Do I need to complete my pre-req science courses before applying?

WayOutWestMom
Thu, 16 Apr 2020 17:16:55 +0000

do I have to complete all of my required and most of my recommended med school prerequisite courses before I apply?

The answer is—it depends.

Some medical schools screen out any applications that have not completed all admission requirements; some don’t.

However, you would be very foolish NOT to take biochemistry before you take your MCAT. The biology portion of the MCAT is 40-45% biochemistry questions. It’s unlikely you would be able to score well on the MCAT without having taken a biochem class.

You’d also be foolish to have NOT taken stats since stats questions are included on all 4 sections of the MCAT.

So the question is: what do you want more:

1 ) to apply to directly to med school from undergrad as part of some arbitrary timeline?

OR

2. to have the best chance of scoring well on the MCAT so that you have the best chance of gaining a med school admission?

can I get away with not taking genetics?

Again it depends on the individual school policies. (Remember in med school speak recommended = required, if you want to be considered a strong candidate for admission.)