The University of Louisville School of Medicine secondary application has several short and diverse essay prompts. To answer the questions as thorough as possible, you should make the most of every character on the University of Louisville secondary application. Additionally, it’s important to emphasize why University of Louisville and your affiliations with Kentucky. Read all of our University of Louisville Medical School secondary application tips for individual essays below.
The University of Louisville secondary application essay prompts changed recently in the 2023-2024 application cycle, so we would not recommend pre-writing the secondary essays this year.
Our Cracking Med School Admissions team has successfully helped students submit strong University of Louisville secondary applications and perform well on their University of Louisville interviews, resulting in acceptances. We’re happy to help you give you feedback on your University of Louisville secondary application through our secondary essay packages.
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University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2025 – 2026
- Why are you choosing to apply to the University of Louisville School of Medicine? (150 words)
- (New) Describe any additional experiences, interests, hobbies, or skills not included in other areas of your application or that you have completed since submitting your AMCAS application. (150 words)
- (If Reapplicant) what has changed from your previous application or your approach to this year’s admissions cycle? (150 words)
- What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you? (150 words)
- Is there any context for your undergraduate years that would help the committee to understand your academic performance? For example, students who come from rural areas, who worked long hours in paid employment during college, or who are first generation college graduates may not have the same access to opportunities and support as students from other environments. (150 words)
- What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you? (1,000 characters max)
- The University of Louisville School of Medicine’s mission is to improve the health of our patients and the diverse communities we serve through excellence and leadership in education, patient care, research and community engagement. Describe how your life experiences and personal attributes prepare you to provide excellent and equitable care to diverse patient populations. (150 words)
- Which areas of medical practice are you interested in pursuing during residency? How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training, including location? (150 words)
Tips to Answer University of Louisville Secondary Application Essays
University of Louisville Secondaries Pre-Writing Guidance: The University of Louisville School of Medicine changes its secondary essays prompts frequently (including last year). We would not pre-write this but start writing this as soon as you receive the official secondary!
- Download all our HIGH-YIELD tips for secondary essays: Cracking Med School Admissions Secondary Essay Guide
University of Louisville School of Medicine Secondary Application Tip #1: It is absolutely important to discuss why you want to serve the Kentucky population, specifically in Louisville. If you have any ties to the area or medical school, definitely discuss them. Additionally, for the University of Louisville School of Medicine secondary application question, “Why are you choosing to apply to the University of Louisville School of Medicine?“
- Read our HIGH-YIELD blog post on how to answer “Why this medical school” to help you explain which campus you prefer: Why this Medical School? Secondary Essay Example
- Discuss specific opportunities and faculty you want to work with at University of Louisville Medical School
- Write about why it’s important for you to serve Kansas state residents and specific community opportunities in Louisville
University of Louisville School of Medicine Secondary Application Tip #2: For the University of Louisville School of Medicine secondary application question, “Describe your most significant personal accomplishments and/or experiences and how these may relate to your potential to contribute to the medical community” – this is a great place to include a patient story or discuss how you impacted an individual’s life.
University of Louisville School of Medicine Secondary Application Tip #3: For the University of Louisville School of Medicine secondary application question, “What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you” you have enough space to tell a story from one of your service activities. Then, you should write a reflection about what you learned and how it applies to your career in medicine.
University of Louisville School of Medicine Secondary Application Tip #4: For the University of Louisville School of Medicine secondary application question, “Academic productivity and the ability to engage in extracurricular achievements can be impacted by a number of challenges. For example, students who come from rural areas, who held regular employment during college years, or who are the first in their families to graduate from college may not have the same access to opportunities and support as students from other environments. Adversity can shape both the person you are and what you have to offer your future classmates, colleagues and patients. Please describe any challenges that you consider significant in your lived experience” we would not talk about getting a B- in one of your classes. However, if you had a rough semester (or two) for personal reasons, you can discuss it here.
Regardless of what topic you write about, make sure you discuss what you learned from the challenging situation and how you grew from it. You can also discuss if you were able to apply your lessons learned to future endeavors. For example, if you had a sports injury and had to balance physical therapy + rehab + school, you can discuss how the better time management helped you in future semesters.
University of Louisville School of Medicine Secondary Application Tip #5: For the University of Louisville School of Medicine secondary application question, “Discuss briefly why you have decided to pursue medicine and how your personal characteristics align with those you believe are most needed by physicians,” key elements our Cracking Med School Admissions team looks for is whether you write the following:
- How the experience shaped your views about becoming a physician
- What you learned about the role and responsibility of a physician
- What are your values? How does your personal values align with the type of physician you want to be?
University of Louisville School of Medicine Secondary Application Tip #6: Contact us if you have any questions of the University of Louisville School of Medicine secondary application. We can help you on all your secondary applications and help you tailor your responses through our secondary essay packages.
