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Is Columbia Good For Pre Med

Columbia is home to a top ten med school. As undergraduates, though, students are assigned a pre-med advisor and attend informational meetings sponsored by the Premedical Committee. Unfortunately, though, Columbia doesn’t release statistics on how many of its undergraduates are admitted into medical school each year.

Is Columbia Good For Pre Med?

Columbia is a great choice for pre-med students because it offers a wide range of opportunities to help you prepare for medical school. The pre-med program at Columbia can help you develop the skills, knowledge, and experience you need to succeed in medical school. The pre-medical curriculum at Columbia includes courses in biology, chemistry, physics, statistics, and other topics that are important for success in medical school.

The most important factor when choosing a college is whether it will be able to prepare you for what’s next—whether that’s earning your bachelor’s degree or going on to medical school. When considering whether Columbia is good for pre med students, keep these factors in mind:

What kind of student(s) does Columbia attract? What kinds of classes do they offer? How much support do they provide for students who want to go into medicine? Are there opportunities for internships? If so, how many hours are required? How much money do I need to attend Columbia University?

The Best Pre-Med Schools, Ranked

1: Harvard

Harvard’s Office of Career Services estimates that 17% of any one of its classes will apply to med school—that’s a huge fraction of the student body! Pre-med applicants with a 3.5 GPA or higher had a 93% acceptance rate to med schools in 2013, whereas average acceptance rates that year were about 42%.

Harvard College offers a peer pre-med advising program in which students are assigned a pre-med tutor sophomore through senior year.

Harvard University houses the #1 ranked medical school in the US and also boasts extremely strong biological sciences departments. There are several affiliated teaching hospitals nearby, too (which are great for both research and clinical experience).

2: Johns Hopkins

Johns Hopkins is well reputed as a very highly ranked med school and medical research institution, which means you’ll have numerous research and clinical opportunities. You’re sure to have access to impressive resources, as the university is affiliated with one of the best teaching hospitals in the country.

Undergraduates at Johns Hopkins follow a pre-med advising program track (which isn’t a major). This advising track includes individual appointments, small group meetings, and other special programs designed to help aspiring med school students succeed. The school also has many health-related student organizations, which also provide opportunities for undergraduates to build their med school résumés.

3: Stanford

Stanford isn’t just a top-ranked college—it also houses a top-ranked medical school. Special pre-med advisors are available to discuss ideas, plan your coursework, help you visualize your long-term objectives, and give you options for gaining experience in the field. They also offer internship opportunities for undergraduate students, which can help you get clinical hours and stellar letters or recommendation.

The pre-med community at Stanford seems especially organized and cohesive. The Stanford Pre-Medical Association offers lots of information and resources to students, all in one place. Unfortunately, however, there aren’t good statistics about how many Stanford graduates make it into medical school every year. But since Stanford has world-class degree programs, you can bet that number is pretty high.

4: University of Pennsylvania

UPenn’s Perelman School of Medicine is one of the best in the US; access to this med school means tons of research opportunities. But don’t just take my word for it! In 2020, 80% of Penn students who applied to med school were accepted—that’s well above the national average of 44% that year.

The school also offers a pre-health advising program to guide students through fulfilling pre-med requirements and successfully applying to medical school. Also, certain majors (like engineering) have a pre-med focus to help prepare you for the next step of your med school journey.

5: Columbia

Columbia is home to a top ten med school. As undergraduates, though, students are assigned a pre-med advisor and attend informational meetings sponsored by the Premedical Committee. Columbia’s convenient NYC location also guarantees easy access to countless clinics and hospitals, giving you plenty of opportunities for clinical and research experience.

Additionally, Columbia provides pre-med students with a sample course curriculum to help them meet the minimum requirements for med school applications. This handy sheet—along with the top-tier advising services offered at the university—can help you get an edge on the competition when it comes to medical school admissions. Unfortunately, though, Columbia doesn’t release statistics on how many of its undergraduates are admitted into medical school each year.

Premed at Columbia:
1) Do not study engineering and premed. This combination is quite difficult and the average GPA of engineering students is 0.3-0.4 lower than the average GPA of CC students. I can elaborate on this more, but the same student studying premed in CC will have a much higher chance to get into medical school than that student studying premed in SEAS.

2) The school is highly regarded in terms of admission. My friends have statistics of those who get in with what statistics, and many students will gain admission. However, this is usually after taking 1-2 years off after graduating.

