Pre-Medical/Dental Advisor — Dr. Markwardt, Zoology
The pre-medicine/pre-dentistry major includes those courses most frequently required for admission to colleges of medicine and dentistry. Students should consult the pre-medical/dental advisor early in their college careers for the admissions requirements of specific medical or dental schools. Courses for this major may not be taken on a credit/no entry basis. A general description of Ohio Wesleyan’s pre-professional programs appears in the previous chapter of this Catalog, Degrees and Special Programs.
This major is recommended only for students wishing to combine it with a second major. Any student wishing to pursue only a single major is strongly encouraged to obtain that major in a regular department (e.g., zoology, chemistry, botany-microbiology, psychology, neuroscience, or some other area) and to take the courses appropriate to prepare for the professional school admissions test as well.
Students wishing to attend professional school directly after graduating must take either the Medical College Admission Test or the Dental Admission Test by late spring of their junior year, and apply that June, so scheduling is critical. Such students should include the following courses in their schedules the first three years:
• Freshman Year: Introductory chemistry and mathematics and/or biology
• Sophomore Year: Organic chemistry and more biology
• Junior Year: Introductory physics, biochemistry, and upper-level biology
Currently less than half of entering medical students come directly from undergraduate schools. Students who choose to take a bridge year can spread the required courses out over four years. Students should work closely with their advisors and Dr. Markwardt to ensure that their sequence of courses will prepare them both for the admissions tests and for professional school. Not every course necessary to achieve these goals is required for the major; for example, the MCAT now includes sections on psychology, sociology, and statistics as well as the physical and biological sciences, and some dental schools require a course in microbiology.
