Premedical Coursework Required for the New MCAT

The following is the list of medical school admissions requirements and classes at BYU that meet each requirement. Some requirements vary by medical school, such as biochemistry, math, and humanities. Be sure to consult the Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR) and/or the Osteopathic Medical College Information Book (OMCIB) as well as schools websites to verify you meet the requirements for each of your chosen medical schools. Our office can help you schedule these classes in an optimal sequence.

Suggested Before Taking the New MCAT (2015)

General or Inorganic Chemistry: one year (8 semester hours) with lab
Chem 105 General College Chemistry Chem 106 General College Chemistry Chem 107 General College Chemistry Laboratory (or Chem 111, 112, 113 for chemistry majors)

Organic Chemistry: one year (8 semester hours) with lab

Chem 351 Organic Chemistry Chem 352 Organic Chemistry Chem 353 (2 hrs) Organic Chemistry Laboratory (or Chem 354 for chemistry majors)

Biochemistry: one semester (3 credit hours)

Chem 481 Biochemistry

Biology: one year (8 semester hours, some schools require 12 semester hours) with lab
PDBio 120 Science of Biology MMBio 240 & 241 Molecular Biology and Lab PWS 340 Genetics (highly recommended) PDBIO 305 Human Physiology (with lab) (or PDBIO 362/363 for select majors) Note: Science majors should take PDBio 362/363; non-science majors can take PDBio 305; however, PDBio 362/363 will better prepare you for the MCAT. Biology majors should take Bio 130 in place of PDBio 120. PWS 340 is recommended to better prepare for the MCAT and to fulfill BYUs GE requirement in conjunction with MMBio 240. While most medical schools recommend Genetics, there are several schools that now require Genetics prior to matriculation. Do not take Bio 100. Although it fulfills a BYU GE requirement, it will not fulfill prerequisites for medical school.

Physics: one year (8 semester hours) with laboratory

Phscs 105 & 107 Introduction to Physics and Lab Phscs 106 & 108 Introduction to Physics and Lab (or Phscs 121& 123 for chemistry, physics, and engineering majors) Note: Electricity and magnetism are covered in Physics 220. We recommend Physics 220 to help you prepare for the MCAT but the material can also be studied on your own. Do not enroll in PhySci 100. The physical sciences university core requirement is fulfilled by taking Phys 105 and Chem 105.

Social and Behavioral Sciences: one semester of both psychology and sociology Psych 111 General Psychology Soc 111 Introductory Sociology

Before Starting Medical School

English: one year (2 classes)
First Year Writing Advanced Writing Wrtg 150 or other beginning writing Take the class your major requires

Math: requirements vary significantly among the medical schools, varying from no math requirements to calculus or statistics. It is strongly recommended that students consult the websites and the MSAR and/or the OMCIB to determine math requirements of the schools they are interested in applying to.
***Note: Math can be taken at any time before med school. Some students like to get it out of the way within the first few semesters, while others wait until their senior year to see what specific schools require to avoid taking unnecessary classes.

Humanities and Social Sciences: requirements vary; consult the MSAR and/or the OMCIB

Helpful in Preparing for the MCAT and Medical School

Phscs 220 PDBio 220 PDBio 360 PDBio 325 PDBio 365 Stat 121 Electricity and Magnetism (for students taking Phscs 121/123) Human Anatomy Cellular Biology Tissue Biology Pathophysiology Principles of Statistics (highly recommended)

Special Courses Offered for Premed Students

StDev 170: Introduction to Health Professions
Overview of health professions: medical, dental, and other specialties. Primary focus on guest lecturers from various practitioners and clinicians. StDev 272: Preview of Medicine (Highly Recommended) Introduction to the medical field: overview of required courses and recommended extracurricular opportunities. Class lectures presented by physicians from various specialties, representatives from professional schools, and Dr. Kaiser.

StDev 399R: Health Professions Internship

Internship with health care providers. Fifty hours of shadowing are required for every hour of coursework.

StDev 470: Medical and Dental School Application (Highly Recommended)

Preparation for medical and dental schools application processes. Covers MCAT/DAT prep, letters of recommendation, personal statements, choosing schools, the various application services, timeframe, and interviews.

Other Courses that May Be of Value to Premed Students

StDev 305: Advanced Reading Strategies for College Success
This course teaches reading speed and comprehension strategies for all different kinds of texts, from science textbooks to poetry. This is an excellent course for those planning on graduate school to prepare them to absorb the large amount of information they will be required to read and retain in graduate school.

Bio 370: Bioethics

This class discusses ethical issues related to emerging biomedical technology. Soc 329: Medical Sociology (Prerequisite: Soc 111 or Psych 111) This class discusses social epidemiology, the role of the sick, sociocultural definitions and responses to illness, and the organization of medical-health delivery systems.

Latin 123: Medical Latin and Greek

The course will teach the meaning and etymology of commonly used medical terms. The understanding of these terms, though never formally taught, is generally assumed of students in medical schools.

Suggested Course Sequence for Medical Prerequisites

*Semester loads can be lightened if Spring/Summer terms are taken *Classes may be rearranged as needs require, but ensure that requirements for MCAT are taken before the MCAT *Course order may change depending on if and when a student serves a mission Year 1 Semester 1 PDBio 120 Chem 105 Semester 2 Chem 106 Chem 107 MMBio 240 MMBio241 Year 2 Semester 1 Chem 351 PWS 340 Semester 2 Chem 352 Chem 353 Phscs 105 Phscs 107 Year 3 Semester 1 Phscs 106 Phscs 108 Chem 481 Semster 2 PD Bio 305 StDev 470 MCAT Prep Course MCAT- MAY APPLY-JUNE Year 4 Finish Bachelors Med School Interviews

Preprofessional Advisement Center 3328 WSC (801) 422-8166 health_professions@byu.edu