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University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2024 – 2025
- Why are you choosing to apply to the University of Louisville School of Medicine? (500 characters max)
- Academic productivity and the ability to engage in extracurricular achievements can be impacted by a number of challenges. For example, students who come from rural areas, who held regular employment during college years, or who are the first in their families to graduate from college may not have the same access to opportunities and support as students from other environments. Adversity can shape both the person you are and what you have to offer your future classmates, colleagues and patients. Please describe any challenges that you consider significant in your lived experience. (500 characters max)
- What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you? (1,000 characters max)
- The University of Louisville School of Medicine’s mission is to improve the health of our patients and the diverse communities we serve through excellence and leadership in education, patient care, research and community engagement. Describe how your life experiences and personal attributes prepare you to provide excellent and equitable care to diverse patient populations. (500 characters max)
- Which areas of medical practice are you interested in pursuing during residency? How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training, including location? (500 characters max)
- If you are not a Kentucky resident, please explain any personal or familial ties to the Commonwealth of Kentucky. If you are a Kentucky resident type “Not Applicable” in the text box below. (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2023 – 2024
- Why are you choosing to apply to the University of Louisville School of Medicine? (500 characters max)
- List the individuals who are providing letters of recommendation as a component of your complete secondary application (for example, Committee letter/institution name, Professor Smith/academic subject, etc.) The letter of recommendation policy can be found by copying and pasting the following URL into your browser Submit Letters of Recommendation — School of Medicine University of Louisville. (500 characters max)
- Describe your most significant personal accomplishments and/or experiences and how these may relate to your potential to contribute to the medical community. (500 characters max)
- What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you? (1,000 characters max)
- Academic productivity and the ability to engage in extracurricular achievements can be impacted by a number of challenges. For example, students who come from rural areas, who held regular employment during college years, or who are the first in their families to graduate from college may not have the same access to opportunities and support as students from other environments. Adversity can shape both the person you are and what you have to offer your future classmates, colleagues and patients. Please describe any challenges that you consider significant in your lived experience. (500 characters max)
- The University of Louisville School of Medicine’s mission is to improve the health of our patients and the diverse communities we serve through excellence and leadership in education, patient care, research and community engagement. Describe how your life experiences and personal attributes prepare you to provide excellent and equitable care to diverse patient populations. (500 characters max)
- List and describe any additional experiences, interests, hobbies, or skills not included in other areas of your application or that you have completed since submitting your AMCAS application. (500 characters max)
- What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you? (1,000 characters max)
- Practice after residency: How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training? (Please include choice of medical practice and location). (500 characters max)
- If you are a reapplicant, what has changed from your previous application or your approach to this year’s admissions cycle? (250 characters max)
- If you are not a Kentucky resident, please explain any personal or familial ties to the Commonwealth of Kentucky. If you are a Kentucky resident type “Not Applicable” in the text box below. (500 characters max)
- Please list each place of permanent residence, beginning from birth, including the City, County, State, years in residence, and estimated population size. (1,000 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2022 - 2023
- Why are you choosing to apply to the University of Louisville School of Medicine? (500 characters max)
- How well did your high school prepare you for college? (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Describe your most significant personal accomplishments and/or experiences and how these may relate to your potential to contribute to the medical community. (1,000 characters max)
- What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you? (1,000 characters max)
- How have your cultural experiences shaped the way you see yourself contributing to the medical field and strengthened your ability to provide equitable care for a diverse patient population? (1,000 characters max)
- (Optional) List and describe any additional experiences, interests, hobbies, or skills not included in other areas of your application or that you have completed since submitting your AMCAS application. (500 characters max)
- How has the pandemic affected the way you view the healthcare system and/or see yourself contributing to the medical field? (1,000 characters max)
- Discuss briefly why you have decided to pursue medicine and how your personal characteristics align with those you believe are most needed by physicians. (500 characters max)
- Practice after residency: How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training? (Please include choice of medical practice and location). (500 characters max)
- What career(s) would you consider if you could not be a physician and why? (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2021 - 2022
- Why are you choosing to apply to the University of Louisville School of Medicine? (500 characters max)
- How well did your high school prepare you for college? (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Describe your most significant personal accomplishments and/or experiences and how these may relate to your potential to contribute to the medical community. (1,000 characters max)
- What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you? (1,000 characters max)
- How have your cultural experiences shaped the way you see yourself contributing to the medical field and strengthened your ability to provide equitable care for a diverse patient population? (1,000 characters max)
- (Optional) List and describe any additional experiences, interests, hobbies, or skills not included in other areas of your application or that you have completed since submitting your AMCAS application. (500 characters max)
- How has the pandemic affected the way you view the healthcare system and/or see yourself contributing to the medical field? (1,000 characters max)