3) As long as you’re in the college, there is enough academic flexibility to finish the premed requirements, pursue some electives, as well as continue with more intensive premed studies. Also, your GPA is quite high, around 3.5-3.6 for the average premed applying to medical school.

 GPA is by far the most important factor in medical school admission. The fact is the engineering students have a much lower GPA than science majors at the college and it shows in medical school admissions. You’ll be taking much harder classes at the same time. Imagine these two schedules and imagine who will have the higher cumulative GPA and also the higher BPCM GPA

CC Courseload (Friends have finished Biology)
– Physics 1201 Lab
– Physics 1200 Mechanics
– Organic Chemistry
– Music Humanities
– Art Humanities

SEAS Courseload (Friends have already finished Organic Chemistry and Physics)
– Partial Differential Equations
– Numerical Methods
– Probability and Statistics
– Biology
– Bioethics

Also, to add insult to injury, engineering courses don’t count towards your BPCM GPA. Overall, it’s a terrible idea to study premed at SEAS. My friends and almost everyone I know are suffering through engineering, let alone engineering combined with premed requirements.

EDIT: Just wanted to add that medical school admissions don’t really value the engineering degree. People know engineering is hard, but they really don’t know how hard so a low GPA (one that is line with averages) is not acceptable. A 3.2-3.3 is average in SEAS but you can’t get into medical school. Almost 0% chance.

which pre med schools have the highest med school acceptance rates

1. Harvard

The Office of Career Services in Harvard stated that an estimated 17% of their classes are bound to apply to med school. From the humongous student body that Harvard has, this percentage is quite impressive. 
Coupled with this, research proved applicants to pre-med school that had a GPA of 3.5 or above had a med-school acceptance rate of 93%. This was back in 2013. However, in 2012 this same acceptance rate had stood at a mere 42%.

If you need advice on pre-med, Harvard offers a peer program that offers you a pre-med tutor while you are a sophomore student through to your senior year. To top all this, Harvard University is infamous all over the world. It was ranked as the best medical school in the US and its department of biological sciences is one of the reasons why this university has well-deserved bragging rights. And, your clinical and research experience will be truly boosted by the numerous teaching hospitals that are affiliated with and located near Harvard University.

Harvard has 6,788 undergraduate enrollment total.

If you want the best pre-med experience, Harvard is unrivaled and should be on the very top of your list.

2. Johns Hopkins University

As an institution for medical research and a med school, Johns Hopkins has a solid reputation that they have maintained through the years. This directly implies that if you are a student at Johns Hopkins, you have the opportunity to gain from a variety of clinical and research facilities.

This university’s med school is also affiliated with a teaching hospital that is considered one of the best in the US. Plus, International Medical Aid was founded at this same university and it has gone on to become a stellar NGO that provides pre-med internships that offer a wealth of experience to anyone lucky enough to join.

Johns Hopkins University has an advising program track for their undergraduate pre-med students. This, you should note, isn’t a major. Their advising program track includes: group meetings, personal appointments, and a variety of other programs that are specially designed to assist all those who aspire to be students of med-school to succeed. Undergraduate pre-med school students of this university also stand a chance to build their resumes via well-organized, student organizations.

Johns Hopkins has an undergraduate enrollment of 6256 total.

If you need an institution with amazing links to IMA, an excellent advising program, and a wonderful affiliation with a teaching hospital, Johns Hopkins University won’t disappoint.

3. Stanford Univeristy

Apart from being a college with a top-ranking status, Stanford also happens to house a top-notch medical school. This university offers you specials advisors that are present to ensure: your visualization of long-term objectives is successful; to discuss any ideas you may have; assist in your coursework planning and offer options that are crucial in your quest towards gaining medical field experience. You will also find internship opportunities available for you as a Stanford undergraduate student of med school. These opportunities offer you the chance to get stellar recommendations and vital clinical hours.  

One of the things you will love about Stanford’s is its pre-med community. This community happens to be one of the best when it comes to cohesion and organization. You will find Stanford Pre-Medical Association quite informative and resourceful as a pre-med student. And all this within the confines of one place.

However, sadly, there is a shortage of good stats on the number of yearly graduates of Stanford that manage to get into med school. But, the number is probably quite high. This owing to Stanford having degree programs recognized on a global scale.

