Even if you’re just starting out on your pre-med journey, you’ve probably heard of Casper, the situational judgment test that some medical schools ask applicants to take as a way to evaluate their personal qualities. However, you might be less familiar with another piece of the Casper test called Duet.
In this guide, I will go over everything you need to know about taking Duet for medical school so you can go into it fully prepared and ready to make the most of it!
This post is all about duet for medical school.
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Everything You Need To Know About Duet For Medical School
What Is Duet?
Duet is an untimed, computer-based assessment designed to evaluate how your values align with different medical schools. Every medical program is unique, and it can be hard to figure out which ones will align with your preferences based solely on what you learn from their websites. Duet attempts to bridge that gap between medical schools and prospective students.
Through a series of 100 multiple choice questions, Duet assesses your values and preferences and makes sure they align with a potential medical school’s mission. You won’t be able to see your Duet results as they are only sent to schools, but it can be a good tool to help you think about what you want in a school as well.
How Long Does Duet Take?
Duet is a very quick test, clocking in at about 15 minutes for most students. It’s untimed, so, theoretically, you can take as long as you need, but the questions are multiple choice. Plus, Duet encourages you to go with your gut instead of thinking too hard about your answers. After all, none of them are wrong answers since the questions are simply assessing your values and how they align with certain medical schools.
Is Duet Required for Medical School?
At the moment, Duet is not required for every medical school. It is required by some on a case-by-case basis, but it is not a general requirement for all pre-med students. However, since the time investment for taking Duet is so minimal, it may be a good idea to go ahead with it even if the schools currently on your list don’t require it. You might choose to add one later that does call for Duet, and you don’t want to be left scrambling to get the test done at the last minute.
How Is Duet Scored?
Your Duet exam will be automatically scored by comparing your responses to questions with the values and preferences outlined by each school.
Is There a Registration Fee for Duet?
There is a registration fee of $85 for Casper, but there isn’t a fee for Duet itself. You can take the test completely free of charge as part of your Casper package!
How to Prepare for Duet
Preparing for Duet is easy, especially compared to other aspects of your med school application. Let’s go over the steps you can follow to make sure you’re ready for it!
1. Know Your Deadlines
Since the tests go together, you will take Duet at about the same time you take Casper. Casper test dates pop up about once a month, so you can choose an appropriate test date based on the deadlines outlined by the schools on your list.
In my experience, it’s always best to be early whenever possible, especially when it comes to the medical school application cycle. With that in mind, it’s a good idea to take Casper in the spring (usually in April or May). If you are already a bit further into your application cycle, keep in mind that not finishing those tests beforehand might delay your secondary applications since schools that require any of them usually don’t start to review them until your results are in.
After you complete the test, you’ll be able to move onto taking Duet. A deadline will even show up in your account that recommends you complete Duet within the 14 days after your Casper test so that your results can be delivered together.
2. Don’t Worry About Practice
The beauty of Duet is that you don’t really need to practice anything! There is no Duet practice test because there’s very little prep necessary. Your score is based on your own personal values. These don’t require any studying on your part since they’re just part of who you are.
That being said, it doesn’t hurt to do some research into the values of schools on your list. Looking up their core values and mission statements on their websites can give you an idea of what they might be looking for in potential students. I don’t recommend changing your answers to try to match with a top school on your list though. It’s best to let things work out naturally. Otherwise, you might end up in a program that doesn’t align with you at all.
3. Spend Some Time Reflecting on Your Values
This step is important even if you don’t end up taking Duet. Knowing your values and what you want in a medical school can really help you narrow down your choices. You will also be able to pick out a program that’s going to suit you in every way possible. After all, you’re going to be investing a lot of time and effort into whichever school you choose. So you want it to be one you enjoy attending.
As you reflect, consider what makes you passionate about pursuing medicine. This is also a crucial step for writing your personal statement. It might help to write out your answers or talk about them with a friend or advisor so you can think them through all the way. I always recommend chatting with current med students or medical professionals in your life. You may be able to gain inspiration from their answers and flesh out your own a bit more.
If you are applying to medical school this or next cycle, I share the key strategies that helped me receive 10 acceptances in my Free Premed Workshop.
In this jam-packed workshop session, you will learn my step-by-step framework for writing your personal statement, the exact strategy to not sounding cliché, how to cast a wide net and identify residency bias and much more. Don’t miss it since I also dive into very common mistakes you want to avoid at all cost!
Benefits of Taking Duet
Since Duet isn’t required by all medical schools, you might be tempted to just skip it completely. But, there are some important benefits to taking Duet, even if the schools on your list don’t require it.
Learn Your Values
To me, this is the biggest benefit of taking Duet. It can be hard to think critically about your values and what you’re looking for in a medical program on your own. Duet gives you a way to assess your values. They do it by giving you prompts and questions that you might not have considered before. Depending on when you take the test, it might even give you some inspiration for other parts of your application like your personal statement or extracurricular essays.
Be Prepared for Changes
Medical schools change their requirements more often than you think. Sometimes, you can’t be prepared for those changes no matter how hard you try. But, taking Duet is one way to stay on top of potential changes without investing a lot of time and effort.
Duet is a low stakes test that requires basically zero prep from you and takes about 15 minutes to complete. Putting in that 15 minutes now could save you time and stress later on, especially if you end up adding more schools to your list that do require you to submit Duet results.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, taking Duet won’t make or break most medical school applications. If schools on your list require it, you’ll definitely have to take it. However, it can be super helpful to your application journey even when it’s not required. Plus, there’s no additional registration fee for Duet, so why not give it a try?
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