coursework in medical school

Medical School Requirements + Prerequisites: The Ultimate Guide (2024-2025)

What medical school requirements and prerequisites do you need?

Discover medical school requirements and medical school prerequisites, which scholarly and extracurricular activities you need, and how to fulfill your premed requirements while standing out in the 2024-2025 medical school application process..

While official medical school requirements for every medical school are listed in the Medical School Admissions Requirements , there are common scholarly and extracurricular activities that medical school admissions committees want to see — discover what those medical school “requirements” are in this article.

Because the study of medicine requires a fundamental understanding of the sciences and mathematics. Therefore, medical school requirements are focused primarily on biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics . However, many medical schools also want to see that you have taken math and English.

Medical school admissions committees also need to be convinced that you understand what it means to practice medicine, work with people from different backgrounds, and be an effective member of a team among other attributes.

By reading this article, you will understand the academic, scholarly, and extracurricular medical school requirements so you will be well-positioned when you apply to medical school.

And, believe it or not, you can actually enjoy the process because it is that interesting and fun. Yes. FUN!

Table of Contents

College Requirements

To be eligible for a medical degree in the United States, you must have earned an undergraduate college degree before you start medical school. Many students ask if the undergraduate college status or prestige matter when it comes to medical school admissions. There is no clear “yes” or “no” answer to this question.

Some undergraduate colleges are especially prestigious or notoriously difficult and medical schools might consider this when evaluating a student’s GPA. In the same way, if a student attends a college that is considered easy, the GPA will be considered within that context.

For example, let’s say Student A went to a very prestigious college which is notorious for grade deflation and gives out very few As. She has a GPA of 3.45 with an upward trend. Now, let’s say student B went to a less prestigious college and earned a 4.0 GPA. Student A, depending on other factors such as the MCAT score and activities, might be considered a more competitive applicant than Student B who went to a much less rigorous undergraduate college.

The MCAT is really the great equalizer in this process. So, if Student A and Student B both earned a great MCAT, let’s say a 523, they would both be equally competitive assuming all other factors were equal.

Many students attend less competitive colleges for good reason and medical schools know this! There are also many prestigious college honors programs that medical school admissions committees consider quite impressive. A high GPA earned at ANY college is impressive especially if it’s matched strong course rigor and a high MCAT score.

Equally important to understand is that attending an “elite” college will not be your ticket to medical school. In fact, sometimes medical schools seem to expect more from student who attend elite colleges. This is anecdotal information based on our work with students in the most recent application season. 

The bottom line? You can get into medical school from any undergraduate institution as long as you do well academically and take advantage of the opportunities available to you.

Premedical Course Requirements

Medical school prerequisites may vary from med school to med school. However, the vast majority of medical schools have the following prerequisites:

• Biology with lab (two semester sequence or three quarter sequence)
• General chemistry with lab (two semester sequence or two quarter sequence)
• Organic chemistry with lab (two semester sequence or two quarter sequence)
• Physics with lab (two semester sequence or three quarter sequence)

Some medical schools also require the following prerequisites:

• Mathematics : Calculus or statistics or college mathematics (two semesters or three quarters). About 60 medical schools require math.
• Biochemistry (one semester or two/three quarters – depends on the school). About 60 medical schools require biochemistry. This number will likely increase every year.
• English (two semesters or three quarters)
• Statistics.  About 20 medical schools require statistics.
• Social sciences (psychology, sociology, two semesters)

Keep in mind that many medical schools will not accept AP credit to satisfy requirements.

Medical School Prerequisites: What Must You Take?

To be safe, we recommend taking all of the coursework listed above. Keep in mind that all courses must be taken before you matriculate to medical school rather than before you actually apply.

In addition to the courses listed above, we recommend students take upper level science classes in any discipline.

Since medical school prerequisites differ, it is important to review each medical school’s required courses before you apply. We recommend taking all required courses at a four year university in the United States or a community college if this was part of your education path.

For the most up to date listing for specific medical school’s requirements, refer to this document from the Association of American Medical Colleges .

What is “competency-based” admissions?

More medical schools are moving towards “competency-based” admissions meaning those schools don’t require specific prerequisite, but, prefer to see competency in certain disciplines including biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and the humanities.

However, until all medical schools move towards competency-based admissions, we suggest taking all of the traditional medical school prerequisites.

Will medical schools accept advanced placement (AP) credit?

Many students who take AP classes in high school “place out” of some required prerequisites in college. Not all medical schools will accept this AP credit however many will.

Therefore, is important to check with individual medical schools regarding specific requirements. I suggest that students seek out this information before starting their freshman year. I have worked with clients who placed out of biology and took chemistry instead. Not only did this make their college course load demanding as took upper level science classes from the start of college, but, some medical schools would not accept the AP biology credit.

To find out definitively what each medical school requires, refer to Medical School Admissions Requirements updated annually by the Association of American Medical Colleges .

Do medical schools accept community college classes and credits?

The majority of medical schools will accept community college credits. We advise students check the MSAR for specific requirements from each medical school. Medical school admissions committees understand there are many reasons students enroll in community college classes and these choices will be viewed within the context of your entire application.

Medical School Requirements and Staying Organized

Medical school requirements can seem daunting and you may feel overwhelmed thinking about everything you need to do and accomplish to be a competitive medical school applicant.

The good news? If you stay organized, don’t rush to accomplish everything too quickly, and work hard, you can (and will) get it all done! I did it (years ago) and thousands of our students have as well.

Having a medical school timeline based on whether or not you plan on taking a gap year (or two) will help you to keep on track and get all of the prerequisite courses you need.

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Medical School Major Requirement

Medical school applicants can select any premed major !

Applicants often ask me what major “looks good” on an application. My response is always “the one that interests you the most.” Double majoring or earning a minor does not improve one’s candidacy, overall.

Students can major in non-science disciplines. In fact, medical schools are always seeking applicants who are intellectually curious and diverse; they don’t want an entire class of biology and chemistry majors.

Regardless of your major, take upper division science classes to prove that you can perform well in them. The bottom line is you can major in any discipline or disciplines you want as a premedical student.

However, since your GPA matters so much in medical school admissions, ideally you should try to major in the discipline where you can earn the highest GPA.

For example, a Spanish major with a 3.9 overall GPA and a 3.7 BCPM GPA, will be just as competitive as a Biology major with same stats assuming the Spanish major enrolled in upper level science courses.

By the same token, an Applied Math major with a 3.5 overall GPA and 3.4 BCPM GPA might not be as competitive as the Spanish major with higher metrics.

Interestingly, in the most recent data available, humanities majors have the highest acceptance rates to medical school with more than 50% matriculating!

RELATED ARTICLE: The Best Premed Major for Medical School Admissions (2023-2024)

Medical School GPA Requirements

The majority of medical schools will not disclose minimum GPA requirements. The average GPA for all medical school matriculants in 2022-2023 was 3.75 overall and a 3.68 BCPM at MD-granting schools in the U.S.

Many students ask us what GPA is “good enough” to get into medical school and this is a tough question to answer. Some medical schools screen applications based on minimum GPA requirements.

Obviously, the higher your GPA , the better. However, the general ballpark cut-off that medical schools use is an overall GPA of 3.5.

That said, schools also pay attention to grade trends. Many students do poorly early in college simply because they are not prepared for the academic course load and don’t have the maturity and time management and study skills to do well.

If you have an upward grade trend, medical schools may be willing to forgive a poor performance early in college. But, for the really competitive schools, academic excellence throughout college is essential.

How can you figure out if your GPA is competitive for a given medical school? We suggest reviewing the MSAR data and ensuring your GPA is in the middle 50th percentile or higher for the schools in which you are most interested.

Average GPAs for accepted students varies from medical school to medical school. The overall average GPA for students accepted to allopathic medical schools always hovers around 3.7.

Medical School MCAT Score Requirement

As mentioned earlier, MCAT scores allow medical schools to compare applicants from different undergraduate colleges.

The higher you score on the MCAT® the better. A composite score of 511 on the MCAT® is generally considered the score needed to gain admission to allopathic medical schools in the United States.

If you are applying to DO (osteopathic) medical schools, your MCAT does not need to be as high; an MCAT of 506 is competitive for osteopathic medical schools.

The maximum score a student can earn on the MCAT is 528. An outstanding MCAT score is 518 or above.

The overall average MCAT score for matriculants to allopathic medical schools in the United States has been steadily increasing:

• 511.2 in 2018/2019
• 511.5 in 2019/2020
• 511.5 in 2021/2201
• 511.9 in 2021/2022
• 511.9 in 2022/2023

The most recent data shows an average MCAT score of 511.9 for students accepted to allopathic medical school with the following breakdown: 127.9 CPBS, 127 CARS, 128.2 BBLS, and 128.9 PSBB.

Most college students take the MCAT the summer after junior or senior year. When planning on your MCAT date, keep in mind that most medical schools accept scores that are up to two or three years old.

RELATED ARTICLE:  What MCAT Score Do You Need to Get Into Medical School (2023-2024)?

Be sure to carefully plan your medical school admissions timeline when deciding when to take the MCAT.

Medical School Extracurricular Requirements

When seeking out experiences, keep in mind what medical school admissions committees want to see in your candidacy:.

• Commitment to medicine and scientific inquiry
• Experience working with diverse populations
• A commitment to advocacy and social justice
• Commitment to altruistic endeavors
• Intellectual curiosity
• Exposure to clinical medicine
• Excellent intra and interpersonal skills

See Medical School Core Competencies

Most medical schools, even those that are not major academic medical centers, want applicants to have research experience .

Most students engage in basic science research (either for credit, during the summer, or for employment) or clinical research.

However, research in other disciplines will also allow you to learn how to think critically, analyze data, evaluate the literature, solve problems, and ask and then answer a question through experimentation.

If you can’t find a basic science or clinical research experience , consider research in another discipline of interest – psychology, art history, anthropology – or whatever else piques your curiosity.

What you learn through research in any discipline can be applied to future research endeavors and help you to practice evidence based medicine. You will also be able to evaluate current studies, which will be necessary throughout your medical education, training, and career.

Medical schools are placing more and more value on the importance of scientific inquiry, analytical skills, and the ability to apply knowledge practically. Therefore, significant research experience will be more, and not less, important in coming years.

Social Justice and Advocacy Work (KEY FOR 2024-2025)

We saw medical schools, in 2022/2023, start to value work in social justice or advocacy. What does this mean exactly? We suggest that students be involved in work that shows an interest in combating inequities that exist in our society whether that be health care inequities, educational inequities, environmental inequities, or anything else.

Understanding the social determinants of health is also essential in today’s climate.

Volunteering and Community Service

Lending your services to help others in need is always a worthwhile endeavor.

Medical schools are seeking people who are compassionate, caring, and empathetic. Demonstrating these traits through community service or volunteer work is important. Medical schools also seek applicants who want to help others in need, including the underserved.

Physicians also play significant roles in their communities. Therefore, medical schools value students who demonstrate a commitment to serve their communities.

Service work can be performed in medical and non-medical settings, and both are considered desirable. As mentioned above, medical schools value volunteering in a free clinic, nursing home, hospital, or hospice. Spending time in non-clinical settings, such as a soup kitchen, a tutoring program, or helping to build homes for those who are less fortunate, also demonstrates a commitment to serve.

Shadowing/Exposure to Clinical Medicine

All medical schools want to see that you have varied clinical exposure.

This can take the form of doctor shadowing , volunteering in a free clinic, or working abroad in some capacity. Some applicants have difficulty getting accepted to medical school because they have no exposure to patient care.

We have found that in recent years medical schools are valuing hands-on clinical experience more rather than passive experiences such as shadowing. Even if you aren’t taking a gap year , consider scribing, working as an EMT or as a certified nursing assistant. Hands-on clinical experience is valued much more highly than passive experience such as shadowing.

If you have never set foot in a doctor’s office or a hospital it is tough to convince someone that you want to be a doctor. Admissions committees want to be sure that you understand what it means to practice medicine in a variety of settings.

I often suggest that students seek out shadowing experiences in emergency departments (EDs). I don’t this because I am an emergency physician but because emergency departments are open 24/7, are always busy, and have a variety of patients with varied clinical presentations. The key is to shadow a spectrum of specialists in different settings.

Other Extracurricular Activities

To show you are an interesting, curious and engaged person, you should ideally demonstrate other passions in the admissions process.

Medical schools want to have a group of diverse medical students so having other passions can be appealing.

Medical School Letter of Recommendation Requirements

Each medical school’s official letter of recommendation requirements vary. However, we suggest asking for letters from the following people to make the strongest letter portfolio

• Medical school committee letter. If your school offers a committee letter, include that in your profile
• Science Professors: Have at least one letter from a science professor. However, we recommend two science letters.
• Math Professors: If you have only one science letter, be sure to also receive at least one math letter.
• Liberal Arts Professor: Ideally, your letter profile should include one liberal arts professor.
• Research Principal Investigator (PI): If you did research, try to get a letter from your PI.
• Shadowing or Community Service Letter: These letters serve mostly as character reference letters, but, can add to your overall profile.

How do you complete the medical school application?

Most medical schools extend interviews on a rolling basis so it is extremely important to submit your medical school application as close to the application opening date as possible.

Ideally you should start working on your personal statement and work and activities entries by April.

All three application systems open in early May. AMCAS can be submitted in very late May/early June. Also be aware that AMCAS won’t verify your application until it receives all documentation. Application processing and verification can take up to six weeks. But, if you submit early, this processing often takes much less time.

The AMCAS application opens in early May. At that time you can enter all of your application information, request transcripts, and have letters of reference sent to AMCAS.

Submitting the earliest applications possible is of the utmost importance.

RELATED ARTICLE:  Best Medical School Application Timeline (2023 -2024)

Final thoughts

We realize that all for the medical school requirements you need to be competitive are daunting. So, stay organized, take it one day at a time, and it will all get done! If you need support along the way, we are here to help you.

Frequently asked questions

Are paid volunteer clinical trips worthwhile.

