The Prehealth Advising Office received the following message below from the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine:

The AACOMAS application fee will remain the same for the 2020 Cycle: $195 for the primary application sent to one program, and $45 for each additional program. The fee waiver is worth $195 and covers the cost of the initial application. Details on the Fee Assistance Program are detailed below:

• Before your students submit their application, encourage them to check to see if they are eligible for an AACOMAS fee waiver. The fee waiver is worth $195 and covers the cost of the initial application.

• Eligibility requirements are listed on the AACOMAS Application Fees and Fee Waivers Page and are based on household income.
• The fee waiver form to apply can be found in the drop-down at the top of the AACOMAS application. After a student has determined they are eligible for the program, they should submit a fee waiver form about two weeks prior to when they think they’ll be ready to submit their AACOMAS application.
• When a decision is made regarding a fee waiver application, AACOMAS will notify students through their application, in addition to sending an email confirming the decision. It is very important that students do not submit their application until they have received a fee waiver decision because the fee waiver is not retroactive.
• If a student is awarded a fee waiver, they have 14 calendar days from the award date to submit their AACOMAS application. The fee waiver amount will automatically be applied to their account during the payment process. If a student applies to additional programs beyond the scope of the awarded fee waiver, they may be responsible for additional program fees.
• Note: In the 2019 Cycle, AACOMAS granted waivers to all eligible applicants.

Abbreviated announcement sent out to Prehealth Advisers from the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine:

Key Updates to the 2019-2020 AACOMAS Application cycle:

• The Personal Statement Character length has increased from 4,500 characters to 5,300 characters.
• One new college designation: California Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine.

In the coming months, AACOM is thrilled to be launching an online search database as a companion to the Student Guide to Osteopathic Medical Colleges. This database will allow prospective applicants to view and compare colleges of osteopathic medicine through key data points, such as location, campus setting, dual degrees and more.

AACOM is pleased to share that the 2020 AACOMAS application cycle will open for submissions on Thursday, May 2, 2019. Medical Schools will begin to receive applicant data from AACOMAS on Friday, June 14, 2019. The initial application fee remains flat at $195 for the primary application and one college designation and $45 for each additional college designation.

All students seeking to explore osteopathic medicine should be directed to all resources at https://choosedo.org/. 2019-2020 Application Deadlines by college can be found here: choosedo.org/college-application-deadlines.

Applicants are encouraged to explore our 35 colleges of osteopathic medicine and their pages in the Student Guide to Osteopathic Medical Colleges.