How Are Updates Sent to Schools?

Now that you have updated your coursework, grades, or even got an approval from a course appeal there have been a few changes to your application since you submitted it. Do I have to re-submit? Do I have to let the schools know about my updates? What can I update, and how quickly will the schools receive the updates made on my application? To help make sense of all this, Senior Application Development Analyst, Gustavo Nieto explains how this works on the back end. Here is a simplified (non-tech terminology) version of how updates are sent to schools!

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What can be updated post-submission?

It is important to note that only some parts of the application can be changed once you have clicked the ‘Submit’ button. Detailed information can be found here. Remember, that at this point your application is in the processing stage and it can take anywhere from 2-4 weeks for this process to be completed BEFORE your schools can see your application. TMDSAS still has your application during this time and your schools will not be aware of any changes made during this time.

 

Congratulations, your application has been transmitted!

The application has finished processing and it is now on the schools’ end. Any changes from here on out will become available to your schools.

What does transmitted mean?

Applications are set to a Transmitted status after they have been processed by a TMDSAS team member. TMDSAS does not “transmit/send” your application to schools. This is old terminology that refers to when this process used to push (transmit) data weekly (boxes of paper) to schools.

A better term to use today would be that your application was “released” to the schools after TMDSAS processes it.

How do my schools know that I have made changes on my application?

Once your application has been transmitted, schools will be aware of changes made to the sections in your application. The system will create a flag that helps determine which applications have been updated.

The schools use our webservice to retrieve these updates. Schools retrieve this information whenever they wish. Some will retrieve the new updates on a set schedule and others do not. This depends on the schools’ individual application review process, but most will retrieve their updates daily. 

Therefore, there is no need to “re-submit” your application because your updates are flagged as changes/updates. This occurs when:

• You make edits/add to your coursework
• You change your grades from ‘NY’ to a letter grade
• You change your test information in the DAT/MCAT sections
• TMDSAS uploads documents or letters

 All these changes become readily available for them to retrieve on their end.

If the schools get updates about changes to my application, then why do I have to contact them when I request TMDSAS to remove my fourth evaluator placeholder, or to withdraw my application?

Your schools will receive this information. However, since each school has a different process for retrieving updates on their end, it is to your benefit to contact them for these two specific changes.

1. Some dental and medical schools will not extend an interview offer until all letters of evaluation and test scores have been received. These are two important components of the application review process and for admissions consideration. It is important to notify them in case they haven’t retrieved your updates reflecting these changes and they are still waiting on you to move forward with your application.

 

2. When withdrawing your application, it is your responsibility to confirm your withdrawal on their end. This is a matter of being courteous to the schools and other applicants. This also creates an opportunity for you to form a good relationship with the schools, especially if you plan to re-apply in the future.

My school said they have not received my MCAT score, but none of my other schools have notified me of this issue. Did TMDSAS receive and send my MCAT score to that school?

You can always check the status of your letters and scores in the [Status] page in your application portal homepage. If there is a received date next to your test date or evaluator’s name, that means that as of that date your score/letter was uploaded to your application and became available to your schools (if it has been transmitted) at the same time for them to retrieve. In cases where only one school has reported a missing letter or score, it is very likely they have not retrieved or refresh their updates from the webservice. That will need to be taken care of on their end.

My school told me to contact TMDSAS to fix my PCR and send a new one to them. Can you send them my new PCR?

Again, TMDSAS does not send your information to your schools. Any new changes reflected on your PCR become available for them to download on their end. In this case, let your school know that you have updated your grades and coursework with TMDSAS and the new update is ready for them to retrieve.

Key Takeaway

When your application is transmitted or “released” to the schools, any changes made to your application become readily available for your schools to download updates on their end. The updates are almost immediately available to them. However, depending on when schools decide to download this new information determines how quickly they see your updates. Overall, most schools download the updates that come their way daily. Therefore, in some cases it is important that you notify them about key changes to your application or let them know new updates are available for them to download or refresh on their end.

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Inside Health Education

• Topics: TMDSAS
• Authors: TMDSAS Support
• Date:  October 12, 2021