How to Apply

Complete the TMDSAS Application

The Texas Medical and Dental Schools Application Service (TMDSAS) is the centralized application processing service for applicants to the first-year entering classes at all of the public medical, dental and veterinary schools in the State of Texas. Baylor recommends all M.D. program applicants review the TMDSAS application guide in its entirety before starting the application.

Please note that M.D./Ph.D. program applicants are required complete the AMCAS application, not the TMDSAS application.

Complete the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT)

The MCAT is required of all applicants. Only scores from tests administered within three years of the year of medical school matriculation will be accepted. Scores of the most recent MCAT are considered by the admissions committee.

Find information concerning the test via the MCAT section of the American Association of Medical Colleges site.

Results of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) may not be used as a substitute for the MCAT.

Submit Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation for the M.D. program must be submitted through TMDSAS by Nov. 15.

You can submit your application before TMDSAS has received your letters of evaluation.
Your letters will be added to your application as they are received and they will not cause a delay to your application processing time. Letters should not be sent to TMDSAS until after the application opens. 

Medical applicants are required to submit: 

• One Health Professions Committee Packet OR
• Three individual letters of evaluation (maximum 4)
• Optional: One extra letter (not included in HP Committee Packet) may be submitted in addition to the required letters.

Letter Requirements 

All letters of evaluation must include the following criteria in order to be accepted by TMDSAS. Any letters that do not meet these standards will be rejected.

• Be written on official letterhead (personal or professional letterhead is accepted)
• Include the evaluator's contact information (specifically a phone number and/or email address) 
• Include the evaluator's signature 
• Include the applicant's name
• Letter must be dated. Admissions committees will take the date of the letter into consideration during review, with a strong preference for letters written after May 1, 2021.
• Written in English

Complete the Supplemental Application and Submit Fee

The BCM supplemental application must be completed by all applicants. Applicants will receive an email invitation to complete the supplemental application after submission and verification of their TMDSAS primary application. TMDSAS application verification can take two-four weeks. The final deadline for M.D./Ph.D. supplemental applications is midnight CST on Oct. 1 and traditional medical school supplemental applications is 5 p.m. CST on Nov. 15. 

Complete the CASPer Test

All applicants to the Medical School and Medical Scientist Training Program are required to complete an online situational judgement test called Casper (Computer-Based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics). Learn more about the CASPer assessment, testing dates for Baylor and register for a test. A CASPer score is required in order to be considered for an interview. We do not require Duet or Snapshot.

Review Technical Standards

Baylor and the School of Medicine are committed to providing equal educational access for qualified students with disabilities in accordance with state and federal laws including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended in 2008, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Therefore, no candidate will be denied admission to the School of Medicine solely based on the presence of a disability. Please review the following links carefully:

• Technical Standards
• Student Disability Services

Updates to your Application after Submission

After you submit, certain sections of the application will be locked and cannot be updated while other sections must be updated as applicable.

Review the TMDSAS website for a breakdown of your access to each section after you submit.

Yes: TMDSAS will make the change.
No: TMDSAS will not make any changes.
Update: No changes in application; will provide an update uploaded to application file.

Interviews

The interview is an opportunity to determine whether the applicant and Baylor College of Medicine make a good match. Interview invitations are issued by email solely upon the recommendation of the Baylor Admissions Committee.

Interviews are held from August through January on select Fridays at the Baylor campus. Interviews for 2025 entering class will be held virtually via online AMP portal. It is the applicant’s responsibility to check their application status via AMP.

In addition to high intellectual ability and outstanding academic achievement, the Admissions Committee recognizes that personal qualities are essential to a physician's development. The interview will allow us to probe more deeply into the following:

Interpersonal/Intrapersonal:

• Communication skills, both written and oral
• Ability to work as a team member
• Ethical and moral behavior
• Ability to realistically self-appraise
• Cultural competence

Service to Others:

• Altruism and humanism, community service and social concerns

Learning Experiences:

• Evidence of intellectual curiosity
• Critical thinking
• Using logic and reasoning to identify alternative solutions or approaches to challenges

Motivation/Dedication to Medical Profession:

• Sought out meaningful experiences in health field
• Appropriate motivation 

Cognitive skills as assessed by transcripts, MCAT and GPA

COVID-19 Impact on Interviews

For Admissions Cycle 2025, interview sessions will be held virtually via AMP portal. Each applicant will receive two 30-minute virtual traditional interviews. One interview will always be with a faculty member of the Admissions Interviewing Subcommittee (AIS) and the other interview will be with another AIS member randomly selected using our AMP algorithm. All AIS members consist of faculty members, current student, resident, fellow or Baylor alumni. 

Texas Residency

Texas law classifies each person who applies for admission to a Texas public college of university as:

1. A resident of Texas,
2. A non-resident, or
3. A foreign (international) student

How you are classified is important because it determines eligibility to be included in the Texas Residents applicant pool.

When you submit your TMDSAS application, the system makes an initial residency determination. When in processing, a residency specialist will review the application in greater detail to either confirm or change the system's residency determination according to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board  rules for establishing residency.

Visit the TMDSAS residency website for additional information regarding residency determination. All residency inquiries should be directed to TMDSAS.