Application FAQs

The following answers students’ frequently asked questions. Due to the large volume of inquiries received each year, the M.D.-Ph.D. Program office can not provide advice to individual students.  We recommend that you also consult with your local premedical advisor(s).

It is our program's policy not to hold individual meetings with applicants outside our normal review process until after the decisions are made. It is during the revisit periods later in the spring that we meet with students who may join HMS or HST as prospective M.D.-Ph.D. students.

Application

1. How many students apply to the M.D.-Ph.D. Program each year?
The M.D.-Ph.D. Program receives approximately 500 applications per year. Selection for interviews is based on a careful review of the application and supporting documents. A strong research and excellent academic background are essential. Most applicants selected for interviews will have high MCAT scores as well. Letters of recommendation are also very important. Applicants invited for interviews will have their interviews coordinated by the admissions officers to be held on one of four interview dates. Interviews are held December through February. We do not have a rolling admissions process. Some applicants may be invited for medical school interviews but not invited for M.D.-Ph.D. Program interviews.

Requirements

2. Is the MCAT required?
Yes, the MCAT is required for admission. There are no exceptions.

3. Is the GRE required?
The M.D.-Ph.D. Program does not require the GRE. However, some graduate programs prefer it in lieu of the MCAT. Other funding agencies also require the GRE in future years when students may wish to apply for scholarship support. Most students prefer to take the GRE to have a score report on record when they need it.

4. Do all requirements be completed prior to application?
All of our requirements must be completed prior to matriculation. However, most successful applicants have completed most of the requirements prior to application.

5. Does the M.D.-Ph.D. Program interview non-science majors?
Although we have interviewed some non-science majors, it is true that they are generally not as competitive. We are looking for students with an advanced background in both science coursework and lab experience who are highly committed to a career in science.

6. Does Harvard Medical School evaluate international transcripts?
Harvard Medical School does not evaluate coursework, but does consider the evaluation of a credit evaluation company.  AMCAS may have guidelines on the best way to have the courses evaluated.  International applicants are evaluated on the same terms as US citizens. 

7. Does M.D.-Ph.D. Program accept faxed letters of recommendation?
Harvard Medical School, Office of Admissions, accepts faxed letters of recommendation but they must be followed by the originals. Letters of recommendations can also be electronically sent using VirtualEvals.  Please do not send recommendation letters to the M.D.-Ph.D. Program. All letters are to be mailed to the Office of Admissions.

8. Does Harvard grant access to secondary application forms for applicants that have submitted their complete AMCAS application without the MCAT scores or must one wait until receipt of MCAT scores to be given access to the secondary application?
We only send the secondary applications out to verified applicants.

International Applicants

9. Can an international citizen apply to the M.D.-Ph.D. Program and receive funding?
Foreign citizens (those who are not US citizens or permanent residents) with competitive applications are welcome to apply. Although international students are not eligible to receive funding provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) grant, an outstanding international student could be offered admission to the program with funding if selected for one of Harvard University's International Scholarships. This funding opportunity is limited to one international student per year. Foreign students who do not have a BA/BS from an institution in the US or Canada are not accepted for admission. Alternately, if you have a foreign school undergraduate degree already you would have to complete one academic year (2 semesters) in the United States prior to matriculating at Harvard Medical School.  We would also accept a year doing graduate work or research work in a university affiliated lab. 

Interviews

10. How many applicants are granted interviews each year?
Approximately 75-90 applicants are invited for interviews. Admission to the M.D.-Ph.D. Program is highly competitive. On average, we admit about 10-12 students per year who are offered full funding by the National Institutes of Health, Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) Grant. Graduates of this program complete their programs in an average of 8 years and most continue their postgraduate training in top hospitals in the country.

11. Does Harvard provide reimbursement for travel and lodging when coming to Boston for your interviews?
We do not provide reimbursement for travel. Should you need accommodations, student hosts are available. If offered a position in the program, we will reimburse you for travel and expenses for the revisit held in April, 2009.

Decisions

12. Does the HMS, M.D.-Ph.D. Program have a rolling admissions process?
No, it does not have a rolling admissions process.

13. If an applicant is not accepted to the M.D.-Ph.D. Program, will s/he still be considered for the MD program?
If an applicant is not accepted for the M.D.-Ph.D. Program, s/he may still be considered for HMS. However, one cannot be accepted to the M.D.-Ph.D. Program without being accepted to HMS in either the New Pathway or Health Sciences and Technology (HST) curriculum track.

14. Does HMS offer a M.D.-Ph.D. in medical informatics?
Students in the M.D.-Ph.D. Program are free to pursue the PhD study in a variety of fields within the basic, applied, engineering and social sciences. Currently, we have a few students who are doing graduate work in the area of bioinformatics and integrative genomics.  For anyone interested in this area, we suggest direct contact with the graduate programs at either Harvard or MIT.

15. Is it possible to receive funding for PhD programs other than those listed above?
It's not impossible, but traditionally most students pursue one of the above programs.

16. When do students formally apply to the PhD program?
Students formally apply to a PhD program during the middle of the second academic year at HMS. Deadlines vary among programs. This involves completion of a different application than the one to the M.D.-Ph.D. Program.

Alternatives

17. If I am not awarded Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) grant funding, can I still pursue an M.D.-Ph.D.?
One can pursue MD and PhD degrees at HMS without funding. The program invites medical school students who have a serious commitment to join a PhD program as an affiliate student. A student affiliate may join the M.D.-Ph.D. Program at any time. Student affiliates are invited to participate in all program events. This affiliation does not obligate or provide a commitment to funding. A separate process, second cycle, is for formal applications for funding Harvard Medical School M.D.-Ph.D. students who are initially unfunded are eligible to apply for "second cycle" funding that, together with funding from the graduate school, covers the cost of all but the first two years of the M.D.-Ph.D. Program. Please visit ecommons for the on-line M.D.-Ph.D. Program application for affiliate students.

18. Does the M.D.-Ph.D. Program accept transfer applicants?
The program does not consider applications for transfer.

Updated: May 2, 2008