THE LOWDOWN ON MATH FOR THE FUTURE MD: INFORMATION FROM THE 2007-2008 MSAR
Date Updated: 10 March 2008
In brief: The bottom line is this: mathematics, particularly Calculus, is a prerequisite you need to do (but probably not for the reason you might be thinking, and not in all cases). Why do you need to take Calculus (usually, at least either MAT 125, MAT 126, or MAT 131)?
You need to take Calculus to meet co- or pre-requisite requirements set by the Chemistry and Physics Departments. For example, if I want to take PHY 121 I need to have successfully completed a Calculus course beforehand: MAT 125, MAT 131, MAT 141, or AMS 151. Another example, a pre- or co-requisite for CHE 132 is MAT 125 for students who took CHE 130 or MAT 126 for all other students.
" And on top of that, medical schools demand that students take Math," some
thoughtful students might comment--and the thoughtful students making that comment
would be correct--but only sometimes. We'll see more about that in a minute.
"But what if I have AP Credit for Calculus?" AP credit can work for some schools. Generally, you can think along these lines: the tougher the school, the less likely they are to be satisfied with AP credit. On top of that, a good number of the people who have AP credit will also have math courses that they have taken in college--and remember, that medical school applications are competitive.
Below are two lists: the first consists of US MD schools that have a prerequisite of Calculus. There are sixteen of these schools. The second list is of US MD schools that have College Mathematics as a prerequisite (most students will take calculus and perhaps statistics to fulfill a college mathematics prerequisite)--there are 33 of these schools. (Data from 2007-2008
Medical School Admissions Requirements, published by the AAMC). One additional point: a good grade in math will help your GPA regardless of whether or not the school lists it as a prerequisite.
MD Schools Requiring Calculus: 16 (also listed: how much they want--where you read "hours" think credits. That is, you can interpret "6 hours" as two three-credit courses)
UC Irvine: 1 semester
Louisville: 1 semester
Johns Hopkins: 6 hours
Uniformed Services: 3 hours
Harvard: 2 semesters
U Minnesota 1semester
Wash U. St. Louis: 2 semesters
U Nebraska: 3 hours
Dartmouth: 3 hours
Duke: 1 semester
Texas A & M: 3 hours
Texas Tech: 3 hours
Galveston: 1 semester
San Antonio: 3 hours
Dallas Southwestern: 1 semester
Brown: 1 semester
MD Schools Requiring College Mathematics: 33
Alabama 6 hours
South Alabama 6 hours
Arkansas; 2 semesters
UC Davis 9 quarters
David Geffen: 2 semesters
UC San Diego 8 hours
Colorado: 6 hours
Georgetown: 1 semester
Howard: 6 hours
Florida State: 6 hours
South Florida: 2 semesters
Morehouse: 2 semesters
Iowa: 1 semester
Kansas: 1 semester
Michigan State: 3-4 hours
Mississippi: 6 hours
Missouri Columbia: 3 hours
Robert Wood Johnson: 1 semester
Albert Einstein: 6 hours
Mount Sinai: 2 semesters
Duke: 1 semester
North Dakota: 3 hours
Med U of Ohio: 2 semesters
Wright State: 2 semesters
Oregon: 1 quarter
Penn State: 2 semesters
Ponce: 6 hours
del Caribe: 6 hours
South Dakota: 2 semesters
Houston: 6 hours
Virginia Commonwealth: 2 semesters
MC of Wisconsin: 4 hours
U of Wisconsin: 2 semesters