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Pre-Major Advising >
Resources for Faculty >
Faculty Handbook 2007-2008 >
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Required Courses for Medical, Dental, or Veterinary Schools
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Note: these are the courses that are minimally required for application to
medical/dental/vet school
- Writing/English: 2 terms of Writing or English (WRIT 5 and
the First-Year Seminar are satisfactory. Students exempted from WRIT 5 should
schedule an additional term of English)
- Math: 2 terms recommended (required by 20% of medical
schools). Currently, 33 schools require or recommend calculus or either
calculus and statistics.
- Biology: BIOL 11 (“the Science of Life”) plus two terms
with laboratory is the minimal requirement of most schools. There are five
laboratory-based course (12-16). Many students will opt for BIOL 12 (Cell
Biology) and BIOL 13 (Genetics). These do not have to be taken in sequence, and
have BIOL 11 as a prerequisite. It is strongly recommended that a student
should take at least one other Biology class. A class that emphasizes
physiology (such a BIOL 14, “Physiology”) or anatomy (such as BIOL 2, “Human
Biology”) will help in preparation for the MCATs. Other courses in Biology are
strongly recommended and can be chosen from among BIOL 27, 34, 35, 37, 40, 42,
44, 46, 47, 66, 74, or 78.
Students who feel they have weak backgrounds in Biology prior to
matriculation at Dartmouth or who are hesitant about science courses in general
should consider BIOL 2 (‘Human Biology’) as their entry course in the fall of
their first year.
Students should consult with a
pre-health advisor in Career Services before embarking on a specific sequence,
given variable backgrounds in the sciences and individual D-plans. Demonstrated
facility and aptitude in the Biological Sciences is assigned significant weight
in admissions decisions.
- General Chemistry: 2 terms of Inorganic Chemistry
required: CHEM 3 or 5 and CHEM 6. (CHEM 10, which is the honors section and
into which students have to be placed, will suffice for the two terms)
- Organic Chemistry: CHEM 51 and 52 or CHEM 57 and 58. Note
that if a student delays Organic Chemistry until the sophomore year they may be
constrained into six consecutive terms of study, and it may limit their ability
to enroll in other courses such as BIOL 40 or CHEM 41.
- Physics: 2 terms. PHYS 3 and 4, or PHYS 13 and 14, or PHYS
15 and 16.
- Note that PHYS 3/4 is the terminal physics track. PHYS 13/14 is general
introductory physics. PHYS 15/16 is the honors version of 13/14.
- Biochemistry: Currently 13 med schools require a course in
Biochem and another 36 recommend it. Good options are BIOL 40
(formerly 77) or CHEM 41.
Inform advisees about:
- The Nathan Smith Premedical
Society: An enormously important resource, coordinated by Lee Witters. Give
advisees who express an interest in medical school the express assignment of
reading through the Nathan Smith Society Website: www.dartmouth.edu/~nss – in particular
the guide “Looking Toward a Career in the Health Professions” and “What Courses
Specific Med Schools Require”. All first-year students interested in
pre-health should join NSS, which can be done through the web site, in order to
be kept abreast of developments in the pre-health experience at
Dartmouth.
- Career Services: Advisees
interested in health careers school should make an appointment with one of the
Health Professions advisors at Career Services. They will help both with
curricular planning, off-term and internship opportunities, applications, etc.
It is not too early for a first-year student to make an appointment to
meet with a health professions advisor at Career Services and should
be encouraged.
- Academic Skills Center:
Students committed to pre-health but struggling with some of the courses should
be directed to the Academic Skills Center. Struggling does not
necessarily mean that a student should abandon the goal of going to medical
school, but it may mean that they need to acquire the study habits and
discipline required to excel in some of the large science
classes.
- RWiT: Students should be
encouraged to use the Student Center for Research, Writing, and Information
Technology (RWiT) to develop their writing and verbal skills. Both the MCAT
exam and the centralized medical school application (AMCAS) evaluate these
skills as part of the application process.
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