Applying to health professional schools is multi-faceted and requires strong organizational skills. Applicants often work on the various aspects of their application for months prior to submission. When you are ready to apply to health professional school, plan to begin preparing the different facets of your application about 2-3 months in advance of submission. Below, we include some of the key aspects of applying to each of the different health professions.
Allopathic Medical Schools (M.D.)
- Biology – 2 semesters with lab(s)
- General Chemistry 1 & 2 with lab(s)
- Organic Chemistry 1 & 2 with lab(s)
- Biochemistry 1
- English 1 & 2
- Math – 2 semesters (can include Statistics)
- Physics 1 & 2 with lab(s)
- Social Sciences such as Psychology or Sociology
Always check the prerequisite courses listed on each individual medical school’s website to ensure you have completed the appropriate courses needed to apply to that school.
- Overall GPA – 3.71 (2017 national average of matriculants)
- Science GPA – 3.64 (2017 national average of matriculants)
MCAT (Medical College Admission Test)
- Taking the MCAT by AAMC
- The Free Practice Test service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or a UCF alumnus and you meet minimum eligibility criteria
MCAT Average – 510.4 (2017 national average of matriculants)
See Pre-Health Preparation page
AMCAS (American Medical College Application Service)
- AMCAS Tools and Tutorials, and Applicant Guide for current application year
- The Letters Packet service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus and you meet eligibility criteria
- Each medical school can have different requirements for the number of letters of evaluation they require and the types of letters of evaluation they require. Check the website of each medical school you apply to to verify their letter requirements.
- PHPL Advising recommends you secure at least five (5) letters of evaluation total for application to medical school from the following types of letter writers:
- 2 science faculty members
- 1 non-science faculty member
- 2 non-academic/character references
- Letters of Recommendation: Medical School Requirements
- Letters of Evaluation Submission to AMCAS
- The Personal Statement Review service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus
- Character count limit: 5,300 characters with spaces (about 1.5 single-spaced pages)
- AMCAS Personal Statement prompt (2018):
“Explain why you want to go to medical school.Some questions you may want to consider while drafting this essay are:
- Why have you selected the field of medicine?
- What motivates you to learn more about medicine?
- What do you want medical schools to know about you that hasn’t been disclosed in another section of the application?
In addition, you may wish to include information such as:
- Special hardships, challenges or obstacles that may have influenced your educational pursuits
- Commentary on significant fluctuations in your academic record which are not explained elsewhere in your application”
- 7 Tips for Writing the AMCAS Personal Statement Essay
- The Medical School Personal Statement: Application Essentials
- Personal Statement section of the current AMCAS Applicant Guide
- The Mock Interview service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus
- Medical School Interview Do’s and Don’ts
- Medical School Interviews Preparation and Tips
- How to Maximize Your Pre-Interview Research on Schools
- MSAR (Medical School Admission Requirements) – online medical school searchable database
- MCAT Practice Resources from AAMC
- UCF
- USF
- UF
- FSU
- University of Miami
- FIU
- FAU
- Nova Southeastern University
Osteopathic Medical Schools (D.O.)
- Biology – 2 semesters with lab(s)
- General Chemistry 1 & 2 with lab(s)
- Organic Chemistry 1 & 2 with lab(s)
- Biochemistry 1
- English 1 & 2
- Math – 2 semesters (can include Statistics)
- Physics 1 & 2 with lab(s)
- Social Sciences such as Psychology or Sociology
Always check the prerequisite courses listed on each individual medical school’s website to ensure you have completed the appropriate courses needed to apply to that school.
- Overall Mean Baccalaureate GPA – 3.55 (2016 national average of matriculants)
- Science Mean Baccalaureate GPA – 3.45 (2016 national average of matriculants)
MCAT (Medical College Admission Test)
- Taking the MCAT by AAMC
- The Free Practice Test service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or a UCF alumnus and you meet minimum eligibility criteria
MCAT Mean Average – 502.17 (2016 national average of matriculants)
See Pre-Health Preparation page
AACOMAS (American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Application Service)
- The Letters Packet service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus and you meet eligibility criteria
- Each medical school can have different requirements for the number of letters of evaluation they require and the types of letters of evaluation they require. Check the website of each medical school you apply to to verify their letter requirements.
