Health Sciences Department

Pre-Medicine

Pre-professional

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Set Yourself Apart

Getting into medical school requires you to show you’ve completed the necessary pre-requisite courses — as well as the drive to succeed and a plan to get there. That plan comes from thorough preparation during your undergraduate career. Guilford gives you a distinct advantage with exceptional preparation and mentoring that leads to strong acceptance rates.

As a Pre-Medicine student at Guilford you may major in any discipline, including Health Sciences, as long as you complete the necessary pre-requisite courses for medical school. You will work closely with your advisers to design an individualized course of study. This allows you to complete the required science and social science courses to prepare for you for admission to your chosen medical program.

Health Science majors also take the Health Science Seminar, a course designed to help you with the graduate school application process, from preparing your personal statement to interview tips and financial planning. During the course, Guilford alumni who are currently in or recently graduated from graduate programs in the health professions often come back to share their experiences with current students. This class should be taken the spring before you plan to apply to medical school.

Take a look at this sample double major for the pre-medicine program. This course of study satisfies the pre-requisites for a graduate program in the health professions while also fulfilling major requirements.

Guilford graduates have or are currently attending medical school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, East Carolina University, Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine-Virginia Campus, Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine -Carolinas Campus, University of Utah, University of Dundee, Scotland, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine, University of Texas at Austin, Medical College of Georgia, Meharry Medical College, Midwestern University, Johns Hopkins University, Lincoln Memorial University, University of Texas at Galveston, State University of New York-Upstate, Ross University, and St. George’s University.

Office

Health Sciences Department

Ask Us

Anne Glenn
Program Director
+1 (336) 3162234
aglenn@guilford.edu

College Catalog

For more information about courses for the Pre-Medicine program and the Health Sciences Department, visit the online, searchable College Catalog. In addition to the Undergraduate Catalog, information includes academic department and major information as well as academic regulations and resources; admission standards and requirements; and tuition, fees and financial aid information.

Applying to Medical School

The Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) is the standardized test all students who wish to apply to medical school must take. The exam should be taken by early summer of the year in which you plan to apply. For example, if you plan to enter medical school the fall after you graduate, you should take the test before or during the summer of your junior year. The MCAT is based on the assumption you have completed one year of biology, one year of general chemistry, one year of organic chemistry, one year of physics and a semester of biochemistry and general psychology. For more information about the MCAT, including registration information and review materials, visit AAMC.org.

Medical schools use one of two online application services: Allopathic schools use the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS) and osteopathic schools use the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Application Service (AACOMAS). Students should complete one or both of these common applications, which then distribute the information to the students’ chosen schools. The completed applications should be submitted by mid-summer of the year before the student plans to enter medical school. For example, if you plan to enter medical school the fall after you graduate, you should submit the applications during the summer of your junior year.

Expert faculty are also always available to mentor you through the application process.

Prerequisite Course Requirements for Medical School

Note that admission requirements vary by program. Health Sciences majors should work with their adviser to make sure they are taking the correct pre-requisite courses for the graduate programs they plan to apply to. Chemistry 111 and 112 and Biology 111 should be taken during your first year at Guilford because they are pre-requisites for other required courses.

  • BIOL 111 — Integrative Biology: Molecules and Cells
  • BIOL 112 — Integrative Biology: Organisms, Ecology and Evolution
  • CHEM 111 — Chemical Principles I
  • CHEM 112 — Chemical Principles II
  • CHEM 231 — Organic Chemistry I
  • CHEM 232 — Organic Chemistry II
  • BIO/CHEM 434 — Biochemistry
  • PHYS 111 — Introduction to Physics for the Life Sciences (or) PHYS 117 Physics I
  • PHYS 112 — Introduction to Physics for the Life Sciences (or) PHYS 118 Physics II
  • Math 112 — Elementary Statistics
  • PSY 100 — General Psychology
  • Admission requirements for allopathic medical schools
  • Admission requirements for osteopathic medical schools

Hands-on Learning

Experience in health-related fields before applying to medical school is essential. Students can gain experience through shadowing physicians (and other health care providers) and through internships, summer employment and volunteer work. Both the pre-health professions faculty advisers and CAPE advisers can help students find these experiences.