- Continue to work on courses, grades, and competencies.
- Begin to seek out letters of recommendation ( click here - Tips for Requesting Letters of Recommendation brochure)
- Work on getting clinical experience in the fields you are exploring. For most people, that starts at a basic level of shadowing and volunteering. If you haven’t done those things, start now. If you have already done those things, look for more involved, less passive experiences. To see more about clinical experience and why it is important click here -
- Begin to explore other things you want to be involved in outside of the classroom. Remember, there is no single set of activities that is “better” (except clinical experience) than another. You need to start using your good critical thinking skills to decide what you enjoy doing and what has meaning to you, not try to find “what looks good.”
- For campus student groups see:
- For research try:
- Begin to focus on a major and possibly a minor. You do not need to major in a science, as long as you do well in the prerequisites and show you can handle rigorous course loads that include multiple science courses in some semesters. Most of the science majors are credit intensive and do not require you to complete a minor. A minor or double major won’t “make you look better” to an admissions committee but, if it is something you are interested in exploring, that is great and it will help you develop strength in some of the competency areas!!
- Make sure you are taking the right courses. You will need prerequisite courses for your intended graduate program, for your major, and for your SAS or SEBS core.
- What are the required and recommended courses for each medical school? Admission Requirements (aamc.org)
- What are the required and recommended courses for each dental school? ADEAAADSASRequiredandRecommendedCourses_FINAL.pdf
- EXPLORE OTHER CAREER OPTIONS IN HEALTHCARE
- Not sure if you want to be a doctor or dentist but want to explore other health care careers? https://explorehealthcareers.org/
- Want to find out more about becoming a PA? https://www.aapa.org/career-central/become-a-pa/ and/or https://hpo.rutgers.edu/explore-health-careers/physician-assistant
- Interested in Nursing? Check out: https://hpo.rutgers.edu/explore-health-careers/nursing
Premeds, check out: https://students-residents.aamc.org/premed-navigator/premed-navigator