Preparing for a Career in Medicine
and
Other Health Professions
What is "Premed"?
"Premedicine" or "premed" is not an actual academic major. Rather, the term
"premed" refers to the body of undergraduate course work that all students
must take in order to be considered for admission to the many health
professional schools, such as medical, dental, pharmacy, optometry, podiatry,
or veterinary school.
Health professions include:
- Chiropractic
- Dentistry
- Genetic Counseling
- Medical Technology
- Medicine (Allopathic and Osteopathic)
- Nursing
- Occupational Therapy
- Optometry
- Pharmacy
- Physical Therapy
- Physician Assistant
- Podiatry
- Veterinary Medicine
How to Prepare for the Health Professions Programs
The minimum undergraduate preparation required by most professional schools
includes the following course work:
- One year of biology with laboratory (some schools require more)
- One year of general chemistry with laboratory
- One year of organic chemistry with laboratory
- One year of physics with laboratory
- One year of English composition
In addition, courses in cell or molecular biology, biochemistry, statistics,
genetics, and developmental physiology or comparative anatomy are
recommended, as is course work in computer science. Some health science
schools also recommend additional courses in, for example, English,
languages other than English, social sciences, and speech communication.
What Health Professional Schools Look For
Health professional schools evaluate an applicant's academic abilities and
personal qualities through several factors:
- College grade point average (both cumulative GPA and science GPA)
- Scores on health professional school admissions tests (MCAT, DAT, OAT,
PCAT, etc.)
- Personal statement and interview
- In-depth letters of recommendation
- Practical volunteer experience in a health profession
- Research experience in biological, medical, behavioral, or physical
sciences
- Extracurricular activities (student clubs and organizations, community
involvement, athletics, etc.)
How UCI Can Help
UCI offers the prerequisite course work, as well as volunteer and research
opportunities to prepare you for the health professions:
- The Biological Sciences Core Curriculum
A broad yet intensive interdisciplinary sequence of lecture and laboratory
courses in modern experimental biology
- A broad range of upper-division biology laboratory and lecture courses
- Physical sciences course work in chemistry, calculus, and physics
- Extensive laboratory, field, and clinical undergraduate research
opportunities
- Health Sciences Experience Program
Opportunities to observe professionals in various health fields
- Health-related courses
- Biology of Cancer
- Biology of Heart Disease
- Biomedical Ethics
- Biological Sciences Career Decision Making
Beyond the Classroom
At UCI, research opportunities and student-run clubs and programs allow
students to go beyond the classroom to learn about the health professions.
Each quarter, several hundred students participate in health-related
undergraduate research at the College of Medicine and the UCI Medical Center,
in such departments as Pediatrics, Surgery, Obstetrics and Gynecology, and
Psychiatry and Human Behavior. The Health Sciences Experience Program places
pre-health students in volunteer positions in medicine, dentistry, and
optometry. Pre-health professions students also find support and affiliation
in a variety of student clubs and organizations, including Alpha Epsilon
Delta, Chicanos for Creative Medicine, the Dental Club, Flying Samaritans,
Pre-health Undergraduate Student Organization, U See Eyes, and many more.
Health Professional Schools Within the
University of California System
The UC system offers a variety of health professions programs. For instance,
there are five medical schools within the University of California, located
at the Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco campuses.
However, you should know that attending one of the UC campuses as an
undergraduate does not assure admission to a UC medical school. You must
apply and be considered along with all other applicants.
In addition, UC operates two dental schools, two public health schools, two
nursing schools, a school of pharmacy and a school of veterinary science.
UC also operates five general acute care hospitals, a number of clinics,
and two neuro-psychiatric institutes in conjunction with its health sciences
schools.
Consider Alternative Health Science Careers
Since competition for entrance to medical schools is keen and not all
qualified applicants can be accommodated, it is important to keep alternative
career opportunities in mind should you not be accepted to the professional
school of your choice. For example, you might consider a career in health
care administration, medical technology, public health, teaching and
research in the basic medical sciences, or management positions in
biomedical technology and manufacturing. A UCI education will serve you
well in your pursuit of other health-related professional fields.
For More Advice
Your UCI academic counselor will help you plan a program that will offer the
types of courses you will need for professional school or other health-related
programs and professions. In addition, health science advising is a specialty
of the Schools of Biological Sciences Undergraduate Counseling Office, and
the staff is trained to help students from every major with questions about
courses, prerequisites, professional school admission requirements, and
other related programs.
Additional Information
School of Biological Sciences
Undergraduate Counseling Office
University of California
Irvine, CA 92697-1460
Telephone: (949) 824-5318
http://www.bio.uci.edu
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