Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental & Honors
The Honors College is an ideal academic home for students interested in pursuing a career in medicine or dentistry. The Honors College curriculum fosters the professional competencies that aspiring physicians and dentists need and that medical schools want from applicants, including critical thinking, scientific inquiry, written and oral communication skills, cultural awareness, and ethical responsibility in hands-on, discussion-based settings.
The Honors College curriculum, which emphasizes undergraduate research, also ensures that students develop the research skills that make them competitive medical and dental school applicants.
Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Requirements and the Honors College
Honors pre-medical and pre-dental students can create a learning plan with the Honors College Pre-med advisor that fulfils Honors College, pre-medical, and major requirements in a time frame that meets a student’s needs.
Students will take the majority of their pre-medical basic science requirements outside the Honors College. Some courses, including Biology 203 (Honors Biology I: Cellular Biology and Genetics) satisfy both a lower-level Honors requirement as well as a pre-medical/pre-dental biology requirement.
Additional coursework recommended by medical schools, such as statistics, psychology, and sociology, can be taken in the Honors College, presenting an opportunity to take these key courses in a small seminar setting while fulfilling lower-level Honors requirements. Additionally, Honors College requirements can be fulfilled together with core university requirements through innovative coursework.
Experiential and Advanced Learning Requirements
Students in the Honors College engage in a wide variety of independent and enriching academic activities to meet their experiential and advanced learning requirements. For pre-medical and pre-dental students, these experiences offer the valuable opportunity to hone their research, writing, and critical thinking skills. These experiences can shape an academic area of interest and help students build productive relationships with faculty members and mentors.
Examples of Experiential and Advanced Learning experiences well suited for pre-medical and pre-dental students:
- Undergraduate research: Honors College students work with faculty members to design and conduct studies and present their findings at the Honors College Celebration of Scholarship and Learning as well as earn grants to attend various types of travel conferences. Honors students interested in a pre-med or pre-dental path also are encouraged to be active members of the Undergraduate Research Club.
- Internships: Internships offer another opportunity to gain practical experience in areas such as public health. Students also work closely with selected faculty members and present their findings at the Honors College Celebration of Scholarship and Learning.
Honors Pre-Medical and Pre-Dental Advising
Honors students meet regularly with the Honors College pre-medical and pre-dental advisor Dr. Maria Brown, an Honors College faculty member and board-certified pediatrician. Dr. Brown will provide students one-on-one guidance about their academic path and experiential, research, and internship opportunities. She will also mentor students through the phases of the medical and dental school application process, including providing feedback on personal statements and interview strategies.
Honors College Pre-Medical and Pre-Dental Events
Honors pre-medical/pre-dental students can participate in university wide pre-medical/pre-dental club events. The Honors College also sponsors activities such as visits from medical and dental school admission officers, personal statement workshops, and interview workshops.