Nyu Pre Med

Choosing a great college for undergrad studies can make a big difference when it comes to being a pre-med. But because there’s so much choice, and a lot of factors hanging in the balance, it’s difficult to know what schools are best.

Course Sequencing

As a general rule of thumb, CAS prehealth students who are calculus ready will take General Chemistry (plus labs), Calculus I (if no AP credit), and Writing the Essay as first year students, regardless of their intended major. Students who are not calculus ready will first take the courses prescribed by the math department to become so, then will begin Calculus I and General Chemistry. From a prehealth perspective, attaining calculus readiness during the first year is not a barrier to entry into the health professions. Potential Biology and Neural Science majors should take Principles of Biology during the first year in addition to General Chemistry. Students must take General Chemistry either before or concurrently with Principles of Biology. Students interested in a Biology or Neural Science major who are not calculus ready at the time of entry should consult with their academic advisor or an advisor from those departments about course sequencing. After the first year, most non-science majors take Principles of Biology as sophomores, along with either Organic Chemistry or General Physics, because medical and other schools generally prefer applicants who take at least one year of “double science.” Remaining prehealth requirements will be completed in the junior and senior years. Students who are participating in NYU Opportunity Programs should follow the recommendations on sequencing and double science given by OP Counselors, and are also encouraged to meet with a prehealth advisor to discuss additional ways to demonstrate readiness for health professions schools.
In addition to these prehealth courses, you will also need to complete all the requirements for your Bachelor’s degree. Consult with your general advisor and/or a major advisor to be sure that you understand your basic degree requirements and major requirements.

Policy on School of Engineering Courses: A Note to CAS Students

CAS students are not permitted to take Tandon substitute courses for General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Physical Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, or Biochemistry as part of the prehealth or any major curriculum. Students may seek prior permission from the director of undergraduate studies in a relevant science department at CAS to take advanced electives in the School of Engineering and apply them to the major. This is reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Advanced standing credits (AP, IB, and others)

At CAS, most students who earn a 4 or 5 on an AP exam, 6 or 7 on an IB higher level exam, or high scores on other exams (A-levels, etc.) may be eligible to earn credits toward the NYU degree. However, although some health professional schools do accept test credits to satisfy admissions requirements, many do not. For this reason, and because students tend to do much better in upper-level coursework when they have taken the foundational sciences here at NYU, the Preprofessional Advising Center strongly recommends that prehealth students plan to forfeit AP credit for science exams (biology, chemistry, and physics), specifically, and take the introductory coursework here at NYU. For students in science majors, this is especially important, as most science departments will not accept AP credit to substitute for introductory coursework taken at NYU. Please consult with your general advisor to discuss your AP credits and your plans to repeat coursework, if applicable.

AP Calculus

Most medical programs do not have a specific mathematics requirement, though some schools require one or two semesters of mathematics taken at the college level. Most programs will accept AP or other test credit for calculus, but students who plan to apply to programs which specifically require a semester of calculus taken at the college level can choose to either forfeit their test credits and repeat the coursework at NYU, or take the next level calculus class available. This decision can wait until you have a finalized school list and are in the application cycle. For students who have test credits for calculus but need to take a semester of mathematics (non-calculus-specific), we recommend enrolling in an appropriate statistics course at NYU. An understanding of statistics will be helpful for MCAT preparation and may be required for select medical and dental schools.

English or writing coursework

Nearly all schools of the health professions require at least two semesters of English composition. These programs expect applicants to demonstrate competency in grammar and composition, as well as comprehension and analysis of dense written material. As noted above, most CAS students will take Writing the Essay (EXPOS-UA 1) and an elective course in either the Expository Writing program (EXPOS-UA) or a non-majors course from the English department (ENGL-UA 1). Each semester, course offerings can be found on the English department website, and specifically designates a list of courses that are appropriate for non-majors, as well as descriptions of Expository Writing electives. The Preprofessional Advising Center strongly encourages prehealth students to take a second English or writing elective from one of these two departments, because their courses are most likely to be legible to health professions admissions personnel. We recognize that students are responsible for reporting their own coursework to application services, and note that courses in other departments can be classified as English coursework, but encourage students who plan to use courses offered in departments other than English or Expository Writing to keep copies of graded work and syllabi for these courses, in case verification of the course content is needed during the admissions process. Students in Liberal Studies, Steinhardt, Stern, members of NYU’s Opportunity Programs, and any other students who are required to take two semesters of writing coursework as part of their programs should note that this course sequence can satisfy professional schools’ requirements. These students are encouraged to consider further writing-based coursework on an elective basis, if they have space in their schedules, but they are not required to plan for a third writing-based course.

