What You Need to Know About Pre-Match Offers

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As we head into the middle of the medical school interview season, many have heard or started looking into what Pre-Match offers are. This concept can be confusing, especially when you hear other terms such as “match” and “ranking”. Don’t sweat it, because you will learn what all these terms mean! For now, here’s what you need to know about Pre-Match offers.

Note: Only Texas resident medical applicants are eligible to receive Pre-Match offers. Non-Texas resident medical applicants can expect to receive admissions decisions from October 15 – April 30.

Background Information: TMDSAS Match

TMDSAS has a unique process that allows medical schools to admit a large group of Texas resident applicants through the TMDSAS Match. This method is used to limit the number of positions an applicant may hold at one time. The process is conducted in a spirit of cooperation and trust among the participating schools as well as respect and consideration for the applicants and their choice of schools.

To help highly competitive Texas resident medical applicants plan for the TMDSAS Match, member institutions extend Pre-Match Offers. These offers indicate that applicants have ranked very high on a particular school’s list and will match to that school if the applicant ranks the school favorably. 

Want to know more about this process and how Pre-Match Offers and Ranking come into play? Watch the TMDSAS Office Hour: Medical Acceptances with TMDSAS Director, Enrique Jasso.

What is a Pre-Match offer?

Once a Texas resident medical applicant interviews at a medical school and is deemed highly competitive, that school may reach out with a Pre-Match Offer indicating that they will rank the applicant among the top of their list leading up to the TMDSAS Match.

Prior to the Match, medical schools may extend offers of acceptance to Texas residents for a period between October 15th and January 31st. Prior to Match Day.

• You may accept and hold multiple offers from more than one medical school during the pre-match offer period without the risk of an offer being withdrawn by a medical school during the pre-match offer period. 
• An applicant who receives more than one offer should decline any offer from a school that he/she/they does not plan to attend as soon as that decision is made. 
• Offers of acceptance should only be considered valid if an acceptance letter is received. Verbal offers of acceptance or ranking are not binding to either the applicant or medical schools

Who is eligible to receive Pre-Match offers?

Only medical applicants who are Texas residents are eligible to receive Pre-Match offers.

 

When can I receive a Pre-Match offer?

Timeline:

October 15 – April 30: Admissions decisions for non-Texas resident medical applicants are sent out. These applicants are not included in the Match, ranking, or Pre-Match Offers but may receive multiple offers from more than one school.

Applicable only to Texas resident medical applicants
October 15 – January 31: Texas resident applicants can receive Pre-Match Offers during this time.

February 17: Ranking of School Preference for the Match is due by 5 p.m. CST. As a Texas resident applicant, you can rank the schools you have interviewed at by logging into the TMDSAS Application Portal. (Please note that the schools must update your status on their end before you are able to see the option to rank them.) You can save and make changes to your ranking up until the Feb. 17 deadline.

March 3: TMDSAS Match Day results are released at 8 a.m. CST. The Match pairs applicants with schools and the rolling admissions begins.

Applicable to both non-Texas resident and Texas resident medical applicants
April 30: Non-Texas and Texas resident medial applicants with multiple offers must decide which program to attend and withdraw from all other schools.

Review Deadlines & Important Dates and the Application Timeline.

 

What do I do after receiving a Pre-Match offer?

Make sure to follow the instructions the schools have given you following your Pre-Match Offer. A deposit may be needed if you wish to hold a spot (as instructed by your school). However, that is handled on the school’s end, not TMDSAS. Schools can see if you have received a Pre-Match Offer from other schools, but that will not affect your chances of receiving additional offers.

For example: School A can see that School B extended a Pre-Match Offer, even if School A hasn't extended an offer yet. School A can still extend an offer.

Remember to rank the schools you have interviewed at, even if you’ve only been interviewed at one school. Review How Do I select My School Preferences? for more information.

 

How many offers are made to Texas residents prior to the Match date?

Data collected from EY 2021 indicates that it’s actually not very common for applicants to receive Pre-Match offers before the Match. Only 830 offers went out to 502 applicants of the total 3,508 applicants interviewed.

 

What if I don’t receive a Pre-Match offer?

Don’t worry! As you saw from the data above, schools extend a small number of Pre-Match Offers. Remember: of the small number of Pre-Match offers going out, they do not all go out on October 15.

You could receive a Pre-Match Offer anywhere between October 15 – January 31. You are also still eligible to gain admission at your school of choice through the Match AND after the Match once rolling admissions begin!

The deadline to submit your Ranking of School Preference is February 17 and you can update this list until the deadline. Read How Do I Select My School Preferences? and What is the Match? for more information. Watch the TMDSAS Office Hour: Medical Acceptances with TMDSAS Director, Enrique Jasso, to learn more about this process and to see the FAQs from other applicants who are also going through this process, just like you.

Good luck!

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Inside Health Education

• Topics: Pre-Med,  TMDSAS,  AppTips
• Authors: TMDSAS Support
• Date:  October 15, 2021