UB Prehealth Advising

Health Careers

Medicine

• Medical Admission Myths Versus Realities (PDF)

About the Profession

Medical Schools: To apply usually requires 5 achievements:

• Complete a bachelor's degree in any major.
• Achieve excellent grades; most recently admitted students had overall and science GPAs of 3.6 and 3.55, with non-science GPAs near 3.7 for allopathic schools and 3.37 and 3.25 for osteopathic schools.
• Earn a good score on the MCAT (Medical College Admissions Test). Average scores for recently admitted allopathic and osteopathic students were 29.9 and 24, respectively.
• Obtain a University Prehealth Committee evaluation letter.
• Involve yourself in sincere, sustained health related volunteer and research experience.

Allopathic

Education is in the biomedical sciences for the Medical Doctor (MD) degree. Four years of medical school followed by 3 to 7 years of residency depending on the specialty. There are 125 medical schools in the US all of which belong to the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) and most participate in the centralized American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS). Information on individual schools may be obtained from the Medical School Admissions Requirements (MSAR), published annually by the AAMC. NY State has 11 schools: four are public - SUNY at Buffalo, Brooklyn, Syracuse, and Stony Brook.

Osteopathic

Education is in the biomedical sciences for the Doctor of Osteopathy (DO) degree. Schooling is similar to allopathic with additional training in osteopathic philosophy of preventative medicine and manipulative techniques of osteopathy. There are currently 28 schools that belong to the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) and subscribe to the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Application Service (AACOMAS). There are several new schools slated to be opened over the next several years. There are now two schools in NY: the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine in Old Westbury (which is private) and the Touro College in Harlem.

Course Requirements

Start planning as a freshman to meet the following course requirements: A minimum of one year each of Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Biology, and Physics, all with a year of lab; one year of English; and one year of Math recommended. Many schools strongly recommend biochemistry. Below are the UB courses we recommended to meet these requirements:

• Some medical schools may have additional courses required or recommended. Review the Medical School Admissions Requirements (MSAR) in the Preprofessional Health Advisor's Office, the Undergraduate Library, or purchase your own copy from the UB bookstore.
• All required courses must be taken for a grade. Each school has its own policy about AP credit. Usually, AP credit in these areas should be followed with additional upper level work in the discipline including labs. AP credit in math is the only subject in which more advanced work is not necessarily required.

Additional Courses

To further strengthen your application, here are some additional UB courses you could take:

• Students not majoring in Biology should seriously consider taking BIO 205 and PGY 300.

Timetables

• A Working Plan
• Your Plan Form (PDF)

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