We discourage applicants from paying for clinical experience and “voluntourism” is something that was in vogue years ago. Unless you have a connection to the foreign country at which you are doing work, this will not be viewed favorably by admissions committees and could be interpreted as gratuitous and privileged. 

What about paid shadowing programs like the Atlantis fellowship?

We discourage applicants from paying for shadowing or observerships such as the Atlantis study abroad fellowship unless you are looking for a work vacation and have extra cash on hand. Atlantis “fellowships” start at $4,800 according to their website. Programs such as Atlantis are not highly respected by admissions committees and you are better of shadowing doctors in your community and learning about challenges facing people in the United States.

How many volunteering hours do I need for medical school?

We discourage applicants from trying to accumulate hours for the sake of your medical school candidacy. How many hours you have often depends on the value of an experience and the opportunity you have to make an impact through that experience. Once an experience becomes boring or if the experience dead ends, meaning that you cannot find anyway to learn something valuable from it or contribute in a meaningful way, it’s time to consider dropping the activity. MedEdits student who have been accepted to medical have had between 30 – 1000 hours of volunteer experience.

What is the best major for medical school?

As we have mentioned in this article, there is no “best major” for medical school. You should major in what interests you most. That said, if you major in a non science, be sure you take upper level science classes in additional to traditional prerequisites to show you can do well and that you have a solid foundation for medical school. Medical school admissions committees want to see mastery in whatever discipline you are interested in. Some students see college as the last opportunity to study a non-science discipline in depth and take advantage of that opportunity. Medical schools, which value intellectual curiosity, appreciate this. Based on the data, no specific major will increase your chances of medical school admission.

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Pre-Med Requirements: Courses You Need for Medical School

What’s covered:.

• What Does Pre-Med Mean and How Long Is It?
• What Are the Pre-Med Course Requirements?

Recommended Pre-Med Courses

Popular majors for pre-med students.

• What Are the Other Med School Requirements?
• What is the Best Pre-Med School For You?
• Best Schools For Pre-Med

Dreaming of becoming a physician? It’s a very popular career choice, as well as a highly competitive one. In addition to contending with rigorous course requirements as an undergraduate, to become a physician you must attend medical school and complete a residency, which usually takes at least 11 years in total.

While the process to become a physician is arduous, it’s also highly lucrative and rewarding. If you’re just starting on the road to medicine, you might not know exactly where to begin. Keep reading to find out how you can prepare for the challenges that accompany medical school.

What Does Pre-Med Mean and How Long Is It? 

There’s a lot of confusion surrounding the concept of pre-med , with many people thinking that they can declare it as a major. Pre-med is not a major but a track. You can major in anything you wish, as long as your medical school requirements and your major requirements are completed by graduation.

The pre-med track typically lasts four years, as you’ll need a bachelor’s degree to apply to medical school. That being said, some students choose to enroll in accelerated BS/MD combined degree programs that allow them to finish their pre-med courses in three years. CollegeVine has a whole blog section devoted to BS/MD programs for any interested students. We also have detailed information on navigating the pre-med track available to prospective students.

What Are the Pre-Med Course Requirements? 

Undergraduate course requirements vary from one medical school to the next, but generally include the following:

• Biology – 2 semesters with lab
• Physics – 2 semesters with lab
• General chemistry – 2 semesters with lab
• Organic chemistry – 2 semesters with lab
• Biochemistry – 1 semester
• English – 2 semesters
• Math – 2 semesters

Many schools also require statistics, psychology, and writing.

Your undergraduate university will likely have advisors who will help make sure that you complete your pre-med requirements on time. You may also want to review the requirements at various medical schools so that you know what you are up against. For example, the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine M.D. Program requires the following:

• College biology with laboratory, one year (8 semester hours)
• General college chemistry with laboratory, one year (8 semester hours)
• Organic chemistry with laboratory, one semester (4 semester hours)
• Biochemistry, three or four semester hours (Lab is not required.)
• 24 semester hours in areas of humanities (English, History, Classics, Foreign Language, Philosophy, Arts, etc.), social science (Sociology, Economics, Political Science, Anthropology, etc.), and behavioral science (Psychology, etc.). Must include two writing-intensive courses.
• Calculus and/or statistics, one year (6-8 semester hours)
• General college physics with laboratory, one year (8 semester hours)

Many courses are not requirements for applying to medical school, but are valuable for pre-med students to take. Students who take these recommended pre-med courses will be more appealing to medical schools and will likely have an easier time in medical school (in the long term, these courses also make for more well-rounded physicians). 

For example, in addition to the requirements above, Hopkins recommends taking four semester hours in the principles of genetics and at least one semester of statistics or epidemiology. Generally, recommended courses for pre-med students include:

• Public Health
• Human Anatomy and Physiology

Like we said earlier, pre-med is not a major . So then, you might be wondering, what majors do pre-med students typically declare? Here is the rundown of popular majors for pre-meds:

Biological Sciences and Human Biology

More than half of med-school applicants study biological sciences during their undergraduate years. Majoring in biology means that your major requirements and pre-med requirements will overlap significantly. That being said, studying science exclusively can be intense and exhausting. If you major in biology on the pre-med track, you may want to carefully select a unique minor or interesting elective courses to avoid burnout. 

Physics, Chemistry, and Other Physical Sciences

Just like the natural sciences, the physical science major courses typically overlap with the pre-med requirements. Though the coursework will differ slightly, the risks and benefits of physics and chemistry are about the same as those of biology.

Psychology, Economics, and Social Sciences

Social science applicants make up about 10% of medical school admissions. The requirements for these majors have some overlap with the pre-med requirements, but students will need to spend most of their elective units completing pre-med courses.

Philosophy and the Humanities

Humanities majors are less popular for pre-med students because they leave all pre-med requirements to be completed with electives. This will take planning on your part and will require clear communication with your advisors. That being said, humanities graduates who pursue medicine may be more personable and well-rounded than students who exclusively focus on the sciences. Philosophy is a popular major for pre-med students in the humanities.

Math, Statistics, and Related Majors

While math majors are not actually a popular major for pre-med students, they have the highest MCAT scores and GPAs of all applicants and thus, typically have favorable positioning in medical school admissions.

What Are the Other Med School Requirements? 

When you’re applying to medical school, you’ll complete a primary application, usually administered by the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS). After submitting the primary application, the school will send you a secondary application (or reject you, in some cases). For one or both of these applications, in addition to your transcript, you’ll need to submit: 

Your MCAT Score  

Some schools have a minimum MCAT score and GPA requirements and will filter out applicants who don’t meet them.

Personal Statements

Usually, you’ll need to respond to prompts on both the primary and secondary applications. The topics vary, but typically you’ll be asked to explore the reasons you want to pursue medicine, the events that have shaped you, and your passions, experiences, achievements, and interests.

Letters of Recommendation

Most medical schools require three letters of recommendation, usually two letters from science faculty members and one from a non-science discipline, although this varies from school to school. If your undergraduate college has a formal pre-med committee, a committee letter is usually required to present an overview and evaluation of your undergraduate performance and candidacy. 

Most medical schools will want to see relevant extracurricular activities, including research, clinical experience, and volunteering or community service. You can gain exposure to the profession by shadowing physicians, working as a scribe, or contributing to the medical community by assisting practicing professionals with research.

Medical schools also want to know what kind of person you are, so your application will also ask for non-medical extracurriculars. It’s kind of like the Common App all over again, though the activities section for medical school is more extensive, and you’ll be asked to write approximately 500 words about each of your three most important extracurriculars.

Keep in mind that individual medical schools may have additional requirements or recommendations. Most schools also conduct interviews, extending invitations to a small percentage of candidates after reviewing their applications.

What Is the Best Pre-Med School For You?

Choosing the right college can change your pre-med path for better or worse. It’s not only important to look for schools with strong pre-med advising; you also want to be sure that your college is a good fit in other ways, including size, location, extracurriculars, and other factors. 

Using our free school search tool , you can search for colleges based on preferences like majors, finances, your personal chances of acceptance, and more.

It’s important to remember that outstanding pre-med programs come in all shapes and sizes. There are great pre-med programs at technical schools and ‘party’ schools, large schools and small schools, and research universities and liberal arts schools. Consider all of the relevant factors when picking the right pre-med program for you.

Best Schools for Pre-Meds

Here are CollegeVine’s picks for overall best schools for pre-meds:

See the full list of best pre-med schools for more rankings.

While each of these colleges has a different average acceptance rate, they are all very competitive and are ‘reach’ schools for everyone. You may also want to look into CollegeVine’s lists for the Best Non-Ivy League Schools for Pre-Med and the Most Underrated Pre-Med Colleges .

It is great to be interested in selective schools, but it is also important to remember to create a balanced college list. If possible, a student should apply to 8-10 schools, with about 25% being safety schools, 40% target schools, and 35% reach schools. These categories—safety, target, and reach—are determined by your chances of acceptance at the schools you are applying to.

Because your personal chances of acceptance at these schools may differ from the average acceptance rate, we’ve made it easy to figure out which schools fall into which categories with our free Admissions Chances Calculator . By taking into account your grades, test scores, and extracurriculars, we’ll estimate your odds of acceptance at different schools and give you tips on improving your profile.

Related CollegeVine Blog Posts

Premed Requirements: Prerequisites and Other Beneficial Courses

• By Med School Insiders
• November 7, 2022
• Premed , premed major

You know you want to be a doctor. But before you can be accepted to medical school, you must earn a college degree. While medical schools do not require applicants to have a specific major, there are a number of premed requirements that you must fulfill during your college career in order to even be considered by admissions committees. These med school requirements, also known as medical school prerequisites, will vary from school to school, but generally, there are several courses you will definitely need to take in order to apply to medical school.

In this post, we’ll break down the premed requirements for medical school, including required classes, courses that are sometimes needed, and additional classes that may be beneficial to premeds.

What Are the Premed Requirements for Medical School?

While the exact premed requirements and prerequisites vary from medical school to medical school, most require two semesters of biology with lab, two semesters of general chemistry with lab, two semesters of organic chemistry with lab, and two semesters of physics with lab. Most also include a year of English and at least a semester of math, though it could be either calculus or statistics.

Shared core requirements for medical school:

• 1 year of Biology with lab
• 1 year of General Chemistry with lab
• 1 year of Organic Chemistry with lab
• 1 year of Physics with lab
• 1 year of English
• At least 1 semester of Mathematics (Ex. Calculus or Statistics)

These requirements are hardly arbitrary. An extensive background in science is essential to a future doctor’s success. Biology, such as genetics and cells, is the foundation of medical knowledge. You really can’t be an effective doctor without a strong interest in and aptitude for biology. Chemistry is also imperative, as it’s the foundation of biochemistry, which is a major part of the MCAT. It will help you understand acid-base imbalances and how different medications affect the body. Physics will help you to understand the laws of volume and pressure as well as the different forces at work in the body.

Taking English is also essential, as reading and writing skills and critical thinking play a vital role in a doctor’s career, to say nothing of the CARS section of the MCAT . CARS (Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills) tests your ability to comprehend and analyze information in the moment. Many test takers see this section as the most challenging part of the MCAT, which is why taking a writing-intensive course like English will be a big help to you. Plus, taking an English class will also help you write a more effective personal statement .

Math also plays a key role in the daily life of a doctor. You’ll need a strong understanding of basic math to read lab results, determine correct dosages, and much more.

You must check the specific requirements of each school you are applying to . While there will certainly be lots of overlap, requirements do vary from school to school. This is why it’s so beneficial to begin crafting your school list early on, as it will take plenty of time and consideration.

Don’t know which medical schools you want to apply to? Read our guide: How to Decide Which Medical Schools to Apply to (12 Important Factors) .

Other Recommended Premed Courses

In addition to the required courses, most medical schools will also include recommended courses, such as psychology or sociology, biochemistry, and physiology or anatomy. Some medical schools outright require these courses, as they are extremely beneficial to your overall medical knowledge. Not only will these courses bolster your foundational medical knowledge, but you may be tested on these subjects on the MCAT.

Sometimes required or recommended courses:

• Biochemistry
• Physiology or Anatomy
• Behavioral Science, such as Psychology or Sociology
• Humanities, such as Ethics, Foreign Languages, Speech Communication, Philosophy, or Literature
• Computer Science

Recommend courses are not required, but they are recommended for a reason. For example, taking a foreign language course can benefit your medical career. Depending on where you will practice in the US, you will likely be dealing with patients from a range of different backgrounds. For instance, 13% of the population of the US speaks Spanish at home , making it the second most spoken language in the US. Being able to clearly communicate with your patients is essential, which is why learning another language will be a major benefit to your career.

What Does it Mean to Be Premed?

Are you wondering what the need is for all of these prerequisites when you’re planning on majoring in premed anyway? You may be surprised—and disappointed—to learn that premed is not a major . A premed is a student who plans on attending medical school after college. In order to apply to medical school, you need to have a college degree. The major you choose in college is your premed major, whether that’s cell biology, math, film studies, or economics.

Note that some medical schools offer early admission pathways through combined bachelor and medicine degree programs, called a BS/MD. Learn more: Are BS/MD Programs Worth It? Pros and Cons .

Choosing the Premed Major for You

Not all premed majors are created equal. In order to be successful, it’s important to choose a major you are genuinely interested in. So, what’s the easiest premed major? The answer to that question varies from one student to the next.

If you plan on majoring in the biological sciences, many of the medical school prerequisites will be included in your curriculum. If you’re planning on a non-science major, you will need to make room for these courses in your class schedule. Note that this will mean more work; however, a non-science major will also help you stand out from the crowd, making you a more intriguing candidate to admissions committees who are more than used to reviewing the applications of science majors. 58.5% of all applicants in 2021 were biological science majors.

That said, do not choose a non-science major for the sole purpose of appearing unique. Majoring in art history when you’re actually more interested in neuroscience won’t do you any favors. If you’re not passionate about your major, there’s a good chance it will show in your grades. Plus, if you choose a non-traditional path, admissions committees want to see your enthusiasm. If you’re bored with or disinterested in your major, it will show—and apathy is not an attractive quality in a future doctor.

