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Holistic Review
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Holistic Review considers the “whole” applicant.
Holistic Review refers to mission-aligned admissions or selection processes that take into consideration applicants’ experiences, attributes, and academic metrics as well as the value an applicant would contribute to learning, practice, and teaching. Holistic Review allows admissions committees to consider the “whole” applicant, rather than disproportionately focusing on any one factor. The core principles of holistic review are outlined below.
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Core Principles
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Applicant selection criteria are broad, clearly linked to school mission and goals, and promote numerous aspects of diversity as essential to excellence.
- Selection criteria include experiences and attributes as well as academic performance. These criteria are:
- Used to assess applicants in light of their unique backgrounds and with the intent of creating a richly diverse interview and selection pool and student body,
- Applied equitably across the entire candidate pool, and
- Supported by student performance data that show that certain experiences or characteristics are linked to that individual’s likelihood of success as a student and/or physician.
- Schools consider each applicant’s potential contribution to both the school and the field of medicine, allowing them the flexibility to weigh and balance the range of criteria needed in a class to achieve their institutional mission and goals.
- Race and ethnicity may be considered as factors when making admission-related decisions only when aligned with mission-related educational interests and goals associated with student diversity; and when considered as a broader mix of factors, which may include personal attributes, experiential factors, demographics, or other considerations.*
*Under federal law (and permitted by state law)
Tools and Resources
The AAMC has compiled tools and resources to assist admissions officers and program directors in applying holistic review to their selection processes.
These tools and resources encourage admissions officers to consider and discuss changes to applicants’ life and academic circumstances in order to promote consistency, equity, and fairness for all applicants.
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This series features five conversations with admissions officers about changes they are making to their admissions process as a result of the intersections of COVID- 19, racism, and inequality. Each interview includes an individual and group reflection guide you can use to explore the topics discussed in the conversation.
Admissions Officer Interview Series
1. Metrics
Video highlights:
- Posting information for applicants about COVID-19-related changes to the admissions process on the UAB website
- Changes to admissions committee training
- Discussion about pass/fail grades
Additional resources:
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2. Secondary Applications
Video highlights:
- Posting secondary application questions on the UAB admissions webpage
- Addition of narrative questions about COVID-19
- Changes to admissions committee training
Additional resources:
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3. Virtual Interviews (General)
Video highlights:
- Adopting a “flipped classroom” model for the interview day
- Training interviewers to be effective in a virtual format
- Providing resources for applicants to prepare for a virtual interview
Additional resources:
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4. Virtual Interviews (MMI)
Video highlights:
- The importance of communicating change
- Applicant interview support through their Student National Medical Association (SNMA)
- Adopting AAMC’s Video Interview Tool for Admissions (VITA)
Additional resources:
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5. Premed Advising
Video highlights:
- Posting FAQs on changes to the application process
- Participating in Courage Sessions to engage with students about changes to the application process
- Encouraging applicants to reflect on the skills they have developed as a result of the pandemic
Additional resources:
These tools and resources provide an overview of holistic review in admissions. This primer is designed to quickly help you 1) review the criteria you are prioritizing and 2) define and assess if your materials and processes reflect your priorities.
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Additional resource:
Activity 1: Applicant Criteria Identification and Prioritization (Word)
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These tools and resources provide an overview of holistic review in residency selection. This primer is designed to quickly help you 1) review the criteria you are prioritizing and 2) define and assess if your materials and processes reflect your priorities.
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Additional resource:
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These foundational publications will guide you through integrating and evaluating your holistic admissions process and will provide you with key legal and policy foundations.
- Roadmap to Diversity and Educational Excellence: Key Legal and Educational Policy Foundations for Medical Schools, Second Edition (2014)
- Roadmap to Excellence: Key Concepts for Evaluating the Impact of Medical School Holistic Admissions (2013)
- Roadmap to Diversity: Integrating Holistic Review Principles into Medical School Admission Processes (2010)
Advancing Holistic Principles Advisory Committee
- Bruce Blumberg, MD, Professor of Clinical Science, Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine
- Dwight Davis, MD, Professor of Medicine, Heart Failure Service, Senior Associate Dean for Admissions and Student Affairs, Director, Cardiac Rehabilitation and Wellness Program Heart and Vascular Institute, Senior Associate Dean for Admissions and Student Affairs, Penn State College of Medicine
- Lukejohn Day, MD, (GDI Liaison), Professor of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, School of Medicine
- Jose Manuel de la Rosa, MD, MSc, Vice President of Outreach and Community Engagement, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso
- Donna Elliott, MD, EdD, Vice Dean for Medical Education and Chair, Department of Medical Education; Professor of Clinical Pediatrics and Medical Education, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California
- Anne C Gill, DrPH, MS, RN, Assistant Dean for Interprofessional Education, Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine
- Jorge A. Girotti, PhD, MA, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Medical Education, University of Illinois College of Medicine (Retired)
- Toi Blakley Harris, MD, Associate Provost of Institutional Diversity, Inclusion & Equity, and Student and Trainee Services, Professor, Psychiatry, Pediatrics and Family and Community Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine
- Charna Kinard (OSR Liaison), Class of 2023, TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine
- O’Rese J. Knight, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Lina Mehta, MD, (GSA Liaison), Associate Dean for Admissions, Professor of Radiology, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine
- Alicia D. H. Monroe, MD, (Chair), Provost and Senior Vice President, Academic and Faculty Affairs, Cullen Trust for Higher Education Provost Chair, Baylor College of Medicine
- Sunny Nakae, MSW, PhD, Senior Associate Dean, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Partnership; Associate Professor of Medical Education at California University of Science and Medicine
- Erik Porfeli, PhD, Professor and Chair of Human Sciences, Human Sciences Administration, The Ohio State University
- Will Ross, MD, MPH, (Vice Chair), Associate Dean for Diversity, Principal Officer for Community Partnerships, Alumni Endowed Professor of Medicine, Division of Nephrology, Washington University School of Medicine
AAMC Staff
- Amy Addams: Director, Student Affairs Alignment and Holistic Review, AAMC
- Hope Gray: Specialist, Student Affairs and Holistic Review, AAMC
- Michelle Shader: Director, Holistic Initiatives and Learning, AAMC
- Raechel Timbers: Manager, Holistic Initiatives and Learning, AAMC
Contact us for more information.