Is Yale Good For Pre Med

Additionally, the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation (YCCI) runs a virtual research internship called the Exposures Program. Targeted at high school and undergraduate students, this program can be a great way to be introduced to some pressing issues of healthcare research and delivery through the medium of technology.

How to Succeed as a Yale Premed

Everything you need to know about being a premed at Yale, including premed requirements, the best premed extracurriculars, and the Yale premed acceptance rate

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: Yale premed requirements

Part 3: Yale premed extracurriculars

Part 4: Getting into medical school from Yale

Part 1: Introduction

In this, the 322nd year since its founding, Yale University remains one of the world’s top institutions of higher learning. Its research output is recognized globally as being of the highest caliber, its graduates often join the ranks of world leaders; among them Hillary Clinton, George HW Bush, and Fareed Zakaria, and it holds a place in America’s coveted elite group of colleges known as the Ivy League.

Of the 50,022 applicants to Yale in 2022, only 2,234 were accepted giving it an acceptance rate of just 4.46%, meaning its exclusivity is very real. If you’ve been offered a place within this special club, you may be wondering what it takes to thrive in an environment surrounded by brilliant people. Furthermore, as someone interested in pursuing a career in medicine, what extra steps are required to flourish as a premed at Yale?

In this guide, we’ll scrutinize every aspect of what it takes to succeed as a Yale premed, from engaging in extracurriculars to the courses needed to meet med school admissions requirements, planning for success, and your options for gaining clinical and shadowing experience.

Part 2: Yale Premed Requirements

Yale undergraduates that are interested in pursuing a path to a career in medicine are confronted with a wide range of possibilities for walking that path. No matter your major, you’ll be able to complete your premed courses at Yale and still have excellent chances of entry. 90% of Yale undergraduates gain acceptance into medical school, regardless of major. Compare this with a 45% national average, and the odds are clearly in your favor.

However, you won’t get there without hard work and proper planning. First off, that means difficult decisions will have to be made. Which courses should you take and when? What is the best major for premeds at Yale? When should you take the MCAT or start looking at shadowing opportunities?

Fortunately, there is help for many of these questions in the form of guidance from the Office of Career Strategy (OCS) at Yale. Undergraduates can connect with them and get advice on the courses and sequences to take to ensure all of your prerequisites are covered.

In the table below we’ve laid out all the courses you will need to take while at Yale that they list as currently satisfying most medical schools’ requirements for admission.

Dr. Sandy Chang, the associate dean of science education at Yale has authored a helpful document of advice for premeds. In it, he offers a few sample course plans to tick off those premed requirement boxes. Each plan is separated into whether you are planning to take a gap year. We’ve put his suggestions into the tables below for you.

Sample Yale Premed Plan (Without a Gap Year)
Medical school requirement	Required courses
First Year	General Chemistry CHEM 161 and 165 Math 112 or 115 or 116 or 120 (depending on your preparation) English 114 and 120 (or another WR* credit)

Sample Yale Premed Plan (With a Gap Year)
Medical school requirement	Required courses
First Year	General Chemistry CHEM 161 and 165 Math 112 or 115 or 116 or 120 (depending on your preparation) English 114 and 120 (or another WR* credit)

How to maintain a high GPA as a Yale premed

Keeping your GPA as high as possible is crucial for your chances of getting into medical school. And like any problem that requires maintenance, you should approach it methodically and strategically with a view to long-term results.

As a Yale premed, you have an enormous number of resources available to you to keep that GPA in the stratosphere, but how you take advantage of them is up to you. We’ve listed some tried and true tips for GPA success below.

• Utilize office hours. All of your professors at Yale will have office hours to provide individual help to students. Typically, professors set aside 2 hours a week for office hours, but with many students to attend to, their time is limited. You’ll want to formulate a question to bring to office hours and be as specific as possible. Keep in mind, though, that simple and direct questions can often be answered more easily over email. If you have a concern that requires discussion or some extra coaching, office hours can be a great help.
• Strategize your course selection. Each course you take will have a different workload. Some will require you to spend much more time on an assignment than others. To keep your GPA up, think about how you will manage the tasks you are confronted with. For example, you know your own strengths and weaknesses better than anyone. If you struggle a bit with calculus and biochemistry, it would not be wise to take them both in one semester. Make sure to spread out the difficulty so you can focus when needed. Taking a course over the summer is a great way to give yourself plenty of space to engage with a topic.
• Make use of the facilities available to you. Yale has fantastic resources to support your learning efforts and taking advantage of them will certainly help to maintain your GPA. The Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning offers academic help in almost any subject. If you’re a STEM major that’s struggling with a writing assignment, the Writing Center is where you can find a writing tutor, a partner, or just get general writing advice. Likewise, there is specialized support for STEM subjects, Humanities, and languages. The Academic Strategies Program offers individual and group mentoring sessions, interactive workshops, and general advice about how to succeed at Yale.

