General Questions

Yes! All UIC undergraduate students – regardless of college or major – may make an appointment with a pre-health advisor. Please submit the Non-LAS Pre-Health Student Advising request form. You may also find that many of your questions are answered online in the Pre-Health Blackboard page or in one of the webinars available on demand from Pre-Health Advising.

Pre-Nursing and Pre-Pharmacy students may make a pre-health advising appointment as early as their first semester. Students are encouraged to make their assigned general academic advisor their first point of contact for questions about academics and to make  pre-health advising appointments as needed throughout their time in LAS.

Students interested in all other pre-health fields are assigned a general academic advisor who will work with you over the course of your time at UIC. Pre-health advisors are here to supplement and enhance your advising experience. In the first-year, students are encouraged to attend workshops and events, utilize webinars, as well as the on-demand resources available in the UIC Pre-Health Blackboard page. All pre-health students are encouraged to begin one-on-one appointments with a pre-health advisor in the sophomore year – ideally after at least one semester of general chemistry has been completed.

An educational goal is not a major. It is an internal indicator of your interest in a particular health profession program. It will appear on your degree audit, but will not be listed on your transcript. A list of all currently available educational goals is available.

By declaring an educational goal, it updates your internal records to let your advisor(s) know that you are interested in a health professions field as a career. When you declare an educational goal, you are added to the UIC Pre-Health Blackboard page which includes information and numerous resources for students. You will also receive a weekly email from Pre-Health Advising regarding announcements, opportunities, and reminders.

No. In general, most health professions programs require that students complete a Bachelor’s degree prior to matriculating in their program, but do not specify a major that students should pursue. Within the context of that degree, students should declare a pre-health educational goal by completing the educational goal request form.

All health professions programs have pre-requisite courses and almost all require some sort of standardized test for admission. Examples of this include, but are not limited to, the MCAT, DAT, GRE, etc. LAS Pre-Health Advising has handouts that list the general academic and standardized testing requirements for many health professions programs. These handouts are available in appointments with an LAS general advisor or pre-health advisor, in the UIC Pre-Health Blackboard page, and in the lobby of the LAS Advising Office on the 3rd floor of University Hall.

No. Students should major in a subject area of personal interest. Many pre-health students pursue science majors based on interest in the scientific field while completing their professional program pre-requisite coursework. However, the best major is one in which the student is excited to learn and feels that they can do well academically.

All pre-health students are encouraged to take humanities and social science courses to build reading comprehension and analytical skills as well as to delve deeper into the factors that contribute to the social determinates of health. At the same time, students pursuing non-science majors typically find it advantageous to take additional courses beyond the pre-requisites to demonstrate science abilities. Many medical and dental schools, in particular, consider taking the second semester of organic chemistry and additional advanced biology courses as being “most competitive.”

Students should always review the specific prerequisites and preferences of the schools or health professions programs that they are interested in applying to. Each school/program sets its own admission standards which may require additional coursework, and they can change with little notice. LAS Pre-Health Advisors are available to assist as questions arise and students are welcome to schedule an appointment to discussion questions or concerns.

It depends on the school. Some professional schools will allow AP credits to satisfy pre-requisite requirements. Other schools want you to use the AP credit as a way to go in depth with that subject matter; they would prefer you to take advanced courses in that area. A few schools do not accept AP credit to satisfy any pre-requisite coursework.

If you elect to utilize your AP credit at UIC, it is encouraged that you meet with a pre-health advisor early in your UIC career to determine further coursework that you may wish to pursue. Incoming students are particularly encouraged to schedule a summer appointment with a pre-health advisor after completing their College orientation and before classes begin.

Please note: The UIC College of Dentistry does not accept AP credits to satisfy pre-requisite course requirements.

UIC offers most, if not all, of the pre-requisites required for health professional school programs. Students preparing to apply to medical or dental school are especially encouraged to take science or math courses at UIC. It is best to keep sequential courses at the same institution (example: General Chemistry I & II at same school). Occasionally individual circumstances may necessitate taking such a course off campus. In this instance, the student may consult with an LAS pre-health advisor if a specific question exists. Students are encouraged to think about their motivation for taking a class outside of UIC.

It is likely that you deleted your educational goal and/or that you graduated from UIC. If your UIC email is active, you may submit your request to add an educational goal.

If you are an alum of UIC and your UIC email is no longer active, unfortunately we cannot add you to the Pre-Health Blackboard page. You are welcome to access Pre-Health services and are encouraged to engage with our on-demand webinars.

Students outside of the College of Applied Health Science may request a seat in KN 251 – Human Physiological Anatomy I, by placing themselves on the waitlist. The wait list can be found under Restricted Courses. Please review the GPA and course requirements for KN 251 before adding yourself to the waitlist.

KN 251 is offered every fall and KN 252 – Human Physiological Anatomy II is offered every spring semester at UIC. Pre-medical students might take BIOS 272 (Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy and Physiology) as an alternate course to provide some background in anatomy. Anatomy is not a requirement for most medical school admissions.

The UIC organic chemistry lab is one lab course, but carries two credits. It generally fulfills any organic chemistry lab prerequisite that requires two credits of organic chemistry lab. Students may request the Pre-Health Advising office send a letter to the professional school explaining the organic chemistry sequence at UIC. Please complete the Request for Letter form to have the Pre-Health Advising office contact the school on your behalf.