While relatively few colleges have specific pre-med or other pre-health majors, many schools will have pre-med and/or pre-health programs. Sometimes these programs encompass advising and other services for a variety of pre-professional medical careers such as dental, veterinary, MD/DO, physical therapy, pharmacy, and physician assistant.
Below are some considerations when evaluating a college and its pre-health program. Most schools will not offer all of the services below, but it is useful to consider which services are most important to you to better guide your research.
Ease of getting volunteer opportunities or paid work in patient-facing activities
Is the school close to any medical centers, hospitals, or physician offices and does the
school have cooperative relationships with them?
Availability of relevant on-campus work experience
Can students work as on-campus EMTs, work with physical trainers and athletes, or receive other on-campus experience?
Test prep and application resources
Does the pre-health program offer a review course for relevant placement tests for professional schools (MCAT, NAPLEX, DAT, etc.)? Does it provide assistance with professional school applications?
Development opportunities
What are the school’s other pre-health program offerings? Does it host networking events, speakers, or provide career guidance?
Committee letter support
The committee letter (which is typically a packet) is required for medical school applications and some other professional school applications. Some undergraduate institutions will provide these letters/packets for all students applying for professional school regardless of their GPA and test scores, while other colleges will use the committee letter to support only the strongest applicants.
Researching pre-health advising support at colleges
Most colleges have a pre-health advising webpage that will provide introductory information. Most do not provide detailed information, however. Students can contact the pre-health advising office if they have questions after reviewing the information provided.
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Kate Pedigo, M.Ed. NCC is an Independent Educational Consultant and founder of Growing2College. Join us on social media for college planning updates, tips, and resources: Facebook Instagram LinkedIn
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