What’s the best Yale premed major?

We often get asked which major a student should choose to give them the best chance of acceptance into medical school. The short answer to this question is that there is no “best” major and no type of major that is favored by adcoms over others. Medical school acceptance rates hover around 40-50% for every major.

That being said, the majority of medical school applicants major in biology or one of the other sciences. Many undergraduates eyeing a white coat believe they need to major in biology or chemistry to improve their odds. Some merely choose those subjects because the required courses in their major often overlap with the prerequisites for medical school.

However, the best advice is to choose a subject you are passionate about since you’ll be more likely to get higher grades studying something you enjoy. We’ve seen many successful applicants gain acceptance into medical school with degrees in the humanities and social sciences.

In fact, according to the Yale Factsheet 2022-2023, the top 3 most popular undergraduate majors at Yale were Economics, Computer Science, and Political Science. As long as you work hard, a social science degree will not put you at a disadvantage for medical school. Furthermore, with subjects such as Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology, and Neuroscience also in the top 10, any science-minded premed will be in good company.

When it comes to declaring a major as a Yale premed, you’ll have a total of 80 to choose from with subjects from Archaeological Studies, Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, to the interdisciplinary Studies in Grand Strategy.

If you need some more assistance to nail down your choice of major, the Yale College Dean’s Office has created visual “roadmaps” for students to get a better idea of their likely path through that major. This is a good way to compare options for majors side-by-side. For example, a Biomedical Engineering student will have quite a few prerequisites to complete before entering the major, whereas a Computer Science student has none. However, there are different requirements depending on whether they’ve chosen the BS or BA computer science path.

The Director of Undergraduate Studies in a particular department is a fantastic person to seek advice from. They are here to assist you in selecting your major and working through to graduation.

When should you take the MCAT?

The MCAT is arguably the single most important test of a premed’s life and adequate planning should go into when you decide to take it to allow for enough time to study while managing your other commitments.

Most premeds who don’t wish to take a gap year take the MCAT during their junior year. It’s important to remember that this is also a time when you will be engrossed in your major as well as engaging in volunteering or shadowing experiences, so it’s important to plan wisely.

Based on the material on the MCAT, we advise getting your Gen Chem, Org Chem, and Physics requirements out of the way before sitting the exam. It’s also helpful if you can take at least 1 semester of biochemistry as the test includes a lot of questions on this subject.

This is mentioned in Dr. Sandy Chang’s Advice for Premeds guide as well, which suggests taking general chemistry and organic chemistry during your freshman and sophomore years and a semester of biochemistry in your junior year.

However, every premed’s situation is different. Considering your plans and your available time for focused study will allow you to map out a course to follow and illuminate your options when it comes to choosing when to sit for the MCAT.

Part 3: Yale premed extracurriculars

Aside from the intellectually stimulating course offerings at Yale, you’ll also find a dizzying array of extracurricular activities, allowing ambitious premeds to add impressive entries in their AMCAS Work and Activities Section or interesting anecdotes in their personal statement.

Adcoms want to see you as a whole person and will evaluate your medical school application holistically. Therefore, it’s important to show them how you engage with your community, what interests you, and what you will add to the student body of their institution. Research, clinical and community volunteering, shadowing, and participation in student organizations are all activities you will need to undertake to craft a stellar application.

Yale student groups

Yale is home to 1,337 student groups, each catering to a different interest. With so many groups available, finding something that suits you may require narrowing your choices rather than choosing between options that don’t quite spark your curiosity.

From musical organizations such as A Cappella groups to political ones such as the Yale Model Congress, you’ll be able to dive deep into an interest among like-minded individuals. Also, let’s not forget the many science and health-related groups that are often attractive to premeds such as the Yale Undergraduate Society for Biological Sciences and the Public Health Coalition.

Membership in any of these organizations looks great on a med school application, but it’s important to remember you will also need to clock in those crucial volunteering, research, and shadowing hours to gain acceptance to the school of your dreams.

Yale premed clinical and community volunteering

Volunteering at a community clinic or other medical setting is a great way to gain experience in the different types of work a doctor may be involved in. These experiences signal to adcoms your dedication to the practice of medicine as well as your humanity.

There are a number of ways to get involved while you’re an undergraduate at Yale. Yale’s Office of Career Strategy publishes a list of healthcare-related volunteer opportunities in the surrounding area. These opportunities run the gamut from mental health to free clinics to Planned Parenthood. We’ve listed a few notable ones below.