Stanford’s total undergraduate enrollment stands at 7,087.

So, if you want to get into a reputable med school with plenty of internship opportunities and an amazing pre-med association, Stanford will make you more than just proud.

4. University of Pennsylvania

UPenn, as most people call this university, is home to the Perelman School of Medicine; which happens to be ranked among the best medical schools in the US. If you get into this med school, innumerable research opportunities are right at your disposal. And this isn’t just an unfounded statement, it is a fact. Studies have shown that 76% of pre-med students at Upenn had their medical school applications accepted. This is quite impressive especially when you consider the fact that the national average that year was 43%.

As a student of the University of Pennsylvania, you will also get guidance that will help you fulfill the requirements of pre-med. This institution also ensures your medical school application is successful through its pre-health advising program. A few majors in Upenn even come with a pre-med focus to prepare you for the steps that follow in your journey to med school.

University of Pennsylvania’s total undergraduate enrollment is 10,183.

If you want an institution with a reputable school of medicine and immense research opportunities, we highly recommend Upenn.

5. Columbia University

Columbia’s Medical School is ranked 6th best medical school based on research and 31st when it comes to primary care. As an undergraduate of this university, a pre-med advisor is assigned to you and you get the opportunity to gain immensely from informative meetings that have the Premedical Committee as a sponsor. Columbia University is also conveniently located in NYC. This guarantees that you’ll have relatively easy access to various hospitals and clinics that offer countless opportunities for you to benefit from research and clinical experience.

In addition to all these, Columbia University avails a sample pre-med course curriculum for you as its student. This sample course curriculum is meant to assist you in meeting the minimum applications set for medical school applications. And this is just a taste of what this university has to offer. Couple this with the fact that this university has top-notch services, tailored specifically to advise you, and you get an ideal place that will assist you in getting and maintaining a competitive edge. This edge is what you’ll need when you finally decide to submit your medical school application and get admitted.

Columbia University’s total undergraduate enrollment is 6,245.

Unfortunately, just like Stanford, Columbia University doesn’t avail stats on the number of their graduates that eventually have successful admission into med school yearly.

6. Duke University

It is an irrefutable fact that Duke is one of the best universities in the country. Add another fact that Duke has a pre-med program that is quite robust and you get one of the best options any pre-med student can ever wish for.

As soon as you walk into Duke, you will get dragged into their advising program for pre-med students. This advising program is quite well organized and you will love their dedication. Apart from the amazing program, you will also get opportunities to get into programs for abroad, health-centered studies, and research experiences that are mainly hands-on. 

One of the most outstanding facts that makes Duke worth serious consideration is the rates at which their undergrads are accepted to med school. According to this campus, an average of 70% to 80% of its students successfully gets into med school. This rate is near twice the average of the country’s total rate. One of the factors that have made this impressive rate possible is the fact that Duke’s medical school is ranked among the top 15.

Duke has a total undergraduate enrollment of 6682.

If what you need is an institution with an acute academic competition, an excellent pre-med advising program, and high acceptance rates to med schools, we recommend Duke as a good option.

7. University of Washington

When it comes to public med schools, the University of Washington is top in terms of primary care and research. It basically stands out from any other public med school in the country and this list says something to that end. As you may have noticed, all the top-notch schools we have listed above are private schools. UW has broken that streak and with a reasonable cause. If what you need is a public med school with extensive resources, the University of Washington is for you.

As a student of this great university, you will get the opportunity to get your vocational and academic concerns resolved through the help of advisors and pre-health career coaches. Such concerns as volunteering opportunities, research, choosing classes, and job shadowing are well-addressed at UW so you needn’t worry yourself sick. 

UW also has various student groups for pre-med students. These groups include the Student Health Consortium and Alpha Epsilon Delta among others. The groups available are established with the sole goal of assisting you in your pre-med education continuation outside the confines of a classroom.

The University of Washington currently doesn’t avail stats on successfully accepted medical school applications from their pre-med students. But the fact that it is considered one of the best universities when it comes to medicine says a lot about this university.

The University of Washington has the highest undergraduate enrollment in this list at 32,099.

columbia premed requirements

Part 1: Introduction

Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons (VP&S) consistently ranks among the top ten programs in the nation, and with an acceptance rate of 4 percent, the prospects of landing yourself a coveted spot in the annual pool of Columbia-trained physicians can seem daunting, to say the least.