There is not necessarily one ideal premed major, as the choice is a very personal one. If your top priority is getting into medical school, a major in the biological sciences makes a great deal of sense, as the requirements will overlap quite well with your medical school prerequisites. Plus, you’ll be studying something that interests you, as your future career will be studying the human body.

If you’re not interested in any of the biological sciences, such as cell biology, neuroscience, or molecular biology, then you should think long and hard about why you want to be a doctor. That said, you do have your entire life to study biology and the human body. If you’re extremely passionate about literature, political science, or economics in addition to biology, now may be your chance to pursue it. Just understand your college journey will be a more challenging one.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though. Medical school is the toughest schooling in the world . Choosing the more challenging path could potentially help sharpen your work ethic and prepare you for the immense rigors of medical school.

Whatever premed major you choose, make sure it’s something you’re enthusiastic and passionate about, as this will help carry you through even the most difficult of majors.

Still not sure what the best path is for you? Learn how to choose a premed major with our comprehensive guides: The Best Premed Major Backed By Acceptance Data and How to Choose a Premed Major in 5 Steps .

Succeed as a Premed and Beyond

Being a premed and successfully making your way through college is only the very beginning of your journey. From choosing an ideal premed major to building essential habits to achieving success on the MCAT, Med School Insiders can help you wherever you need to improve most. We offer one-on-one advising that pairs you with a doctor advisor who best fits your needs because it’s our goal to help you create a future that aligns with your vision.

Follow the Med School Insiders blog throughout your premed and medical school journey for the latest strategies and industry news. We add and update our content weekly to ensure you get the most accurate and up-to-date information. To receive updates first, sign up for our newsletter , which is sent out once a week with videos, guides, student stories, important dates to remember, and more.

As you prepare to apply to medical school, read our guide on Understanding the Medical School Application Process and save our Medical School Application Timeline and Monthly Schedule and Medical School Application Checklist to ensure you stay on track with every element of your application.

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Here are 5 summer jobs for premed students to help you stand out among your peers, develop necessary skills for medical school, and build lifelong connections.

What Premeds Don’t Know About Life as a Doctor | The Premed Paradox Book Summary

If you’ve struggled to determine if becoming a doctor is right for you, or if you’ve second guessed your choice, you’re not alone. This article is for you.

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What do you mean by “1 year”? Do you mean 2 semesters or 1 course?

2 semesters or 3 quarters, depending on whether your school is on the quarter or semester system

Can I take 5 classes and a major in college?

Would you recommend taking honors in college?

are possible for computer science student undergraduate for go for the premed?

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Masks Strongly Recommended but Not Required in Maryland

Respiratory viruses continue to circulate in Maryland, so masking remains strongly recommended when you visit Johns Hopkins Medicine clinical locations in Maryland. To protect your loved one, please do not visit if you are sick or have a COVID-19 positive test result. Get more resources on masking and COVID-19 precautions .

• Vaccines  
• Masking Guidelines
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M.D. Program

Prerequisites, requirements and policies.

Online Courses

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the School of Medicine has changed the policy regarding prerequisite courses taken online. We will now accept online prerequisite courses completed at an accredited college or university, whether these were taken prior to the pandemic or any time afterwards. 

Medical school studies build on a strong foundation in the sciences and mathematics at the premedical level. Beyond the successful fulfillment of these basic prerequisites, the Committee on Admission considers the overall quality and scope of an applicant’s undergraduate educational experience. The field of concentration for undergraduate studies and the selection of additional science and mathematics courses are the student’s personal choice and will not affect the admission process.

In addition to the academic requirements detailed below, we seek candidates who evidence the following characteristics:

• Academic Excellence
• Service, compassion and humanism
• Ability to work in a team (or as part of a team)

Requirements for Admission

State Authorization Disclosure Regarding Educational Prerequisites  (PDF)

The following general requirements must be met by all applicants:

I. Standardized testing.

The Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) is required for acceptance. The MCAT must be taken no later than September in the year the application is submitted. The oldest MCAT considered will be four years prior to date of expected matriculation. For students entering in Fall 2023, the oldest acceptable MCAT is 2019.

Note for graduates of foreign institutions: Successful passage of the TOEFL examination is additionally required for all students whose undergraduate instruction was conducted primarily in a language other than English.

II. Required academic work from an accredited institution.

(As listed on “Accredited Institutions of Postsecondary Education,’’ authorized and published by the American Council on Education, One DuPont Circle NW, Washington, D.C. 20036.)

The School of Medicine accepts prerequisites completed at the community college level. In order to be competitive in the selection process, we encourage prospective applicants with community college prerequisites to supplement these courses by taking advanced courses in related subjects at their four year institution. A holistic review process is used to select applicants to interview at Hopkins and many factors are considered in this review. These factors include the rigor of the applicant’s course of studies, grades, MCAT scores, clinical and research exposure, letters of recommendation, personal statement and the applicant’s understanding of medicine. In addition, we consider the path the applicants have taken which led to their desire to apply to medical school and become a physician.

Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate credits acceptable to the student's undergraduate college may be used to satisfy the prerequisites in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Calculus/Statistics and up to one-half of the Humanities/Social, Behavioral Sciences. AP and IB credits must be documented on an official transcript. Please note the additional requirements for Biology and Chemistry listed below.

Please note:

• Extension or evening courses taken in fulfillment of premedical course requirements are not acceptable unless they are identical to courses offered in the college’s regular academic program
• Preparation in foreign universities must be supplemented by a year or more of work at an accredited university in the United States.   Please note that this is not a requirement for applicants whose bachelors degree was received in Canada.
• Prerequisites do not need to be completed to apply but must be completed by August 1, just prior to matriculating at Johns Hopkins. Until successful completion of the requirements, acceptance is considered conditional
• All coursework submitted in fulfillment of admission requirements must be evaluated on the basis of a traditional grading system. Such a system must employ a range of numbers or letters to indicate the comparative level of performance
• CLEP credits may not be substituted for any course requirement

Specific premedical course requirements are:

College biology with laboratory, one year (8 semester hours).

A separate course devoted to the principles of genetics (4 sem. hours) is recommended.  Individuals who have not completed their studies in biology within the past four (4) years are strongly encouraged to take an additional course in mammalian or molecular biology.  If using AP or IB credit, an additional semester in advanced biology, such as cell biology, genetics, physiology, molecular biology, etc., is required.  

i. General college chemistry with laboratory, one year (8 semester hours).

If using AP or IB credit, an additional semester in advanced chemistry is required .  Acceptable advanced chemistry courses include the following:  a second semester of organic chemistry; a second semester of biochemistry; analytical chemistry (quantitative or qualitative); physical chemistry, applied chemical equilibrium and reactivity, etc.

 ii. Organic chemistry with laboratory, one semester (4 semester hours) are required.

iii. Biochemistry. Minimum of 3 semester hours . Lab is not required.

The student should have knowledge of chemical equilibrium and thermodynamics, acid/base chemistry, the nature of ions in solution and redox reactions, the structure of molecules with special emphasis on bio-organic compounds, reaction rates, binding coefficients, reaction mechanisms involved in enzyme kinetics and other applications to the understanding of living systems. Also important is a basic understanding of the structure of nucleic acids, including how they store and transfer information.

Humanities, Social and Behavioral Sciences

The study of the humanities and social and behavioral sciences is an essential foundation for the study and practice of medicine. These disciplines foster a broad understanding of humankind and the increasingly diverse cultural and social environment of our world.  A minimum of 24 semester hours is required in areas of humanities (English, History, Classics, Foreign Language, Philosophy, Arts, etc), social science (Sociology, Economics, Political Science, Anthropology, etc.)  and behavioral science (Psychology, etc.).  Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English.  Required course work will include at least two writing-intensive courses which can be in the humanities or the social/behavioral sciences and may be counted as part of the twenty-four (24) semester hour requirement for the humanities/social sciences.  AP or IB credit acceptable to the student's undergraduate college is allowed for a maximum of twelve (12) credits .  Please see Communication Skills under Additional Requirements below. 

Mathematics

Calculus   and/or   Statistics Minimum of 6 semester hours .

Mathematics courses should enable the student to develop equations, to interpret graphical representations of function and to evaluate probability involved in testing hypotheses in the study of natural phenomena. AP or IB credit for calculus or statistics, if acceptable to the student’s undergraduate college, may be used in the fulfillment of the math requirement. Regardless of such credit, it is strongly recommended that applicants take at least one semester of statistics or epidemiology .

General college physics with laboratory, one year (8 semester hours).

The student should have an understanding of the constants and units of physical measurement, Newtonian mechanics, the physical properties of various states of matter, such as liquids, solids and gasses, and the basic aspects of electricity, magnetism and optics, and their applications to living systems.  AP or IB credit for physics, if acceptable to the student’s undergraduate college, may be used in fulfillment of the physics requirement. The laboratory portion of this requirement is expected to equip the student with practical understanding of the process of scientific inquiry and to gain insight into how scientific knowledge is discovered and validated.

III. A Bachelor of Science (B.S.) or Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree from an accredited institution.

Additional requirements, i.  communication skills..

Required course work will include at least two writing-intensive courses, which can be in the humanities or the social/behavioral sciences and may be counted as part of the 24-semester hour requirement for the humanities and social sciences. It is expected that the student will have demonstrated precise and fluent communication in spoken and written English. It is strongly recommended that the student achieve basic conversational skills in a foreign language.

II. Teamwork skills.

Medicine is a strongly collaborative endeavor. The applicant must demonstrate the ability to work successfully with others toward a common goal. A significant experience requiring teamwork is therefore expected in the course of the applicant’s academic and/or extracurricular activities and should be documented in the application.

III. Conditions of admission.

Students admitted to the School of Medicine on a conditional basis (i.e., requirement(s) yet to be completed) must fulfill those conditions prior to matriculation in the School of Medicine.

IV. Letters of recommendation:

• Committee letter (required if your college/university has an officially designated committee or advisor). Authored by a pre-health committee or advisor and intended to represent your institution's evaluation of you. A committee letter may or may not include additional letters written in support of your application; - OR -
• Letter packet: A packet or set of letters assembled and distributed by your institution, often by the institution's career center. - OR -
• Two (2) letters from faculty members in science departments who taught you are required if the college/university you have attended does not have a Committee/Advisor AND one (1) letter from a non-science faculty member who has taught you. In addition to the letters, applicants with advanced degrees or significant postgraduate work experience of one year or more, are required to send recommendations from each component of their education and major work experience.

In addition to those letters required for application to the MD Program, two additional letters of recommendation are required for all MD-PhD applicants. These letters are typically from faculty with whom the applicant has done research.

V. Non-U.S. citizen applicants.

Official transcripts are required from all colleges attended outside the United States and Canada for matriculating students.

VI. Application Review.

Following receipt of all required credentials, the Committee on Admission will review applications and make interview decisions. Applicants selected for interview will be notified by the committee.  Virtual interviews will be considered on a case-by-case basis and must be approved by the Assistant Dean for Admissions. Notification of acceptances are made between late fall and mid spring.

Visiting Students

The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine has limited availability for students at other medical schools to participate in rotations.

Directions for Applying

Transfer Students

Due to the intensity and integration of our four-year curriculum, the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine is unable to accept transfer students.

Admitted students may request to defer their matriculation by April 15. The Deferral Committee will consider requests individually and will typically grant deferrals for research, academic programs (graduate studies, scholarship) or service programs. Deferrals are usually allowed for one or two years.

Technical Standards

Please review the  updated technical standards . 

For additional information, applicants should contact [email protected] .

Life at Hopkins Resources

Getting into Medical School

One of the most important decisions that you will ever make is your career choice. Competition for admission to medical school is intense, and the coursework that follows requires an individual to think critically and employ discipline. Though the path to a career in medicine is a long one, it is intellectually challenging, financially secure, and personally rewarding.

Understanding factors to consider when applying for medical school is a good first step toward pursuing your interest in a medical career. It is never too early to become informed so that you can make the most of opportunities to prepare yourself for the application process.

A medical school admissions committee is likely to be made up of teaching physicians from the clinical faculty, research faculty from the biological sciences, and medical students. Alumni or community physicians may also serve on admissions committees.

Here are key factors to consider as you prepare to apply for medical school.  

1. Choose a pre-med major you have a real interest in.

• 2. Research specific medical school admissions requirements

3. Build a strong academic record that goes beyond your GPA.

4. start preparing for the mcat early., 5. write a personal statement that makes you stand out., 6. prepare for personal interviews., 7. participate in extracurricular activities., 8. get some work experience related to the medical field., 9. shadow health professionals to learn more about the career you are choosing., 10. get involved in your community by volunteering., 11. get experience in academic research..

When choosing a pre-med major, keep in mind that medical school admissions committees have no prerequisites when it comes to degrees. Choose a degree or major in which you have a real interest. Be sure to take English, biology, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, and math (college algebra or above), regardless of your major choice.

2. Research specific medical school admissions requirements.

Begin to research specific medical school admissions requirements, timing, and other application factors as early as possible, even during your freshman and sophomore years of undergraduate study.

Although GPA is important, medical school admissions committees seek students who demonstrate a balance between their academic success and other interests.

The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) publishes the average applicant GPAs and Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) scores for US medical schools from the previous academic year. This information will give you a good idea of current averages.

Whether you meet or exceed the averages reported, remember that each application involves a variety of factors, including but not limited to academic performance. Don't let your GPA determine whether you apply.

The MCAT is a medical school admission requirement for most U.S. institutions, except for very few special consideration medical programs. The computer-based, multiple-choice, standardized test assesses critical thinking, writing skills, and basic knowledge of science.

The MCAT consists of four sections:

• Biological and biochemical foundations of living systems
• Chemical and physical foundations of biological systems
• Psychological, social, and biological foundations of behavior
• Critical analysis and reasoning skills

Your MCAT scores

The medical college admissions committees will consider your MCAT scores in the admission decision process. While an MCAT score in a high percentile can boost your medical school application, it is not the only consideration for admissions. Medical schools look at many factors in an application, and may even consider individual MCAT section scores to be as important as an overall score. 

