Four-Year Action Plan to Get into Medical, Dental or Veterinary School
Freshman Year Goals:
- Adjust and enjoy your academic and social life at college, remember school starts day one, studying starts day one.
- Get good grades - avoid C's! You are not average!
- Get to know your instructors, mentors, TAs, upper level classmates
- Start to build your network of contacts (the medical, dental, and veterinary business is very much a people-oriented profession)
- Straighten out any academic difficulties you are experiencing now!
Register in the Health Professions Office:
- Stop by the office or e-mail Dr. Moldow (moldowro@shu.edu) and indicate that you are interested in pursuing a career in the health professions
Summer between the Freshman and Sophomore Years:
- Stay on track with Academic Requirements, including the model Biology and Chemistry programs
- Get involved in extracurricular activities including enrichment programs in nearby medical schools
- Volunteer or get jobs in places where some form of health care is being administered
- Consider doing research, e.g. in Biology or Biochemistry labs, that can continue throughout your college years
Sophomore Year Goals:
- Don't get into a slump or slack off; get good grades.
- Avoid distractions that lead students into academic trouble.
- Join Alpha Epsilon Delta, the pre-medical honor society.
Summer between the Sophomore and Junior Years:
- Take courses if necessary
- Get involved in extracurricular activities including enrichment programs in nearby medical schools
- Volunteer or get jobs in places where some form of health care is being administered
- Consider doing research, e.g. in Biology or Biochemistry labs
- Start looking at MCAT prep books
Junior Year Goals:
- Plan for MCAT or DAT exam in late spring or early summer (offered year round). Realistically, these exams cannot be taken unless you have a strong foundation in Biology, Chemistry, and Physics. You need to consider when to take the exam and what review methods will be employed. Take a review course. This is not a short term project; planning and dedication to this is critical. Avoid distractions; this is the most demanding year for the pre-medical/pre-dental/pre-veterinary students
- Visit the Health Professions Advising Program Office to read books that will help you on your medical, dental, and veterinary schools selections
- Request that your letters of recommendation are sent to Dr. Moldow by May 31.
Before the Summer between the Junior and Senior Years:
- Set up a game plan for applying to medical school, regardless of when you plan to take your MCAT exam. This is a pretty extensive process. Get your personal statement ready.
- At this time, the Health Professions Advising Program office can start to prepare for your letters of recommendation; references will need to be gathered before the spring semester ends or during the summer to prepare for application.
- Submit your primary applications to schools once you get your MCAT/DAT score back
Summer between the Junior and Senior Years:
- Focus on your extracurricular activities, including volunteering and healthcare related jobs or research.
- Prepare your secondary applications
Senior Year Goals:
- Submit your secondary application
- Prepare for your interview at medical, dental, or veterinary school
- Get ready to celebrate your acceptance
