Given that the University of Washington School of Medicine (UWSOM) is ranked number-one in primary care by U.S. News & World Report, it looks for applicants who have a strong interest in patient education and community health. It is also committed to serving the needs of the citizens of Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho through its WWAMI program. If you are from Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, or Idaho, you will receive an automated secondary after the school screens for your address. Washington residents complete an additional residency questionnaire before receiving a secondary. All other applicants undergo additional screening to determine their fit for UWSOM.
To learn more about UWSOM, check out our podcast interview with Admissions Dean Dr. LeeAnna Muzquiz.
UWSOM Secondary Application Essay Questions
UWSOM Secondary Essay #1
How have societal inequities in the U.S. affected you or people you have worked with? (250 words)
This question is asking about your experience working with people who belong to an underserved community or whether you have been affected yourself as a member of an underserved community. Provide a specific example from your personal life experience or from your clinical or other volunteer/work experience. Then explain what social inequities you encountered in that scenario and how they affected you or the others in your story. You also want to briefly conclude by explaining how you will handle these inequities as a med student and physician.
UWSOM Essay #2
The UWSOM aims to build a diverse class of students to enrich the field of medicine. What perspectives, identities, and/or qualities would you bring? (250 words)
This essay is asking you to consider how you might contribute diversity to the class. You should consider diversity in terms of both background (cultural, ethnic, or linguistic) and experience (dealing with mental illness or experiencing loss). Explain how your background will be of value to your fellow students and what you can bring to the class. In your response, focus on emotional and mental maturity, and reflect on how that will enable you to work with or understand others.
UWSOM Secondary Essay #3
What obstacles have you experienced and how have you overcome them? (250 words)
In answering this question, choose obstacles or life experiences to discuss that will allow you to show how much you have grown and changed. Be sure to highlight challenges that you actively worked to overcome, and maintain a positive focus. The bulk of your essay should explain how you overcame the challenge and how the skills you used or gained will help you in medical school. It can be helpful to establish a cause-and-effect relationship between your efforts and the net outcome. What approach did you take to address the issue(s)? What were the results? If possible, select challenges where the stakes were somewhat high, for either yourself or someone else.
UWSOM Secondary Essay #4
Describe your competency by explaining how you have explored and come to understand issues in the social sciences and humanities as they relate to the practice of medicine. (250 words)
Entering medical students need to understand the social forces that shape the health of the individuals and communities they will serve. This includes understanding how social contextual factors and policy operate at the community and national level to affect the health of individuals. Students should be familiar with the disparities in health that currently exist in society and their underlying etiologies. Candidates seeking acceptance to UWSOM can establish competency in this area through coursework in the social sciences, humanities, or related interdisciplinary fields, such as public health or ethnic and gender studies, clinical and/or population health research, service learning, lived experience, or a combination thereof. These are some examples of social science/humanities coursework to consider: anthropology, sociology, political science, economics, psychology, religion, history, philosophy, literature.
To answer this question, try to offer a small lesson about the value of life, such as the regard for critical illness or the particular path to embrace healing for a population or group associated with a disease entity (e.g., breast cancer or glioblastomas), that sheds light on lived experience and what we can learn from it.
Watch: What UW School of Medicine is looking for in secondary essays – tips from Admissions Dean Dr. LeeAnna Muzquiz
UWSOM Reapplicant Essay
From your most recent application until now, how have you strengthened your application? (250 words)
As a reapplicant, you are demonstrating the depth of your determination to attend medical school. Reiterate that determination in your response to this question. Strategically focus on the improvements you have made to your application – your new GPA, MCAT score, and life experiences. Focus on how the time you have spent improving your application has made you a better and more focused applicant. Motivation and your specific interest in medicine are essential, and you should show how these have guided your recent activities.
The Casper test is also required.
Applying to UWSOM? Here are some stats:
UWSOM average MCAT score: 512
UWSOM average GPA: 3.7
UWSOM acceptance rate: 4.5% overall
In 2023-2024, U.S. News & World Report ranked the UWSOM #13 for research and #1 for primary care.
Has this blog post helped you feel more confident about approaching your UWSOM secondary application? We hope so. It’s our mission to help smart, talented applicants like you gain acceptance to your top choice medical school. With so much at stake, why not hire a consultant whose expertise and personalized guidance can help you make your dream come true? We have several flexible consulting options; click here to get started today!
UWSOM 2023-2024 Admissions Timeline
| AMCAS Application Due | October 15, 2023; 11:59 pm, EST |
| Secondary Application Due | December 1, 2023; 11:59 pm, PST |
| MSTP Supplemental | December 30, 2023 |
Source: UWSOM website
***Disclaimer: Information is subject to change. Please check with the University of Washington SOM directly to verify its essay questions, instructions, and deadlines.***
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!
Dr. Mary Mahoney, PhD, is the medical humanities director at Elmira College and has more than 20 years of experience as an advisor and essay reviewer for med school applicants. She is a tenured English professor with an MFA in creative writing from Sarah Lawrence College and a PhD in literature and writing from the University of Houston. For the past 20 years, Mary has served as a grad school advisor and essay reviewer for med school applicants. Want Mary to help you get Accepted? Click here to get in touch!
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