Admissions Process & Interviews

• The South Texas Medical Scientist Training Program abides by the same prerequisite coursework and acceptance requirements as the Long School of Medicine. For more information, please visit their website.
• Rigorous research experience is expected. 

To apply, it is required that you use the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS) website.

• Select the “Combined M.D./Ph.D. program” at the “The Long School of Medicine at UT Health San Antonio.” 
• The AMCAS application is the only application that you need to complete in order to be considered for admissions into our M.D./Ph.D. program. The deadline is November 1st. We participate in AMCAS Letters service, and thus, there is no need to send additional letters of recommendation beyond those selected in AMCAS. 
• Please note that if you want also to be considered for admissions into the M.D. program at UT School of Medicine San Antonio, you must submit a separate application using the TMDSAS application system prior to the M.D. program deadline of October 1. In this case, you should check the box that indicates that you also submitted an AMCAS M.D./Ph.D. application.
• There is currently no secondary application. 
• After submission of the AMCAS application, applicants may submit additional information of significance such as publications, presentations, awards, or the result of an additional MCAT score. These submissions should be emailed to the MSTP. 

• The STX-MSTP seeks individuals who have demonstrated a passion for biomedical research. This passion must be described clearly in the M.D./Ph.D. essay portion of the application. 
• Sustained inquiry and investigation within a biomedical laboratory for a minimum of one year is preferred.
• Presentations and/or publications are not necessary but they improve the quality of an application. 
• Some clinical shadowing experience is needed to develop an informed reflection that leads to the determination for pursuing a clinical degree. 
• At least three letters of recommendation are recommended. LORs should express your potential as a physician scientist. Letters from research mentors (P.I.s) are most valuable.  
• MD/PhD programs are very competitive requiring high academic standards.
• Additional resources for the M.D./Ph.D. application can be found on the AMCAS website.

Applicants are invited for interviews on a rolling basis between August and December.  Our interviews are a combined effort with the Long School of Medicine and the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences in an intensive, two-day setting on a Thursday and Friday. Please see our Interview Process page for more details. 

Independent from the LSOM

If you are not invited for an interview, we are unable to consider you for acceptance into the STX-MSTP. This will not affect interviews with the M.D. program if you have already applied through TMDSAS; you may still receive an interview from and be admitted to the Long School of Medicine independently. This process is entirely through the Long School of Medicine and is no longer related to your M.D./Ph.D. application. If you are still interested in pursuing a career as a physician-scientist, the Long School of Medicine offers an  M.D. with a Distinction in Research degree. This opportunity affords the student with some research experience during medical school.