What exactly are the pre-requisite courses needed for medical school?
The pre-requisite courses required by Upstate are typically those required by most medical schools. They are General Biology I & II, General Chemistry I & II, General Physics I & II, Organic Chemistry I & II, and two English Courses. Calculus is not a requirement for admission at Upstate, unlike some other schools.
All science courses must include a lab.
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Biology: While specialty courses are more directly useful in medical school, courses should be "General" introductory courses, which provide the student with a broad survey of biology vs. a more specialty course such as Cell Biology for example.
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Chemistry: Should you have trouble in either general or organic chemistry, consider taking these courses in isolation, i.e., during a semester where your other courses might be less rigorous. However, avoid taking more than one or two pre-requisite science courses during the summer and avoid taking them at community colleges.
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English courses: At least one of the two courses completed must include a writing component, e.g., English Composition, Creative Writing etc. The other course can be virtually any type of English course you choose!
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Physics: While it is recommended, we do not require for your Physics courses to be calculus-based unlike other medical schools.
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