• Yale Undergraduates at Connecticut Hospice The Yale Undergraduates at Connecticut Hospice is an organization providing palliative care to individuals which takes on volunteers each year. Volunteers participate in various activities from basic patient care to merely keeping them company and offering conversation.
• Leeway Since 1995, Leeway has been providing care to HIV/AIDS patients in the New Haven area. Equipped as a chronic nursing facility, they are capable of caring for patients long-term and are the only facility in Connecticut specifically focused on patients with HIV/AIDS. Volunteers can work with patients or just help out around the office.
• Yale Unicef If you’re interested in children’s issues and their care, the Yale chapter of Unicef could be a great fit. Getting involved can have you advocating for refugee children and the right to access clean water. There’s no better way to showcase your humanity than by standing up for the vulnerable. This is also a great opportunity to display your leadership skills as their projects need organizing.

Yale premed shadowing

Finding shadowing opportunities is a perennial concern for any premed student. The likelihood of getting into medical school without any shadowing experience is incredibly slim, so students should begin looking for potential places early on in their undergraduate education.

Once again, the Office of Career Strategy is the place to look for figuring out where you might shadow a physician and how to go about approaching that physician. Meeting with an advisor goes a long way to clearing up these concerns.

Additionally, there are a number of hospitals in the area that are part of the Yale New Haven Health system that you can contact for shadowing opportunities. We’ve listed a few below.

Sometimes, gaining the acceptance of a doctor for shadowing is a result of networking. Yale Medical Professions Outreach (YMPO) holds events and provides shadowing opportunities to interested undergraduates. This can be a great help in getting connected with medical professionals in a field that fascinates you.

In the new world of ongoing Covid concerns, there are also virtual shadowing programs such as the ones at Hearts4Health and Pre-Health Shadowing. These programs can allow you to rack up some shadowing hours if you haven’t been able to find a space at a clinic near you.

Yale premed research

As one of the foremost institutions for research in the world, Yale premeds will be spoiled for choice when seeking to gain experience for their medical school applications. Some of the world’s brightest minds are in residence at Yale, seeking answers to pressing questions, so participation in any of the notable programs below will certainly catch the eye of med school adcoms.

As a Yale premed, you’ll have the option of participating in undergraduate research at the renowned Yale School of Medicine, the Yale Summer Undergraduate Medical Research (SUMR) program, or even a number of internship opportunities.

Additionally, the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation (YCCI) runs a virtual research internship called the Exposures Program. Targeted at high school and undergraduate students, this program can be a great way to be introduced to some pressing issues of healthcare research and delivery through the medium of technology.

Over the four weeks of the program, students will gain insight into how clinical trials are constructed, how mobile apps can support the monitoring of patients, and even how data science is used in healthcare.

If you’re thinking of taking a gap year before medical school, YCCI also runs an internship program for graduates thinking about medical school. As a program participant, you’ll work alongside distinguished research faculty, gain experience protecting the safety of human subjects and potentially join rotations at Yale’s clinics.

Furthermore, the internship can take place at a variety of locations and departments within the Yale School of Medicine and you may be able to specialize in certain research areas.

If you belong to a group that is traditionally underrepresented in the sciences, the STARS program is a great place to start your research journey. STARS consists of three types of sub-programs that offer experiences such as professional development, original research, academic support, and even networking events. The sub-programs are geared toward first-year undergraduates, students who wish to focus on a summer research project, or juniors who plan to conduct individual projects.

Part 4: Getting into medical school from Yale

With the Yale name embossed on your undergraduate diploma, you might believe your chances of getting into medical school are higher than most other applicants. While Yale is an incredibly respected institution, you’ll still have to prove to adcoms that you’re deserving of a space among their current year’s cohort and this will require making a solid case for your candidacy.

The application process itself can be daunting for any undergraduate. With personal statements, secondary essays, the MCAT, and gathering recommendation letters, it can help tremendously to have some structure to the process.

Yale’s Health Professions and Advising Program (HPAP) within the Office of Career Strategy is a great place to start for advice. Meet with an advisor to help you get clarity about your goals. Get feedback about your essays at the Poorvu Center for Learning and Teaching’s Writing Center.

Too many students struggle with their essays and studying alone, overlooking the importance of taking advantage of the support available to them. It’s crucial to remember to reach out and take all the help you can get.

Getting into Yale School of Medicine as a premed

You may be wondering if you have a greater chance of acceptance into the Yale School of Medicine (Yale SOM) if you completed your undergraduate degree there. There may be some anecdotal truth to this in that you’ve likely built up relationships with faculty during your time as an undergrad and their letters of recommendation could carry more weight with the Yale SOM admissions committee.

However, it’s unlikely that this alone will make much of a difference. Reputations among doctors and academics extend far beyond institutional boundaries so a letter of recommendation from a faculty member at Stanford or Cornell would be just as likely to impress adcoms.

Yale School of Medicine admissions statistics

In short, Yale SOM is incredibly selective. Their most recently published statistics were for the class of 2025 and their admissions rate was just 4.8 percent.

