MSPE, Transcripts and Medical School Documents for IMGs

The MSPE and your medical school transcript are the two school-issued documents in your ERAS file, and for IMGs they travel a different route from the one US students use. You tell MyERAS whether you or your school will send each document to ECFMG's ERAS document office, and ECFMG then uploads it into ERAS for programs to see. Most delays come from schools that are slow, not from the applicant's own steps.

What each document is #

These rules come from the AAMC 2027 applicant guide. The guide says IMG residency applicants must indicate in MyERAS whether they or their medical school will provide the MSPE and the medical school transcript to the ERAS Documents office at ECFMG, and that answers can be changed until you certify and submit.

What programs see and why it matters #

The MSPE is where a program learns things that no score shows: clerkship performance, your school's description of you, and anything the school notes about interruptions or professionalism. NRMP's 2026 Program Director Survey lists the MSPE, clerkship grades, class ranking and "evidence of continuous medical education without gaps" among the factors programs were asked about when selecting applicants for interview. The survey is a sample (12.7% response rate in 2026), so treat it as an indication, not a rule for any one program.

For IMGs the MSPE also carries weight because programs may not know your school. A clear, English, complete MSPE with consistent dates helps a reader trust the rest of the file.

The steps, in order #

1. Ask your school early what it sends, in what format, and by when. Some schools take weeks to issue an MSPE, and many will not release it before final-year grades are in.
2. Answer the MyERAS question about who provides the MSPE and the transcript. See the MyERAS walkthrough.
3. Check whether your school participates in ECFMG's ERAS support services. According to search summaries of ECFMG's pages, a participating school uploads documents on your behalf through ECFMG's entity portal. If you hold a copy yourself, ECFMG describes an upload route for that case, and official student copies are described as acceptable.
4. Handle translation. Documents not in English need a translation that meets ECFMG's rules.
5. Track status in MyERAS. The applicant dashboard shows each document as Not Uploaded or Uploaded. Do not certify and submit and then assume the documents are fine.
6. Know the review date. The AAMC guide gives a date in late September when programs may begin reviewing MyERAS applications and MSPEs. See the ERAS timeline. ECFMG notes that it does not expedite document processing, so submit well before it.

If the transcript is the problem #

If your school does not participate or cannot produce a transcript in time, ECFMG describes a request to transfer the transcript it verified during your certification into MyERAS. Search summaries place this under the document upload tab. Check the current page for eligibility and timing. This is one more reason to keep your ECFMG certification steps clean.

When the MSPE contains a weakness #

An MSPE can contain things you cannot edit: a low class standing, a remediated course, a leave of absence. Do not try to alter or hide it. Programs read the MSPE and compare it with the application, so a gap the MSPE mentions and your application omits looks worse than one you explained.

MyERAS also asks whether you had academic or professional extensions, leaves, gaps or breaks tied to repeated coursework or professionalism sanctions, and the guide says the section is not meant to collect health, disability or family information. Answer truthfully and briefly. For the rest of the file, see gap years and failed exam attempts.

Checklist before you certify #

• Your school has confirmed in writing what it will send and when.
• MyERAS shows who provides the MSPE and the transcript.
• Dates on your application match the MSPE and transcript.
• Translations are done and meet ECFMG requirements.
• You know the date programs begin reviewing MSPEs.