Requirements

CU School of Medicine requires all prospective students to apply through the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS). The AMCAS online application usually opens in early June. Normally there is a three to four week delay before the school receives the application from AMCAS due to transcript verification.

Students must take the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT), with the oldest exam accepted no more than three years prior to the year of planned matriculation. For example, applicants applying for July 2025 matriculation must have MCAT results from January 2022 - October 2024. If the applicant takes the MCAT multiple times, the Admission Committee will use the best total score from a single test date.

Applicants are required to obtain letters to support their candidacy for admission. We require three to five letters, or a committee summary letter; letters can come from a faculty member, clinical experience, research experience, or a current job as the letter transmits cogent information about the applicant’s work. Obtaining a letter from the employer who you are working with during the application year is highly recommended.

 

Evidence of a successful engagement in a post-college experience is considered a valuable addition to other letters that also may be part of your file.

 

Some colleges offer a pre-medical advising system and the committee writes letters for their students. A committee letter is sufficient to meet the medical school letter of recommendation requirements.

 

All letters must be transmitted electronically through AMCAS’ application process. Please visit the AMCAS website for further information on how to apply and submit letters of recommendation, Letters of Rec FAQ​.

We strongly recommend that letters not be from family friends or others who know the student only peripherally.
 

​​​Upon receipt and verification of the AMCAS application, the Office of Admissions will email eligible applicants the link to our Secondary Application that is to be completed online and submitted by November 30th of each calendar year (or the next day if November 30th is a weekend or holiday).

The secondary application consists of:

• Secondary application processing fee – fee is non-refundable (fee is waived for FAP eligible applicants)
• Required CUSOM essays
• Optional essays of interest in the Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, Rural, or combined MD-MS in Aerospace Engineering Sciences Programs
• CASPer test results

Completed secondary applications are forwarded to the Admission Committee who perform a holistic review of applications and invite selected applicants for an interview. Interview invitations are distributed from roughly August through February.

 

All applicants applying to the University of Colorado School of Medicine are required to complete CASPer, an online situational judgment test.

Casper is a standardized, online assessment of non-cognitive skills, interpersonal characteristics, and personal values and priorities that we believe are important for successful students and graduates of our program. This data will complement the other tools that we use for applicant review and evaluation.  

Register for Medicine (UME) (CSP-10111 - U.S. Medicine)

Students invited to complete the secondary application must submit an application processing fee with the secondary application. An application fee waiver will be granted to applicants who received approval from the AAMC Fee Assistance Program (FAP). The secondary application fee is non-refundable.

Applicants for admission to the School of Medicine and continuing students must possess the capability to complete the entire medical curriculum and achieve the degree. In addition to successfully completing all courses in the curriculum, students must be able to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to function in a broad variety of clinical situations and to render a wide spectrum of patient care.

Technical Standards for Admissions

It is the responsibility of the University of Colorado School of Medicine (CUSOM) Admission Committee to select a class of students who demonstrate the intelligence, integrity, personal and emotional characteristics necessary for them to become effective physicians. To do so, the Admission Committee is responsible for implementing the criteria and procedures that shall govern the selection of students for entry into the CUSOM.

With the assistance of the Assistant Dean of Admissions, the Admission Committee:

1. Implements a comprehensive, confidential selection process that is shielded from political or financial influence. The elements of the process include: the use and content of the AMCAS primary application, the CUSOM secondary application, the screen of applications for interviews using an established rubric, the interview process with established rubrics and interview questions, and the deliberation process to determine an admissions decision.
2. Develops and educates committee members on effective and legal interview and deliberation techniques. Using these techniques and the established criteria guided by the AAMC core competencies for entering medical students, the Admission Committee will consider each applicant and recommend them for 1) acceptance 2) rejection 3) alternate list.

The Admission Committee:

The rules of the School of Medicine establish the Admission Committee as the final decision-making committee that is solely responsible for the selection of entering MD and MSTP students. The Admission Committee votes to ratify or modify the proposed decisions put forth by the Post-Interview Sub-Committees to determine medical student selection.

