Howard University College of Medicine Secondary Essay Prompts

The 2025-2026 prompts

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Collected from public applicant reports. Prompts occasionally change mid cycle, so confirm against your own secondary portal before you submit.

1. 01

   Mother's Highest Level of Education (i.e. High School Graduate, BA/BA (Bachelor's), MA/MS (Masters), Professional Degrees (PhD, MD, JD, DDS, PharmD)

   Not applicable
2. 02

   Father's Highest Level of Education (i.e. High School Graduate, BA/BA (Bachelor's), MA/MS (Masters), Professional Degrees (PhD, MD, JD, DDS, PharmD)

   Not applicable
3. 03

   Guardian's Highest Level of Education (i.e. High School Graduate, BA/BA (Bachelor's), MA/MS (Masters), Professional Degrees (PhD, MD, JD, DDS, PharmD)

   Not applicable
4. 04

   Applicant's Highest Level of Education (i.e. High School Graduate, BA/BA (Bachelor's), MA/MS (Masters), Professional Degrees (PhD, MD, JD, DDS, PharmD)

   Not applicable
5. 05

   Have you ever participated in any Howard University Summer Programs (SHPEP, BePARP, ACSEP, HSSESA, Upward Bound, etc.)? Please indicate below or type N/A.

   Not applicable
6. 06

   What were your SAT and/or ACT scores? (Please respond providing your total score on the 400-1600 scale or the 200-800 scale depending on whether you took the old SATs versus the new SATs AND/OR the ACT Composite score on a 1-36 scale). Please indicate below or type N/A if you did not take either.

   Not applicable
7. 07

   By completing and submitting this application, I understand that, if accepted, I will be subject to a criminal background check and/or drug screening.

   Yes/No
8. 08

   Have you ever been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor in any jurisdiction?

   Yes/No
9. 09

   Was your childhood home located in a rural, urban or suburban area?

   Not applicable
10. 10

    Have you lived in communities which are medically underserved, or where the majority of the population is economically and/or educationally disadvantaged?

    250 words
11. 11

    Have you worked (volunteer or paid employment) with medically underserved, economically disadvantaged and/or educationally disadvantaged populations?

    250 words
12. 12

    After residency, do you plan to practice medicine in an underserved or disadvantaged community?

    250 words
13. 13

    Please provide below any additional information you believe is important in evaluating your application (e.g. additional coursework, problems with academic record; disadvantaged, etc.)

    250 words
14. 14

    Did you work at least 20 hours a week for at least one academic year during your undergraduate/graduate program?

    Yes/No
15. 15

    Are you now currently working or plan to work in Biomedical or Clinical Research?

    Yes/No
16. 16

    Are you now currently working or plan to work Full or Part time in medicine or a medical-related field (Nursing, EMT, PA, Office Assistant, Scribe, Pharmacy Technician, etc)?

    Yes/No
17. 17

    Are you now currently working or plan to work Full or Part time in a field outside of medicine?

    Yes/No
18. 18

    Are you now currently volunteering or providing community service OR plan to volunteer or provide community service?

    Yes/No
19. 19

    Are you currently taking classes full time or part time OR plan to enroll in classes full time or part time in the next 6 months? If yes, please list each course, along with the number of credit hours which you will be taking for fall, spring or both semesters.

    Yes/No
20. 20

    Is any member of your family currently or previously associated with Howard University College of Medicine (HUCM) OR any Howard University College or Department?

    Yes/NoOptional
21. 21

    If Yes to the family association question, please list their full name, relationship to you, and what their relationship/association is to HUCM OR list their name, relationship to you and what their association is with Howard University OR indicate N/A if No.

    No stated limitOptional
22. 22

    Did COVID-19 Impact you preparing your AMCAS application for fall 2026? (i.e. volunteer/work experience, financially, course registration, MCAT testing, etc.)

    250 words
23. 23

    Why Howard University College of Medicine?

    2500 characters
24. 24

    Have you ever been enrolled at Howard University? If yes, please provide your Student ID Number. If no, please type N/A.

    Not applicable

How to write these well

• Turn secondaries around within 7 to 14 days of receiving them. Schools read speed as interest, and slow essays land in a bigger pile.
• Pre-write the universal question types (diversity, challenge, why us) once, then adapt per school. Adapting is rewriting the school specific half, not swapping the name.
• Name real programs. A why us answer that cites a specific clinic, track, or community partnership reads ten times stronger than praise for reputation or location.
• Stay under the limit without padding to reach it. Readers are working through thousands of these; a tight answer is a kindness they remember.

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