Social science coursework

Students who plan to take the MCAT as part of their preparation to apply to medical schools are advised to plan to take at least two courses in behavioral/ social sciences, since a broad range of social science topics are tested on that exam. The Preprofessional Advising Center strongly recommends Introduction to Psychology (PSYCH-UA 1) as an individual-level social science course, and recommend that students choose a second course focused on population-level topics. Appropriate courses include Introduction to Sociology (SOC-UA 1), Sociology of Medicine (SOC-UA 414), or Health and Society in a Global Context (UGPH-GU 10). In addition to coursework, students may use the AAMC’s MCAT preparation resources as well as free resources like Khan Academy’s MCAT tools and the MedEd Portal, to study social science topics for the MCAT.

Advanced science coursework

The science courses described at the top of this page represent the minimum requirements for admission to medical and dental programs. Students are encouraged to build upon this foundational curriculum and choose advanced science electives, with the help of prehealth and major advisors, to demonstrate competency in higher-level coursework. A second semester of biochemistry is recommended wherever possible, and students who wish to take Biochemistry II (CHEM-UA 882; offered only in the spring term) should note that Biochemistry I (CHEM-UA 881) is its prerequisite. Advanced electives in the biology department most typically require at least Molecular and Cell Biology I (BIOL-UA 21) and sometimes Molecular and Cell Biology II (BIOL-UA 22) as prerequisites; students interested in advanced courses in biology should take these prerequisites into account, as they cannot be waived.

Is NYU Good For Pre-Med? (Everything You Need to Know)

Choosing a great college for undergrad studies can make a big difference when it comes to being a pre-med. But because there’s so much choice, and a lot of factors hanging in the balance, it’s difficult to know what schools are best.

NYU has an excellent reputation in terms of academics, but does it stack up for pre-med? Here’s what we know about NYU’s strength and reputation at the undergrad level.

Is NYU good for pre-med in 2021?

NYU is a great school for pre-meds hoping to go on to study medicine. Its connections with its own affiliated NYU Grossman School of Medicine provide a ton of extracurricular (shadowing, research, and volunteering) opportunities, while its AMSA chapter and pre-health advisory service do a lot to help improve students’ applications. The 32% admissions acceptance rate it boasts is another huge plus.

Of course, attending NYU by no means guarantees a spot in med school (that’s the same of all colleges/universities) – you’ll still have to work hard to attain a superb GPA and MCAT score regardless – but it definitely can help set you up.

Read on if you want to learn more about what it offers pre-meds hoping to go on to become successful physicians.

Does NYU offer pre-med?

Pre-med is not a dedicated major at NYU but rather a “track” called Prehealth. What that means is that you can have a major in any field while having the support of the track to help guide your application.

Also known as the Robert and Ellen Salant Prehealth Program, it prepares students for an advanced degree after they finish their undergrad in careers like medicine, dentistry, public health, allied health, and veterinary.

The track gives you the flexibility to choose from hundreds of different majors and minors. For example, if you’re someone that wants to opt for biochemistry with a public health minor on the pre-health track, you’ll be able to complete the requirements to graduate with your desired degree and the ones necessary to apply to medical school.

If your major closely aligns with your prehealth courses (like the example above), then you don’t have to take many additional classes to complete the track.

But you can still also major in music, performing arts, etc., and be part of the program. It just means you’ll have to pick up the common prereqs along the way!

NYU Pre-Med Requirements

As for what those are, here’s what NYU’s Prehealth program lists (you can take each of these at the school) as its requirements:

• General Chemistry I and II (& Lab)
• Principles of Biology I and II (& Lab)
• Organic Chemistry I and II (& Lab)
• General Physics I and II
• Calculus I
• Expository Writing
• Biochemistry I/Protein Biochemistry

According to their advisory services, except for Chemistry and Expository Writing (which should be taken in Year 1), you can do these at any time/order during your undergrad. You can also do them at any of the college’s study away sites (London, Syndey, Shanghai, etc) too!

While you do these courses (and your undergrad), NYU’s Prehealth Program is there to help you arrange clinical and research experiences, civic engagement opportunities and be a bridging point between relevant clubs and organizations that you can get involved with to help round out your future application (more on this later).

The video below helps show what pre-med life is like at the university…

What’s good about NYU pre-med

The Prehealth track at NYU is built in such a way that students can choose any major they want while creating an excellent foundation in STEM and writing.

“This is extremely beneficial for students at NYU. It gives you a chance to explore different fields that you are interested in and be a flexible thinker.”

– Zahin Ahmed, Neural Science Major, College of Arts and Science, NYU

But besides the degree of freedom being a pre-med at NYU affords, here’s what else is good about it:

1. The classes provide a very solid foundation for the MCAT
2. NYU has a prehealth activity that helps you get letters of evaluation from all your teachers every semester (you can even get these sent to the prehealth office)
3. You get individial mentorship and support from pre-health staff
4. The American Medical Student Association (AMSA) at NYU connects undergraduates to a network of medical professionals
5. AMSA also organizes activities like MCAT prep sessions, medical students panel, volunteer excursions, and peer mentorship programs
6. There are many student clubs from the Pre-Vet Club to the Pre-Dental Society that help students explore the field and community service
7. The Medical Dialogue Review, NYU’s student-run medical journal ranges from discussions of public health to reviews of recent medical journal publications

That last one is incredibly useful for helping you gain publications (something that looks amazing to medical school admissions teams).

