Admission to medical school is very competitive and applicants should create a strategic plan well in advance. Below you will find characteristics of a competitive application. Please contact our advisors in the UNT Office of Health Professions to further explore each characteristic and to create your personalized pre-medical plan.

Recommendations for a Competitive Application:

• Overall and Math/Science GPAs - 3.8+ (average admitted GPAs varies by school)
• MCAT Score - 510 (average admitted varies slightly by school)
• Shadowing - 100+ Hours
• Medical Volunteering - 100+ Hours
• Non-Medical Volunteering - 100+ Hours
• Research Experience - 100+ Hours or a semester's worth
• Various Extracurricular Activities, On or Off Campus

Core Competencies for Healthcare

The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) came up with a set of skills, knowledge, and personal characteristics that they believe are essential for future physicians called the pre-med core competencies. Because of its relevance to all healthcare professions, many other health professional schools have embraced the core competencies as well.  Since many, if not most, health professional schools evaluate applicants based on these competencies, we recommend that students develop proficiency in them.  More information on the AAMC Core Competencies can be found here.

Using this handout, your pre-health advisor can help you evaluate your progress on becoming a competitive applicant to medical school. 

There are three application services medical school applicants use to apply to medical schools in the United states. The majority of allopathic (M.D.) medical schools in the United States use one online application service called AMCAS (American Medical College Application Service), while osteopathic (D.O.) medical schools use AACOMAS (American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine). Most Texas medical schools, whether allopathic or osteopathic, use TMDSAS (Texas Medical & Dental Application Service) for its medical schools.  Texas Christian University and the University of the Incarnate Word are the only two Texas schools that do not use the TMDSAS application service.

The AMCAS, TMDSAS and AACOMAS application cycles open in May of each year. However, the date for first submission varies between the application portals.  Please note that there are fees associated with using these services.

Candidates must apply to medical schools one year before entering a program. On the traditional four-year path, students will apply during May or June of their junior year in college, complete their bachelor's degree at the end of their senior year, and enter medical school the following fall semester. However, each applicant's timeline is different, and your UNT Health Professions Advisor is committed to helping create a plan and timeline that accommodates your individual goals and circumstances.

Yes, applicants are required to take the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) before applying to medical school. The score range for the MCAT is 472 to 528, and candidates should ideally take the exam at least 1 month prior to applying to medical school. We strongly recommend that you not take the MCAT until after all prerequisites have been completed. For more information about the MCAT, please visit the official webpage on AAMC.

Yes, pre-medical students can apply for the following pre-health scholarships using the College of Science general scholarship application. 

Dr. Glenn Mitchell Memorial Scholarship
To be considered, a student must be a pre-medical student, should have completed 60 hours of pre-medical coursework, must demonstrate academic excellence, and have 1 year of Biology | Physics | Organic Chemistry credit. The scholarship is awarded for the following fall or spring semesters.

Dr. Leslie Parks Memorial Scholarship
To be considered, a student must be a pre-health student and should have completed 60 hours college coursework. 

Rafes Pre-Medical Scholarship
To be considered, a student must be a full-time UNT pre-medical student, should currently be enrolled as a freshman, and demonstrate scholastic excellence. The scholarship application is awarded for the following fall or spring semesters. 

Dr. Burl G. Rogers Academic Excellence Award
To be considered, applicants must have graduated from the university with a degree in Chemistry, met the minimum academic performance standards of the Health Professions Advisory Committee (HPAC) of the College of Science, and be admitted to and registered at an accredited medical school.

The Dr. Charles D. and Vernil Mitchell Endowed Scholarship
To be considered, a student must enroll as a full-time undergraduate student in any degree-granting major in the College of Science and be a graduate of any high school in Dallas ISD. 

For more information about any of these scholarships, please contact us at healthcareers@unt.edu. 

You can find a list of health-related student organizations at UNT here.  You can search for other student clubs and organizations on OrgSync.

If you are a current student, join our canvas course to receive important announcements and view resources related to your pre-medical journey. 

If you are a current student at UNT, we encourage you to schedule an appointment with one of our pre-health advisors using the following link: https://unt.navigate.eab.com/. If you are a prospective student, interested in enrolling at UNT in the future, and have any questions about "pre-medical" at UNT, please feel free to contact us at healthcareers@unt.edu.