Sometimes deciding on a college can be difficult, but finding the right school for your medical needs is even harder. Though there are quite a few things that you’ll want to consider, the best pre med schools in Midwest are located in some interesting places.

The first significant decision a prospective medical student will have to make is which undergraduate institution to attend. Are you a student looking for information about the top 100 pre-medical schools? So you’re looking for the greatest pre-med colleges in the Midwest, right? Are you looking for additional information on finest pre-med degree? You should provide yourself the best opportunities and support systems possible in college and beyond if you wish to pursue a pre-med major. You must be ready because it takes a lot of work to apply to (and be successful at) the finest safety schools for pre-med.

Top pre-medical studies schools in the Midwest

1. Washington University in St Louis.
2. Northwestern University.
3. University of Notre Dame.
4. University of Michigan Ann Arbor.
5. Miami University Oxford.
6. University of Nebraska Medical Center.
7. Grand Valley State University.
8. University of Cincinnati.

What Makes a School Good for Pre-Meds

Pre-med students need a lot of specialized resources and opportunities as undergraduates in order to boost their med school applications. It’s important that aspiring physicians attend schools that aren’t only highly ranked but that also provide unique support to pre-meds.

In creating this list of best pre-med schools, I considered the following six factors (as you should, too, when deciding on a school!).

Factor 1: Medical Schools Admissions History

This is perhaps the most obvious and most important factor to consider before applying to college. Various specialized resources for pre-meds are great, but what really matters (and what keys you in to whether these resources are effective or not) is the percentage of pre-med students from that university who actually end up in medical school. The higher the number, the better your odds will be when you start applying to med school, too.

The problem is that not all undergraduate institutions make this information easily available, and if they do, the numbers might be artificially inflated. For instance, they might not count students who start off as pre-med but don’t fulfill all the requirements. Or they might attempt to “weed out” weaker students from the pre-med track with difficult classes.

That being said, here are some steps you can take to get a general sense of a school’s med school admissions history:

• Start with online research to see whether any stats are available for the colleges you’re interested in. Try searching “[School Name] pre-med admissions” on Google.
  
• Look into class profiles of med schools you’re interested in. For example, Tulane’s School of Medicine’s latest class profile lists the major colleges and universities its students come from; these include Tulane, UCLA, Emory, UVA, and LSU. This isn’t the norm, however, as many med school class profiles don’t contain information about undergraduate institutions.
  
• Check out other stats that can tell you about the quality of a program, like student/faculty ratios, internship opportunities, admissions rates, and national rankings.

To help you out, we’ve compiled available med school admissions stats in the descriptions below. If I could find stats only from unreliable sources, I did not include them on the list.

Factor 2: Pre-Med Advising

There are a lot of requirements and activities to keep track of when preparing for medical school applications—something you’ll be thinking about as soon as you start your freshman year (or perhaps even earlier). Special pre-med advising programs are really helpful when it comes to making sure you’re on the right track. That’s because pre-med advising programs specialize in helping students get into med school, which means they have the inside scoop when it comes to keeping you on the right track.

Knowledgeable pre-med advisors and mentors should be able to prepare you for all aspects of the application process, including course and major selection, application development, and interview preparation. The more intensive the advising resources, the better prepared you’ll be for your med school applications. Be sure to visit your pre-med advisors early and often to make sure you’re setting yourself up for success.

Factor 3: Research and Publication Opportunities

You’ll need research experience in some sort of STEM lab for med school applications. The earlier you start your research and the more research you do, the more impressive you’ll look to medical schools.

Well-funded research institutions will often have many opportunities for undergrads to get involved in labs simply because more research is happening. And more research means more opportunities for you to get your name on a paper or two, which is a big plus for your CV.

You’ll notice that most of the schools on this list are very highly ranked research powerhouses with excellent medical schools—this is no coincidence. The same research funding, facilities, and faculty that make a med school great also help make a school great for pre-meds.