Studying for the MCAT

A variety of guides and materials are available to help you study for the MCAT. No matter what study resources you decide to use, be sure you are familiar with all that the MCAT will test on before you invest in any products. As you plan out your study schedule, leave plenty of time for practice tests. Taking practice tests will help ensure you are meeting your study goals and know what to expect once the big day arrives.

Here is what you should know as you begin to prepare :

• The MCAT exam takes approximately seven and a half hours to complete.
• You can take the MCAT a maximum of three times over one year, and a total of four times maximum over a two-year period.
• Medical school admissions officers usually suggest that you take the MCAT in the calendar year prior to the year in which you plan to enter medical school.

Make it a priority to become familiar with MCAT eligibility and overall testing requirements before signing up to take it. If you have financial limitations, you may apply for fee assistance to minimize the costs of taking the MCAT.

Learn more about the MCAT on the AAMC website»

When applying for medical school, you will be required to write a personal statement. Although, this essay is often the last part of the application process, you should start preparing for it as early as possible. This is one part of the admissions process in which you can have direct influence and should aim for the best product possible.

While admissions committees often emphasize that they do not advise students about what to write in their personal statement, there are specific themes and topics that can be included. Your personal statement should reflect your goals and the qualities that are unique to you, so that you stand out. As you start your essay, take the time to carefully reflect on the academic foundation you have built and the experiences that have contributed to the development of your character and led to your decision to pursue a career in medicine.

Medical school admission requirements include a personal interview, though the specific processes differ among schools. Interviews may take place on or off campus. Interviews may be conducted by an admissions committee member, by multiple members of the admissions committee, or by off-campus interviewers, such as practicing physicians and/or current students. Generally, the interview assessments are added to the admissions file.

During the interview be prepared to answer questions in the following topical areas:

• Critical thinking skills and problem solving
• Ethical questions and scenarios
• Grades and test scores
• Personal attributes and experiences including philosophical viewpoints
• Career choice - be prepared to verbalize the answer to “Why do you want to go into medicine?”
• Attributes that make you a great fit with the medical school

Medical school admissions committees view involvement in extracurricular activities very favorably. If you can maintain a competitive grade point average in a rigorous curriculum and still actively participate in extracurricular activities, this demonstrates a high aptitude and work ethic. Many successful pre-med students join a variety of organizations, play varsity and intramural sports, participate in theatrical and singing groups, and volunteer. Leadership positions in these areas can also show commitment and personal growth. However, it must be emphasized that no amount of involvement in extracurricular activities can substitute for a good academic record or strong MCAT scores. Successful pre-med students have clear priorities and have learned to manage their time wisely.

Work experience related to the medical field is of particular value when applying to medical school. The primary value of working in a hospital, doctor’s office, public health clinic, or nursing home is to increase your exposure to the field and also help you decide whether to pursue a career in medicine. Many admissions committees will view this type of medically-related work experience favorably. This is not a medical school prerequisite to admissions, but is becoming increasingly important.

Students who have shadowed health professionals show that they have taken the initiative to investigate their career choice and have spent time and effort learning about the career. It is very important to keep track of physicians you have shadowed and the number of hours you spent in their offices. It is a good idea to shadow different professionals, not just physicians, to give you a broad perspective of the health care system. It is also important to shadow one or two professionals on a regular basis so that they may become familiar with you and your career goals. These individuals are more likely to feel comfortable writing you a letter of recommendation if they have mentored you or allowed you to follow them on an ongoing basis. It would also be a good idea to journal your experiences while shadowing. Journaling provides an opportunity for you to document your experiences for future application materials and experiences that can be written about in your personal statement.

If you want the chance to see medicine through its widest window, try shadowing a family physician. Because family doctors take care of everyone, from infants to older adults, these shadowing experiences are particularly rewarding and will help you get a jump start understanding medicine’s most popular specialty.  

Volunteering not only helps students decide whether medicine is the right field for them, it is a way to provide service to the community. Medical school admissions guides strongly urge their applicants to have engaged in some kind of volunteer activity before applying to medical school. Volunteering is viewed as increasingly important when it comes to admission decisions. It conveys commitment and integrity. You cannot demonstrate those traits in only a few days or a month of volunteer service.

Experience in scientific research is recommended by admissions committees for the academically strong student who has such an interest. This type of experience is essential if you aspire to a career in academic medicine or research. Many undergraduates develop an interest in pursuing research as a career while participating in projects in the laboratory of a faculty member.

Other Considerations for Acceptance

Other considerations that may be a factor when applying to medical school include:

• Evaluations from faculty members who had the student in class
• The applicant's state of residence
• The applicant's specialty choice
• Physician specialty needs in the state where the medical school is located

Thoroughly review each medical school's application requirements to ensure that you are supplying all of the information requested.

Copyright © 2024 American Academy of Family Physicians. All Rights Reserved.

Eligibility and Recommendations

Stanford University School of Medicine is committed to recruiting applicants with demonstrated excellence and accomplishments in their chosen field of study and encourages in-depth course work in their discipline. In addition to proficiency in the natural sciences, appreciation of behavioral and social determinants of health is important to the effective practice of medicine.

There are 15 Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students that have been endorsed by the AAMC Group on Student Affairs (GSA) Committee on Admissions (COA). The competencies fall into four categories: Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Thinking and Reasoning, and Science. These are available on AAMC website .

In our flexible consideration of diverse curricular backgrounds of our students, Stanford Medicine does not have specific course requirements, but instead recommends coursework and experiences that generate depth of knowledge in biology, chemistry and physics, mathematics, behavioral and social sciences, communication, and laboratory or field experiments.

Eligibility

• Applicants are considered for admission to Stanford Medicine without regard to their country of origin.
• Applicants with disabilities are eligible to apply.
• Eligible applicants include U.S. citizens, permanent U.S. residents holding a valid visa, individuals who have been granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at the time of application, undocumented students, and international students
• Applicants must have earned a U.S. Bachelor's degree or its international equivalent from a college or university of recognized standing.
• Applicants who have earned a Bachelor’s degree (undergraduate degree) from a foreign institution may be required to confirm their international degree equivalency based on guidelines established by World Education Services (WES)   (Using the Degree Equivalency Tool ) AND  must have studied for at least one academic year at an accredited college or university in the United States, Canada, or the United Kingdom  prior to applying  for admission.
• In order for your application to be considered for the 2025 admissions cycle, at least 1 MCAT result from an exam taken after January 2021 and before the end of September 2024 should be included in your application.
• Please refer to the Admissions Policies Page  for additional information on eligibility and requirements. 

Principles of Diversity and Non-Discrimination

Stanford Medicine conducts its operations in accordance with requirements of the law and with the following Statement of Non-Discrimination :

Stanford University admits qualified students of any race, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, or marital status to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the University. Consistent with its obligations under the law, in the administration of the University's programs and activities, Stanford prohibits unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, marital status or any other characteristic protected by applicable law; Stanford also prohibits unlawful harassment including sexual harassment and sexual violence.  This policy applies to Stanford programs and activities both on and off-campus, including overseas programs.

The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding this nondiscrimination policy: Stanford’s Title IX Coordinator, Stephen Chen, has been designated to handle inquiries regarding sexual harassment and sexual violence: Kingscote Gardens (2nd floor), 419 Lagunita Drive, Stanford, CA 94305, (650) 497-4955 (voice), (650) 497-9257 (fax),  [email protected]  (email). Individuals may also file complaints directly with the Office for Civil Rights, within the United States Department of Education, by following the information on this website:   https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaintintro.html

Please visit  https://med.stanford.edu/diversity.html  for more information about diversity initiatives at Stanford Medicine.

Our goal is to draw from people with a variety of backgrounds and life experiences to reach a new level of innovation in teaching, research and caring for patients.

Principles of Student Selection

Stanford Medicine seeks to admit a diverse body of students who are interested in the intellectual substance of medicine and are committed to advancing scholarship in any field of medicine.

Desirable candidates for admissions are academically ready to succeed in our curriculum, have life experiences that will enrich our learning environment, and have personal qualities that will serve them, their colleagues, and their patients well in their professional lives.

Each application is reviewed individually and holistically and includes factors in accordance with the law that include metrics (GPA, MCAT), scholarship and research, leadership, originality and creativity, non-academic accomplishments (including work), letters of recommendation, personal statement, and personal qualities.

Recommended Coursework

Applicants must demonstrate knowledge of how biomolecules contribute to the structure and function of cells; an understanding of principles of how molecular and cell assemblies, organs, and organisms, develop structure and carry out function; explain how organisms sense and control their internal environment and respond to external change; and demonstrate an understanding of how the organizing principle of evolution by natural selection explains the diversity of life on Earth.

Chemistry and Physics

Applicants must demonstrate knowledge of basic principles of chemistry and physics, and their applications to the understanding of living systems. 

Physics and Mathematics

Applicants must be able to apply quantitative reasoning, statistical principles, and appropriate mathematics to describe or explain phenomena in the natural world and evaluate the published scientific literature. 

Laboratory or Field Experiments

Applicants must demonstrate understanding of the processes of scientific inquiry, and explain how scientific knowledge is discovered and validated, through hands-on laboratory or field experiences.

Behavioral and Social Sciences

A patient-centered approach to health care requires an understanding of the patient as an individual and a member of a family, community, and society. Applicants must develop an understanding of behavioral and social processes and their use to predict or influence health outcomes or health risk factors.  Please visit:

https://www.aamc.org/system/files/d/1/271020-behavioralandsocialsciencefoundationsforfuturephysicians.pdf

Communication

Applicants must be able to write clearly, speak fluently, and read English with excellent comprehension. Fluency in a foreign language, specifically Spanish or an Asian language, is recommended to enhance learning and service in our diverse communities.

Add Project Key Words

Prerequisite Courses for the Top 50 Medical Schools

Catherine Kannam

May 23, 2018

The grueling medical school admissions process demands years of dedication. As you strategize how to spend your time before medical school, there are many experiences you’ll want to get under your belt: research, patient interaction, volunteer hours, and more. But that’s just your work outside of the classroom! Let’s not forget about the prerequisite courses for medical school.

All medical schools have their own set prerequisite courses to ensure that you’ll arrive ready with the necessary background for their program. In order to get your foot in the door at medical schools, you need to maintain a strong GPA in these rigorous classes while juggling everything else. Prerequisites typically range from Biology to English, often including notoriously difficult courses (such as organic chemistry). These challenging classes are meant to “weed out” applicants who can’t handle the pre-med heat.

Surviving all of these courses throughout your undergraduate career is an accomplishment in itself! But covering your bases with the  prerequisite  courses for medical school requires advanced planning. Before you hit submit on your AMCAS , double check that you’ve truly done all of the  prerequisite  courses for medical school . At top medical schools, your application will go through a pre-screening process to verify that you’ve done the necessary prerequisite courses for medical school before even reading your application.

Don’t just assume that you’ve passed enough science courses, take the time to check! Requirements do vary from school to school, so here’s a chart of the prerequisite courses at the top 50 medical schools.

Need an expert's opinion on your student's college applications?  Book a free call   with an InGenius Prep advisor and invest in your student’s success today!

Checking off these prerequisite courses for medical school is huge! But the three main phases of the medical school application process lie ahead. Buckle down and start preparing your application!

Understanding the College Applications Timeline

To learn more about the college application timeline for high school students, read our ebook, " Your Complete College Application Timeline ," and make sure you're on the right track for your college admissions!

General FAQ

Are pre-med students required to take humanities classes.

The majority of medical schools require or recommend that students take at least a year of English. Many other schools, such as Johns Hopkins, require students to take either humanities or behavioral science courses.

Do all medical schools have the same prerequisite classes?

No! Each medical school has its own list of prerequisites. For example, UCSF only requires specific biology, chemistry, and physics courses. Ohio State, on the other hand, requires biology, chemistry, physics, social science, and writing courses.

What classes does Harvard Medical School require?

The prerequisites for Harvard Medical School include: 1 year of biology with lab, 2 years of chemistry with lab (including inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, and biochemistry), 1 year of physics (lab recommended), 1 year of math (including1 semester each of calculus and statistics), and 1 year of writing.

What classes does Stanford Medicine require?

Stanford does not have specific prerequisites, but guides applicants to read recommendations from the Scientific Foundations for Future Physicians 2009 Report and the Behavior and Social Sciences Foundations for Future Physicians 1011 Report.

Tags : Prerequisites for medical school , applying to medical school , medical school , medical school requirements , Prerequisite Courses for Medical School , Prerequisite Courses for the Top 50 Medical Schools

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• UNC Chapel Hill

General Requirements

Thank you for your interest in our program. The goal of the UNC School of Medicine is to produce outstanding physicians who are well-prepared to meet society’s rapidly evolving health care needs. Our Admissions Committee seeks to find students who will thrive in our rigorous educational setting, and who demonstrate the altruism, integrity, leadership, communication skills, motivation, and passion for service that set Tar Heel Doctors apart.

*** Information for AMCAS Admissions Cycle 2025***

Mcat (updated 02/29/2024).

The last MCAT exam scores accepted for the current cycle will be September 14, 2024 .

Online Coursework 

On-line courses will only be considered if your institution is unable to offer you a place in a seated class, or if the course is offered as a hybrid (in-person and online). We recommend contacting our Admissions office for confirmation of acceptability.

P/F Grading 

Our UNC-CH undergrad campus ended the P/F grading accommodation for our undergrads at the end of the spring 2021 semester (https://registrar.unc.edu/registrar-covid-19/) therefore, we require letter grades for any current and future coursework after spring 2021.

Primary Application Deadline

Our AMCAS Submission Deadline is October 1st. Please note, we do not participate in the AMCAS Early Decision Program (EDP).

