1. Early Assurance Admissions Process
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Early Assurance Frequently Asked Questions

We understand that potential applicants to our Early Assurance Programs, which include FlexMed and our U.S. Military Institutional Partnership, have many questions about general requirements, eligibility, and student life at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. We are here to help—and we encourage you to reach out to us if you don’t see your question addressed in our Early Assurance Frequently Asked Questions.

Application and Eligibility Requirements for Early Assurance Programs

Yes. The Donald and Vera Blinken FlexMed Program allows college sophomores in any major to apply for early assurance of acceptance to Icahn t Mount Sinai. Please refer to FlexMed requirements for mandatory courses.

No. This program is specifically designed for students entering their second year of college as a full-time student at a four-year university, working toward their first bachelor's degree with two years of college remaining after acceptance. If you are in a five-year undergraduate program, you can apply either in your second or third year of college. You are not eligible to apply if you already hold a bachelor's degree.

Yes. We expect students to apply during the fall semester of the second year of full-time study at their college or university, irrespective of how many college-level credits they received in high school.

Applicants to FlexMed must be a U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident pursuing their first bachelor’s degree at an accredited four-year college or university in the United States or Canada with two years of college remaining after acceptance.

Yes. You do not need to repeat introductory biology, but you must take a year of college biology. Molecular content is required. We recommend choosing biology courses which will best prepare you for medical school, such as cell biology, molecular biology, genetics, physiology, immunology, etc.

Yes. Prior to matriculation, you are required to complete a year of lab in biology and/or chemistry.

We do not require that you complete the college biology or chemistry courses at your undergraduate institution. However, you should take these courses at an institution that is an accredited four-year college of similar quality to your undergraduate institution.

If you plan to take the required coursework at another institution, you must receive approval from our leadership team. We additionally recommend that you consider courses that will provide you with the requisite background for medical school, such as biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, pharmacology, cell biology, physiology, microbiology, immunobiology, etc.

No. You do not need to complete all the required courses before applying. For both FlexMed and the U.S. Military Institutional Partnership, you need to have completed two semesters of college biology or chemistry prior to the application deadline of the academic year you apply. If accepted, you must complete the remaining courses before matriculating. Please review our Early Assurance application requirements for more information on eligibility criteria.

Yes. Applicants must have taken the ACT and/or SAT to apply.

Yes. Applicants must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.5 (or equivalent) or higher to apply. Please review our Early Assurance application requirements for more information.

Please review our Early Assurance application requirements for more information.

No. Only selected applicants will be invited for interviews at the Icahn Mount Sinai.

Please refer to our Early Assurance application timeline for more information.

Admitted Students

Once you accept our offer of admission, you are required to sign a formal written agreement demonstrating your commitment to making Icahn Mount Sinai your future home for medical education. Should you eventually choose not to attend, you may do so without penalty. If you choose to apply to another medical school and/or take the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), your acceptance into the Early Assurance Program will be revoked.

As part of your admission, you are accepted into medical school, but there are no tuition fees until you matriculate. Tuition is based on the individual years in which you enroll and may differ from year to year. You may access current tuition rates through the Office of Student Financial Services.

Icahn Mount Sinai awards financial aid to all students who demonstrate financial need. Financial need is determined by our institutional need analysis formula, which calculates the difference between your available resources and total anticipated school-related and basic living expenses for a given academic year. Early Assurance students should apply for financial aid in the winter prior to matriculation.

Students applying for federal student loans, Icahn Mount Sinai need-based loans, and scholarships, must complete the FAFSA application, CSS profile, and Icahn Mount Sinai financial aid application. In addition, applicants must provide year appropriate financial documentation to determine eligibility for financial assistance. To complete these forms, students should access our Office of Student Financial Services.

If it is imperative that you compare financial aid packages from different schools, it may be in your best interest to apply through the traditional application process.

Your application to the Early Assurance Program does not require an AMCAS application—however, matriculation to Icahn Mount Sinai does. If you are accepted into one of our Early Assurance Programs, you will be asked to fill out an AMCAS application during the year preceding your matriculation. At that time, you will also be required to complete our supplemental application but will not be required to pay the supplemental application fee. Please note that completing these applications does not imply that you are reapplying to medical school.

Yes, provided that you adhere to all requirements outlined in the Early Assurance Program Agreement, including:

  • You maintain the high standards of your present credentials, including a cumulative grade point average of 3.5, and receive your bachelor's degree.
  • You are not disciplined for any unprofessional/unethical behavior.
  • You promptly respond to all deadlines from Icahn Mount Sinai.
  • You are physically and emotionally capable of meeting the rigorous demands of medical school.

Please review our Early Assurance application requirements for more information.

At the time of application to either of our Early Assurance Programs, you are only considered for admission into the MD Program. That said, admitted students with an exceptional track record in research and strong evidence of science coursework may apply to the MD-PhD Program in the year prior to matriculation, within the same pool as traditional MD-PhD applicants.

If you are admitted to one of our Early Assurance Programs and are interested in applying to the MD-PhD Program in the future, you should contact our Early Assurance leadership for further advisement.

Please note that Early Assurance acceptance does not guarantee admission to the MD-PhD Program. If pursuing a career as a physician-scientist with a dual MD-PhD in biomedical science is critically important to your professional goals, it may be in your best interest to apply through our traditional process.

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