Factor 4: Clinical Experience Opportunities

You don’t just need research experience for your med school apps—you also need work in clinical settings. Oftentimes, you’ll have to get this experience through volunteer work, such as at a clinic or nursing home.

If you’re in an area with limited clinical environments, it’ll be tough to get the experience you need, especially if you have to compete with other pre-med students. If you’re in an area like this, be sure you’re going after opportunities early on in your collegiate career. Also keep an eye out for internships in other cities and states that can help you add clinical experience to your résumé.

Med schools want to see that you’ve spent time in the field—make sure your school of choice offers opportunities for you to gain this experience.

Factor 5: Rigor of Curriculum

You might not be excited at the prospect of seeking out tough courses on purpose, but a rigorous curriculum will ensure you’re prepared for both the MCAT and medical school. Schools that are tough on their pre-meds will ultimately produce stronger med school applicants, which is a good thing considering that less than half of all pre-med applicants end up in medical school!

Factor 6: Pre-Med Major vs Pre-Med School

Some colleges and universities don’t actually have a dedicated pre-med major. If that’s the case, you’ll pick a STEM-based major instead. It will be up to you to become familiar with the requirements for med school and keep track of them yourself.

Having said that, many of those schools offer a pre-med track or emphasis that is designed to help aspiring doctors achieve their goals. Be sure you do your research to see what types of pre-med programs are available at your school.

As you might expect, some of the best schools for pre-meds don’t have a specific pre-med major. That being said, they do have strong biological and physical sciences departments. (In fact, many students choose these majors because there’s a lot of overlap with pre-med requirements.) Be sure to check with your university and your advisors to determine which major is best for you.

Top 10 Pre-Med Colleges in the North Region

Includes 11 states: New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland/DC, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Delaware, Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey

1. JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #1)

2. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #3) 

3. PRINCETON UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #4) 

4. BOWDOIN COLLEGE (overall rank: #5)

5. BRYN MAWR COLLEGE (overall rank: #9)

6. MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (MIT) (overall rank: #10)

7. BROWN UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #11)

8. BATES COLLEGE (overall rank: #14)

9. DARTMOUTH COLLEGE (overall rank: #15) 

10. SWARTHMORE COLLEGE (overall rank: #16)

Top 10 Pre-Med Colleges in the South Region

Includes 12 states: Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee

1. VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #6)

2. TULANE UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #22) 

3. COLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY (overall rank: #24)

4. DUKE UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #25)

5. DAVIDSON COLLEGE (overall rank: #30) 

6. EMORY UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #31)

7. RHODES COLLEGE (overall rank: #37) 

8. CENTRE COLLEGE (overall rank: #48)

9. UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND (overall rank: #53)

10. FURMAN UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #56)

Top 10 Pre-Med Colleges in the Midwest Region

Includes 12 states: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio

1. NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #7)

2. UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO (overall rank: #8)

3. CARLETON COLLEGE (overall rank: #12)

4. GRINNELL COLLEGE (overall rank: #29)

5. WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ST. LOUIS (overall rank: #33)

6. MACALESTER COLLEGE (overall rank: #43)

7. KENYON COLLEGE (overall rank: #46)

8. CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #47) 

9. OBERLIN COLLEGE (overall rank: #57)

10. UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME (overall rank: #66)

Top 10 Pre-Med Colleges in the West Region

Includes 15 states: Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma, Hawaii, Alaska

1. STANFORD UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #2)

2. RICE UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #13)

3. CLAREMONT MCKENNA COLLEGE (overall rank: #27)

4. SCRIPPS COLLEGE (overall rank: #38)

5. CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (overall rank: #39)

6. LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #40)

7. HARVEY MUDD COLLEGE (overall rank: #42)

8. UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (overall rank: #61)

9. TRINITY UNIVERSITY (overall rank: #64)

10. OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE (overall rank: #69)