So you want to be a doctor!
The path to becoming a physician is rigorous, stressful, expensive and time-consuming. To succeed in any medical discipline, you must be determined and hardworking and should be ready to reap the rewards of your hard work with a lifetime of healing, leading and discovering! If you are considering becoming a physician we recommend you take some time to review some of the resources we've listed below to assist you on your journey to medicine. You should also discuss your career aspirations with an undergraduate premedical/health advisor! They are a wealth of information!
If you do not have a premedical/health advisor then visit the National Association of Advisors for Health Professions website to help locate someone who can assist you.
Below is a list of websites that you may find helpful as you prepare for a career in medicine:
- Association of American Medical Colleges
- Medical School Admissions Requirements Guide
- National Applicant & Matriculant Data
- Taking the MCAT Exam
- National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions
- Postbaccalaureate Premedical Programs
- The Student Doctor Network
Post-Baccalaureate Programs
Washington University in St. Louis Post-Baccalaureate Linkage Program
The CWRU School of Medicine has established a linkage program with the Washington University in St. Louis Post-Baccalaureate Program. Interested students must be enrolled in the WashU Post-Bacc program and share their interest with the program director.
Learn More About the Post-Baccalaureate Linkage Program
CWRU PRIME Post-Baccalaureate Program
PRIME is a flexible, non-degree program for students who are changing careers and/or need to improve their undergraduate GPA to enhance a medical school application.
General Tips for Preparing
- Are you still in college? Most accepted candidates rank in the top one-third of their classes, and the majority have outstanding scholastic records. The Committee's main considerations will be the overall quality of your college performance and your general ability and potential. In most instances, you will be given priority if you have completed all minimum academic requirements and have taken the MCAT by the time you submit your AMCAS application. We value a widely diverse and well-rounded student body.
- As an undergraduate, pursue a major in a subject of your own choosing; do not structure your undergraduate experiences in an attempt to sway the medical school admissions committee. Research strongly indicates that choice of major has little bearing on ultimate acceptance into medical school. Most applicants to medical school, however, are chemistry or biological science majors.
- Have you been out of college for a while? Don't let the fact that you've been out of college for a year or more deter you from applying. Approximately half of our students have a year or more between the time they graduate from college and the time they enter medical school, and about 10 percent of them begin medical school when they are 30 years old or older. If you are two or more years removed from full-time college coursework, plan to take challenging, advanced-level (junior-, senior-, or graduate-level) courses in the biological sciences to prepare for entry.
- Applying to medical school can be an expensive endeavor when you consider application fees, the cost of the MCAT, travel to interviews, and other associated costs. We recommend that you review and plan ahead for these costs.