{"id":426,"date":"2014-06-05T11:25:12","date_gmt":"2014-06-05T15:25:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swtemp.org\/science_math_dept\/?page_id=426"},"modified":"2026-03-08T15:40:42","modified_gmt":"2026-03-08T15:40:42","slug":"pre-medicine","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sw.edu\/science-pre-med\/pre-medicine\/","title":{"rendered":"Pre-Medicine"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Educational Pathway<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>After completing an Associate of Arts and Sciences Degree with a major in Science Specialization: Pre-Medical, you will continue your pre-medical study by transferring to a four-year school. Medical schools prefer candidates to have a bachelor&#8217;s degree. You can declare a major in any subject at a four-year school to obtain a Bachelor of Science Degree, which will require an additional two years of college. Your chosen major does not determine your success in being accepted to a medical school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After being accepted, it typically takes four years to earn a Medical Degree (M.D.) or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.), not including residency, which may take from three to eight years.<br>Early in your academic career, you will need to research some of the medical schools you are interested in attending in order to ensure you will meet all their criteria for admission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The commonly accepted coursework requirements for medical school include a minimum of 1 year of:<\/strong><br>General Biology, Physics, General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry with lab, English, Mathematics &#8211; Calculus and Statistics, Social Sciences \u2013 Psychology and Sociology<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Some basic factors are:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Good undergraduate grades (overall GPA of 3.5)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Test scores (MCAT\u00ae), which are very important<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>True interest inthe  profession as demonstrated by shadowing or volunteering in the field<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Exceptional communication and listening skills<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Strong reference letters from professionals who know your character, as well as your work ethic<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is the MCAT\u00ae?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>It is the Medical College Admission Test.<\/strong> It is a standardized test taken by students who are applying to medical schools. It will be similar to the ACT\u00ae or SAT\u00ae. It is a standardized examination that consists of four sections: Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems; Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems; Psychological, Social and Biological Foundations of Behavior; Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills. Its purpose is to test the skills and knowledge that medical educators and physicians have identified as key prerequisites for success in medical school and the practice of medicine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The classes taken during your two years at SWCC are the foundation for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aamc.org\/students\/services\/343550\/mcat2015.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MCAT\u00ae<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Important qualities for medical doctors<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>As in other health-related occupations, empathy, understanding, and a desire to help others are good qualities for effectively dealing with patients. Motivation, maturity, compassion, leadership, and integrity are also needed. The student must like learning math and science and be a lifelong learner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Is medicine for you?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The student should shadow physicians and ask questions about the profession.<\/strong> Physicians diagnose and care for people of all ages who are ill or have been injured. They take medical histories, perform physical examinations, conduct diagnostic tests, recommend and provide treatment, and advise patients on their overall health and well-being.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Medical Schools<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>There are 141 medical schools and 30 osteopathic schools in the United States.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"427\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/sw.edu\/science-pre-med\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2014\/08\/Richardsonosteopathic.jpg\" alt=\"richardson\" class=\"wp-image-812\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sw.edu\/science-pre-med\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2014\/08\/Richardsonosteopathic.jpg 427w, https:\/\/sw.edu\/science-pre-med\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2014\/08\/Richardsonosteopathic-300x281.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 427px) 100vw, 427px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Dr. Ryan Richardson, College of Osteopathic Medicine<\/strong><br>After receiving his A.A. &amp; S. degree in Science at SWCC, Dr. Joseph Ryan Richardson graduated from UVA in Charlottesville with a B.S. in Biochemistry.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Learn More<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"formWrapper\">\r\n<iframe class=\"salesforceRFI\" aria-label=\"Request for information form\" id=\"myiFrame\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" style=\"border: 0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\ndocument.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', function() {\r\n    \/\/ Start with base URL\r\n    var url = \"https:\/\/cloud.info.sw.edu\/EZ1qCEnk2NaD\";\r\n   \r\n    \/\/ Get current URL\r\n    var currentUrl = window.parent.location.href;\r\n   \r\n    \/\/ Add UTM parameters to the current URL\r\n    if (currentUrl.includes('?')) {\r\n        currentUrl += '&';\r\n    } else {\r\n        currentUrl += '?';\r\n    }\r\n    currentUrl += 'utm_campaign=&utm_medium=webform&utm_source=website';\r\n   \r\n    \/\/ Create the formFrame parameter with the UTM-enhanced URL\r\n    var myParams = \"\/?formFrame=\" + encodeURIComponent(currentUrl);\r\n   \r\n    \/\/ Build final iframe URL\r\n    var iframe_url = url + myParams;\r\n    document.getElementById(\"myiFrame\").src = iframe_url;\r\n});\r\n<\/script>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Educational Pathway After completing an Associate of Arts and Sciences Degree with a major in Science Specialization: Pre-Medical, you will continue your pre-medical study by transferring to a four-year school.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"on","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"Medicine","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-426","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v20.11 (Yoast SEO v27.2) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Pre-Medicine - SWCC Science Pre-med Tracks<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Pre-Medicine Richardson Accepted to College of Osteopathic MedicineAfter receiving his A.A. &amp; 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