In this article, we’ll break down the Columbia Medical School application piece-by-piece in order to prepare you to put your best foot forward when the application deadline rolls around. We’ll also discuss approaches to the Columbia Medical School secondary essays and interviews.

Part 2: Columbia Medical School MD programs

Columbia offers several tracks through which prospective students can complete an MD:

• The traditional, four-year MD program
• The 3-year PhD-to-MD Program for those who have already completed their PhD in a biological or related science
• The Columbia Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) through which students can receive an MD-PhD dual degree
• The Columbia-Bassett MD track for students interested in rural healthcare
• The MD-OMFS Program for graduates of Columbia’s dental school

These tracks range in popularity and selectivity. For example, though most applicants seek the traditional, four-year path to their MD from Columbia, only ten admitted students are selected for the prestigious Bassett track, which boasts a remarkably high residency match, with most of the program’s students getting their first choices in residencies.

Additionally, Columbia also offers several dual degree programs that medical students can apply to after matriculation. These include:

• The MD-MS in Biomedical Sciences Program
• The MD-MPH Program
• The MD-MBA Program
• The MD-MS in Biomedical Engineering Program
• The MD-MA in Biomedical Informatics

Columbia Medical School tuition and scholarships

Beginning in 2018, Columbia Medical School became the first program in the nation to replace student loans with scholarships for all students who qualify for financial aid, thanks to a new scholarship fund with a $300 million endowment.

Given that the 2021–2022 first-year cost of attendance (including estimated living expenses and fees) runs $101,108, earning a Columbia MD isn’t cheap. However, under the new scholarship plan, Columbia aims to increase access to their program regardless of financial constraints.

Students whose families earn less than $125,000 per year will receive full-tuition scholarships (note: this may vary if your family has significant assets besides yearly income), and all students who would otherwise have loans included in their financial packages will no longer have to fear the daunting task of repayment.

Over 90% of our students get into med school—the first time.

Part 3: How hard is it to get into Columbia Medical School?

Columbia Medical School admissions statistics

With an acceptance rate of just 4.1%, Columbia Medical School’s admissions statistics are daunting. Let’s take a look at some numbers for the class of 2024:

• Applications: 7,297
• Interviews: 878
• Matriculants: 140
• Median GPA: 3.92
• Median MCAT score: 522

With statistics like these, the margins for gaining admission to Columbia’s MD program can be slight for even the best and brightest applicants. How do you stand out from the crowd of other 4.0 GPAs and top-percentile test scores? You’ll need to ace your secondary application essays. Luckily for you, we’ve got you covered on that front (and more) below.

Columbia Medical School admissions requirements

Here are the coursework prerequisites you’ll need in order to apply to VP&S:

• English: One year of English or another writing-intensive course
• Biology: One year with labs
• Physics: One year with labs
• Chemistry: Two years, one of which must be Organic Chemistry, both with labs

In addition, biochemistry, statistics, and biostatistics are highly recommended but not required. Note that AP credit will not count towards the prerequisites listed above.

Columbia Medical School application timeline

Let’s go over the dates and deadlines that you’ll need to be aware of in order to apply to Columbia Medical School. Similar to the majority of medical schools in the U.S., you’ll use the AMCAS application to apply to Columbia.

• May 3, 2021: AMCAS application opens
• May 27, 2021: AMCAS application can be submitted
• July 2021–October 2021: Columbia secondary application sent to all applicants and applications processed
• August 2021–January 2022: Interviews invitations sent
• October 15, 2021: AMCAS application deadline
• October 22, 2021: Secondary application deadline
• October 29, 2021: Deadline for supporting documents, including MCAT scores and letters of recommendation
• March 2022: Admission offers sent and waitlist opens
• April 15, 2022: Admitted students must withdraw from all but three schools
• April 30, 2022: Admitted students must withdraw from all but one school
• May 2022–August 2022: Waitlist applicants reviewed

Part 4: Columbia Medical School secondary application essays (examples included)

Once you’ve submitted your AMCAS application and selected Columbia as a school of interest, you’ll receive your invitation to complete Columbia’s secondary application, which you can submit between July and October.

This application requires you to write five essays of varying lengths (with additional responses required if you’re applying for programs besides the typical four-year degree), and you’ll need to take each prompt seriously.

