ADVISORS: E. Jacoby, A. Holmes
Students at WPI who wish to pursue careers in the health professions (e.g. medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine, etc.) should, in consultation with their academic advisors, plan their academic programs to include courses in biology, general and organic chemistry, biochemistry, and physics including laboratory experiences. Although required courses for certain majors will naturally overlap with professional school prerequisites more than others, entry into medical or other health professions schools may be accomplished through any major program of study. It is important for students to work closely with their faculty advisors as well as the pre-health advisor to formulate an academic plan of study that will include the courses required for admission to health professions schools while still allowing for completion of all degree requirements. Individual admissions requirements will vary by school and program. Students should consult admissions websites of individual health professions programs for specific information about prerequisites. Pre-med students are encouraged to consult the Medical School Admissions Requirement (MSAR) resource.
WPI’s project-focused curriculum offers a tremendous advantage to pre-health students. Health professions programs value teamwork, as well as cross-cultural, research, and community service experience, all of which can be demonstrated through project work. Because students will graduate from WPI with a degree in an academic discipline, they will have other career opportunities should they decide not to pursue a career in a health profession or should they choose to work for some time after graduation before continuing on to a health professions school. Students and alumni applying to health professions schools should plan to meet with the pre-health advisor to discuss the application process and arrange a letter of recommendation from the pre-health committee (if required) to support their application. Such meetings should ideally begin during a student’s first year as an undergraduate student (or as soon as a student decides to pursue this path) and continue through their time at WPI.