Pre-Medical Preparation at UHMānoa: Allopathic Medicine
(Text compiled from the American Association of Medical Colleges website, the American Medical Association website, NAAHP's Medical Professions Admission Guide, UHM's JABSOM website, and the UHM 2005-2006 Catalog.)
Allopathic M.D. Programs
Prerequisites for Admission
What makes a strong candidate?
The MCAT
Researching Schools
The Application Process
Additional Information
Downloadable Brochure
Medical doctors, or physicians, are highly trained healthcare professionals who perform medical examinations, diagnose illnesses, prescribe drugs, and treat patients suffering from injury or disease using a variety of techniques.
Physicians serve in all types of communities, from rural to inner city, and in a wide variety of settings, from private practice to clinics and hospitals. They also work in specialized settings, such as homeless shelters, schools, sports programs, prisons, nursing homes, third-world countries, and the armed forces. About one-third of the nation's physicians are generalists, or "primary care" doctors, although that percentage is declining as more physicians choose to become specialists. Generalists include fields such as internists, family physicians, and pediatricians. Specialists focus on a particular system or part of the body; examples include neurologists, hematologists, cardiologists, and podiatrists, to name only a few.
Physicians also serve in research, studying and developing new treatments for disease, in academia, sharing their skills by educating medical students, in health organizations, pharmaceutical companies, medical technology manufacturing, health insurance companies, and in corporations with health and safety programs.
There are four main degrees in medicine: allopathic, chiropractic, naturopathic, and osteopathic. Allopathic physicians (M.D.s, Medical Doctors, or Doctors of Medicine) practice the most widespread type medicine, founded in Western scientific traditions and focused on diagnosing and treating injury and disease. Chiropractic physicians (D.C.s, Doctors of Chiropractic, or Doctors of Chiropractic Medicine) focus on the nervous system and the relationship between health and the alignment of the musculoskeletal structure. Naturopathic physicians (D.N.s, or Doctors of Naturopathic Medicine) emphasize maintaining health through physical and spiritual wellness and may incorporate nontraditional or non-Western methods, such as acupuncture, reflexology, and homeopathic remedies. Osteopathic physicians (D.O.s, or Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine) take a comprehensive, holistic approach, focusing on the total well being of each individual. The main difference between an M.D. and a D.O. today is that the D.O. receives training in manipulating the musculoskeletal system in addition to the core medical training.
Allopathic M.D. Programs
Becoming an M.D. requires 11 to 16 years of education:
- Bachelors Degree (ca. 4 years);
- Medical School (4 years);
- Residency (3-8 years, depending on specialty).
The first two years of medical school are generally classroom lectures, problem-based learning, or a mixture of the two. At the end of the second year, students must pass National Board Exams (USMLE 1) before continuing. Years three and four consist of clinical rotations. National Clinical Exams (USMLE 2), administered at the end of Year 3, determine admission to residency programs.
Some schools offer combined degree programs: M.D./ Ph.D. to combine the practice of medicine with research or teaching; M.D./ J.D. to combine medicine with law; M.D./ M.B.A. to combine medicine with business administration; M.D./ M.P.H. to combine medicine with public health; and so on. Combined degrees often extend the number of years in medical school.
Upon graduation from medical school, new physicians work as residents under the supervision of an attending physician. After completing their residency programs, physicians must then pass licensing exams for their state or jurisdiction of practice. All physicians must be licensed to practice.
Prerequisites for Admission
Most importantly, remember that requirements vary from school to school! You must research to create a list of all the prerequisites you will need to apply to the medical schools you are interested in attending.
The following UHM courses are commonly required for admission to medical schools:
Biol 171/171Lab and 172/172Lab |
Introductory Biology I and II |
Biol 275 |
Cell and Molecular Biology |
Chem 161/161Lab and 162/162Lab |
General Chemistry I and II |
Chem 272/272Lab and 273/273Lab |
Organic Chemistry I and II |
Phys 151/151L and 152/152Lab |
College Physics I and II |
Math 215 and 216 (or Math 241 and 242) |
Applied Calculus I and II (Calculus I and II) |
Additional requirements may include courses such as psychology, speech, English, history, physiology, microbiology, genetics, and biochemistry.
What makes a strong candidate?
Tuition, as high as it is, covers only a fraction of the cost of educating a medical student, which means that each new student represents a huge investment by the medical school. Schools need to be certain that the students they accept will be capable of completing the medical curriculum and are likely to become good physicians.
