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Pre-Professional Health Pathways

If you are interested in pursuing admission to a professional school after graduation, you will meet with a pre-health advisor regularly to receive ongoing feedback about developing your academic and extracurricular experiences for application and admission to professional school.

Choose your desired program below to jump to the courses and activities that are best suited to gain admission into professional schools.

PRE-DENTAL

Pre-dental students can major in any subject as long as they fulfill the pre-requisite course requirements for the schools that they are applying to. EKU currently has two science majors (Biomedical Sciences and Chemistry) with pre-dental concentrations. Find the curriculum planners for these majors on our curriculum planners page. Learn more about choosing a pre-dental major and about becoming a dentist by watching The Voice of Dental Education video.

Important Dates

Students must apply to dental school one full academic year before they plan to attend (for example the spring of junior year). Depending on the timing of a student’s application he/she may have to take a gap year. More information about applying to Dental School can be found at:
Dental School Cycle dates
Dental Admission Test (DAT)

General Dental School Prerequisite Courses

The courses required for admission into dental school may differ for each school. If you have AP credit for any REQUIRED courses, you should verify the school will accept AP credits. There may be courses you will need to take in addition to prerequisites to prepare for an entrance exam (if one is required). It is important to research the requirements for all schools you are interested in attending.

Prerequisite Courses

  • English: ENG 101 and ENG 102
  • Introductory Biology: BIO 111/111L and BIO 112/112L
  • Introductory Chemistry: CHE 111/111L and CHE 112/112L
  • Organic Chemistry: CHE 361/361L and CHE 362/362L
  • Introductory Physics: PHY 131 and 132 or PHY 201 and 202
  • Introductory Biochemistry: CHE 430
  • Microbiology: BIO 320

Recommended Courses

  • Human Anatomy and Physiology I: BIO 307
  • Human Anatomy and Physiology II or Animal Physiology: BIO 308 or BIO 348
  • Anthropology: ANT 120, 201, 306, 377, and/or 385
  • Psychology or Sociology: PSY 200 or SOC 131

Required Activities

  • Minimum of 100 hours of shadowing/internship in a dental setting.

Recommended Extracurricular Experiences

Dental Admission Test (DAT)
Associated American Dental Schools Application Service (AADSAS)

American Dental Education Association (ADEA)
American Student Dental Association (ASDA)

Individual dental schools may require additional application materials, so it is important to research each school to ensure that your application is complete.

PRE-MEDICAL

Pre-medical students can major in any area as long as they fulfill the pre-requisite courses of the medical schools that they apply to. EKU currently has two majors (Biomedical Sciences and Chemistry) with specific pre-medical concentrations. Find the curriculum planners for those concentrations on our curriculum planners page.

Read more about choosing a pre-med major American Medical Student Association website. All successful medical school applicants are expected to demonstrate the American Association of Medical College’s (AAMC) 15 Core Competencies.

Important Dates

Students must apply to medical school one full academic year before they plan to attend (for example the spring of junior year). Depending on the timing of a student’s application he/she may have to take a gap year. Application to medical school cycle dates for MD and DO can be found at these links:

General Medical School Prerequisite Courses

The courses required for admission into medical school may differ for each school. If you have AP credit for any REQUIRED courses, you should verify the school will accept AP credits. There may be courses you will need to take in addition to prerequisites to prepare for an entrance exam (if one is required). It is important to research the requirements for all schools you are interested in attending.

Prerequisite Courses

  • Introductory Biology: BIO 111/111L and BIO 112/112L
  • Introductory Chemistry: CHE 111/111L and CHE 112/112L
  • Organic Chemistry: CHE 361/361L and CHE 362/362L
  • Introductory Physics: PHY 131 and PHY 132 or PHY 201 and PHY 202
  • Six Credit Hours of English: ENG 101 or ENG 105 and ENG 102 or ENG 301
  • Statistics: STA 215 or STA 270 and/or MAT 234 are required by some medical schools

Recommended Courses

  • Cell Biology: BIO 331
  • Vertebrate Physiology: BIO 348
  • Biochemistry: CHE 430 and 431
  • Psychology: PSY 200, 280, 300, and/or 308
  • Sociology: 131, 235, and/or 232
  • Intro to Cultural Anthropology: ANT 120
  • Medical Anthropology: ANT 377
  • Native American Cultures: ANT 330
  • Health and Biomedical Ethics: PHI 383

Required Activities

Recommended Activities

Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)
American Medical College Application Service  (AMCAS, MD applications)
American Association of College of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM)
American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Application System (AACOMAS, DO applications)
American Medical Student Association
Medical College Admission Test (MCAT)
Individual medical schools may require additional application materials, so it is important to research each school to ensure that your application is complete.

