Premed Coursework

Jump to a topic:

• Premed coursework requirements
• NU Courses that fulfill requirements
• Academic assistance for premed courses
• Importance of your science GPA

Premed Coursework Requirements

Most medical schools require the following courses:

• General chemistry - one year with lab
• Organic chemistry - one year with lab
• Biology - one year with lab
• Physics - one year with lab

Additional courses that may be required:

• English/writing intensive courses - one year
• Math: 2 - 3 quarters of calculus (some programs may replace the 3rd quarter of calculus with a stats course)
• Biochemistry
• Behavior and Social Sciences
• Humanities courses
• Statistics
• Advanced biology electives

Common additional course requirements:

• University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine (UIC-COM) behavioral science requirement:  In the behavioral/social sciences (e.g. psychology, sociology, anthropology, economics or gender studies) applicants must have two courses in one area and one course in another area. 
• UIC-COM biology requirement: one advanced-level biology course in addition to the year of basic biology
• Texas medical schools: Almost all require 2 full years of biology coursework
• California medical schools: Many require 1 ½ years of biology coursework

Note: This is not a definitive list; rather, these are common additional requirements that affect our students.

The Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR) guide includes table of premedical course requirements for each MD program. MSARs can be purchased online.

AP Policy

• There is no uniform acceptance policy for AP credit for all medical schools.
• Most medical schools will accept AP credit but will require or prefer that an applicant take upper level coursework in the same area to replace the AP credit. 
• Exceptions: A small number of schools (notably some California schools) have stricter requirements and do not accept AP.
• Check a medical school's admission website to be certain of the most current policies.

NU courses that fulfill requirements

General Chemistry

• Chem 101/121, 102/122, 103/123 or
  
• Chem 171/181, 172/182 with at least one AP or department test credit in general chemistry

Organic Chemistry

• Chem 210-1,2,3; Chem 230-2,3 (labs) or
  
• Chem 212-1,2,3; Chem 232-1,2 (labs) (primarily for chemistry majors and students in ISP)

Biology                        

• BIOLSCI 215, 216, 217 with independent labs (220,221,222 - .34 credit each) will fulfill the med schools' full year of Bio requirement. 
• We strongly recommend students take BIOLSCI 218-Biochemistry as well (a required course for the Bio major).
• Before academic year 12-13:  Biological Sciences 210-1,2,3 fulfilled this requirement

or

• Biological Sciences 110-1,2,3 or starting in Summer 2013, BIOLSCI 215, 216, 217
  Note:
  • Summer Session only
  • For all majors, except Bio majors

or

• Biological Sciences 212 - 1, 2
  Note:
  • ISP majors only
  • Taking additional biology coursework is recommended

Physics                                    

• Physics 130-1,2,3 (algebra-based)

or

• Physics 135-1,2,3 (calculus-based)
  Note:
  • Required by Physics and Engineering majors
  • Engineering majors can skip 135-1 (covered in Eng Analysis sequence)

Mathematics                       

• Math 220 and 224
  Note:
  • Most med schools that required a full year of calculus now will accept a stats course to complete the full year of math
  • A few programs (e.g. Case Western's MD/PhD program) may require completion of Math 230
  • Students planning on taking the Physics 135 sequence must also take Math 230

or                                   

• Math 212,213,214

English: 3 English/writing intensive courses

Note:

• WCAS majors: Freshmen seminars usually count for 2 courses; WCAS students may need to add an English literature or comparative literature course to fulfill the one-year English requirement
• Engineering majors: English 106-1 and 106-2 count for 1 course; English 105 and 205 are recommended to fulfill requirement

Academic assistance for premed courses

The following resources are available to assist you with premed coursework:

• Meet with your professor using his or her office hours.
• Meet with Melissa Pollay, the general/cross-college adviser in our office, regarding time management, test-taking strategies, study skills.
• Visit our Academic Support Services page for links to tutoring resources.
• Gateway Science Workshops is a peer-led program designed to enhance students' learning as they successfully complete course sequences in chemistry, organic chemistry, biology, math, physics, and engineering.

Check with your adviser in your school about additional resources

Importance of your science GPA

What goes into the science GPA?

• MD programs include all courses in biology, chemistry, physics and math (BCPM)
• DO programs consider all courses in biology, chemistry and physics  

Why is your science GPA important?

Medical schools use the science GPA along with the MCAT score to evaluate whether you can be academically successful in their programs.