Medical School and a Major in Chemistry or Biochemistry
Is majoring in Chemistry or Biochemistry helpful for getting into medical school?
Yes!
While medical schools do not have specific major requirements, 83% of students with College of Charleston degrees who were accepted to medical school from 2009-2017 have a degree from traditional science departments. There is a shorter lag period before matriculation into medical school programs for CofC students with science majors.
Biology sends the most students to medical school from the College of Charleston and Chemistry/Biochemistry is second. However, 12% of Chemistry and Biochemistry majors from 2009-2017 went to medical school—the highest percentage of departments on campus; Biology is next with 8% of its majors attending medical school. Other majors have negligible percentages of graduates accepted to medical school, 1% or less. At least 60% of CofC students accepted to medical school participated in research. Such experiences are encouraged and readily arranged in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. We have alumni from the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry attend Harvard, Columbia, Michigan, UNC, Washington University St. Louis and Duke—all medical schools in the top 25.
Information of interest to pre-med students includes how our curriculum prepares students for the MCAT and medical school, as well as biosketches of alumni who have found success in the medical field.