Comprehensive Prehealth Coursework Notes

Overview and guidance for prehealth prerequisites

• Health professional schools have their own prerequisite requirements and policies (e.g., AP credits, what counts for lab components, and how credits from different institutions are treated).
• Our office provides coursework guidance aimed at covering the requirements for the majority of health professional schools, but you should still do due diligence to confirm specifics for each school you’re applying to.
• Researching a handful of schools (even before you have a finalized list) helps you understand variations or additional requirements, including whether AP credits are accepted.
• Our advising team can help you with resources and tools to facilitate this research (website, drop-in hours, or appointments).
• Next steps: we’ll outline course requirements for medical and dental school, plus note other health professions tracks and related policies.

Course requirements for medical and dental school

• Biology:
  • Require two semesters with lab; typically $BIO\ 1107$ and $BIO\ 1108$.
  • Premedical students may skip $BIO\ 1108$ if they take at least one additional upper-level biology course with a lab (e.g., microbiology or anatomy & physiology with labs).
  • Predental students must take $BIO\ 1108$ as part of their preparation.
• Chemistry:
  • General chemistry sequence: typically $CHEM\ 127$ and $CHEM\ 128$; sometimes a three-part sequence $CHEM\ 124, 125, 126$ is used.
  • Organic chemistry sequence: generally three parts; lecture components are $CHEM\ 2443$ and $CHEM\ 2444$, with a 3-credit lab $CHEM\ 2445$ that can be taken concurrently with or after $CHEM\ 2444$.
• Biochemistry:
  • Required: $MCB\ 2000$ (biochemistry).
  • This is required for medical school and many dental schools.
• Physics:
  • Two semesters of physics with lab are required.
  • Options: algebra-based sequence $PHYS\ 1201$ and $PHYS\ 1202$, or calculus-based sequence $PHYS\ 1401$ and $PHYS\ 1402$.
  • Engineering students may take $PHYS\ 1501$ and $PHYS\ 1502$, which also meet the requirement.
• English:
  • Two semesters of English.
• Math and Statistics:
  • Requirements vary by school.
  • Medical schools typically benefit from 1–2 semesters of college-level math (e.g., statistics and/or calculus).
  • Some dental schools may require statistics or precalculus; check school-specific requirements.
• Additional suggested science courses for breadth and depth (often strengthening applications):
  • Anatomy & physiology sequence (especially important for pre-dental students; required by some dental schools).
  • Genetics, cell biology, microbiology (microbiology is required by some dental schools).
• Behavioral or social sciences breadth:
  • General psychology sequence, sociology or anthropology, or other health-related courses in non-STEM disciplines.
  • The premed MCAT has a dedicated section focusing on psychology and social sciences; plan accordingly.
• General guidance page:
  • We provide a list of health-related courses in non-STEM disciplines, with content area and enrollment requirements, to help you demonstrate breadth and fulfill content-area requirements while exploring topics of interest related to health.
  • Access via the coursework page on our website: premed.uconn.edu/coursework.

Additional health professions tracks and related guidance

• For pre-optometry, podiatry, or other health professions tracks not already covered, see the Explore > Health Careers sections on our website for requirements.
• You’ll also encounter program-specific variations; always verify with the target school’s prerequisites.

Special course sequencing notes and alternatives

• For PA (physician assistant) track and other notes:
  • For pre-PA students, some schools require only one of the organic chemistry or biochemistry sequences, while others require both; verify school policies.
• Anatomy & physiology for PA and other programs:
  • For PA and related tracks, you may see the anatomy & physiology requirement structured differently (e.g., two-part vs. three-part sequences); specific majors (e.g., biological sciences, PNB) may have enhanced sequences (e.g., PNB 2774, 2775, 2776).
• Psychology and general psychology sequences:
  • Include general psychology (e.g., PSYC/psych) as part of breadth, since psychology is part of the content areas assessed by many programs.
• Microbiology and microbiology labs:
  • Some programs require a microbiology course with lab; ensure you have a lab component.
• Practical note: always check the program’s site for the exact content areas and elective breadth expectations.

AP credits, ECE credits, and related policies

• AP credits:
  • Most health professional schools accept AP credits if they are supplemented by upper-level coursework in the same discipline.
  • Most medical and dental schools require: $BIO, CHEM, OCH, PHYS$ sequences at the collegiate level with lab components (one year of these is typically expected).
  • Example policy: if you have AP credit for $BIO\ 1107$, you can either retake it at UConn or take a different upper-level biology course with labs (e.g., microbiology or anatomy & physiology) to ensure you have a full year of biology if the school does not accept AP credit.
  • Important exception: the UConn School of Medicine does not accept AP credit for prerequisite course requirements, whereas the UConn School of Dental Medicine does accept AP credit.
• Best practice:
  • Regardless of AP credit acceptance, supplement with an upper-level course with a lab to ensure full-year coverage for the prerequisite discipline.
  • Detailed information is available on our website; you can also discuss your case in drop-in hours with an adviser.
• Early College Experience (ECE) credits:
  • If you have ECE credits (or other collegiate-level credits), these are considered collegiate-level coursework and can fulfill prerequisites without having to retake or supplement coursework.
• GPA considerations for health professional schools:
  • Whether or not you accept ECE credits on your transcript, any ECE courses and essentially any collegiate-level coursework from any institution (including community colleges) will be factored into your calculated GPA for health professional schools.

Important notes about coursework and advising roles

• You should view our office as the point of contact for anything related to prehealth requirements, but not for major or graduation requirements.
  • Your assigned academic advisor is the primary contact for major and graduation questions and is the expert in those areas.
• When considering prerequisites, especially in the sciences, take courses at a four-year institution when possible since some health professional schools may not accept community college credit.
• If you have taken prerequisite courses at a community college, do research on school-specific policies, as some schools may consider community college courses less rigorous.
• It’s generally recommended to take prerequisites during the regular fall or spring semesters to ensure full-length, rigorous coursework.
• Prerequisite coursework for prehealth students is rigorous; retaking a prerequisite may be necessary if you receive a grade of B− or lower, but this is evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
  • Some schools may not accept grades below a C toward prerequisites.
  • If you retake a course, note that UConn’s repeat-forgiveness policy may apply, but both grades will be factored into your calculated GPA for health professional school applications.
• If you’re unsure about retaking a course or other options, speak with our advising team to discuss possible paths.

Next steps and reminders

• Before moving on to other requirements, reach out to advising to discuss your plan and any potential program-specific nuances.
• Use the resources on our website (premed.uconn.edu/coursework) and consider dropping in or scheduling an appointment to review your situation and ensure your coursework aligns with your target health professional schools.