Premed Timeline
Dates marked ⚠ are hard external deadlines — reverify each cycle on OMSAS and McMaster UGME.
Year 1 — 2026–27 (Gateway)
| When | What |
|---|
| Sept 2026 | Classes. Activity log live. Office-hours rotation starts (2 profs/term minimum). CARS reading habit: 30 min/day. |
| Sept–Oct 2026 | /process-syllabus all courses → assessment map; note drop deadlines + MSAF policy per course. |
| Dec 2026 | Term 1 grades = first GPA checkpoint. Anything < A → root-cause in gaps.md, adjust before term 2. |
| Apr 2027 | Year 1 GPA locked. Level II selection: rank by expected GPA. |
| Summer 2027 | Clinical/volunteer exposure (logged + verifier). Optional summer course only if confident A+. CARS formal baseline: one timed section. |
Year 2 — 2027–28 (Level II)
| When | What |
|---|
| Sept 2027 | 5-course loads. Second referee relationship developing. |
| Jan 2028 | Register MCAT (summer 2028 seat). CARS prep ramps: timed passages weekly. |
| Apr 2028 | Year 2 GPA locked — this is the GPA the year-3 application runs on. |
| Jun–Aug 2028 | MCAT — one prepared write. ⚠ Release scores to OMSAS after Jul 1. |
Year 3 — 2028–29 (first application cycle)
| When | What |
|---|
| Jul 2028 | ⚠ OMSAS opens. Draft ABS from activity-log (32 entries max, verifiers ready). |
| ~Sep 15 2028 | ⚠ Request transcripts; referees asked (CAFs due at deadline). |
| Sep–Oct 2028 | Casper 2 (book early; temporary ID 800000 if pre-OMSAS-ID). |
| ~Early Oct 2028 | ⚠ OMSAS deadline — application + CAFs + CARS released. |
| Jan–Mar 2029 | If invited: MMI prep circuits, mock interviews. |
| ~Mid-May 2029 | Decisions. If admitted: done. If not: proceed, no post-mortem spiral — expected outcome. |
Year 4 — 2029–30 (main cycle)
| When | What |
|---|
| Fall 2029 | ⚠ Reapply: 3 years of grades, new Casper sitting, same CARS (or carefully-considered rewrite — most recent replaces). Apply broadly per school-matrix. |
| Apr 2030 | Honours BSc complete — full eligibility everywhere. |
| May 2030 | Decisions. |