Below, we’ve compiled a list of Columbia’s secondary essay questions, shed light on the best approaches to knocking them out of the park, and provided sample responses based on composites of successful applicants to show you how it’s done.

Columbia Medical School MD secondary essay prompts

Question 1: Did you work for compensation during college, during the year, or the summer? If so, what did you do? How many hours a week did you work? (300 words)

300 words seems generous for a question this straightforward. The fact is: some people work during college to help them pay the bills and some people don’t. What’s more, the paid work one would perform in college might not have been preparation for medical school. We suggest answering this question simply and honestly. If you didn’t have to work for pay throughout college, skip this prompt. If you did, keep your response brief.

Example:

To help cover costs that my financial aid package couldn’t, I worked at a peer-run restaurant in our Student Union all four years of college. I began as a short-order cook, manning the deep fryers and serving up a mean chicken tender basket before mopping the floors each night at closing time, but by my third year at the restaurant, I earned a promotion to manager and took on most of the responsibility of running the business. As manager, I traded in my three-nights-per-week shift as a cook to work around 30 hours a week scheduling shifts for 15 employees, handling cash-flow, ordering and stocking supplies, conducting due diligence with university higher-ups, and maintaining health department codes. Through my work running the restaurant, I was able to increase revenue by 15% year-over-year and learned just how much work it takes to manage a small business, all while juggling academic and extracurricular life.

Why does it work?

• It gets straight to the point, shows an upward trajectory, and gets specific with the job function and the applicant’s results.
• At its best, this essay can show that an applicant gives their all to whatever they do, no matter how “undignified” the task, and that’s certainly a commendable trait for a future doctor whose job can get a little gross at times. 

Question 2: If you have graduated from college, please briefly summarize what you have done in the interim. (300 words)

This is another straightforward question, but an important one because you’ll see this type of prompt repeated across most of your med school apps. The admission committee wants to get a sense of how what you’ve been doing since college has better prepared you to take on med school. We advise you structure your response in the following way:

1. Your thesis statement. Lead with one sentence that argues what your goal was in your time post-graduation.
2. Specific job roles that stand as evidence for how you went about reaching that goal. Be sure to include the level of commitment for each role (full time, once a week, etc.) as well as some examples of the type of day-to-day work the roles entailed.
3. Your takeaways from the experience. What did you learn that you’ll carry with you?

Here’s an example:

After completing my senior thesis work in functional genomics, I aimed to use my gap year before applying to medical school to gain a better understanding of the scientific, financial, and ethical implications entailed in the meteoric rise of commercial genetic sequencing.

Post-graduation, I accepted a full-time analyst position with 23andMe, a genetic testing company through which the general public can learn more about their genetic makeup. My position involved rotating between three departments of the company: the medical team, the finance team, and the analytics team. During the medical rotation, I had the opportunity to work with state-of-the-art sequencing technology in the lab and learned how a corporation could leverage sequence data for profit at a jaw-dropping scale. In my analytics rotation, I mostly took notes during strategy meetings with medical professionals in the company as they debated future avenues for the company’s growth, but through these meetings I was able to follow up with key players in the commercial genome space to discuss the ethical considerations involved in mass genetic testing and how they predict genetic material will alter the future of patient care.

Though I knew before taking this position that my passion lay in providing care for patients and not on spouting off their genetic ancestry, this gap year position further inspired me to question the interplay between increased access to genetic information and how doctors can best tailor treatments to suit our ever-growing knowledge of the human genome, a topic I’d like to further investigate through my medical school coursework.

Why does this essay work?

• We get a sense for this applicant’s passion and follow-through toward a specific goal.
• We can also see how this goal adds a level of interest and an angle of expertise to his approach to medicine.

Columbia is a great school for pre-med students. The rigorous curriculum and overall atmosphere at Columbia will prepare you well to enter medical school. As a pre-med student at Columbia, you will be able to take advantage of many opportunities including internships, research opportunities, and hands-on learning experiences. As a pre-med student at Columbia, you will also be able to learn more about medicine by taking classes such as Introduction to Clinical Medicine, Introduction to Pharmacology, and Introduction to Integrative Medicine.

If you are a pre-med student at Columbia University then I hope this article has been helpful for you! If you have any questions about Columbia University or if you would like some advice on whether or not it would be a good choice for you then feel free to contact me by emailing [email protected]