SCHOOL OF SCIENCE
Preparing for Medical and
Other Professional Schools:
A Year-by-Year Plan
Notice to all students considering applying to medical school (or dental or veterinary schools). Please read the proposed schedule carefully to maximize your chances of being accepted to medical school.
First and Second Semesters
a. If you plan on majoring in Biology, enroll in the classes suggested in the Biology program's Web pages. If you plan another major, note that to be accepted you must have a minimum of one year of biology with labs, one year of general (inorganic) chemistry with labs, one year of organic chemistry with labs, one year of physics with labs, one year of math (calculus in many cases), and courses in humanities, social sciences, and other courses that differ among schools.
b. Develop good study habits now. Typically, students who do poorly in their first year have a very difficult time bringing their grades back up to where they belong.
c. Study, study, study, and learn!
d. Take a pre-health first-year seminar, if available.
e. Always look at a medical career as one possible career; you need to be flexible in your goals. Many students' interests change over the years, and they find themselves more interested in other aspects of biology, or other majors.
After Your First Year
a. Seek out an opportunity to work in the medical field. Volunteer, apply for jobs, shadow a doctor, whatever. You should be able to talk about the medical profession as one who has been "on the inside."
b. As an alternative or as a complementary task, seek out a research opportunity.
c. Perhaps purchase an MCAT study guide (found at many book stores) and review the basic structure of the exam
Third and Fourth Semesters
a. Study, study, study, and learn!
b. How are you doing in all of your classes so far? If your GPA is below a 3.0, you may need to consider your options, unless you have a specific understanding of why you GPA is low. If your second semester showed a marked improvement over your first semester and all indications are that this year will be even better, then keep up the good work! If your grades are consistent and low, maybe you should evaluate your options. Many students who now have very satisfying jobs (mentally and economically) were once pre-med students. They found very exciting careers in other areas of biology.
c. Start to plan your application strategy. What schools are you interested in? Check out their Web pages.
After Your Second Year
a. See "after your first year."
b. Start studying for the MCAT exam. You should buy a good MCAT book and/ or software package. Your should devote two to three hours a day studying material for the MCAT exam (yes, you must study in the summer, medical school admission is extremely competitive and you must be willing to do whatever it takes).
Fifth and Sixth Semesters
a. Continue studying for your MCAT exams.
b. Start drafting you personal statement, you should have several people read and critique it - several times.
c. Take the MCAT in April. Too many students take the MCAT in August after their third year. This is very dangerous. Medical schools on a "rolling admissions" program will start accepting students in the summer the year before hoped for admission. Your scores for the April exam are available in June, your scores for the August exam are available in November! Also if you wish to retake the exam; if you took them in August, you would have to reapply for the following year.
d. Start deciding which faculty you will approach for a letter of recommendation. You should choose a minimum of two science faculty and one non-science faculty. Some schools have even more requirements about the letters.
After Your Third Year
a. Apply via the application services, if the school(s) you apply to require them. The AMCAS service is used by most allopathic schools, the ACOMMAS is used by osteopathic schools, the state of Texas has its own application service, and some school require a separate application. AMCAS and ACOMMAS applications are now available on disk (via Internet download), this method is strongly recommended.
b. When schools receive your completed application package from the application services, they will decided whether or not to ask you to specifically apply to their school. They will send you a school-specific application form (the "secondary application"). There is no standard form in this case.
c. When you send in your secondary applications, you will also be required to have a committee letter of recommendation sent. Your individual letters will be sent to your health professions adviser, who will write a summary letter based on these letters and the adviser's own interaction with you.
That summary letter and copies of the individual letters will be sent to the schools you advise the health professions adviser to send them. Get the individual letters started as soon as possible. It takes several weeks, at best, for health professions adviser to receive all the letters. There are specific forms that are available from the health professions adviser that must accompany the individual letters, see the health professions adviser before asking the individual faculty for letters.
d. Save lots of money! The applications are not cheap. If you are invited for an interview; the cost of travel, lodging, and eating are borne by you. Medical school application is a very expensive ordeal.
Seven and Eighth Semesters
a. At this time, you have (hopefully) done all you could possibly do. Check that each school you applied to has received your application and all supporting materials. As you submit a secondary application, make sure the health professions adviser is notified of the need for a letter, with plenty of advance warning.
b. Relax. At this stage of your life, you have done what you can. If your get in--rreat! If you do not get in, there are many alternatives. Visit your health professions adviser for advise on such alternatives as reapplying next year, going into another medical profession, studying for advanced degrees, or whatever. You have many options.
In summary, important items to help you to get into medical school:
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Grades: GPA minimum 3.2, should be: 3.5+.
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MCAT: 8-9 minimum, should be 10+ for each of the three sections.
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Letters of recommendations need to be outstanding.
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Health and research-related activities.
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Extra-curricular activities while in college--make time to get involved in some activities, such as clubs related to major, Tri-Beta, or other honor or service organizations.
Good luck in the difficult endeavor. We at Penn State Behrend are here to help you in any way we can.