Are you capable of completing the medical curriculum?
Medical school admissions committees are looking for students who have:
- completed the prerequisites
- a high overall GPA
- a high science/math GPA
- performed well on the MCAT
- balanced their course load so it is challenging yet realistic
Are you likely to become a good physician?
Admissions committees look for students who have:
- demonstrated empathy, compassion, and a commitment to public service
- high ethical and moral standards and a conscientious work ethic
- demonstrated maturity (judgment, responsibility, dependability)
- a broad liberal arts education that includes the humanities and social sciences
- experience in the field and with what medicine entails
- a well-rounded life that balances academics, community service, social activities, and personal interests (hobbies, skills, sports, etc.)
- excellent oral and written communication skills
- strong letters of evaluation or recommendation
The MCAT
Almost all medical colleges require applicants to take a standardized test called the Medical College Admissions Test, or MCAT, which assesses your knowledge and skills in Biological Sciences, Physical Sciences, Verbal Reasoning, and Writing. The test entails approximately 144 multiple choice questions plus two 30-minute essays and requires approximately 5 hours to complete, counting administration time. Writing samples are scored by letter grades ranging from J to T, with T being the highest; the other three sections are each scored 1-15, for a possible total of 45. The MCAT is administered in a computer-based format and is offered about twenty times each year.
Your most important preparation for the MCAT are your undergraduate courses, not only the prerequisites for medical school, but all of your courses, many of which sharpen your writing and verbal reasoning. Remember that your verbal reasoning score is the most accurate predictor of how well you will do in medical school and the most difficult score to improve.
Researching Schools
There are now over 160 public and private medical schools in the U.S. and Canada, each one unique in its mission, philosophy, criteria, and strengths. Although there are resources that "rank" schools (The Gourman Report, U.S. News & World Report, The Princeton Review, etc.), the rankings are rarely pertinent for individual applicants. More important is whether there is a good match between applicant and school.
To find schools that are a good match for you:
- assess your individual strengths and weaknesses, your professional interests, learning style, and personality;
- using the Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR), make a list of schools whose profiles of recently admitted students match your own profile;
- working from that list of schools, read the schools' catalogs and websites to learn about their specialties, faculty, teaching style, and cost of attendance;
- if possible, visit the schools to see the facilities, talk to the Admissions Directors, and chat with the students.
The Application Process
There are three general steps in applying to allopathic medical schools: the initial, or primary application; the secondary application; and the interviews.
Primary applications must be filed with the American Medical Colleges Application Service (AMCAS). Once the application is complete, AMCAS forwards it to whichever schools the student has specified.
After reviewing the AMCAS applications they have received, many medical schools send their own applications (often called the "secondary application" or "secondaries") directly to students who meet their basic criteria for admission. Secondary applications frequently request additional information and essays.
After reviewing the secondary applications, medical schools invite promising applicants to come for an interview. Applicants are responsible for all costs incurred while interviewing, including airfare, lodging, and meals.
Although the application process varies from school to school, AMCAS has established "traffic rules" to ensure fairness for all concerned. The rules, available online, stipulate both schools' and applicants' rights and responsibilities in the application process. All applicants should be familiar with the rules before applying.
- The more you know about the school, the better your chances of being accepted.
- Most application questions can be answered by reading the MSAR
- Contact individual schools' Admissions Offices to find out how they handle:
- advanced placement (AP) credits
- College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) credits
- courses taken at a community college
- courses taken for credit/no credit instead of a grade
- residency issues
- time limits on acceptable science courses
- coursework taken outside the U.S.
Additional Information
UHMānoa’s Pre-Health/Pre-Law Advising Center (PAC) has reference books, lists of volunteer opportunities, academic planning worksheets, and one-on-one advising by peers who can help you prepare for and apply to medical schools.
| UHM's Pre-Medical Association (PMA) | www.hawaii.edu/premed premed@hawaii.edu |
| UHM's Biology Club | www2.hawaii.edu/~bioclub bioclub@hawaii.edu |
| American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) | www.aamc.org |
| American Medical Association (AMA) | www.ama-assn.org |
| American Medical Colleges Application Service (AMCAS) | www.aamc.org/students/amcas |
| Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) | www.aamc.org/students/mcat |
| Medical School Admission Requirements by AAMC | available in PAC |
| Medical Professions Admission Guide: Strategy for Success by NAAHP | available in PAC |