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2023-2024

Pre-Medicine (Advising Track)

VCU

Community college:
Associate of Science: Life Science (Richard Bland College of William and Mary)
Richard Bland College
Richard Bland College
Associate degree

Associate of Science: Life Science

Program description

Students interested in the pre-medicine advising track must obtain a bachelor’s degree and complete the necessary prerequisites for medical school. All prerequisites should be completed or on track to be complete prior to medical school matriculation. Best results occur when all prerequisite courses have been taken and grades are available at the time of application. Students interested in medical school should consult with a Pre-Professional Health (PPH) and STEM Career Advisor to learn about requirements that are specific to the schools of medicine to which they hope to apply.


Declaration of a pre-medicine advising track through the PPH & STEM Career Advising Team does not constitute admission to the VCU School of Medicine. Students must apply separately to the medical school(s) of their choice at the appropriate time.


Students with an interest in preparing for medical school must declare an academic major and should declare and maintain their pre-medical advising track. Students do not earn a pre-medical degree. Students unsure of their academic majors initially should clarify their academic interests through regular conversations with their primary/major academic adviser. Pre-medical students are encouraged to major in fields of greatest interest to them. To declare a pre-medicine advising track, please see the Canvas Pre-Professional Health (PPH) Hub.

Career opportunities

Physicians may earn a Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) to practice allopathic medicine or a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) to practice osteopathic medicine. Both types of physicians must select a speciality in which they will practice patient care such as pediatrics, cardiology, dermatology, or surgery. Additional career opportunities for physicians include research, teaching, healthcare administration, public health, or advocacy, to name a few.

Graduate and professional level job titles
  • Health-Based Researcher
  • Medical Doctor
  • Physician Assistant
  • Professor
Contact information

 

VCU Transfer Center

Telephone: (804) 827-1349

Email: transferinfo@vcu.edu

Transfer Advising Request

VCCS Transfer Planning Checklist


Office of Admissions

Telephone: (804) 828-1222 or (800) 841-3638

Email: ugrad@vcu.edu
Apply Here.

Degree requirements in Bulletin
Plan of study in Bulletin

    n/a

Requirements
Highest level of math required
  • MATH 151
  • STAT 210
Science required
  • 5+ additional science courses
Foreign language requirements
  • No
Additional tuition/fees
  • No
GPA requirements (to progress/graduate in the major)
  • A minimum cumulative GPA of 2.7+ is required to apply to become a pre-professional health student and to stay on the pre-professional health advising track.
VCU Major Maps

View VCU Major Map for Pre-Medicine (advising track)

Transfer major map
Visit majormaps.vcu.edu for the online version with links.
Sponsored by the Office of the Provost
Major map compass icon
2023-2024

Pre-Medicine (Advising Track)

Richard Bland College of William and Mary (Associate of Science: Life Science)

MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
Explore Year 1
  • Make friends with people with diverse perspectives and join a cultural or identity-related student organization.
  • Attend cultural events at RBC and/or VCU and celebrate diversity.
  • Attend VCU's annual Intercultural Festival or another community intercultural event.
Experience Year 2
  • Practice using flashcards and continuously assessing your knowledge of subjects that will be tested on the MCAT.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges by meeting with your Learner Mentor and understanding RBC Student Support available.
  • Explore your eligibility for the Two-Year College Transfer Grant.
  • Maintain a high GPA. Use tutoring resources to get ahead. Be prepared to earn good grades at VCU.
  • Submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Participate in the STEM Transitions: Transfer Success Program after you’re admitted to VCU.
  • Review VCU MD Program Admissions information.
  • Volunteer for service learning or community service projects.
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Consider applying to the Summer Academic Enrichment Program (SAEP).
  • Consider learning a foreign language.
  • Volunteer with a vulnerable, under-represented and/or underserved community. Reflect on the challenges these populations might face with their healthcare.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Become familiar with OMSA at VCU.
  • Attend Career & Internship Fairs at RBC or VCU to explore your interests.
  • Find healthcare experience that’s paid, volunteer or shadowing experience - answer the question, "is this really what I want to do?"
  • Search for a summer science opportunity.
  • Find out about VCU REAL and learn about REAL graduation requirement.
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Take advantage of free Financial Aid counseling.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Review resources at AAMC and begin to develop your own plan for applying and taking the MCAT.