CASPer and AMCAS Professional Readiness Exams

We do not require the CASPer exam, or the AMCAS Professional Readiness Exam (formerly known as the AAMC Situational Judgement Test)

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation from faculty, physicians, or any other letter writers, and/or organizations must be on their letterhead (if applicable) and signed . Requirements and deadlines can be found at: https://www.med.unc.edu/admit/requirements/admissions-process/#step-three–garner-your-letters-of-recommendation-

Minimum criteria

The minimum criteria identified below, including the undergraduate requirements, must be met regardless of the amcas cycle you are applying to..

• In-state applicants –  Applicants who meet the following academic criteria, as well as the total MCAT score indicated, are considered competitive applicants. The criteria are a minimum science (BCPM) and cumulative GPAs of 3.2, and a minimum total MCAT score of 500.
• Out-of-state applicants –  Out-of-state applicants make up our largest and most competitive applicant pool. Applicants who meet the following academic criteria at the undergraduate level , including the total MCAT score indicated, are considered competitive applicants. The criteria are a minimum science GPA (BCPM) of 3.49, minimum cumulative GPA of 3.59, and a minimum total MCAT score of 514. Please note that international, Canadian, and DACA applicants are considered part of the out-of-state applicant pool.

MCAT requirements

The AAMC offers the MCAT exams between January and September and prospective students should plan to take the MCAT no later than September of the year they plan to apply to medical school.  Remember, A new cycle begins each May, and AMCAS identifies the application cycle for the year an accepted applicant would begin medical school.

If you submitted your AMCAS application prior to taking the MCAT for the first time, or if you are retaking the exam, please note that your application will not be reviewed until the scores have been reported by AMCAS. In addition, If your initial MCAT scores  meet the minimum criteria, and you are planning to retake the MCAT exam, your AMCAS application will be reviewed. REMEMBER, if you intend to retake the MCAT you must indicate this information on your AMCAS application, otherwise medical schools will not know!

There is no need to call us to give us your new scores because AMCAS will automatically upload them to your application. We do not average MCAT scores but  will use the most recent valid score on your AMCAS application. Once again, pay attention to the table above to make sure that your MCAT scores are valid for the application cycle you are applying for.

To prepare for the MCAT, we recommend checking out the AAMC Pre-Med Navigator at Khan Academy .

Degree Requirements

A bachelor’s degree is required for admission from a regionally accredited institution within the U.S. or Canada. Students are encouraged to pursue one or more scholarly interests in depth during their undergraduate years, but course work must demonstrate proficiency in the natural sciences. A student who earns a degree in less than four years may apply and should recognize that understanding the human condition and developing good judgement require experience. Without unusual qualifications, questions about the breadth of education, maturity, experience, and motivation may put such an applicant at a disadvantage. Please note that all degree granting programs and coursework, AND UNC School of Medicine prerequisites, must be completed prior to matriculation. https://www.med.unc.edu/admit/requirements/admissions-process/admissions-policies-2/

Transcript Requirements for Accepted Applicants 

Please note, all degree granting programs and required coursework must be successfully completed prior to matriculation.  If you are accepted, your acceptance is contingent upon successful completion of all UNC SOM required coursework and degree granting programs from a regionally accredited college or university. All final official transcripts from all U.S. and Canadian institutions attended must be submitted to the Office of Admissions by July 1st of the matriculating year for verification that our prerequisites have been met and successfully completed, in addition to the coursework required for your degree granting programs. Please note, we will begin collecting final official transcripts, from accepted applicants, after January 1st of the matriculating year.

Please note that CLEP credits are not accepted for required courses, and we do not accept verification from the World Education Services (WES) or a similar type of organization or entity for the required coursework.

The requirement below was updated on 01/13/2022, and the change begins with AMCAS cycle 2023

Typically, the prerequisite courses are taken during an undergraduate, post baccalaureate (after college), or graduate degree program. Your grades must be documented in l etter-grade format on your transcript and not pass/fail.  There is a five-year limit on the Natural Sciences prerequisite coursework. We begin calculating the elapsed time from the YEAR you graduated, or completed the given program, not the year you began taking the courses. Coursework must be completed from a regionally accredited college or university within the U.S. or Canada.

Example for clarification

** Humanities and Social and Behavioral Science course work do not have a time limit.

If you are not within the five (5) year limit at the time you plan to apply to our program , you are required to complete one of the choices below before submitting and application  to our medical school:

• Demonstrate current mastery in the natural sciences by satisfactorily completing 30 credit hours in a graduate science program in the natural sciences, prior to applying  (letter-grade format is required)   – OR –
• Complete 30 credit hours of post baccalaureate coursework in biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, etc. prior to applying to demonstrate current mastery in the natural sciences 

International Educational Institutions

The prerequisites identified on our website and the MSAR, must be met from a regionally accredited college or university within the United States or Canada.

After your prerequisites have been successfully completed and AMCAS has verified your credentials, UNC School of Medicine will review your application and take into consideration all your educational degrees.

Beyond the fixed requirements, a variety of undergraduate educational experiences are appropriate to medicine. UNC School of Medicine values a pattern of preparation for medicine that shows serious and mature use of your undergraduate years. Course work in the humanities and social sciences as well as advanced work in the sciences and mathematics is preferred. Proficiency in English is essential.

For more information on who we consider to be our ideal candidate, click here. 

Prerequisite Items 

Academic preparation must include the UNC SOM prerequisite courses identified on our website regardless of your field of study, advanced degree, or the medical school program type selected on the AMCAS application. 

• All prerequisite coursework must be completed at a regionally accredited institution in the U.S. or Canada, and your grades must be documented in  letter-grade format  on your transcript and not pass/fail. Narrative evaluations are not accepted in lieu of GPAs.  
• CLEP credits are not accepted for required courses, and we do not accept verification from the World Education Services (WES) or a similar type of organization or entity for the required coursework.
• A minimum of 30 credit hours of natural science coursework is required at the time of application to our program. 
• Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate coursework will not be accepted for the UNC SOM required courses.  
• We require seated (in-class) prerequisite coursework for you to acquire the interpersonal skills required to succeed in our curriculum and in medical practice. Online courses will  only  be considered if your institution is unable to offer you a place in a seated class, or if the course is only offered as a hybrid (in-person and online). We recommend contacting our Admissions office for confirmation of acceptability. The exception to this requirement is if online instruction is the only option offered by your institution due to continued pandemic protocols.  
• Substitutions are not allowed for the coursework identified in the categories below, or the required laboratory (including teaching the subject course, other courses that have components of a required course, or laboratory research experience, etc.). For example, Biochemistry cannot substitute for one of the Biology Sciences, as we have identified Biochemistry as one of the required courses for the Chemistry category.

UNC SOM Required Coursework 

Remember, you will need a minimum of 30 credit hours of natural science coursework at the time of application to our program. An accepted applicant is required to demonstrate proof that the natural science courses below are on their final official transcripts. The natural science courses are not suggestions or recommendations, they are  required.  Please refer to the degree and transcript requirements above.

Natural Sciences (REQUIRED)  

• Mathematics – One Statistics course is required. Statistics or Biostatistics are acceptable courses to fulfill the requirement.  
• Chemistry – Biochemistry is required. Two chemistry laboratories associated with any chemistry course are also required.    
• Biological Sciences – Two of the advanced biology courses listed in this section are required, and one of the  advanced courses listed in this section must include a laboratory. Acceptable advanced biology courses include Microbiology, Immunology, Cell and Molecular Biology, Physiology, and Genetics.  

Humanities (RECOMMENDED)  

Three courses are recommended. Humanities coursework in the following categories are acceptable: English, History, Philosophy, Ethics, Ethnic and Gender Studies, Social Justice, Religion, or foreign language study.  

Social and Behavioral Sciences (RECOMMENDED)  

Three courses are recommended. Social and Behavioral Science coursework in the following categories are acceptable: Behavioral Psychology, Psychology, Sociology, Racial/Ethnic Health Disparities, Economics, Political Science, and Anthropology.  

Statement on Equal Educational Opportunity

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is open to all people of all races, is committed to equality of educational opportunity, and does not discriminate against applicants, students, or employees based on based on race, color, gender, national origin, age, religion, creed, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. The Equal Opportunity/ADA Office has primary responsibility for administering this policy. Moreover, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill actively seeks to promote diversity by recruiting and enrolling disadvantaged students and students from underrepresented groups.

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School of Medicine Admissions

The School of Medicine admits highly motivated and qualified students ready to become a physician. You chose this path because you want to make a positive impact in medicine, promote health and well-being, and the causes, prevention and treatment of disease and disability. We’re thrilled that you’re considering us for the next step in your journey.

We’ll help you harness the experience, resources and education to make that happen. From academics to student life, our school is centered on making your journey as a medical student enriching and memorable. Our emphasis on multiculturalism, diversity, and inclusivity creates a learning environment where you’ll feel welcome and inspired to learn.

As a full-time medical school student, you’ll enjoy a traditional college campus life and balance hard work and research with extracurriculars and community service. If you’re curious, determined and passionate about healing patients and addressing illness, and excited and driven to work in the medical field and gain knowledge and clinical experience, our Admissions Committee looks forward to reviewing your application.

Key Admissions Info

Final Application Deadline

The Admissions Committee selects students on a rolling basis. The deadline to submit your primary application is December 15 prior to the entry year for regular consideration, and August 1 for an early decision. After the interview round, you should hear back within 4-6 weeks. If you’re on the waitlist, expect to hear of a final decision between April and July.

How to Apply

Amcas primary application.

NYMC is a member of the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS). To be considered, applicants must file their primary AMCAS application between June 1 and December 15 prior to the year of entry. For more information, email [email protected] .

NYMC Supplemental Application

All applicants receive an NYMC Supplemental Application upon submission of their primary application to AMCAS. Access to the NYMC Supplemental Application is sent to applicants via email from WebAdmit for AMCAS. Please be sure your email account is set up to accept emails from [email protected] .

What We’re Looking For

The best predictor of future academic success is demonstrated by past academic success, so we look at your undergraduate (and if applicable graduate) course of study and GPA, and your performance on standardized exams, including the MCATs. But we know that academic achievement is not a sufficient prerequisite for the study of medicine, so the Admissions Committee uses a holistic review process. The Admissions Committee looks for a balance of personal attributes – such as professionalism, altruism, compassion, empathy, honesty, integrity, cultural competency, and ethical grounding – with foundational experiences and academic metrics. We're also looking for certain core competencies for entering medical students .

In reviewing your application, we look at the breadth and quality of extracurricular, community, research, and work experiences, obstacles overcome, letters of evaluation, your personal statement, and pre-screening CASPer results (Computer-Assisted Sampling of Personal Characteristics). If applicable, impressions about an applicant gained through the MMI interview process are also given serious consideration.

If you think you’ll thrive in a learning environment based on both intellectual growth and a strong sense of service, we’re excited to hear from you.

Individuals who are currently enrolled in any medical school or have previously withdrawn or been dismissed from any medical school for any reason are ineligible to apply to the NYMC School of Medicine.

Admission Requirements

As a medical school candidate, you are required to take the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT). NYMC will only accept MCAT scores starting from January 2022. No MCAT scores prior to January 2022 will be considered. In fairness to all applicants, there are no exceptions to these MCAT test date requirements.

How Are Multiple MCAT Scores Viewed?

Many applicants take the MCAT more than once. This is not considered a liability. We attach greatest importance to the most recent scores, although we will review the most recent last two sets of scores.

What are the Average Grades and MCAT scores of the First-Year Class?

The typical first year class enters medical school with an average overall GPA of 3.6 and median MCAT score at the 88th percentile.

Pre-medical Course Requirements

Prior to submitting your medical school application, you must successfully complete undergraduate college work. All courses offered in satisfaction of the requirements for admission must be taken at, or accepted as transfer credits by, an accredited college in the United States or Canada and must be acceptable to that institution toward a baccalaureate degree in the arts or sciences. This includes advanced placement courses taken in high school.

The admissions committee has no preference for a major field of undergraduate study, but any college work submitted must include the following specified courses in English, Biology, Physics, and Chemistry. (Although not required, some upper-level science courses with laboratory work are strongly recommended).

• English 2 semesters (or equivalent or successful completion of the English requirement(s) at your undergraduate institution)
• General Biology with lab, 2 semesters (or equivalent)
• Physics 2 semesters with lab (or equivalent)
• General Chemistry with lab, 2 semesters (or equivalent)
• Organic Chemistry with lab, 1 semester only (or equivalent)
• Biochemistry 1 semester with or without lab (or equivalent)

*We will accept online coursework and labs completed from Winter 2020 through Spring 2020. We will accept Pass/Fail grades and online coursework and labs completed in Winter 2020 & Spring 2020. For Fall 2020 through Spring 2023, this will be reviewed case by case and you should inquire with NYMC.

International Students

In order to apply to New York Medical College (NYMC) School of Medicine using the AMCAS® application, you must be a US citizen, hold an unconditional permanent resident card, have DACA status or Canadian citizenship to be considered by NYMC. All other international applicants are ineligible to apply.

As part of the satisfaction of the requirements for admission, all undergraduate coursework leading to a baccalaureate degree must be completed at an accredited college or university in the United States or Canada. Federal law mandates that only US citizens or permanent residents are eligible to receive financial aid. (Permanent residents must provide a copy of their unconditional Green Card upon request when applying for financial aid.) Review the Payment of Tuition and Fees By Foreign Medical Students policy on SOM Policies for info on the requirement for applicants who are non-US citizens or permanent residents to either:

• deposit an amount equal to four years of tuition and fees (approximately $239,000 US dollars) into a bank escrow account in advance of their matriculation to NYMC; or
• deposit an amount equal to two years of tuition and fees into a bank escrow account in advance of their matriculation to NYMC and provide a signed personal guarantee from a creditworthy, U.S. citizen for additional tuition prepayments before the start of the second and third years of the program (all deposits are due by July 1st).