PRE-PHARMACY

Pre-pharmacy students can major in any subject as long as they fulfill the pre-requisite course requirements for the schools that they are applying to. EKU currently has one major with a pre-pharmacy concentration. Find the curriculum planners for those concentrations on our curriculum planners page.

Important Dates

Students generally apply to pharmacy school the fall of their senior year. However, students planning to just complete their pre-requisite courses and enter straight into a PharmD program may choose to apply the summer before or fall of their junior year. To see the specific requirements of all PharmD programs in the United States view the PhamCAS’s PharmD School Directory. Application to pharmacy school cycle dates are available online at the College Pharmacy Application Services. Information about the Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT) is available online at https://www.pearsonassessments.com/graduate-admissions/pcat/about.html.

General Pharmacy School Prerequisite Courses

The courses required for admission into pharmacy school differ for each school. If you have AP credit for any REQUIRED courses, you should verify the school will accept AP credits. There may be courses you will need to take in addition to prerequisites in order to prepare for an entrance exam (if one is required). It is important to research the requirements for all schools you are interested in attending.

Prerequisite Courses

  • Communication: ENG 101, ENG 102, and CMS 100
  • Biology: BIO 111/111L
  • Human Anatomy and Physiology I & 2: BIO 307 and BIO 308
  • Microbiology: BIO 320 or BIO 273
  • Introductory Chemistry: CHE 111/111L and CHE 112/112L
  • Organic Chemistry: CHE 361/361L and CHE 362/362L
  • Introductory Physics: PHY 131 and PHY 132 OR PHY 201 and PHY 202
  • Calculus: MAT 234
  • Statistics: STA 270
  • Microeconomics: ECO 230

Recommended Courses

  • Introductory Psychology or Sociology: PSY 200 OR SOC 131
  • History or Political Science: HIS or POL
  • Biochemistry: CHE 430/432L and CHE 431
  • Genetics: BIO 315

Required Activities

  • Minimum of 100 hours of Job Shadowing/Co-op/Internship in a Pharmacy

Recommended Activities

  • Volunteer Opportunities
  • Undergraduate Research
  • Leadership Positions

Recommended PCAT Prep Materials

Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT)
Pharmacy School Application (PharmCAS)
American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP)

Pharmacy is Right for Me
Individual pharmacy schools may require additional application materials, so it is also important to research each school to ensure that your application is complete. Learn more about individual pharmacy schools at www.pharmcas.org/school-directory/#/ and read “7 Things to Know Before Applying to Pharmacy School.”

PRE-PHYSICIAN ASSOCIATE (Pre-Physician Assistant)

Pre-Physician Associate (PA) students can major in any subject as long as they fulfill the pre-requisite courses of the PA schools that they apply to. EKU currently has two majors with Pre-Physician Associate concentrations. Find the curriculum planners for those concentrations on our curriculum planners page. Learn more about becoming a PA on the AAPA website at https://www.aapa.org/career-central/become-a-pa/ Watch the American Academy of PA’s “What is a PA?” video to learn more about this growing profession.

Important Dates

PA school application deadlines vary and are available on the CASPA website. Students generally apply to PA school one full academic year before they plan to attend (for example spring of junior year), but timing ultimately depends on the deadlines and start times of the student’s preferred program.

Physician Assistant Program Prerequisite Courses

The courses required for admission into physician associate school may differ for each school. If you have AP credit for any REQUIRED courses, you should verify the school will accept AP credits. There may be courses you will need to take in addition to prerequisites to prepare for an entrance exam (if one is required). It is important to research the requirements for all schools you are interested in attending.