- Discuss briefly why you have decided to pursue medicine and how your personal characteristics align with those you believe are most needed by physicians. (500 characters max)
- Practice after residency: How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training? (Please include choice of medical practice and location). (500 characters max)
- What career(s) would you consider if you could not be a physician and why? (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2020 - 2021
- Why are you choosing to apply to the University of Louisville School of Medicine? (500 characters max)
- How well did your high school prepare you for college? (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Describe your most significant personal accomplishments and/or experiences and how these may relate to your potential to contribute to the medical community. (1,000 characters max)
- What has been your most significant contribution to your community, through service or volunteerism? What was its impact on the community and on you? (1,000 characters max)
- How have your cultural experiences shaped the way you see yourself contributing to the medical field and strengthened your ability to provide equitable care for a diverse patient population? (1,000 characters max)
- (Optional) List and describe any additional experiences, interests, hobbies, or skills not included in other areas of your application or that you have completed since submitting your AMCAS application. (500 characters max)
- How has the pandemic affected the way you view the healthcare system and/or see yourself contributing to the medical field? (1,000 characters max)
- Discuss briefly why you have decided to pursue medicine and how your personal characteristics align with those you believe are most needed by physicians. (500 characters max)
- Practice after residency: How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training? (Please include choice of medical practice and location). (500 characters max)
- What career(s) would you consider if you could not be a physician and why? (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2019 – 2020
- If you are an out of state student, please explain your interest in attending the University of Louisville School of Medicine. (500 characters max)
- How well did your high school prepare you for college? (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Please discuss your research experience, including any publications and/or curriculum vitae. (500 characters max)
- Foreign Travel (500 characters max)
- Interests & Hobbies (500 characters max)
- Describe any other areas in which you possess interest, expertise or skill. E.g., musicianship of a professional caliber, published writing, language spoken fluently, union level in trades, certification in other professional areas, scouting, etc. (500 characters max)
- What career(s) would you probably consider if you could not be a physician? (500 characters max)
- How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training? (Please include choice of medical practice and location) (500 characters max)
- Discuss briefly why you have decided to pursue a M.D. degree program. (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2018 – 2019
- If you are an out of state student, please explain your interest in attending the University of Louisville School of Medicine. (500 characters max)
- How well did your high school prepare you for college? (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Please discuss your research experience, including any publications and/or curriculum vitae. (500 characters max)
- Foreign Travel (500 characters max)
- Interests & Hobbies (500 characters max)
- Describe any other areas in which you possess interest, expertise or skill. E.g., musicianship of a professional caliber, published writing, language spoken fluently, union level in trades, certification in other professional areas, scouting, etc. (500 characters max)
- What career(s) would you probably consider if you could not be a physician? (500 characters max)
- How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training? (Please include choice of medical practice and location) (500 characters max)
- Discuss briefly why you have decided to pursue a M.D. degree program. (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2017 – 2018
- If you are an out of state student, please explain your interest in attending the University of Louisville School of Medicine. (500 characters max)
- How well did your high school prepare you for college? (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Please discuss your research experience, including any publications and/or curriculum vitae. (500 characters max)
- Foreign Travel (500 characters max)
- Interests & Hobbies (500 characters max)
- Describe any other areas in which you possess interest, expertise or skill. E.g., musicianship of a professional caliber, published writing, language spoken fluently, union level in trades, certification in other professional areas, scouting, etc. (500 characters max)
- What career(s) would you probably consider if you could not be a physician? (500 characters max)
- How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training? (Please include choice of medical practice and location) (500 characters max)
- Discuss briefly why you have decided to pursue a M.D. degree program. (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2016 – 2017
- How well did your high school prepare you for college? (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Please discuss your research experience, including any publications and/or curriculum vitae. (500 characters max)
- Foreign Travel (500 characters max)
- Interests & Hobbies (500 characters max)
- Describe any other areas in which you possess interest, expertise or skill. E.g., musicianship of a professional caliber, published writing, language spoken fluently, union level in trades, certification in other professional areas, scouting, etc. (500 characters max)
- What career(s) would you probably consider if you could not be a physician? (500 characters max)
- How do you see yourself practicing medicine after residency training? (Please include choice of medical practice and location) (500 characters max)
- Discuss briefly why you have decided to pursue a M.D. degree program. (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2015 – 2016
- If you are an out of state student, please explain your interest in attending the University of Louisville School of Medicine. (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Please discuss your research experience, including any publications and/or curriculum vitae. (500 characters max)
University of Louisville Secondary Application Questions: 2014 – 2015
- If you are an out of state student, please explain your interest in attending the University of Louisville School of Medicine. (500 characters max)
- What determined your choice of college(s)? (500 characters max)
- How do you assess your college record? (500 characters max)
- Please describe any circumstances adversely affecting your academic performance while in college. (500 characters max)
- Please discuss your research experience, including any publications and/or curriculum vitae. (500 characters max)