- PHPL Advising recommends you secure at least five (5) letters of evaluation total for application to medical school from the following types of letter writers:
- 2 science faculty members
- 1 non-science faculty member
- 2 non-academic/character references
- Evaluations (Letters of Reference) for AACOMAS
- The Personal Statement Review service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus
- Character count limit: 4,500 characters with spaces (about 1.25 single-spaced pages)
- AACOMAS Personal Statement prompt (2018):
“In the space provided write a brief statement expressing your motivation or desire to become a DO. Keep your statement general as the same essay will be sent to all schools you will apply to. Even if you only plan to apply to one program, do NOT make your essays school specific as you may decide to apply to additional programs at a later date, and once you submit your application your essay can NOT be edited or changed.” - 5 Tips for Perfecting your AACOMAS Personal Statement
- Personal Statement Advice: Tell a Story
- Personal Statement section of the AACOMAS Instructions Manual
- The Mock Interview service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus
- Medical School Interview Do’s and Don’ts
- Medical School Interviews Preparation and Tips
- How to Maximize Your Pre-Interview Research on Schools
- Nova Southeastern University
- LECOM-Bradenton
Dental Schools (D.M.D. or D.D.S.)
- Biology with labs – 8 hours
- General Chemistry 1 & 2 with lab(s) – 8 hours
- Organic Chemistry 1 & 2 with lab(s) – 8 hours
- Biochemistry 1 – at least 3 hours
- English 1 & 2 – 6 hours
- General Microbiology – at least 4 hours
- Physics 1 & 2 with labs – 8 hours
Always check the prerequisite courses listed on each individual medical school’s website to ensure you have completed the appropriate courses needed to apply to that school.
- Total GPA: 3.55 (2016 national average of enrollees)
- Science GPA: 3.46 (2016 national average of enrollees)
DAT (Dental Admission Test)
- DAT by the American Dental Association (ADA)
- DAT Guide 2018
- DAT by the American Dental Education Association (ADEA)
- DAT Academic Average (AA): 20.3 (2016 national average of enrollees)
- DAT Total Science (TS): 20.1 (2016 national average of enrollees)
- DAT Perceptual Ability Test (PAT): 20.4 (2016 national average of enrollees)
See Pre-Health Preparation page
AADSAS (Associated American Dental Schools Application Service)
- The Letters Packet service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus and you meet eligibility criteria
- Each dental school can have different requirements for the number of letters of evaluation they require and the types of letters of evaluation they require. Check the website or the ADEA Official Guide to Dental Schools for each dental school you apply to to verify their letter requirements.
- PHPL Advising recommends you secure at least five (5) letters of evaluation total for application to dental school from the following types of letter writers:
- 2 science faculty members
- 1 non-science faculty member
- 2 non-academic/character references
- Letters of Evaluation for AADSAS by ADEA
- Evaluations section from the AADSAS Instruction Manual (page 18)
- The Personal Statement Review service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus
- Character count limit: 4,500 characters with spaces (about 1.25 single-spaced pages)
- AADSAS Personal Statement prompt (2018):
“Please explain why you want to pursue a dental career.
The response you enter below will appear in your application exactly as you type it. Using all capital letters or not capitalizing properly does not present a professional image to your application. Do NOT personalize your Personal Statement for a specific dental school. You can NOT make any edits to your Personal Statement after you have e-submitted your completed application to ADEA AADSAS.” - Personal Statement by ADEA
- AADSAS Personal Statement by Duke’s Pre-Dental Society
- What Makes a Great Personal Statement? by DAT Bootcamp
- The Mock Interview service in PHPL Advising can be utilized if you are a UCF student or UCF alumnus
- How to Prepare for Your Dental School Interviews by ADEA
- Dental School Interview Tips by ASDA (American Student Dental Association)
- Do’s and Don’ts of Dental School Interviews by ASDA Blog
- How to Ace Your Dental School Interview by ASDA Blog
- Sample Dental Interview Questions from University of Pennsylvania
- University of Florida
- Nova Southeastern University
- LECOM-Bradenton
We are currently working on information on applying to the other health professions (ex. PA, PT, OT, Pharmacy, Veterinary, etc.). We will update this page when that information is ready.
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Physician Assistant Programs (P.A.-C)
Physical Therapy Programs (D.P.T.)
Pharmacy Schools (Pharm.D.)
Veterinary Schools (D.V.M.)
Optometry Schools (O.D.)
Occupational Therapy Programs (M.O.T. or O.T.D.)
Podiatry Schools (D.P.M.)
Chiropractic Schools (D.C.)
Public Health Programs (M.P.H. or others)
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