Documents for ERAS® Residency Applicants

Each program sets individual requirements for the documents that should be submitted with the MyERAS® application. Be sure to research each program individually to determine those requirements before making document assignments.

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• Sign In to the MyERAS® Portal
• ERAS® Timelines for Residency Applicants
• ERAS Participating Specialties and Programs

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Within your MyERAS account, you may create personal statement(s); identify the people who will write letters of recommendation (LoRs); authorize the release of your Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX-USA) and/or United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) transcripts; and manage all other documents. Below is an overview of each of the main documents used in ERAS. For detailed information, please see the Documents section of the MyERAS User Guide.

Tracking Documents

The dashboard provides a snapshot of the progress of various documents and their statuses in the MyERAS portal.

• Uploaded but Unassigned LoRs - Count of LoRs that have been uploaded but are not assigned to any programs, highlighting that assignments may need to be made.
• Unassigned Personal Statements - Count of Personal Statements that have been saved but are not assigned to any programs, highlighting that assignments may need to be made.
• Latest USMLE Request Status - Current status of the latest request made to NBME or ECFMG (for IMG Residency) after at least one program has been applied to with the USMLE transcriptassigned.
• Latest COMLEX-USA Request Status - Current status of the latest request made to NBOME after at least one program has been applied to with the COMLEX-USA transcript assigned.
• Status of Additional Documents - Status of all other applicable documents as either Not Uploaded or Uploaded.

Photos

The Photo is most often used by programs to help identify applicants when reporting for an interview. Applicants must upload their own Photo in the MyERAS portal by selecting Upload New Photo in the Actions column.

A photo file should not exceed these requirements:

• Dimensions: 2.5 in. x 3.5 in.
• Resolution: 150dpi
• File Size: 150kb

Personal Statement

The personal statement may be used to personalize the application to a specific program or to different specialties. There is not a limit to how many personal statements you may create; however, you may only assign one (1) for each program.

Note: There are a number of websites that provide examples of Personal Statements. Do not copy any information from these sites and use them in your Personal Statements without giving credit to the author. This is considered plagiarism. See the ERAS Investigation Policy

Special Note About Formatting

• Personal Statements must be created in plain text formatting. HTML and other special text formatting, such as bold, italics, underline, text color, and alignment, are not allowed. Personal statements created outside of the MyERAS system should be done in a plain text word processing application such as Notepad (for Windows users) or Text Edit (for Mac Users) to ensure text stays as clean as possible.

LoRs

LoRs must be uploaded through the ERAS Letter of Recommendation Portal (LoRP) by the LoR Author. It is the applicant’s responsibility to follow up with LoR Authors regarding LoRs.

• Creating LoR Entries - You must create a LoR entry for each LoR you intend to use during the application season.
• Confirming LoR Entries - You must confirm a LoR entry before an associated Letter ID can be generated.
• Uploading LoRs - The Letter ID contained in the LoR Request form must be used to upload the associated LoR through the Letter of Recommendation Portal (LoRP).
• Resending New Scores - Applicants must take action in their MyERAS portal to resend USMLE scores to programs previously designated to receive them.

USMLE

The USMLE transcript is required by many MD residency programs as part of an application to be considered for their positions.

• Authorizing the Release for the USMLE Transcript - Applicants must authorize the release of their USMLE transcript in order to make assignments of the USMLE transcript to the programs they designate.
• Paying for the USMLE Transcript - The NBME or ECFMG (for IMG Residency) charges a one time fee of $80 for transmitting USMLE transcripts to the programs designated by applicants.
• Viewing the USMLE Requests Status Report - Applicants can view the USMLE Requests Status Report to track the status of their USMLE requests by program.

COMLEX-USA

The COMLEX-USA transcript is required by many AOA-accredited and ACGME-accredited residency programs as part of a D.O. applicant’s application to be considered for their positions.

• Authorizing the Release for the COMLEX-USA Transcript - Applicants must authorize the release of their COMLEX-USA transcript in order to make assignments of the COMLEX-USA transcript to the programs they designate.
• Paying for the COMLEX-USA Transcript - The NBOME charges a one time fee of $80 for transmitting COMLEX-USA transcripts to the programs designated by applicants.
• Viewing the COMLEX-USA Requests Status Report - Applicants can view the COMLEX-USA Requests Status Report to track the status of their COMLEX-USA requests by program.

MSPE

Uploading: An applicant’s Designated Dean's Office is responsible for uploading the Medical School Performance Evaluation (MSPE or “Dean’s Letter”) into the ERAS system for residency applicants. Find out more in the frequently asked questions section.

IMGs Only: IMG residency applicants must indicate in the MyERAS system if they themselves or their medical school will provide a MSPE to the ERAS Documents office at the ECFMG. Instructions for submission can be found here: https://www.ecfmg.org/eras/applicants-documents-index.html.

Medical School (MS) Transcript

Uploading: An applicant’s Designated Dean's Office is responsible for uploading the MS Transcript into the ERAS system for residency applicants. Find out more in the frequently asked questions section.

• IMG residency applicants must indicate in the MyERAS system if they themselves or their medical school will provide a MS Transcript to the ERAS Documents office at ECFMG. Instructions for submission can be found here:https://www.ecfmg.org/eras/applicants-documents-index.html.
• ECFMG Status Report: The ECFMG Status Report confirms the ECFMG certification status for an IMG residency applicant. This report contains the month and year that examinations were passed for ECFMG Certification, but does not contain your USMLE transcript.
• Uploading: The ECFMG is responsible for uploading the ECFMG Status Report into the ERAS system for IMG residency applicants.