But let’s take a little closer look at what else NYU offers when it comes to really strengthening any med school application…

Clinical Experience

NYU Prehealth can help hook students up with Manhattan hospitals and their volunteer departments and connect them with valuable summer clinical and research opportunities.

Research Experience

NYU’s Medical Record e-newsletter, something available to all on the Prehealth track, helps keep students informed about potential research opportunities on campus and beyond the square.

Civic Engagement

NYU’s Center for Student Activities, Leadership, and Service can help you get involved in the types of community projects that look great for med school apps. Their ties with NYU CMEP, the Office of Global Spiritual Life, and the College Cohort Program are very useful too.

What’s bad about NYU pre-med

Based on our research, the main complaints are as follows:

1. Big class sizes (making it hard to get close to professors and score important letters of recommendation)
2. Patchy pre-health advisory support (the quality can be a little hit and miss – more on this later)
3. No undergraduate EMT program (missed opportunity for clinical experience)
4. Not allowed to take courses affiliated at NYU’s Grossman School of Medicine

Are you at an advantage for getting into NYU medicine?

Being a pre-med at NYU offers no clear advantage for helping you get into NYU medicine. The school is still super competitive; it has a tiny 2.2% acceptance rate and is tuition free (encouraging a lot of applicants).

NYU’s pre-med acceptance rate

Getting into a medical school from pre-med highly depends on factors like the combination of MCAT scores, GPA, and interviews. But according to the statistics, the acceptance rate of NYU pre-meds to US medical schools is 32%.

Here’s the data from 2017:

To get into NYU as an undergrad (before then signing up to the Prehealth track) is pretty tough, however.

According to 2020’s data, their acceptance rate was just 16.2% and the average GPA was 3.69 or higher (1510 SAT or a 34 ACT).

What NYU majors are best for pre-meds?

As per the AAMC data of 2016, amongst the 21,030 students who got accepted to medical school, 52.8% were majors in Biological Sciences.

NYU offers various majors that are best for pre-meds that’ll help you get through the MCAT, such as:

• Biology
• Chemistry
• Biochemistry
• Neural Science
• Physics

The trick is to pick something you feel you’ll get a high GPA in!

We discuss all this (and more) in this article : What’s The Easiest Pre Med Major?

Is NYU good for Biology?

NYU was ranked #121 on College Factual’s list of the best schools for Biology majors. It is also ranked #7 in New York. There are three options available to students pursuing a major in Biology at NYU.

1. Biology track
2. Ecology track
3. Global Public Health/Biology

This ensures an overall strong foundation when it comes to the training for medical school as you experience various sciences and their value in the health field.

Is NYU good for pre-med? Reddit’s Opinion!

Reddit is a great place to get honest student opinions away from NYU’s own promotional materials.

The positives

Yes, I would recommend it! The classes are hard which makes it difficult to get through for some people (ex. Molecular cell and orgo are two big weed out classes). But if you make it through, NYU prepares you really well for the MCAT and also applying and the difficult classes means that you’ll be better prepared for med school in the future which is a plus!

– go_girl_08

“I really like NYU and being in the city really really exposes you to a bunch of internships, hospitals, mutual aid organizations, and volunteer opportunities.”

– u/zero300

I’m in GPH/Applied Psych and I just want to say that if you get Professor Marybec Griffin (which you probably will) for your intro public health class, she is amazing and it’s sort of unbelievable to have a prof that genuinely wants you to learn. I’m trending towards an A in her class so far!

– u/Traditional-Yoghurt0

The negatives

I’m not a big fan of premed advising because they don’t know much about what they’re talking about. The premed reddit exposed me to a bunch more requirements and opportunities. I would take advantage of NYU’s premed clubs because a lot have alumni panels and dr panels and peer mentoring which is much more helpful for me.

– u/zero300

Premed advising isn’t the best… it’s not horrible but not great. My advisor was always really nice and didn’t give me horrible advice but I know some who have. Also, my advisor literally told me to apply MD Ph.D. and made it sound like she was sure I’d get in even though I had little research.

– u/go_girl_08

NYU vs Columbia for pre-med

The Columbia University Postbac Premed Program is highly regarded as one of the top medical schools for its rigorous approach to medical school preparation.

Both universities require a GPA of more than 3.5 to get into. But if you were to look at the acceptance rate, NYU is easier to get into than Columbia University (5.4%).

At the end of the day, it all depends on the cost, the environment, and the facilities that look right to you!

Conclusion: Is NYU good for pre-med?

NYU, although it isn’t Ivy League, is a top school for pre-med. Its acceptance rate to postgraduate health programs is a solid 32% and it offers huge opportunities for research, civic engagement, clinical experience, and student leadership.

Although its pre-health advisory service isn’t without criticism, in terms of infrastructure and opportunity the school has everything you need to put together an unbelievable med school application.