Nervous to submit your ERAS application? Don’t know if you should bullet point your responses because you know Dr. Sullivan, the Program Director of Internal Medicine, will appreciate a good bullet point list? Should you be detailed to the extent they won’t have to ask you questions? Should I proofread it before submitting it; use Grammarly to my advantage?
These are all plausible questions. So, let’s break this down one question at a time.
AAMC spells out on their website that the MyERAS application is an online form where you disclose personal information of yourself, work, and volunteer services. This application is what you submit to apply for residency after med school in the United States. You don’t have to complete the application in one sitting but you are advised to save all the information that you update your application with.
Program directors reviewing your application prefer your responses to be to the point but articulate enough to understand the description of either the work, internship, externship, or volunteer services you did at hospitals, clinics, or recreational places. This makes it easy for reviewers to read it since they themselves are short on time.
Even bullet pointing your answers can be beneficial to smoothen your ERAS form. Don’t leave any boxes blank on the form unless it’s truly unapplicable to you. Sometimes medical students won’t be aware of the supervising head in charge of the internship program for example so it’s advisable to put at least the program’s acting director. Blanks come across as “a lack of attention to detail.” In the “reason for leaving” section, if you don’t have an answer for that its best to put “completed the term” to give cohesion to the application.
Grammar, grammar, grammar. We cannot reiterate it enough but it’s paramount to the application so run through your form for misspellings, capitalization, and redundancies. Also double check if the information about yourself is in the right section. If you’re still hesitating to submit your application and want professional eyes to overlook your ERAS form, contact Residents Medical to peruse your application to get reassured approval for it.
We have actual deans, DIOs, and Program Directors looking at your submission. Who knows better to evaluate an ERAS application then GME physicians!
