Pre-Medicine

Pre-Medicine Concentration

Pre-Medicine Advisement Track

  • The Pre-Medicine concentration coursework provides a strong foundation for MCAT preparation
  • The courses listed below satisfy the course requirements for admission at most United States and Caribbean medical schools.
  • Additional elective courses are recommended but not required, and vary depending on whether students are applying for admission to Allopathic Medicine (MD) or Osteopathic Medicine (DO) schools.
  • Students must consult SUNY Oneonta's current undergraduate catalog for descriptions of courses, course prerequisites, and time of year when courses are offered in order to plan properly in advance.
  • Students have the responsibility to check entrance requirements for schools to which they intend to apply.

Pre-Medicine Advising Meetings can be scheduled using the Bookings App

NOTE: four digit course numbers reflect the new course numbers, effective Fall 2022, as developed via the College-wide Course Renumbering Project.

  • BIOL 133 / 1001: Investigative Biology Laboratory
  • BIOL 130 / 1002: Cellular Perspectives in Biology
  • BIOL 131 / 1004: Organismal Perspectives in Biology (preferred) or BIOL 132 / 1006: Ecological & Evolutionary Perspectives in Biology
  • BIOL 201 / 2000: Cell & Molecular Biology
  • CHEM 111 / 1111: General Chemistry I
  • CHEM 112 / 1121: General Chemistry II
  • CHEM 221 / 2212: Organic Chemistry I
  • CHEM 322 / 2222: Organic Chemistry II
  • CHEM 331 / 4312: Biochemistry I
  • CHEM 332 / 4322: Biochemistry II
  • COMP 100 / 1000: Composition
  • Two Literature courses (broadly defined)
    • numerous course options available in ALS, ALIT, ELIT, LITR, SPAN, WLIT
    • courses must focus on reading & analyzing written works
  • Two PHIL courses, with focus on ethics & critical thinking, suggestions below:
    • PHIL 101 / 1100: Introduction to Philosophy
    • PHIL 102 / 1200: Ethics
    • PHIL 103 / 1300: Critical Thinking
    • PHIL 206 / 2750: Philosophy of Life & Death
    • PHIL 211 / 3110: Philosophy of Science
    • PHIL 280 / 3250: Bioethics
    • others based on availability
  • PHYS 103 / 1030 & PHYS 104 /1040 (General Physics I & II: Non-Calculus)
    • NOTE: Calc-Based Physics is optional; the Physics on the MCAT is algebra-based)
  • ​​​​​PSYC 100 / 1000: Introductory Psychology
  • SOC 101 / 1001​​​​: Introduction to Sociology
  • STAT 101 / 1010: Introduction to Statistics​​

NOTE: Medical education programs may change course prerequisites at any time and may have additional requirements, preferences, or policies that are not reflected in this advising track course list or on the Admission Requirements for MD Programs or Admission Requirements for DO Programs. Programs may also allow applicants to substitute courses or choose different prerequisite tracks. Applicants should review the program-specific details and contact programs directly to determine whether a particular course will fulfill a prerequisite.

NOTE: Starting in Fall 2024, only 1 LIT and 1 PHIL course will be required for the Pre-Med Advising Track.

The timeline for applying to medical school varies among students and is dependent on a variety of factors, including successful completion of prerequisite coursework, competitive MCAT examination scores, and appropriate healthcare experience.

Many Pre-Medicine students are choosing to take at least one year after they graduate SUNY Oneonta to work in healthcare or pursue other academically or intellectually enriching experiences after they graduate.

In fact, across the United States over 60% of first-time applicants to medical school apply after their senior year or later. Having a “Growth Year” between undergraduate studies and beginning medical school is often beneficial for applicants and does not hurt your chances of admission as long as you continue to strengthen your application. It allows time to gain additional life experiences, continue volunteering or pursue non-academic interests.

If a student wishes to take a "growth year," or takes a different undergraduate path, students will need to adjust the course sequence plan accordingly, based on their personal planning needs. Individual student plans may vary depending on when the student hopes to enter medical school and what major is chosen, therefore each student should work with their Primary Major Advisor and their Pre-Health Concentration Advisor to establish their own personalized schedule.

Students should regularly review the MD and DO Admission Requirements and the AAMC Preparing for Medical School and the AACOM Preparing for DO School guides.

Applicants are evaluated via Holistic Review, based on:

Students are encouraged to learn more:

Application to allopathic (MD) medical school is made through the centralized application AMCAS.

  • The 2024-2025 AMCAS Application Cycle opens beginning of May, 2024
  • AMCAS Application submission begins end of May, 2024
  • Initial transmission of applicant data to medical schools begins end of June, 2024.

Application to osteopathic (DO) medical school is made through the centralized application AACOMAS

Preparation for the MCAT should begin once students choose the medicine career path, with exam dates for the current cycle announced in early fall. Students should become familiar with the knowledge expectations of the MCAT exam and the sections of the exam for which competencies will be assessed:

KHAN Academy provides free comprehensive review for all topics on the MCAT.

Students frequently seek additional fee-based MCAT test prep, including:

Students generally request three to six letters of recommendation to be submitted on their behalf for medical school applications. Appropriate recommenders include science faculty, other course instructors, healthcare professionals, current or former employers, and professional references.

Some students may seek a "committee letter" for their medical school application, which requires a very specific application and interview process with the Health Professions Advisory Committee (HPAC).

Questions regarding the "committee letter" should be directed to the HPAC Chair.

Allopathic Medicine (MD Programs)

  • 44% of SUNY Oneonta Pre-Medicine student applicants were accepted into MD programs (2016-2021 Advisor Report).
  • The average GPA and MCAT were 3.75 GPA and 511 MCAT, consistent with the national average for matriculants at MD Schools.
  • SUNY Oneonta alumni have been accepted to the following MD programs: Albany Medical College, Creighton University School of Medicine, Drexel University, ​​​​​​Larner COM - University of Vermont, Medical College of Wisconsin, ​​​​New York Medical College, Pennsylvania State University, Quinnipiac University, Rochester, Rush University Medical College, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Stony Brook University, SUNY Brooklyn, SUNY Upstate Medical University, University at Buffalo, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, Boonshoft SOM - Wright State University. ​​​​​​

Osteopathic Medicine (DO Programs)

  • 60% of SUNY Oneonta Pre-Medicine student applicants were accepted into DO Programs (2016-2021 Advisor Report).
  • The average GPA and MCAT were 3.53 GPA and 502 MCAT, consistent with the national average for matriculants at DO Schools.
  • SUNY Oneonta alumni have been accepted to the following DO programs: A.T. Still University - Kirksville COM, Alabama COM, Arizona COM of Midwestern University, Burrell COM at New Mexico State University, Campbell University Jerry M. Wallace SOM, Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine - Virginia Campus, Kansas City UMed and Biosciences COM, Lake Erie COM, Liberty University COM, Lincoln Memorial University–DeBusk COM, New York Institute of Technology COM, Nova Southeastern University COM, Philadelphia COM South Georgia, Touro University COM–California, Touro COM–New York, University of New England COM, West Virginia SOM, Western University of Health Sciences/COM of the Pacific.

Pre-Medicine questions should be directed to Tami LaPilusa, M.S., Program Coordinator, Pre-Health Professions.

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