASPer and other Situational Judgement Tests (SJTs) if needed.
  3. Use Hireflix to start preparations for interviews. Applicants access Hireflix within the Resources section of Handshake. Schedule a mock interview session with a health professions adviser when you receive your first interview invitation.

Continue preparing for your interviews with Hireflix and by appointment with the health professions advising team.


 

  1. Send letters of interest or intent, if applicable
  2. Follow up with schools that have accepted you
  3. Research and apply for funding

Spring

  • If you have multiple acceptances, weigh your options carefully and select the school that is the best fit.
  • If you haven’t received any offers of acceptance, discuss the possibility of reapplying in a future cycle with the director of health professions advising.

Summer/Fall

  • If you were accepted, enroll in your professional school! If you didn’t get accepted, continue building your qualifications and discuss your plans with the health professions advising team.