Academic Articulation Agreements

• Lander College for Men/Beis Medrash L’Talmud Bachelor to Doctorate of Medicine (M.D.) from NYMC School of Medicine
• Lander College of Arts & Sciences (LAS) in Flatbush Bachelor to Doctorate of Medicine (M.D.) from NYMC School of Medicine
• Lander College for Women/The Anna Ruth and Mark Hasten School Bachelor to Doctorate of Medicine (M.D.) from NYMC School of Medicine

Medical School Interview Process

Invitation to interview.

Completed applications are given a holistic review and applicants under serious consideration are invited for an on-campus interview. Interviews are generally conducted from late September through March. Applicants may be invited to interview at any time during this period as applications are reviewed throughout the application cycle. The invitation to interview is sent to the applicant via e-mail. Applicants are offered alternate interview dates to enable them to schedule a date that accommodates their individual travel plans.

Interview Orientation

The interview day program begins at 10:50 a.m, and ends at approximately 4:00 p.m. The day begins with a group orientation with presentations from the leadership, student financial planning, admissions and current students.

Interview Format

NYMC utilizes the multiple-mini interview  (MMI)  format. During the MMI, applicants move through a circuit of short, carefully-timed scenario-based interview stations. The scenarios are neither knowledge-based nor necessarily clinically-oriented. They are designed to evaluate personal attributes of applicants based on the  inter- and intra-personal core competencies  for entering medical students endorsed by the Association of American Medical Colleges  (AAMC ).

Diversity and Review Process

We believe that a diverse student body provides a valuable educational experience that prepares medical students to practice effectively in a multicultural society. It is why we seek to admit a diverse class with respect to gender, race, ethnicity, cultural and economic background and life experience. If you come from an under-resourced background or group underrepresented in medicine, we encourage you to apply. NYMC is focused on expanding medical education opportunities for minorities and women.

School of Medicine Waitlist

NYMC does not have a ranked waitlist. The SOM Admissions Committee utilizes the process of holistic review to put together an entering class that is not only academically qualified but also reflects a broad range of backgrounds, experiences and perspectives. If a spot in the class becomes available, all applicants on the waitlist are considered.

NOTE: It is important for all applicants to keep their NYMC files updated with any additional information during the application cycle.

Non-Traditional Students

Reapplicants to the school of medicine.

Applicants who reapply receive a full review and many are accepted each year. Most successful re-applicants have taken concrete steps and time to strengthen their application such as (1) improving their MCAT score; (2) completing and doing well (minimum GPA 3.6) in a medical science master’s program; or (3) gaining meaningful clinical exposure or research experience.

Many successful re-applicants comment the extra time they spent on strengthening their application was invaluable as they were better prepared to begin medical school. Applicants who re-apply must go through the full application process again, including submitting letters of evaluation. Many undergraduate schools will keep letters of evaluation on file and resubmit them on request.

Deferred Entrance for Accepted Applicants

Accepted applicants may request a one-year matriculation deferral. Deferral requests must be submitted in writing before June 1 of the year of entry and include a detailed explanation about how the student intends to use his/her time. Additional supporting documentation may be requested. All deferral requests are considered on a case-by-case basis. Deferred students cannot apply to other medical schools during their deferral year.

NOTE: Students accepted off the waitlist are ineligible for deferral consideration.

Transfer Students

NYMC no longer accepts transfer students into the third-year class.

Financial Aid

We aim to help you overcome financial barriers to achieve your goals. Our Office of Student Financial Planning assists in all financial aspects, including helping applicants and students with financial decision-making before, during and even after attending NYMC. Our graduates have one of the lowest student loan default rates in the nation, which we proudly credit to the expert guidance of our staff.

For more information on financial aid policies and applications across NYMC, visit our Financial Aid page.

Contact School of Medicine Admissions

School of Medicine Office of Admissions Sunshine Cottage, Suite 147 New York Medical College 40 Sunshine Cottage Road Valhalla, NY 10595 (914) 594-4507 [email protected]

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Medical Law and Ethics

• September 2025
• September 2024

1 year full-time, 36 months part-time

Durham City

Course details

The Durham LLM in Medical Law and Ethics explores some of the most intellectually challenging and sensitive areas of medical practice and science and, at the same time, develops your legal and ethical knowledge and skills in areas which continue to grow in significance. The course has been developed by specialists in the field who not only deliver the course, they are also involved in setting the legal agenda.

While the course is led by the School of Law, you will have the opportunity to study modules from other departments, ensuring you will gain a broad appreciation of the relevant areas of law and ethics.

You will also benefit from the research strengths and reputation of Durham’s Centre for Ethics and Law in the Life Sciences . As a Medical Law and Ethics student you will be invited to become a member of this vibrant team and encouraged to take part in the many activities organised by the Centre.

During the first two terms you will study taught modules selected from a wide variety of topics and then you will complete your studies by writing a dissertation on a medical law-related topic of your choice, under the supervision of a member of staff with expertise in your selected subject area. 

Modules delivered by other departments are diverse and include Divergence, Deviance, and Disability in 19th Century Literature, the Anthropology of Global Health and the Philosophical Issues in Science and Medicine.

Teaching is a mixture of lectures and smaller, student-led, seminar or tutorial groups, taught by lecturers who are actively researching in the areas that they teach, and the dissertation is undertaken on an independent basis. We anticipate that students attending the course will be drawn from a broad range of countries and disciplines and believe that their diverse academic and professional experiences will enrich the course.

Course Structure

Core modules:.

Contemporary Issues in Medical Law and Ethics underpins the course and aims to cultivate a critical appreciation of the legal and ethical difficulties raised by modern medical practice. Starting with an introduction to medical ethics, you will consider what it means when we say something is ethical. You will also look at the leading theories on ethics and how they apply to controversial issues in medical practice. This will be followed by a study of consent, obstetric intervention, medical treatment of children, reproductive genetics and decisions around end-of-life treatment.

Applied Research Methods in Law provides specialised knowledge on the latest research methods and skills used in legal studies as well as an advanced understanding of their strengths and weaknesses and of their relevance for different forms of legal research. The module also creates a framework within which you will be able to critically assess potential research topics and, importantly, where you will be able to design, discuss and develop a detailed research proposal of the appropriate standard for your dissertation.

The Dissertation is based on your particular research interests in an area of Medical Law and Ethics and can be of one of three lengths – 10,000 or 15,000  words. Depending on the length chosen, the dissertation is equivalent to 2 or 2.5 modules.

The remainder of the course is chosen from an extensive range of optional modules from the School of Law and other departments across the University. Indicative optional modules include:

• Advanced Issues in Human Rights (Law)
• Advanced Issues of International Intellectual Property Law (Law)
• Anthropology of Global Health (Anthropology)
• Concepts and Frameworks in the Critical Medical Humanities (Arts)
• Contemporary Issues in Biolaw and Bioethics (Law)
• Divergence, Deviance, and Disability in 19th Century Literature (English)
• Ethics, Medicine and History (Philosophy)
• Frontiers in Biolaw (Law)
• Gender Theory and Feminist Philosophy (Philosophy)
• Illness as Narrative Practice (English)
• International Perspectives on Law and Gender (Law)
• International Protection of Human Rights (Law)
• Introduction to Intellectual Property Law (Law)
• Medical Law and Ethics (Law)
• Neurodiversity and the Humanities (English)
• Phenomenology and The Sciences of Mind (Philosophy)
• Philosophical Issues in Science and Medicine (Philosophy)
• Protection of Human Rights in Europe (Law)
• Risk, Science and Communication (Geography)
• Science and The Enlightenment (Philosophy)
• Social Dimensions of Risk and Resilience (Geography)
• Social Policy and Society (Sociology)
• Society, Health and Wellbeing (Anthropology)

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This course involves a combination of taught core and option modules, delivered via a mixture of lectures and seminars, as well as a substantial dissertation.

Lectures are used primarily to introduce topics and introduce you to the main debates and ideas. They provide you with a framework of knowledge that you can then develop and analyse through your own reading and study.

Seminars are smaller-sized, student-led classes. You are expected to carry out reading prior to classes and are usually set questions or problems in order to apply the knowledge you have developed.

In addition to taught modules, you must produce a dissertation of up to 15,000 words which is the output from your own independent research on an area of medical law and ethics that is of particular interest to you.

The majority of modules are assessed by essays and project work. Some modules may include presentations and exams as part of the assessment process depending on the options selected. 

You will also complete a dissertation on an area of medical law and ethics of interest to you. Depending on the route chosen your dissertation can be anywhere between 10,000 and 15,000 words, and is worth between one-third and one-half of your total mark.

Entry requirements

At least one of the following:

• A good 2:1 degree (or its equivalent) in a relevant subject (for example law (or in a degree in which law is a major component), anthropology, medicine and allied professions (nursing, pharmacy…), sociology and philosophy
• Active enrolment on an intercalated UG/PG medical degree programme

Students whose native language is not English must show evidence of general proficiency in the English language by normally achieving 7.0 or higher in IELTS with a minimum of 7.0 in the writing component and a minimum of 6.5 in all other components.

Students from EU member states whose native language is not English may show evidence of general proficiency in the English language by normally achieving 102 or higher in TOEFL with a minimum of 27 in the writing component and a minimum of 25 in all other components. 

English language requirements

Fees and funding

The tuition fees for 2025/26 academic year have not yet been finalised, they will be displayed here once approved.

The tuition fees shown are for one complete academic year of study, are set according to the academic year of entry, and remain the same throughout the duration of the programme for that cohort (unless otherwise stated) .

Please also check costs for colleges and accommodation .

Scholarships and Bursaries

We are committed to supporting the best students irrespective of financial circumstances and are delighted to offer a range of funding opportunities. 

Career opportunities

Department information.

Find out more:

Apply for a postgraduate course (including PGCE International) via our online portal.  

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The best way to find out what Durham is really like is to come and see for yourself!

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• Date: 01/09/2023 - 31/08/2024
• Time: 09:00 - 17:00

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• Doctoral School
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Medical Writing (Advanced)

Research and Valorization

Target audience

PhD students in a scientific discipline (eg, biological, veterinary, pharmaceutical, medical sciences, biochemistry, biotechnology) at any stage of completion, with an interest in writing and clinical studies. This is a specialized course for students who already have experience with clinical trials or have knowledge of clinical trial protocols and/or clinical trial reports.

Students who do not have experience with clinical trials or do not have knowledge of clinical trial protocols and/or clinical study reports are advised to follow the Medical Writing (Basic) course instead of this advanced course.

EMTEX is an independent and compact company that offers professional medical writing and related services all around the world to the pharmaceutical (human & veterinary), biotech, medical device and other industries, CROs and academic institutions. We have a long track record in supporting our customers with dedicated services. Writing documents and presenting data in a clear and well-structured manner is our core competence.

The majority of EMTEX employees have a PhD in a scientific discipline and a passion for writing.

This course includes the following topics:

• Drug development (key documents, guidelines, and regulations)
• A day in the life of a medical writer
• Plain Language Summary
• Clinical summaries and clinical overview
• Project management
• Hands-on training

The main objectives of this course are:

• learn about the importance of a medical writer in drug development
• understand the purpose, importance, and requirements of a Plain Language Summary
• gain insight into advanced regulatory document types, including clinical summaries and the clinical overview
• understand the project management around the writing process towards a finalized document

Dates and venue

19 November 2024 (9h30- 17h00)

Van der Valk hotel, Akkerhage, Ghent

Registration

• Follow this link for the registration and waiting list.  Your registration will be confirmed by separate e-mail (outlook invite).
• Cancellation of your registration can only be performed by sending an email to [email protected] .

The  no show policy  applies.

Registration fee

Free of charge for Doctoral School members.

Number of participants

Evaluation method.

100% attendance, active participation.

After successful participation, the Doctoral School Office will add this course to your curriculum of the Doctoral Training Programme in Oasis. Please note that this can take up to one to two months after completion of the course.

Cut up and leased out, the bodies of the poor suffer a final indignity in Texas

The University of North Texas Health Science Center built a flourishing business using hundreds of unclaimed corpses. It suspended the program after NBC News exposed failures to treat the dead and their families with respect.

DALLAS — Long before his bleak final years, when he struggled with mental illness and lived mostly on the streets, Victor Carl Honey joined the Army, serving honorably for nearly a decade. And so, when his heart gave out and he died alone 30 years later, he was entitled to a burial with military honors.

Instead, without his consent or his family’s knowledge, the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office gave his body to a state medical school, where it was frozen, cut into pieces and leased out across the country.

A Swedish medical device maker paid $341 for access to Honey’s severed right leg to train clinicians to harvest veins using its surgical tool. A medical education company spent $900 to send his torso to Pittsburgh so trainees could practice implanting a spine stimulator. And the U.S. Army paid $210 to use a pair of bones from his skull to educate military medical personnel at a hospital near San Antonio.

In the name of scientific advancement, clinical education and fiscal expediency, the bodies of the destitute in the Dallas-Fort Worth region have been routinely collected from hospital beds, nursing homes and homeless encampments and used for training or research without their consent — and often without the approval of any survivors, an NBC News investigation found.

Honey, who died in September 2022, is one of about 2,350 people whose unclaimed bodies have been given to the Fort Worth-based University of North Texas Health Science Center since 2019 under agreements with Dallas and Tarrant counties . Among these, more than 830 bodies were selected by the center for dissection and study. After the medical school and other groups were finished, the bodies were cremated and, in most cases, interred at area cemeteries or scattered at sea. Some had families who were looking for them.

For months as NBC News reported this article, Health Science Center officials defended their practices, arguing that using unclaimed bodies was essential for training future doctors. But on Friday, after reporters shared detailed findings of this investigation, the center announced it was immediately suspending its body donation program and firing the officials who led it. The center said it was also hiring a consulting firm to investigate the program’s operations.

“As a result of the information brought to light through your inquiries, it has become clear that failures existed in the management and oversight of The University of North Texas Health Science Center’s Willed Body Program,” the statement said. “The program has fallen short of the standards of respect, care and professionalism that we demand.”

