The PREview exam is a type of situational judgment test designed to help admissions committees assess applicants’ pre-professional competencies. Unlike quantitative measures, such as one’s MCAT score and GPA, the PREview exam attempts to evaluate the qualitative, or “soft,” skills believed to be just as important for future physicians. By assessing skills such as resilience and adaptability, service orientation, ethical responsibility to self and others, empathy and compassion, cultural awareness, cultural humility, and teamwork and collaboration, the PREview exam can flesh out an applicant’s profile and give admissions committees a more holistic picture of them.

Do I need to take the PREview exam?

In the 2025-2026 application cycle, the PREview exam will be required by nine allopathic medical schools; it is recommended by twelve more. Because the PREview is relatively new, many other schools accept it for research purposes. Several osteopathic programs also recommend taking the PREview exam. Please check individual school websites as well as the Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR) to learn whether your target schools use the PREview exam and whether they require, recommend, or accept it for research only. 

When do I take the PREview, and what does it cost?

Sign up for a test date as soon as you decide to apply to one of the participating schools to ensure you get your preferred testing date. The 2025 test is now open and will be offered twice a month from April to September. You can access the PREview Portal and register for the exam at 2025 AAMC PREview Essentials.

There is a flat registration fee for the AAMC PREview of $100 plus taxes; the first sitting of the exam is free for pre-approved FAP recipients. If you need to reschedule your exam, there is a $25 fee (as long as other test dates are still available).

Note that if you are unable to attend the exam, log in late, or have computer issues and cannot log in, you will be subject to a new fee.

How do I prepare for PREview?

To prepare for the exam, your first step is to download the AAMC PREview examinee
preparation guide. This will help you understand the nine core competencies assessed in the PREview exam. These competencies are as follows:

• Commitment to Learning and Growth 
• Cultural Awareness
• Cultural Humility 
• Empathy and Compassion 
• Ethical Responsibility to Self and Others 
• Interpersonal Skills
• Reliability and Dependability 
• Resilience and Adaptability 
• Teamwork and Collaboration

The test presents 30 written scenarios and 186 questions related to these competencies. To answer the questions, examinees must decide on the “effectiveness” of possible responses or behaviors. Each question has four potential answers: 

• Very ineffective   
• Ineffective   
• Effective  
• Very effective 

The tricky part is that some scenarios have more than four possible responses or behaviors, which means that you might assign the same answer to several of the offered responses. In other words, for a single scenario, you might decide that two of the responses presented are effective, two are ineffective, one is very effective, and three are very ineffective. You will get full credit when you match the best response, and partial credit for being “close to” the best response for each item. For example, if the right answer is “effective,” you can get partial credit for choosing “very effective.” 

Additionally, a response that might be “very effective” to the person doing it might be scored as “ineffective” if it means putting a burden on someone else or creating a problem in the future. You might want to interpret “effective” as a response that promotes the common good, rather than what is good for the individual.

Ultimately, the only way to truly understand what the test considers “effective” is by taking practice tests. The AAMC provides two full-length practice exams that include a variety of scenarios you might see on the actual exam. The scoring key presents the rationale for each preferred answer. Reviewing these rationales will help you better understand what the exam is looking for. 

What happens on PREview exam day?

PREview is an online exam that is monitored by a remote proctor. Before your exam, watch the PREview Test Day Experience Video to become familiar with the remote-proctored online experience. The video explains the check-in process, key functions and features of the exam platform, and how to submit your exam after completion. 

You should also complete the online testing system tutorial before the exam. This allows you to test your equipment and ensure that there will be no technical issues while you are taking the test. You are allowed to repeat this testing tutorial as many times as you want.

The exam day starts with examinees showing their photo ID and having their identity verified by the proctor. The test portion is 75 minutes long, with no break (unless accommodation is requested beforehand), but you should allow 90 minutes for the entire process, including pre- and post-test procedures. Make sure that you are ready 15 minutes early, and have a clean workspace and no applications open on your computer.

Scores are released about a month after the exam is taken. They are visible only to schools participating in the PREview. Scores are not expected to expire, but each participating school decides for itself how many years it will consider a score valid. 

As with every aspect of applying to medical school, the PREview exam is just one piece of a complex puzzle. To do well, make sure you understand the nine core competencies and why they are important. This is accomplished by taking the practice exam and studying the rationale behind each answer. As a side benefit, the PREview exam might even introduce you to skills you can use in your future practice as a physician! 

Since 2001, Cydney Foote has advised hundreds of successful applicants for medical and dental education, residency and fellowship training, and other health-related degrees. Admissions consulting combines her many years of creating marketing content with five years on fellowship and research selection committees at the University of Washington School of Medicine. She’s also shared her strategy for impressing interviewers in a popular webinar and written three books and numerous articles on the admissions process. Want Cydney to help you get Accepted? Click here to get in touch!

Related Resources:

• Casper, A Situational Judgment Test: All You Need to Know, podcast Episode 513
• Med School Acceptance Calculator
• Ace the AMCAS Essay, a free guide