Medical Student Performance Evaluation (MSPE)

The MSPE (“Dean’s Letter”) is prepared for all senior students by a faculty committee that includes the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, Clinical Services. The document is a key part of the residency application packet.

If for any reason, a student believes that the assigned MSPE writer cannot prepare the letter in an unbiased manner, the student may request that the letter be completed by another member of the committee.

The document is a letter of evaluation, NOT a letter of recommendation. That is, it is intended to be a comprehensive summary of the student’s academic record through the first three years of medical school. The MSPE consists of the student’s progress until the MSPE is submitted on or around October 1st as dictated by the National Residency Match Program (NRMP). It is intended to present the student in the best possible light but also to convey accurate information to a residency program director about the student’s qualifications for graduate medical education.

Unique to Emory’s MSPE is inclusion of information written by the student’s Small Group Advisor as well as information on the student’s Discovery project. Regarding MD/PhD students, who are not expected to do Discovery, expansion of their research from their PhD work will be detailed in that section. For students who complete a Masters program (MPH, MA in Ethics, MSCR), details on their completed thesis will be included.

The MSPE is specialty-neutral and has been standardized by the AAMC across medical schools to include six sections that include the following:

• Identifying information
• Noteworthy characteristics (total of 3)
  • Written by student and edited by the letter writer
• Academic history – date of matriculation and leave/interruption of medical education (if applicable)
• Academic progress – includes student performance on USMLE Step 1 and 2, student GPA, Foundations and Application phases (grades and summative comments), the Discovery phase of the curriculum (unique to Emory), required clerkships in Translation phase completed before July of application year, and small group advisor comments
  • Of note, a bar graph of the cumulative GPA for the Application phase is included with the letter
• Summary paragraph
• Medical school information

View additional information on the MSPE

Process

All graduating medical students should make an appointment to meet with their MSPE writer between April and August of their senior year. Students must provide an up-to-date curriculum vita, 3-5 Noteworthy Characteristics and complete the MSPE form in OASIS, which is required by the dean’s office prior to the scheduled meeting. Each Noteworthy Characteristic should be no more than 6 lines and will be edited by the letter writer in consultation with the student.

Students can review the MSPE for factual accuracy at two points in the MSPE process (after the first and final drafts). All reviews must be done with the oversight of the Office of the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, Clinical Services (in-person or via Zoom). Students who will be out of town during September should notify their MSPE writer as soon as possible. Every effort will be made to have the letter completed before the student departs, so the student can review the final version of the letter in person. For those students who are not able to review their MSPE in the office, they are encouraged to arrange a call in which the MSPE will be read to them by the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, Clinical Services. The MSPE will not be transmitted electronically to students for their review.

All MSPEs are typically transmitted on or around October 1 of each academic year. This can vary, however.

View the most up-to-date timeline on the AAMC website

It should be noted that invitations for residency interviews are sometimes offered before the MSPE is viewed by program directors; therefore, it is important that students submit their applications and letters of recommendation in a timely manner.