Last year, NBC News revealed in its “Lost Rites” investigation that coroners and medical examiners in Mississippi and nationally had repeatedly failed to notify families of their loved ones’ deaths before burying them in pauper’s graveyards . That investigation led reporters to North Texas, where officials had come to view the unclaimed dead not as a costly burden, but as a free resource.

Before its sudden shuttering last week, the Health Science Center’s body business flourished. 

On paper, the arrangements with Dallas and Tarrant counties offered a pragmatic solution to an expensive problem: Local medical examiners and coroners nationwide bear the considerable costs of burying or cremating tens of thousands of unclaimed bodies each year. Disproportionately Black, male, mentally ill and homeless, these are individuals whose family members often cannot be easily reached, or whose relatives cannot or will not pay for cremation or burial.

The University of North Texas Health Science Center used some of these bodies to teach medical students. Others, like Honey’s, were parceled out to for-profit medical training and technology companies — including industry giants like Johnson & Johnson, Boston Scientific and Medtronic — that rely on human remains to develop products and teach doctors how to use them. The Health Science Center advertised the bodies as being of “the highest quality found anywhere in the U.S.”

Do you have a story to share about the use of unclaimed bodies for research? Contact us .

Proponents say using unclaimed bodies transforms a tragic situation into one of hope and service, providing a steady supply of human specimens needed to educate doctors and advance medical research. But for families who later discover their missing relatives were dissected and studied, the news is haunting, compounding their grief and depriving them of the opportunity to mourn.

“The county and the medical school are doing this because it saves them money, but that doesn’t make it right,” said Thomas Champney, an anatomy professor at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine who researches the ethical use of human bodies . “Since these individuals did not consent, they should not be used in any form or fashion.”

A half-century ago, it was common for U.S. medical schools to use unclaimed bodies, and doing so remains legal in most of the country, including Texas. Many programs have halted the practice in recent years, though, and some states, including Hawaii, Minnesota and Vermont, have flatly prohibited it — part of an evolution of medical ethics that has called on anatomists to treat human specimens with the same dignity shown to living patients.

The University of North Texas Health Science Center charged in the opposite direction.

Through public records requests, NBC News obtained thousands of pages of government records and data documenting the acquisition, dissection and distribution of unclaimed bodies by the center over a five-year period.

An analysis of the material reveals repeated failures by death investigators in Dallas and Tarrant counties — and by the center — to contact family members who were reachable before declaring a body unclaimed. Reporters examined dozens of cases and identified 12 in which families learned weeks, months or years later that a relative had been provided to the medical school, leaving many survivors angry and traumatized.

Five of those families found out what happened from NBC News. Reporters used public records databases, ancestry websites and social media searches to locate and reach them within just a few days, even though county and center officials said they had been unable to find any survivors.

In one case, a man learned of his stepmother’s death and transfer to the center after a real estate agent called about selling her house. In another, Dallas County marked a man’s body as unclaimed and gave it to the Health Science Center, even as his loved ones filed a missing person report and actively searched for him.

From 2023: NBC News’ “Lost Rites” investigation

• After a mother in Jackson, Mississippi, reported her son missing, police kept the truth from her for months.
• ‘They just threw him away’: Another Mississippi man was buried without his family’s knowledge .
• America’s patchwork death notification system routinely leaves families in the dark.
• The Department of Justice took action after a Mississippi coroner buried men without notifying their families.
• The Jackson Police Department adopted a next-of-kin notification policy following NBC News’ reporting.

Before the Health Science Center announced it was suspending the program, officials in the two counties had already told NBC News they were reconsidering their unclaimed body agreements in light of the reporters’ findings. 

Commissioners in Dallas County recently postponed a vote on whether to extend their contract. The top elected official in Tarrant County, Judge Tim O’Hare — who voted to renew the county’s agreement with the center in January — said he planned to explore legal options “to end any and all immoral, unethical, and irresponsible practices stemming from this program.”

“No individual’s remains should be used for medical research, nor sold for profit, without their pre-death consent, or the consent of their next of kin,” O’Hare’s office said . “The idea that families may be unaware that their loved ones’ remains are being used for research without consent is disturbing, to say the least.” 

NBC News also shared its findings with dozens of companies, teaching hospitals and medical schools that have relied on the Health Science Center to supply human specimens. Ten said they did not know the center had provided them with unclaimed bodies. Some, including Medtronic, said they had internal policies requiring consent from the deceased or their legal surrogate.

DePuy Synthes, a Johnson & Johnson company, said it had paused its relationship with the center after learning from a reporter that it had received body parts from four unclaimed people. And Boston Scientific, whose company Relievant Medsystems used the torsos of more than two dozen unclaimed bodies for training on a surgical tool , said it was reviewing its transactions with the center, adding that it had believed the program obtained consent from donors or families.

“We empathize with the families who were not reached as part of this process,” the company said.

The Army said it, too, was examining its reliance on the center and planned to review and clarify internal policies on the use of unclaimed bodies. Under federal contracts totaling about $345,000, the center has provided the Army with dozens of whole bodies, heads and skull bones since 2021 — including at least 21 unclaimed bodies. An Army spokesperson said officials had not considered the possibility that the program hadn’t gotten consent from donors or their families.

The Texas Funeral Service Commission, which regulates body donation programs in the state, is conducting a review of its own. In April, the agency issued a moratorium on out-of-state shipments while it studies a range of issues, including the use of unclaimed bodies by the Health Science Center.

In the case of Victor Honey, it shouldn’t have been hard for Dallas County investigators to find survivors: His son shares his father’s first and last name and lives in the Dallas area. Family members are outraged that no one from the county or the Health Science Center informed them of Honey’s death, much less sought permission to dissect his body and distribute it for training.

It wasn’t until a year and a half after he died that his relatives finally learned that news — from a chance encounter with a stranger struck by the similarity of the father’s and son’s names, followed by a phone call from NBC News.

“It’s like a hole in your soul that can never be filled,” said Brenda Cloud, one of Honey’s sisters. “We feel violated.”

Two years before Honey’s death, Oscar Fitzgerald died of a drug overdose outside a Fort Worth convenience store. County officials failed to reach his siblings or adult children, so they had no voice in deciding whether to donate his body. It was taken to the University of North Texas Health Science Center, pumped with preservatives and assigned to a first-year medical student to study over the coming year.

Five months passed before his family learned from a friend in September 2020 that he was dead. ​​When his brother rushed to Fort Worth to claim the remains, he said he was told by the Health Science Center that he’d have to wait — the program was not done using the body.

Patrick Fitzgerald, who had last seen his 57-year-old brother the previous Thanksgiving, was aghast.

“Now that the family has come forward,” he said, “you mean to tell me we can’t have him?”

Instead, Fitzgerald said he was told his family must fill out donation consent forms to eventually receive his brother’s ashes. A year and a half later — after the body had been leased out a second time, to a Texas dental school — the center billed the family $54.50 in shipping costs for the box that arrived at Fitzgerald’s Arkansas home containing his brother’s remains. He also received a letter from Claudia Yellott, then the manager of UNT’s body donation program.

“UNT Health Science Center and our students value the selfless sacrifice made by your family,” Yellott wrote.

As of Friday, Yellott’s photo and bio were missing from the Health Science Center website, along with those of Rustin Reeves, the longtime director of the center’s anatomy program . Yellott confirmed to NBC News that she had been terminated and declined to comment further. Reeves did not respond to messages. The center declined to specify who was fired. 

The Fitzgeralds’ ordeal was the scenario one Tarrant County commissioner had feared in 2018, when Yellott and Reeves pitched their plan to receive the county’s unclaimed dead.

They described it as a win for everyone: The county would save on burial costs and the center would, as Yellott phrased it , obtain “valuable material” needed to educate future physicians.

The commissioners were elated at the prospect of saving up to a half-million dollars a year. But one, Andy Nguyen, questioned the morality of dissecting bodies of people with no family to consent and raised the possibility of survivors coming forward later, horrified to learn how their relatives were treated.

“Just because they don’t have any next of kin doesn’t mean they have no voice,” Nguyen said .

After the Health Science Center pledged to handle each body with dignity, all five commissioners voted to approve the agreement. A little over a year later, Dallas County struck a similar deal, with one major difference: While Tarrant County families who couldn’t afford to make funeral arrangements were given an option to donate their relatives’ bodies to the center, Dallas County gave survivors no choice.

Soon, a steady stream of bodies began to flow to the center. The program went from receiving 439 bodies in the 2019 fiscal year to nearly 1,400 in 2021 — about a third of them unclaimed dead from Dallas and Tarrant counties. This coincided with a multimillion-dollar expansion and renovation of the Health Science Center’s body storage facilities and laboratories.

The supply of unclaimed dead helped bring in about $2.5 million a year from outside groups, according to financial records . Many of those payments came from medical device makers that spent tens of thousands of dollars to use the center-run laboratory space, BioSkills of North Texas, to train clinicians on how to use their products — a revenue stream made possible by the school’s robust supply of “cadaveric specimens.”

That economic engine has now stalled; the center announced it was permanently closing the BioSkills lab in response to NBC News’ findings. In its statement, the center said it “is committed to addressing all issues and taking corrective actions to maintain public trust.”

The partnerships with Dallas and Tarrant counties, which drew little attention when they were adopted, quietly rippled through the community of professionals who work with the dead and dying in North Texas.

Eli Shupe, a bioethicist at the University of Texas at Arlington, was volunteering with a Tarrant County hospice provider in late 2021 when a chaplain made a comment that rocked her.

“Oh, poor Mr. Smith,” Shupe recalled the chaplain saying. “He doesn’t have long, and then it’s off to the medical school.”

Her shock led Shupe to spend months studying the use of unclaimed bodies in Texas. As she investigated, she pondered a philosophical question: People have the right to make decisions about their bodies while they’re alive, but should that right die with them?

No, she ultimately concluded, it should not.

Shupe herself has signed up to give her body to the Health Science Center when she dies, in part to underscore that she doesn’t oppose body donation. But she emphasized that it was her choice.

“What they’re doing is uncomfortably close to grave-robbing,” she said.

Shupe was alluding to the dark history, long before voluntary body-donation programs, when U.S. medical schools turned to “resurrectionists,” or “body snatchers,” who dug up the graves of poor and formerly enslaved people. To curb this ghastly 19th-century practice, states adopted laws giving schools authority to use unclaimed bodies for student training and experiments.

Many of those laws remain on the books, but the medical community has largely moved beyond them. Last year, the American Association for Anatomy released guidelines for human body donation stating that “programs should not accept unclaimed or unidentified individuals into their programs as a matter of justice.”

Experts said the Health Science Center appeared to be an outlier in terms of the number of unclaimed bodies it used. No national data exists on this issue, so NBC News surveyed more than 50 major U.S. medical schools. Each of the 44 that answered said they don’t use unclaimed bodies — and some condemned doing so.

Joy Balta, an anatomist who runs a body donation program at Point Loma Nazarene University, chaired the committee that wrote the anatomy association’s new guidelines. He said using unclaimed bodies violates basic principles of dignity and consent now embraced by most experts in his field.

One reason that bodies should come only from consenting donors, Balta and others note: Some religions have strict views about how the dead should be treated.

“We don’t know if the individual is completely against their body being donated, and we can’t just disregard that,” Balta said.

Since 2021, dozens of entities have received unclaimed bodies from the Health Science Center — including some, like the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, that explicitly prohibit the practice on ethical grounds. 

The Little Rock-based school received shipments of skull bones and heads in 2023 and 2024 that included parts harvested from unclaimed bodies, records show. Leslie Taylor, a University of Arkansas medical school spokesperson, said because the UNT office that provided specimens is called the Willed Body Program , officials “believed they came from donors who willed their remains for education and study.”

Taylor said the school would adopt procedures to ensure it receives bodies only from people who have given explicit permission.

Before abruptly suspending the program last week, the Health Science Center had vigorously defended its practices. 

“An unclaimed individual is incapable of consenting to any process after death, which includes burial, donation, cremation, eco-burials or any other use of the body,” the center had said in a statement on Aug. 16. “If a relative is not located or does not claim the remains, a decision must still be made.”

Shupe argued that it’s problematic for a public medical school to benefit from the deaths of the “very poor” in its community. She has now embarked on a campaign to end the use of unclaimed bodies in Texas and nationally.

After publishing a newspaper essay criticizing the practice, she brought her concerns directly to the Tarrant County Commissioners Court at a meeting last year, asking officials to consider the message being sent to marginalized residents and people of color. 

“How does it look,” she said , “when a Black body is dissected with nobody’s permission at all, simply because they died poor?”

All Victor Honey’s family has to go by are faded memories, a handful of keepsakes, online snapshots and a trail of court records spanning eight states and Washington, D.C. These clues tell a disjointed story of an Army veteran tormented by paranoid delusions who repeatedly rejected help as he slid into homelessness and whose body went unclaimed, despite having a family who cared deeply for him.

His two sisters remember Honey teaching them math, making them laugh, shielding them from bullies and helping raise them when their parents divorced and moved the family from Mississippi to Cleveland in the 1970s. He was meticulous, hardworking, well-dressed — and in search of a calling.

After starting college, Honey joined the Army in late 1984 and reported to Texas’ Fort Hood, where he trained as a medic and, at a military club, danced with a soon-to-be Air Force enlistee named Kimberly. They married not long after and had a daughter. A son followed.

The young family lived at the base until 1988, when Honey’s enlistment ended. He then joined the Army Reserves in Dallas and was called up to support the first Gulf War. Though he didn’t want to go, he spent four months in Germany, so upset about the deployment that he rarely left his base. He remained angry after he returned home.

Kimberly Patman said Honey had multiple affairs, leading them to separate in 1992, which threw him into a deep depression. He sought mental health services from a local Department of Veterans Affairs facility and was given antipsychotic medication that he quit after a month, saying he was allergic.

From there, his life unraveled.

In 1995, Honey was arrested in Dallas for trespassing. A doctor at the jail called Patman and said he’d had some kind of breakdown. She called his father in Cleveland, who brought him home.

