FSU

Florida State University College of Medicine Tallahassee, FL · Public · MD

Average MCAT: 507
Average GPA: 3.68
Class size: 120 (6,700 applicants)
Tuition: $69,315 (per year, nonresident)
Out-of-state applicants: Limited

Deadlines

AMCAS deadline: Nov. 15, 2026
Early Decision Program: Aug. 3, 2026
Secondary deadline: Dec. 10, 2026

Essays

A1 Family (500 words)

Please provide a description of your family.

A2 Upbringing environment (500 words)

Please describe the geographic, economic, and social environment in which you were raised. How did these aspects of your upbringing shape who you are today or influence your goals?

A3 Fun and diversion (500 words)

Tell us what you do for fun and diversion (hobbies, special interests, etc.).

A4 Unique trait (500 words)

What is a unique trait, experience, or interest that we would not normally learn about you?

A5 College employment (500 words)

Were you employed during your college years? (Yes/No). If yes, describe why employment was necessary, how it impacted your college experience, and approximately how many hours per week you worked.

A6 Academic record (500 words)

Is there anything in your academic record that you feel requires further explanation or context for the Admissions Committee? If applicable, please include information about any academic challenges, course withdrawals, or grades lower than a B. Optional

C1 Why FSU (500 words)

Why are you choosing to apply to the FSU College of Medicine? Please be specific describing what is particularly attractive about FSU COM and why you believe FSU COM is right for you.

C2 Qualifications (500 words)

What do you feel are your personal and scholastic qualifications for the study of medicine?

C3 Contribution to mission (500 words)

How do you feel you will contribute to the success of the FSU College of Medicine and our unique mission?

C4 Gap year or reapplicant (500 words)

If you are planning to take a gap year, are currently in a gap year, or have taken time off between college and medical school, please describe how you have spent (or are spending) this time. If you are have applied previously, we ask that you describe any specific steps you have taken to strengthen your application.

C5 Demands and support system (500 words)

Medical school requires significant personal commitment, including long hours, emotional challenges, and limited personal time. How have you prepared for these demands, and what strategies will you use to maintain a healthy work-life balance during your training? Please also share how your personal support system—family, friends, mentors, or others—will help you during this journey

D1 Specialties (list) (500 characters)

In what field/specialty of medicine do you envision yourself working ten years from now? Please LIST no more than three (3) specialties. Please do not include a narrative; simply list the specialties.

D2 Specialty and mission

Write a short statement explaining how you envision using the specialty or specialties you listed above to advance the mission of the FSU College of Medicine. Please describe the patient population or community you are most passionate about serving and how your goals align with the College’s commitment to underserved and rural populations.

D3 Different backgrounds

The FSU College of Medicine has 6 regional campus locations and 2 rural training sites across the state of Florida, serving multifaceted populations. Describe a time when you engaged with people from backgrounds different from your own. What did you learn from that experience, and how has it influenced the way you interact with populations that have differing values, customs, and life histories? Optional

D4 Service to underserved

Please describe a community service experience, outside of direct patient care, in which you served an underserved or marginalized population. What drew you to this experience, and how did it contribute to your personal growth and learning? What aspects of your involvement did you find most meaningful or fulfilling? Optional

Editor's notes

Be honest with yourself about residency before you pay for the secondary. FSU usually admits fewer than 10 non-residents a class, and in the Class of 2029, 118 of 120 had grown up in Florida or attended a state university there. If you're from out of state, the FAQ tells you where to make your case: the self-critical analysis section of the secondary.
Don't read silence as a no. Offers are rolling, but FSU says many applicants won't hear anything until a final decision, usually by late May, partly because it fills its Bridge program from the same pool. The Dec. 10 secondary deadline is firm, and FSU says it won't tell you about missing documents, so check your file yourself.
The secondary asks versions of the same question three times: why FSU (C1), how you'll serve the mission (C3), and how your specialty will serve rural and underserved patients (D2). Plan them together so each one adds something. The mission names older adult, rural, minority and underserved patients, and your answers should show you've already worked with at least one of those groups.
Both interviews are one-on-one with committee members holding your file, and each can run 50 minutes. That's a long conversation about you. Reread your secondary before you log on.

FSU