Admissions to health professions schools can be very competitive and it is important to understand what you will be evaluated on when you apply. There is no one formula or recipe that is superior to another but generally these are things to think about:

 

Academics:

  1. Strong GPA
    1. A strong academic GPA, especially for science and pre-requiste courses, is important for a competitive application. A GPA of 3.5 and above is desired but many schools have different expectations. Therefore, students should assess this for each school of interest.
  2. High score on Admissions exams (MCAT, DAT, GRE, etc.)
    1. Like a strong academic GPA, high scores on admission tests can indicate overall academic performance and content knowledge. Many schools can have different expectations for overall score and percentile for applicants on these exams. Therefore, students should assess what score is appropriate based on each school of interest. 

Experience:

  1. Clinical
    1. Show knowledge of the profession through clinical shadowing/observation experience, patient contact, or informational inteviews with clinical professionals. 
  2. Non-clinical
    1. These experiences should demonstrate pre-professional competencies like:
      1. Teamwork
      2. Service Orientation
      3. Social Skills
      4. Cultural Competence
      5. Oral Communication
      6. Ethical Resonsibilty to self and others
      7. Reliabilty and Dependability
      8. Resilience and Adaptability
      9. Capacity for Involvement

Application:

  1. Letters of recommendation 
    1. Strong letters from individuals who know you from various settings (academic professor, professor in major, non-science professor, clinical professional in field, and/or professional supervisor). 
  2. Well prepared application materials including personal statements and essays
    1. Students are encouraged to participate in Prep2Apply to help them prepare their application materials. 
  3. Being prepared and preform well during interviews
    1. This is an opportunity for you to demonstrate who you are, your motivations, and competencies that will make you a good clinical professional. 

 

 

 

Updated: 12/2020