He was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia but refused to take the medication that eased his delusional thoughts. He was convinced people were coming after him, barricaded himself in his room and became a compulsive hoarder, filing papers in a leather satchel.

He was off his medications in early 1997 when he stole a car from a dealership and robbed three banks in three states — each time handing a teller a note demanding money. He had no weapon. He was sentenced to three years in federal prison.

After he was released, Honey tried living in Cleveland, but abruptly left.

“He just disappeared,” Patman said. “They didn’t know where he was. We didn’t know where he was. And it was like that for years.”

He eventually drifted to Washington, where he wound up on the streets. He filed more than a dozen lawsuits, claiming an array of grievances. He posted a video to YouTube in which he showed his broken teeth and suggested the police were responsible. “This is a horrendous, horrendous life here in Washington,” he told the camera.

He landed in Dallas again in late 2018. He was arrested multiple times for fare evasion and filing a false police report, and appeared at city council meetings claiming he’d been wrongfully charged. He also pleaded guilty to assaulting an emergency room nurse who was attempting to provide him care.

And then came the phone call that brought the family together again.

In early 2022, a caseworker at a Dallas-area hospital contacted Honey’s daughter, Victoria, in Montgomery, Alabama, to say he was in intensive care and might not survive, the family said. Patman and Victoria rushed to his side and were told his kidneys were failing.

“We’re here, the kids are here, we love you,” Patman told Honey. In response, he opened his eyes and asked, “Why did you divorce me?” They ended up laughing about it.

Brenda Cloud, his sister, called from Cleveland. “I would just talk to him and remind him of growing up and of his children, and he had a lot to fight for,” she said.

Honey’s condition improved, but he ignored advice to go to a nursing home and instead checked himself out. Several weeks later, he got on the phone with his namesake son. They’d often gone years without talking, but the son said he knew his father loved him.

That was Victor Carl Honey’s last contact with his family.

On Sept. 19, 2022, Honey was discovered semiconscious in a wheelchair at a downtown Dallas light rail station and taken to Baylor University Medical Center. He died early the next morning. He was 58.

After a Baylor social worker was unable to find his family, Honey’s body was transported to the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office, where an investigator was assigned to find next of kin.

The county investigator sought information from police and area hospitals but was unable to locate relatives. She then turned to the internet, where she found numbers for Patman, Honey’s brother in Ohio, his stepmother and his late father, but she reported they were disconnected. On Oct. 17, 2022, the investigator wrote that her search was complete and no family was found. The medical examiner’s office deemed Honey’s body unclaimed.

That same day, Honey was delivered to the University of North Texas Health Science Center, where he was placed in a freezer, awaiting assignment.

One of the most solemn duties of local government is notifying families when someone dies. Though the world, in so many ways, has never been more connected, finding survivors still can be difficult in an era of growing homelessness and increasingly fractured families. 

Death investigators at the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office follow a detailed checklist: They reach out to area hospitals to seek emergency contact information, search missing person reports, and comb public records databases for possible phone numbers. They also call neighbors and homeless shelters. If no family is found, they must sign an affidavit stating they did all they could.

In Tarrant County, officials delegated the primary responsibility for contacting next of kin to the Health Science Center, which said it takes similar steps.

But these efforts repeatedly fell short.

For two and a half years, Fran Moore of Lodi, New York, didn’t know what happened to her 79-year-old father, Carl Yenner. She cried when an NBC News reporter notified her in February that he had died at a Dallas hospital in May 2021 and his body had been sent to the Health Science Center.

Moore said she and her brother had struggled to stay in touch with their father across the miles. After not hearing from him, her brother filed a missing person report in Wichita Falls, about two hours from Dallas, where Yenner had lived. They still don’t know how he wound up in Dallas, how he died or why nobody contacted them. A Dallas County worker signed a form in June 2021 stating she had completed an exhaustive search for possible relatives.

But after spotting Yenner’s name on a list of unclaimed bodies provided by Dallas County, NBC News quickly identified Moore and her brother as Yenner’s children and found working phone numbers for each of them.

“If you could find us,” Moore said, “why didn’t they?”

Another question left unanswered: Given that Yenner was an Army veteran and entitled to federal burial benefits , what was the economic argument for Dallas County to send his body to the Health Science Center? At least 32 unclaimed veterans, including Honey, have been given to the program since 2020, records show.

After the center was done with Yenner’s body, it was cremated and interred among fellow service members at Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery. Moore said she’s heartbroken she couldn’t bury him with the rest of his family in New Jersey.

“To not have any kind of funeral for him,” she said, “for his family to come see him to say goodbye?”

Without commenting on specific cases, Dallas County Administrator Darryl Martin offered condolences to families whose relatives were used by the program. He said his staff works hard to locate family members and treats bodies with dignity. He didn’t address the use of unclaimed veterans.

In January, in an attempt to improve its efforts to find survivors in Tarrant County, the Health Science Center hired a company called The Voice After Life , whose mission is to help governments locate families of the unclaimed. The center said it has found families in about 80% of cases since then; officials did not know the previous success rate.

In a statement issued weeks before announcing it was suspending the program, the center said it “seeks to understand and honor the wishes of the family and deceased.”

It did not, however, honor the wishes of Michael Dewayne Coleman’s relatives. 

Coleman, 43, died alone on Oct. 21, 2023, in a Dallas hospital after possibly being hit by a car. An investigator for the medical examiner signed off on his case file, saying “all reasonable efforts” had been made to find next of kin.

But his relatives should have been easy to reach. More than a week before his death, his fiancée, Louisa Harvey, had filed a missing person report with the Dallas Police Department after he failed to return from a night out with friends, not knowing he was already languishing in a hospital. She spent months searching for him, alongside two of Coleman’s sisters. She printed missing person posters and canvassed neighborhoods near their home.

She said she called the detective assigned to the missing person case almost every day, eventually suspecting that finding Coleman wasn’t a priority because of his criminal record, which included illegal drug use and two domestic violence convictions.

Harvey finally learned of his death in March, after the Dallas County medical examiner listed him as an unclaimed body in the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, or NamUs , a free federal database meant to connect missing person reports with reports of unclaimed bodies. By the time Harvey found the posting online, the medical examiner had sent Coleman’s body to the Health Science Center.

His family could have learned of his death months earlier if the police detective assigned to find Coleman had listed him as a missing person in NamUs, but records show he never did. In response to questions from NBC News, a Dallas Police spokesperson said the department had opened an internal investigation into the detective’s handling of the case and would implement a policy change to prevent similar mistakes. 

Harvey couldn’t believe Coleman’s body had been donated without the family’s consent — or his. Last year, while filling out an application for a state ID, she said, Coleman had made clear he didn’t want his organs donated because of his distrust of the medical system; she doubts he would have wanted to donate his whole body.

But when Harvey and one of Coleman’s sisters, Shea Coleman, repeatedly asked the medical examiner and the Health Science Center to release his body — or at least to let them view it — they were told no. In June, a worker at the medical examiner’s office wrote in case notes that she spoke to Yellott, the manager of UNT’s body donation program, who told her Coleman was slated to be used in a longer-term course and that his family could receive his remains when the center was finished with him.

In 12 to 24 months.

In August, after NBC News inquired about his case, a Health Science Center official told reporters that Coleman’s body would be cremated and returned to the family much sooner — an abrupt reversal that the center attributed to the Texas Funeral Service Commission’s temporary ban on out-of-state body shipments. Ten days later, the medical examiner called Harvey to let her know Coleman’s ashes were ready to be picked up.

The center’s refusal to let her see her fiancé’s body has made it harder to grieve, Harvey said.

“I’m lying awake every night thinking, ‘Is that my Michael?’” she said. “‘Did he actually die?’”

After Victor Honey’s body arrived at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, the harvesting began.

Depending on how they were to be used, bodies were either frozen or embalmed. Some were left whole and set aside to train students. Others, like Honey’s , were dissected with scalpels and bone saws, to be distributed on the open market.

In November 2022, Honey’s right leg was used in a training at the center paid for by Getinge, a Swedish medical technology company that makes instruments for use in a surgical procedure called endoscopic vein harvest.

In January 2023, a week after the medical examiner’s office reported that Honey was eligible for a veteran’s burial, bones from his skull were shipped to Brooke Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston — where Honey had been ordered to report before his Gulf War deployment more than three decades earlier.

In May 2023, the Health Science Center shipped Honey’s torso to Pittsburgh, where the training company National Bioskills Laboratories provided it to a medical product company renting its facilities to teach doctors a pain-relief procedure called spinal cord stimulation.

NBC News informed Getinge, the Army and National Bioskills about the center’s regular use of unclaimed bodies and Honey’s family not providing consent.

Dr. Douglas Hampers, National Bioskills’ CEO and an orthopedic surgeon, said he was disturbed to learn his company has received unclaimed bodies and expressed sympathy for Honey’s family.

While human specimens are crucial for medical advances, Hampers said bodies should not be used without consent. He said his company would ensure that it no longer accepted unclaimed bodies and would adopt policies to make certain future specimens were donated with families’ permission.

“I don’t think you have to violate a family’s rights in order to train physicians,” he said.

A Getinge spokesperson emailed a statement saying only that the company regularly reviews its policies and operations, “including what we expect from our suppliers.”

In a statement, the Army said that if Honey’s remains were procured legally, the use of his body complied with the service’s current policies.

In July 2023, after Honey’s torso had been returned to the Health Science Center, his remains were cremated and later his ashes were brought to the Dallas County medical examiner.

And there they sat, with no one to claim them. Months passed.

In late April, Honey’s son, Victor, was boxing cans at the Dallas food bank where he volunteered when a woman approached him. She’d overheard someone calling out his name. “Do you know someone else named Victor Honey?” she asked him.

The woman said she knew his father when they both stayed at a downtown homeless shelter and had heard he died. Victor didn’t want to believe it. He tried to put it out of his mind. But the next morning, he called his mother and told her what he’d heard. She cried out and burst into tears.

An internet search led Victor to the medical examiner’s office, which confirmed the details of his father’s death and later told him the remains were available to be picked up.

About the same time, NBC News had found Honey’s name on a list of people whose unclaimed bodies were obtained by the Health Science Center. Using public records, a reporter tracked down Patman, Honey’s ex-wife, and sent her a message on Facebook. She responded immediately.

On a call, the reporter broke the news of how Honey’s body was used.

His family was appalled. Patman said she would have argued against Honey being cut apart and studied, noting that he once told her that he didn’t want to be an organ donor. Victor, though, said he might have been open to donating his father’s body for medical research.

“But y’all should have asked us about it,” he said. “They just sent his body parts away.”

When the family gathered in early June to finally lay Honey to rest, many expressed remorse about not being able to help him. They were frustrated to have no say in what happened to his body. And they said they hoped sharing his story would help spare others from similar anguish.

“Victor had a big, strong family,” Patman told family members. “And now we are going to speak for him.”

On a muggy Monday morning, a couple dozen of Honey’s relatives — nieces and nephews, siblings and cousins, Patman and their children — gathered in a pavilion at the Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery for the farewell they had long been denied.

A recording of taps played. A soldier knelt in front of Honey’s daughter, Victoria, and handed her a folded U.S. flag “as a symbol of our appreciation of your loved one’s honorable and faithful service.”

After the funeral, Honey’s relatives made their way to Section 40, Grave No. 464, where a crew dug a hole and placed the urn in the ground. They installed a temporary marker that soon would be replaced by a white granite headstone standing among rows of thousands.

Brenda Cloud, Honey’s sister, is furious over what transpired in the 622 days between her brother’s death and his burial. And she wants answers for the others whose bodies were cut up and studied without consent.

“Whether they had family or not,” she said, “every person deserves to have that dignity.”

Mike Hixenbaugh is a senior investigative reporter for NBC News, based in Maryland, and author of "They Came for the Schools."

Jon Schuppe is an enterprise reporter for NBC News, based in New York.

Susan Carroll was a senior enterprise editor for NBC News, based in Houston.

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Sgt. agam naim, 20, first female idf soldier killed in combat fighting hamas 2 days before leaving to teach.

The first female soldier killed in combat in the Gaza Strip died Tuesday in a building explosion alongside three others fighting Hamas, officials said.

Israel Defense Forces Sgt. Agam Naim, 20, a paramedic from Kibbutz Mishmarot, would have completed six months of service in Gaza on Thursday and was about to go on leave to teach a paramedics course at the medical corps school when she was killed, according to the Jerusalem Post.

Though dozens of female soldiers were killed during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, Naim was the first female to have been killed in the IDF’s ground offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, The Times of Israel reported.

While her family was terrified of her joining the fighting, they told her to “follow her heart,” her aunt Muriel told Walla.

“She said something I’ll never forget. She said that she wouldn’t be able to look into the eyes of the mothers of her comrades in her unit if they were going to Gaza and she wasn’t there to take care of them.”

The 20-year-old had been feeling under the weather and was told by the unit doctor she didn’t have to return as she was finishing her assignment on Thursday, her aunt said.

“Nevertheless, she insisted, saying she couldn’t leave without saying goodbye to her comrades. We spoke to her on Monday before she entered,” Murial continued.

“She called from the staging area, saying she loved us and everything was fine but that she would be unreachable as she would turn off her phone until Thursday. We told her we loved her and to take care of herself. And that was it.”

Naim’s grieving aunt noted parents send their kids to go fight “knowing the price isn’t worth it.”

“That’s the worst part. Now, there are more bereaved parents who must cope with this terrible price and live with it for the rest of their lives, knowing they let her go for something they maybe no longer believe in,” she said.

Naim was killed alongside three other soldiers: Capt. Daniel Mimon Toaff, 23; Sgt. Amit Bakri, 21; and Sgt. Dotan Shimon, 21.

According to an initial IDF probe, the four soldiers were killed after entering a booby-trapped building in the Tel Sultan neighborhood of Rafah, TOI reported.

Their deaths brought Israel’s toll in the ground offensive against Hamas in Gaza and in military operations along the border with the Gaza Strip to 348.

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