Although a few students are admitted to medical school after three
years of preprofessional training, more than 95 percent of the
students have bachelor's degrees. Therefore, students should pursue
study in degree programs. There is no prescribed curriculum for
premedical students. The majors in life sciences, chemistry, and
biochemistry, and the curriculum in chemical engineering, are
especially suitable since requirements in these curricula overlap to
some extent with medical school requirements. Any major in psychology,
the humanities, social studies, or the fine arts is acceptable for
medical school. Since students who are planning to apply to medical
schools will need a number of science courses (even if they are
majoring in nonscience areas), it is important that students elect
mathematics during the first year since calculus is a prerequisite for
some courses in chemistry, physics, and the life sciences.
Requirements of most American and Canadian medical schools
include see footnote 1 : (1 ) All applicants must take the
Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) as recommended and approved by
the Association of American Medical Colleges. The MCAT must be taken
no later than October of the year prior to enrollment. For information
concerning the test, write to Medical Colleges Test,American Testing
Program, Box 414, 2255 North Dubuque Road, Iowa City, IA 52243. The
application forms can also be obtained from the Health Careers House,
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 901 West Illinois Street,
Urbana, IL 61801. (2) All applicants must submit faculty letters of
evaluation (folder should be opened in the Health Careers House). (3)
An interview may be requested by the committee on admissions.
The American Association of Medical Schools sponsors a
centralized application service, the American Medical College
Application Service (AMCAS). Applications are available from AMCAS,
Section for Student Services, Suite 301, 1776 Massachusetts Avenue,
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036-1989. Application request cards or
applications can be obtained from the Health Careers House, 901 West
Illinois Street, Urbana, IL 61801.
Students who anticipate careers in medicine are advised to
obtain additional information from those medical schools in which they
are interested. Specific admission requirements for individual medical
schools are listed in Medical School Admission Requirements,
published by the Association of American Medical Colleges, One Dupont
Circle, N.W., Washington D.C. 20036.
Footnotes: 1. A few medical schools do not require the MCAT.
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