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Medical School Interview Prep for Reapplicants (2026-27)
How to interview as a medical school reapplicant: what schools see from last time, the questions you'll get ("What have you done since you last applied?"), what eight schools say and how to show growth.
Interviewing as a reapplicant changes three things. Schools that got your verified application last cycle know you applied before, and some, like Ohio State, read the old and new files side by side. Expect "What have you done since you last applied?" and why you weren't admitted. Answer with what you changed and the evidence since, in new stories, not last year's.
What schools see from your last application
You are far from alone. In 2025, 76.5% of the 54,699 people who applied to US MD schools were first-time applicants, the AAMC reported, so about 23.5%, close to one in four, had applied before. The 2027 AMCAS Applicant Guide sets the rules:
- You count as a reapplicant only at schools that received your verified AMCAS application in an earlier year.
- You mark your reapplicant status school by school, in the Medical Schools section.
- Transcripts and letters of evaluation have to be sent again. Most of what you typed rolls over if you didn't withdraw, but every section shows as incomplete until you review it.
- If what you report about institutional actions, misdemeanors, felonies or military discharges differs from an earlier application, the AAMC may investigate. Describing the circumstances differently is fine.
For DO schools, the AACOMAS help center says your programs may be able to see that you are a reapplicant. You reapply from the same account and can copy last cycle's data forward. In the AAMC's advice for reapplicants, admissions officers list poor interview performance among the reasons applicants aren't accepted, and one says that if your application hasn't changed much, a different outcome is unlikely.
AMCAS: Reapplicants · AACOMAS: re-apply · AAMC: tips from admissions officers · AAMC 2025 data
What eight schools tell reapplicants
From each school's own reapplicant page or admissions FAQ, as of October 2026. The school name opens our interview guide for it.
| School | What it says (October 2026) |
|---|---|
| Ohio State | Reapplying to the same school, "they'll likely review your old application and your new application side by side." If you're interviewed, expect to be asked about the rejection. Source |
| University of Wisconsin | The opposite of Ohio State: "our committee will not have access to any of your previous applications." You're asked what you improved and what changed. Source |
| Medical College of Wisconsin | A required reapplicant essay in the 2027 secondary, up to 2,000 characters: how your application has changed since you last applied to MCW. Source |
| University of Miami | About 20% of its applicants each year are reapplicants, with a lower acceptance rate. It tells you to ask every school that rejected you about your interview. Source |
| Virginia Tech Carilion | Offers application reviews only to applicants it interviewed. An interview last cycle "will not ensure" you're competitive in the next one. Source |
| WashU | "We view reapplicants positively," but wants to see how you strengthened your application and what you did in the time between. Source |
| Pitt | Gives no application feedback, even after a rejection, and sends you to your pre-health advisor instead. Source |
| Loyola Stritch | Up to two standard attempts, and a third needs permission. Feedback meetings are offered but limited by staff time. Source |
The questions reapplicants get asked
On top of the usual questions, these come up because of your file. Tap one for what it tests and what a strong answer does. The model answers are in the app, which asks when you start whether this is your first time applying.
What have you done since you last applied?
What it tests: Whether the year changed you or just passed.
What a strong answer does: Names one or two real changes, ties each to a gap in last year's application and gives the evidence, in about a minute.
Practice it out loudWhy do you think you weren't admitted last time?
What it tests: Self-assessment and ownership, without bitterness.
What a strong answer does: Names the real weakness in one plain sentence, blames no one, then spends the rest on what you did about it.
Practice this questionWhat feedback did you get, and what did you do with it?
What it tests: Whether you went looking for the problem and followed a plan.
What a strong answer does: Says who you asked, what they told you and the plan you carried out, with one result you can point to.
Practice it out loudWhy are you applying to our school again?
What it tests: Sincere interest that has grown, not a copy of last year's reason.
What a strong answer does: Gives a reason tied to the school that is new or deeper since last cycle and links it to something you have done.
Practice this questionTell me about a time you failed.
What it tests: How you handle setbacks, which a reapplicant's file already raises.
What a strong answer does: Owns a real failure, keeps the setup short and spends most of the time on what you did next and what changed.
Practice this questionWhat will you do if you're not admitted this year?
