How do I prepare for CASPA?

[OlaPA]

I am applying this April and I’m very nervous. Can anyone give any tips and guidance about anything in regard to CASPA?

[TheFatMan]

Depending on how many schools you plan on applying to, make sure you set aside plenty of time to work on it. It wouldn't hurt to get a copy of your transcripts ahead of time as you will need to manually input all of your courses. You can obviously start working on your personal statement now and start having people look over it if you wish. For me, the PS was the most time consuming part. 

[emilymuff]

In addition to working on your PS, I would make a CASPA account now, if you haven't already, and go through it to familiarize yourself with it. 

There is a lot you can do ahead of time, make sure to double check what things transfer from this cycle to the next though. Another unexpected time-consumer is the descriptions of your experiences/volunteering. Like your PS, you can work on these in a separate word doc then copy/paste when the time comes. 

Also, make sure you kindly remind your LOR writers that their recommendations are going to be due soon. I plan on reminding mine at the beginning of April, and that they are going to be due during the first week of May...even though there is no hard deadline, my top choice program has rolling admissions. 

Another tip, if you have classes from multiple schools, then start to gather your official transcripts so you can manually enter them. 

With all that said, I think the PS is the highest priority and just familiarizing yourself with the entire CASPA application will make you more comfortable with the process. 

Best,

Emily