The Association of American Medical Colleges for allopathic (M.D. granting) medical schools (AAMC) is an excellent source of information. Information concerning application to allopathic medical schools, obtaining application forms either paper or electronic, the MCAT, and other applicant information is available from the AAMC Admissions page.

The Association of American Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine for osteopathic (D.O. granting) medical schools (AACOM). This site also provides an excellent introduction to the nature of osteopathic medicine. The site provides an outstanding viewbook of osteopathic medical schools. Application is WEB based and can accessed from this site.

The American Dental Eduacation Association (ADEA) provides information about careers in dentistry, the Dental Admission Test (DAT), and the application process. The AADS site provides links to dental schools. Another excellent source of information concerning careers in dentistry is the American Dental Association.

The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) provides information concerning careers in optometry. Answers to many questions can be found in the site's FAQ section. There is no application service for schools of optometry. Application to optometry schools is done individually. A list of addresses and phone numbers of optometry schools is available from the ASCO site.

The Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine(ACPOM)provides a good summary of Podiatric Medicine. Six of the seven schools of podiatric medicine use the American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine Application Service (AACPMAS).

Career information for Veterinary Medicine is available from the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC). A centralized application service (VMCAS) is now available for application to some veterinary schools. The Veterinary Medical College Application Service provides information concerning application to member schools. For other veterinary schools, application is done individually. The AAVMC lists all veterinary schools.

Students completing college in four years typically take the appropriate admissions test April of their junior year of college. The Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) is used by most allopathic (M.D.) medical schools, osteopathic (D.O.) medical schools, and colleges of podiatric medicine. Most dental schools require students to take the Dental Admission Test (DAT). Optometry schools use the Optometry Admission Test (OAT). Schools of Veterinary Medicine may use the Veterinary Admission Test (VCAT), Graduate Record Exam (GRE) or another exam. These are lengthy exams which emphasize analytical skills.

Application to professional schools is completed between June 1st following the junior year of college and mid-senior year. For example, most allopathic medical schools have application deadlines of either December 1 or December 15 of your senior year of college. Most Allopathic Medical Schools use the services of the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS). The application is in electronic form and can be downloaded from the AAMC WEB site. Osteopathic Medical Schools also have an application service (AACOMAS) Association of American Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Application Service.  AACOMAS is WEB based.