Choosing Schools

Allopathic, Osteopathic, or International

In the national pool, each applicants applies to an average of 15 schools. At Williams, the tendency in recent years has been to apply to 16-20 schools. Applying to more schools takes more time and costs more money, though it doesn’t necessarily increase the odds of acceptance. Experience shows that most applicants have difficulty completing applications to more than 20 schools, so applicants who wish to apply to more than 20 schools should think about the cost vs. benefit of that decision.

A good school list will be realistic and balanced. The most selective schools are extremely so, and the most prestigious schools tend to admit Williams students with GPA’s in the 3.7+ range. Plan on discussing your thoughts during the Health Professions Committee interview and afterwards as you start choosing schools on AMCAS.

Most applicants apply to all of the schools where they would be considered in-state, as the chance of admission is generally higher and the cost of attending often lower. Applicants are wise to consider other state’s public school judiciously, as many public schools have limited capacity to interview non-residents. Use the MSAR online to assess your chances at a wide range of schools.

Location, curriculum, and probability of an interview are among the most important criteria to consider.

Some students choose to apply to select osteopathic (D.O.) medical schools as they apply to allopathic (M.D.-granting) schools. This is permitted as long as the applicant has some understanding of the ways allopathic and osteopathic schools differ.

There are overseas medical schools that accept (and even encourage) applications from U.S. students. International medical schools come with risk attached, so please confer with the HP advisors before applying. The HP advisors only write committee letters for U.S. and Canadian medical schools.