What it tests: Commitment and a calm plan.
What a strong answer does: Shows medicine is still the goal and names concrete next steps, without sounding desperate or naming a plan B as plan A.
Practice this questionTwo question pages go deeper on the hardest ones: the weakest part of your application and tell me about a time you failed. For everything else schools ask, see our medical school interview questions.
Show growth without repeating old stories
Ohio State warns against being a "boomerang applicant" who sends the same application again, and Virginia Tech Carilion recommends rewriting your personal statement around what you learned since last time. The interview works the same way:
- Lead with what happened this year. A new role, course or patient story beats last year's best story told again.
- Keep your reason for medicine, but update it. Say what this year added to it.
- Name the rejection plainly if it comes up. Schools you applied to before usually know, and owning it reads better than avoiding it.
- Don't argue with last year's decision or criticize last year's interviewers.
- Give each change its evidence: a grade, a score, hours, a project you can talk about in detail.
If you interviewed last cycle and were rejected
An interview last cycle means a school wanted to meet you, so the interview itself is worth a hard look. The University of Miami tells reapplicants to contact every school that rejected them for insights about their interview, and suggests mock interviews, which it says may be more demanding than the real thing.
- Write down every question you were asked last cycle and where you stalled, rambled or went blank.
- Ask for feedback where a school offers it, and ask your pre-health advisor where it doesn't.
- Practice out loud with follow-up questions until your two or three new stories come out in about a minute each.
- Learn each school better than last time: its mission, curriculum and what you would add, with one reason that is new.
- After each interview, send an update letter where the school accepts them.
Feedback depends on the school: Virginia Tech Carilion reviews applications only for applicants it interviewed, Loyola offers meetings when staff time allows, and Pitt gives none. For the letter after your interview, see the medical school update letter guide, and for the full plan, our medical school interview prep steps.
Reapplying to residency after not matching
Residency reapplicants face the same core question in a different system: ERAS and the NRMP Match instead of AMCAS. Programs will want to know what you did since the Match and why you are a stronger candidate now, and the same rule holds: name what changed and show the evidence.
If you are in Match Week now, start with our SOAP guide. For the next season, our residency interview prep guide covers formats, interview days and a countdown for each interview.
Sources: AAMC, 2027 AMCAS Applicant Guide, Reapplicants, tips from admissions officers and 2025 applicant data. AACOMAS Applicant Help Center. The reapplicant pages and admissions FAQs of the eight schools in the table. All checked October 16, 2026. AMCAS and AACOMAS are trademarks of their owners, and Confetto is not affiliated with them.
Frequently asked questions
Do medical schools see my previous application?
It depends on the school. AMCAS counts you as a reapplicant only at schools that received your verified application before, and you mark your status for each one. Ohio State says it will likely review your old and new applications side by side, while the University of Wisconsin says its committee can't see earlier applications. Check each school's own reapplicant page.
How do I answer "What have you done since you last applied?"
Name one or two real changes, connect each to a gap in last year's application and give the evidence: a grade, a score, a role, a project you can talk about in detail. Keep it to about a minute and end on why you are ready now. Practice it out loud, because it is the question reapplicants are most sure to get.
Will they ask why I was rejected last time?
Expect it. Ohio State tells reapplicants that if they get an interview, they can be sure they will be asked about the rejection. Answer in one plain sentence about the real weakness, without blaming anyone, then spend the rest of the answer on what you changed.
I interviewed last cycle and was rejected. What should I do differently?
Write down every question you got and where you struggled, ask for feedback where the school offers it (Virginia Tech Carilion reviews applications only for applicants it interviewed, and Pitt gives no feedback), then practice out loud with follow-up questions. Bring new stories and a reason for each school that is new since last time.
Is it bad to be a reapplicant?
Being a reapplicant is common: in 2025 about 23.5% of US MD applicants were not first-time applicants, by the AAMC's numbers. WashU says it views reapplicants positively, and the University of Miami says its acceptance rate for reapplicants is lower. What schools agree on is that the application has to change.
Do DO schools know I reapplied?
AACOMAS says your programs may be able to see that you are a reapplicant. You reapply from the same account and can copy last cycle's data forward, then review every section. Prepare for the same "what has changed" questions in a DO interview.