Explore
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Make friends with people with diverse perspectives and join a cultural or identity-related student organization.
  • Attend cultural events at RBC and/or VCU and celebrate diversity.
  • Attend VCU's annual Intercultural Festival or another community intercultural event.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE

Experience
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
  • Practice using flashcards and continuously assessing your knowledge of subjects that will be tested on the MCAT.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges by meeting with your Learner Mentor and understanding RBC Student Support available.
  • Explore your eligibility for the Two-Year College Transfer Grant.
  • Maintain a high GPA. Use tutoring resources to get ahead. Be prepared to earn good grades at VCU.
  • Submit the FAFSA on time.
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
  • Participate in the STEM Transitions: Transfer Success Program after you’re admitted to VCU.
  • Review VCU MD Program Admissions information.
  • Volunteer for service learning or community service projects.
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Consider applying to the Summer Academic Enrichment Program (SAEP).
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Consider learning a foreign language.
  • Volunteer with a vulnerable, under-represented and/or underserved community. Reflect on the challenges these populations might face with their healthcare.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Become familiar with OMSA at VCU.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
  • Attend Career & Internship Fairs at RBC or VCU to explore your interests.
  • Find healthcare experience that’s paid, volunteer or shadowing experience - answer the question, "is this really what I want to do?"
  • Search for a summer science opportunity.
  • Find out about VCU REAL and learn about REAL graduation requirement.
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Take advantage of free Financial Aid counseling.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Review resources at AAMC and begin to develop your own plan for applying and taking the MCAT.
Recommended courses
Major map compass icon
2023-2024

Pre-Medicine (Advising Track)

Richard Bland College of William and Mary (Associate of Science: Life Science)

Richard Bland College of William and Mary courses
Course Title Equivalent course Credits Requirements
Students who earn this associate degree before enrolling at VCU will be eligible for a waiver of VCU's general education requirements.
ENGL 101 Rhetoric and Research I Note: students with credit for AP English Language and Composition will only receive credit for UNIV 111 at VCU and should take ENGL 102 to fulfill the VCU composition requirement. UNIV 111-112 3 General education (pre-medicine requirement)
ENGL 102 Rhetoric and Research II UNIV 200 3 General education (pre-medicine requirement)
MATH 151 Precalculus II MATH 151 4 Elective (pre-medicine recommendation)
MATH 217 Statistics STAT 210 3 Elective (pre-medicine requirement)
BIO 151 + Lab Biological Science I + Lab BIOL/Z 151 4 General education (pre-medicine requirement)
BIO 152 + Lab Biological Science II + Lab BIOL/Z 152 4 Elective (pre-medicine requirement)
CHEM 101 + Lab General Chemistry I + Lab CHEM/Z 101 4 General education (pre-medicine requirement)
CHEM 102 + Lab General Chemistry II + Lab CHEM/Z 102 4 Elective (pre-medicine requirement)
PHYS 101 College Physics I (lecture and lab) PHYS 201 4 Elective (pre-medicine requirement)
PHYS 102 College Physics II (lecture and lab) PHYS 202 4 Elective (pre-medicine requirement)
PHIL 203 Introduction to Ethics PHIL 201 3 General education (pre-medicine recommendation)
PSY 210 Survey of Psychology PSYC 101 3 General education (pre-medicine recommendation)
SOC 201 General Sociology SOCY 101 3 General education (pre-medicine recommendation)
Complete general education and elective requirements for associate degree VCU equivalents 14 General education
Richard Bland credits transferred to VCU 60
Beyond curricular requirements, students must obtain additional experiences to be a competitive applicant for the VCU School of Medicine. Successful applicants have an average of 200 hours of clinical exposure, interacting with both physicians (>60 hours) and patients. Non-clinical community service that demonstrates their passion for serving others over an extended amount of time is required; 200 hours is the average. Students should be knowledgeable about how their clinical exposure and community service has impacted their motivation to study medicine and be successful in the classroom. It is also helpful to the applicant but not mandatory to have research and leadership experience.
VCU courses
Course Title Credits Requirements
Your GPA Doesn't Transfer With You Although you worked hard to earn your grades at your current institution, they will only be considered by VCU for an admission decision. Once you enroll at VCU, your GPA will reset to 0.0, and your new GPA will be determined by your level of success in your classes at VCU.
The courses listed below are required or recommended for pre-medicine students. Students must also select a VCU major and complete the major requirements. The minimum number of credits required for a bachelor's degree at VCU is 120 credits.
CHEM/Z 301 Organic Chemistry I and Laboratory 5 Elective (pre-medicine requirement)
CHEM/Z 302 or CHEM 403 Organic Chemistry II and Laboratory or CHEM 403 Biochemistry I 3 to 5 Elective (pre-medicine requirement)
BIOL Upper-level biology elective (300- or 400-level) 3 Elective (pre-medicine requirement)
Medical schools across the U.S. have different prerequisites for admission. The list below shows courses required by various schools beyond the courses listed above for the VCU School of Medicine. Students should discuss career plans with their pre-professional health career adviser for additional guidance.
BIOL 300 Cellular and Molecular Biology 3 Elective (pre-medicine recommendation)
BIOL 303 Microbiology 3 Elective (pre-medicine recommendation)
BIOL/Z 310 Genetics and Laboratory 5 Elective (pre-medicine recommendation)
Courses required for VCU major and electives 36 Major
REAL The REAL requirement may be satisfied by successfully completing a 300-level (or higher) course that has received a REAL attribute of Level 2, 3 or 4 or through an approved “REAL” co-curricular experience that has received a REAL attribute of Level 3 or 4. See VCU advisor for options. 0 Major
Minimum number of credits completed at VCU 60
Minimum number of credits required for a bachelor's degree 120