Prerequisite Courses

  • Cell & Molecular Biology: BIO 111
  • General Chemistry I: CHE 111/111L
  • General Chemistry II: CHE 112/112L
  • Organic Chemistry I: CHE 361/361L
  • Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy: BIO 342
  • Comparative Vertebrate Physiology & Lab: BIO 348
  • Microbiology: BIO 320
  • Statistics: STA 270 or STA 215
  • Psychology: PSY 200
  • Developmental Psychology: PSY 280
  • Sociology: SOC 131
  • Medical Terminology: HSA 200

Recommended Courses

  • General Zoology: BIO 319
  • Genetics: BIO 315
  • Cell Biology: BIO 331
  • Immunology: BIO 527
  • Histology: BIO 546

Required Activities

  • Clinical and Shadowing Experiences – Many PA programs recommend or require significant previous experience shadowing a PA, along with direct patient contact in a medical discipline. It is vital to research all programs of interest to ensure that all prerequisite courses and experience requirements are met before applying.
  • To obtain the minimum clinical hours, you may consider:

Recommended Activities

  • Volunteer Opportunities
  • Undergraduate Research
  • Leadership Positions

American Academy of PAs
Central Application Service for Physician Assistants (CASPA) Help Center
Graduate Record Exam (GRE)
PA Focus
Physician Assistant Education Association

PRE-OPTOMETRY

Pre-optometry students can major in any subject as long as they fulfill the pre-requisite courses for the schools that they are applying to. EKU has two majors (Biomedical Sciences and Chemistry) with pre-optometry concentrations. Find the curriculum planners for those concentrations on our curriculum planners page.

Important Dates

Students must apply to optometry school one full academic year before they plan on attending (for example the spring of junior year). Application to optometry school cycle dates are available on the OptomCAS site. Information on the Optometry Admission Test (OAT) is available online at https://www.ada.org/en/oat.

General Optometry School Prerequisite Courses

The courses required for admission into optometry school may differ for each school. If you have AP credit for any REQUIRED courses, you should verify the school will accept AP credits. There may be courses you will need to take in addition to prerequisites in order to prepare for an entrance exam (if one is required). It is important to research the requirements for all schools you are interested in attending.

Prerequisite Courses

  • English: ENG 101 and ENG 102
  • Psychology: PSY 200
  • Social Science (2 courses): HIS, SOC, POL, ECO, ANT, PSY
  • Statistics: STA 215 or STA 270
  • Calculus: MAT 234
  • General Biology: BIO 111/111L and BIO 112/112L
  • Microbiology: BIO 320
  • General Physics: PHY 131 and PHY 132 or PHY 201 and PHY 202
  • General Chemistry: CHE 111/111L and CHE 112/112L
  • Organic Chemistry: CHE 361/361L
  • Biochemistry: CHE 430

Required Activities

  • Minimum of 100 hours of Job Shadowing/Co-op/Internship in Optometry

Optometry Admission Test (OAT)
Optometry School Application (OptomCAS)
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO)
Individual optometry schools may require additional application materials, so it is important to research each school to ensure that your application is complete.

PRE-VETERINARY MEDICINE

Students at EKU generally choose to pursue the Pre-Veterinary Medicine curriculum either through the Agriculture or Biology Departments. Although Kentucky does not have a school of veterinary medicine, the state has contract seat agreements with Auburn University (34 seats) and Tuskegee University (2 seats) Veterinary Medicine Schools.

Veterinary Medicine School Prerequisite Courses:

The courses required for admission into veterinary school may differ for each school. If you have AP credit for any REQUIRED courses, you should verify the school will accept AP credits. There may be courses you will need to take in addition to prerequisites to prepare for an entrance exam (if one is required). It is important to research the requirements for all schools you are interested in attending.

Prerequisite Courses

  • Introductory Biology: BIO 111/111L and BIO 112/112L
  • General Zoology: BIO 319
  • Introductory Chemistry: CHE 111/111L and CHE 112/112L
  • Organic Chemistry: CHE 361/361L and CHE 362/362L
  • Biochemistry: CHE 430 or CHE 431
  • Introductory Physics: PHY 131 and PHY 132 or PHY 201 and PHY 202
  • Introductory Biochemistry: CHE 430
  • Statistics: STA 215 or STA 270
  • Feeds & Feeding: AGR 321
  • Animal Nutrition: AGR 421
  • Introductory Psychology: PSY 200
  • Introductory Sociology: SOC 131

Recommended Courses (Choose 2 courses)

  • Comparative Anatomy: BIO 342
  • Genetics: BIO 315
  • Microbiology: BIO 320
  • Cell Biology: BIO 331
  • Animal Physiology: BIO 348
  • Histology: BIO 546

Extracurricular Experiences

  • Undergraduate Research
  • Job Shadowing/Co-op/Internship in Medical Setting
  • Volunteering
  • Leadership Positions/Offices
  • Extra-curricular Activities

American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC)
Graduate Record Exam (GRE)
Veterinary Medical College Application Service (VMCAS)
EKU Pre-Vet Club
EKU Animal Studies Club