1. Screening Subcommittee: Using a comprehensive approach and an established rubric, the Screening Subcommittee decides whether an applicant is invited for an interview.
2. Interview Subcommittee: Using structured questions, this committee implements a competency-based interview process.
3. Post Interview Review Sub-Committee (PIRC): Deliberates following each interview day to put forth acceptance recommendations to the Admission Committee.
4. MSTP Subcommittee: The primary role of the MSTP Subcommittee is to recommend MSTP applicants for interview and to participate in the deliberation following each interview day to recommend acceptance of MSTP applicants to the Admission Committee.
5. BA/BS – MD Subcommittee: The primary role of the BA/BS-MD subcommittee is to review applications, interview, and submit recommendations of acceptances to the Admission Committee. The Admission Committee has full and final authority to accept or overturn these recommendations.
6. Background Check subcommittee - responsible for reviewing background checks of students accepted to CUSOM.

1. All applications must be submitted via American Medical College Application Services (AMCAS) in compliance with deadlines and policies.
2. All admissions decisions are made without consideration of gender, sexual orientation, race, color, creed, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, or marital status.
3. Starting in 2025, applicants with an MCAT of 500 or greater are invited to complete the secondary application
   1. CUSOM offers several unique training programs that applicants can apply for as part of the secondary application: the 4-year Fort Collins Branch Campus, the Colorado Springs Branch, the Rural Program, and a combined MD-MS in Aerospace Engineering Sciences. Applicants may only apply to one of the training programs offered by CUSOM with the exception of the Aerospace Engineering Program. Applicants may apply to that program in conjunction with any of the other training programs offered by CUSOM. If you receive an invitation to interview, you will be initially considered for whichever program(s) you apply to here. All applicants will also be considered for the main Anschutz Medical Campus.
4. The Screening subcommittee will review all completed applications using a holistic review process.  A holistic review considers multiple factors including coursework, academic and extracurricular experiences, unique talents, background, attributes, and unique experiences.  Each applicant’s entire packet is considered, rather than focusing on select parts such as GPA or test scores. A completed secondary must include:
   1. The AMCAS primary application
   2. A completed CUSOM secondary application
   3. a valid MCAT score completed within the last 3 years
   4. the Acuity Insights assessment
   5. 3-5 letters of recommendation or a committee letter
   6. The secondary application fee or fee waiver
5. Approximately 690 applicants are invited to an interview.
   1. MSTP (M.D./Ph.D) applicants will complete the MD interview day and will also participate in MSTP specific interviews as well.
6. The Post-Interview Subcommittee will review all application materials including interview day evaluations and deliberate. The subcommittee will vote to decide on the final application status an submit their recommendations to the Admissions Committee.
7. The Admission Committee votes on medical school applicants and has full and final authority regarding all admissions decisions. All committee meetings, materials and deliberations are confidential. The Assistant Dean of Admissions is a non-voting member of the Admission Committee and all sub-committees of the Admission Committee. The Admissions Committee adheres to the following process related to the management of the admissions offers and the waitlist:
8. Acceptances: Acceptance decisions are communicated on a rolling basis throughout the year beginning on October 15th or the next business day if that is a holiday or weekend. Accepted applicants will also be invited to an in-person and virtual preview day as well. We expect all applicants to abide by the AAMC traffic rules and Choose Your School deadlines. Applicants holding multiple acceptances to medical schools are required to indicate one school they plan to attend by April 30th (or the next business day if April 30th is a holiday or weekend). Applicants can be accepted off the alternate list throughout the season.
9. Alternate List: With authority from the Admission committee, the Dean of Admission manages the waitlist. Applicants who are placed on the alternate are notified via email on a rolling basis. Applicants are later notified of their place on the alternate list (upper, mid, low) prior to single hold day.