For that year, 131 of the applicants to Yale SOM were Yale College alumni and of those 112 were accepted. Yale has even created an interesting map that shows where Yale undergrads have matriculated around the country. For Yale SOM, they state that 43 Yale College graduates are enrolled. Keep in mind that this data only includes matriculants from 2019 – 2021.

Even with a degree from Yale, you’ll be competing against other extremely intelligent candidates from top-tier institutions around the country. Any evidence you may have come across pointing to an advantage for Yale College grads is likely to be anecdotal. There may be some truth to a recommendation letter from a respected physician at Yale SOM that you shadowed under carrying more weight with their own adcoms, but this is not something quantifiable and shouldn’t be relied upon. Simply put, there’s no substitute for hard work and dedication.

Final thoughts

Yale is a storied institution with a number of Nobel laureates having graced its halls. Its reputation for excellence reaches far and wide, granting it the option to select only the best of the best for admission.

To truly succeed as a Yale premed, you will need to cultivate your determination to rise above the rest. A top academic environment demands top academic performance, so keeping your GPA up while completing premed requirements and extracurriculars will take a concerted effort.

However, with proper planning and forethought, you can walk the path of a Yale premed from freshman year to med school acceptance and on to a career where you truly make a difference.

Pre-Med Life at Yale

What’s it like to be pre-med at Yale? The short answer is, anything you want it to be! But since this is a very common question from prospective students, allow me to give you the long answer.

First of all, “pre-med” refers to anyone who is completing coursework in preparation for applying to medical schools. Medical schools vary in their requirements and recommendations, but typically pre-med students take courses in biology, math, physics, statistics, writing, and social science (i.e. psychology or something similar).

If this sounds vague and also, like, kind of a lot, that’s because it is. Thankfully, I’ve found that Yale has a lot of resources for navigating pre-med life, and that the climate among pre-med students is supportive rather than cutthroat.

During my first year, the most helpful advising resources were FroCos (First-Year counselors) and professional advisers at the Health Professions Advisory Program (HPAP) – part of Yale’s Office of Career Strategy.

Among the FroCos in each residential college, there’s usually at least one pre-med who can provide informal, very helpful advice. FroCos really understand how overwhelming it can be to choose classes as a first-year, because they were in your shoes just a few years ago. I’ll never forget when I talked to Priya, a Saybrook FroCo, about how confused I was about what I needed to take my first semester. She calmed me down, walked me through the core pre-med classes, and handed me an index card listing them. This simple gesture made my aspirations feel a lot more manageable. I’m pretty sure I still have that notecard somewhere.

Here’s the notecard! I took a picture so I could refer to it during Shopping Period my first year.

The advisers at HPAP provide more structured guidance throughout your four years and during the medical school application process itself. You can set up 15 to 30-minute meetings at any time. The advisers are super friendly! I always try to set up a meeting with Laurie at the beginning of each semester. She looks at my courses to make sure I’m checking off all the boxes, and gives me a much needed sanity check.

Pre-med courses vary in difficulty, but are generally hard. Not to fear, though! Practically all of the courses have a ton of support from Undergraduate Learning Assistants (ULAs), graduate Teaching Assistants (TAs), and professor office hours. They are there to help you do your problem sets and prepare for exams. ULAs are students who have taken the class before and are generally a year or two older. TAs tend to have more expert knowledge in the subject and can explain tricky concepts in new ways.

Many classes also allow you to work with your peers on problem sets, and Yale students are excellent collaborators! By putting our heads together, we can work through a lot of problems. I’ve learned so much from my peers, and it’s very comforting to know that we’re all in it together. This collegial (pun intended) atmosphere makes my pre-med classes a lot more fun.

Beyond the recommended pre-med courses, there is no specific major for pre-meds. Many choose to major in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, or Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry. However, many others choose English, Religious Studies, Biomedical Engineering, or even Computer Science (like me!). While biology-related majors tend to already include many pre-med courses, majors like English and CS don’t have much overlap. However, it is perfectly possible to complete any major you choose alongside pre-med, as long as you plan well–see advising resources above 🙂

Being pre-med is difficult, but it definitely doesn’t mean you have to miss out on other aspects of Yale. Apart from being able to major in anything you’d like, pre-meds also engage in Yale’s extracurricular and social scenes. Among the pre-meds I know, there are singers in acapella groups, Whaling Crew members (our pep club), varsity athletes, and Yale Daily News reporters. The key is, of course, time management!

I am really excited about a future career in medicine, but I’m glad that being “a pre-med” is hasn’t boxed me in at Yale. I’ve been able to major in a totally different field, make friends across majors, and be really engaged with the Yale Symphony. I hope that my wide range of experiences at Yale will help me to become a more empathetic and informed doctor one day.