Time Table

The following illustrates when certain things should be done to stay on track in your pursuit of acceptance into a health professional school. Some professions may require additional activities.

Every Year

  • Make appropriate course selections
    • Review course requirements
    • Consult with your advisor
    • Have an HPAC member check your schedule
  • Reference Pre-Health Course on Canvas for updated resources, upcoming events, and announcements
  • Obtain health-related experience
    • Shadow a health professional
    • Volunteer at a clinic, hospice, or another health-related facility
  • Volunteer in the community
    • Make a difference in someone else's life
  • Be active on campus
    • Do something you are passionate about
    • Become a leader in an organization

Fall of Junior Year

Spring of Junior Year

  • Register for an admissions test
  • Study intensely for an admissions test
  • Interview with the Health Professions Advisory Committee
  • Begin the application process (via the profession-specific online service)

Summer after Junior Year

  • Take admissions test
  • Submit application
  • Request that the HPAC evaluation letter be sent

Senior Year

  • Complete applications
  • Interview at professional schools

Growth (Gap) Year

Many students either can not complete all of the requirements (both academic and non-academic) or are not competitive applicants while they are still undergraduates.  These students can benefit greatly from a year or two of focused activities designed to complete requirements and gain necessary experiences.  These activities can include taking additional science courses (individually, by obtaining a master's degree or attending a post-baccalaureate program), employment in a clinical setting (as a medical assistant, scribe, phlebotomist, etc.), preparing for and taking the MCAT or other admissions exam, as well as other things.  Growth or gap years are very common among applicants to health professions programs.