Pre-medicine Program - Planning

Course planning advice here is limited to majors. For a full description of degree requirements, please see this overview of the Academic Program and refer to the Catalog for details and official rules. Any discrepancy between the Course Planning Pages and the Catalog will be resolved in favor of the Catalog.

Medical school admissions committees are looking for students who can demonstrate three things:

• the academic skills and foundational scientific knowledge to take their courses,
• an understanding of what it means to be a physician and a sincere desire to serve through medicine, and
• the competencies required to be an excellent physician.

You should use your time as a pre-med student at Hendrix to actively seek out opportunities to develop the skills, and gain the knowledge and understanding outlined above to ensure you have a strong, competitive application for medical school. Below is some advice to help you with these efforts.

Course Requirements and Major Declaration

There is no specific major which increases your chances of being accepted into medical school. Instead, you should choose a major that genuinely interests you, that allows you to take courses you enjoy, and helps you to maintain a strong GPA, demonstrating to medical schools that you have the skills required to be successful in their rigorous academic environment.

Each medical school has its own prematriculation requirements–courses that must be completed prior to enrollment–which largely align with those needed to prepare for the MCAT. Below is a typical set of prematriculation requirements, though it is important you verify whether these match the requirements of any medical schools you are interested in attending:

• Biology: Fundamentals of Cellular Life, Genetics, and at least one other biology course
• Chemistry: General Chemistry I and II, Organic Chemistry I and II, Biological Chemistry
• English: any two courses coded ENGC, ENGF, and/or ENGL
• Math: Statistics, Calculus I (prerequisite for Physics I and II)
• Physics: Physics I and II
• Psychology: not required by medical schools, but important preparation for the MCAT
• Social Sciences: any two courses

Course Planning – Gap Year Track

Below is a suggested gap year track schedule for the science classes that are medical school prematriculation requirements and that you should take to prepare for the MCAT. On the gap year track, you should plan to take the MCAT the summer you graduate from Hendrix.

Your own circumstances, including your choice of major, may require a deviation away from this plan. Consult with your academic advisor and pre-med mentor on the optimal time to take these classes.

More detailed, major specific, course planning advice can be found on the Hendrix College Pre-Med SharePoint site.

Course Planning – Accelerated Track

Below is a suggested accelerated track schedule for the science classes that are medical school prematriculation requirements and that you should take to prepare for the MCAT. On the accelerated track, you should take the MCAT the summer between your junior and senior years at Hendrix.

Your own circumstances, including your choice of major, may require a deviation away from this plan. Consult with your academic advisor and pre-med mentor on the optimal time to take these classes.

More detailed, major specific, course planning advice can be found on the Hendrix College Pre-Med SharePoint site.