Coursework

Biochemistry: Where is it required?

Study what you love.

Course Strategies & Plans
It is wise to be aware of the medical school admission requirements early on in college so that you can arrange your coursework appropriately.  The basic requirements include one year of general chemistry, one year of organic chemistry, one of physics, and one of biology, all with lab.  AP credit in any of these four areas needs to be supplemented with upper-level work, generally with lab.  Many schools require math, sometimes including some calculus, and many schools require two semesters of English.  All requirements must be taken for a grade, not P/D/F.

The Princeton courses that meet these requirements are:

A number of schools require extra biology coursework (some Texas schools, for instance, which ask for a whole second year).  Also, fourteen of the 130 U.S. allopathic (MD) medical schools currently require biochemistry, while over seventy more “suggest” or “strongly recommend” it.  An excellent resource is the Medical School Admission Requirements, published annually by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), which provides good general information and advice on medicine and medical education.  This book gives the specific admission requirements for each school and is an important resource as you explore admission to various medical schools.  Reference copies are available in our office, or you can purchase your own copy directly from the AAMC (www.aamc.org) or from Labyrinth Books, Amazon, etc.

The following charts show how you might plan the pre-med coursework in conjunction with your other academic responsibilities.  Usually math and chemistry are taken before biology, general chemistry is taken before organic chemistry (since it is a prerequisite for organic chemistry), physics after math.  Math and English are “entrance” requirements, meaning they need to be completed before entering medical school.  This means that, in some isolated cases, a math or English course could be left to be taken during the application year (senior year or beyond).  The chemistry, biology, and physics courses are “admission” requirements, however, meaning they must be completed before applying for admission.  Most students should take only one of these basic science courses freshman year, usually chemistry, unless their science background is particularly strong.  Obviously, this will differ for engineers.  Also, please note that students interested in pursuing MD/PhD programs need to complete the same course requirements as those pursuing the MD only.

Your academic background and goals for your years at Princeton (both academic and non-academic) make it necessary for you to speak with your pre-health advisers and residential college advisers in order to come up with a timeline that most effectively leads to your success.  No one plan is the “right” way, no one plan “better” than another.  The following charts are mere possibilities, and you may find that no one “Plan” fits your unique situation.  For one thing, your AP situation will be a factor.  For those of you with AP in all (or nearly all) of the required subjects for medical school, there is no one plan outlined below that fits your situation; a visit to HPA is needed in order to choose your path wisely.

A NOTE ABOUT MATH:
If you have 2 units of AP in math, you do not need to take further math for medical school; your AP in this subject, without more advanced coursework in college, will be accepted.  This is the only exception to the rule about supplementing AP with upper-level coursework in college.  An extra class in statistics would still be recommended.
If you are without AP credit in math, as most of you are, then we recommend that you complete the requirement in one of the following ways:

• By taking MAT 103 + 104
• By taking MAT 103 + an introductory statistics or computer science course
• By completing MAT 101 + MAT 102, with a statistics course strongly recommended
• By entering Princeton with 2 units of AP in math, and taking a statistics course if possible

If for some reason MAT 103 does not go well, we urge you to come into HPA and see an adviser—before proceeding to MAT 104! 

Statistics.  The following statistics courses would be acceptable choices:  PSY 251, EEB 355/MOL 355, ECO 202, SOC 301, and ORF 245.

Math and English are “entrance” requirements, meaning they need to be completed before entering medical school.  The chemistry, biology, and physics are “admission” requirements, meaning they must be completed before applying for admission.  This means that, in some isolated cases, a math or English course could be left to be taken during the application year (senior year or beyond).

PLAN A

¹CHM 215 may be taken in place of the 201-202 sequence only if the student has 1 unit of AP.

With this first Plan, if you begin as a freshman, you would be able to take the MCAT in the spring of junior year, the summer immediately following, or at any time senior year (or beyond).

PLAN B
This plan suits those who choose to spread their requirements out over four years—an option that more and more pre-meds are taking.

Organic Chemistry, EEB 211/MOL 214, and Physics might be rearranged in this plan depending on other goals and requirements.  With this plan, you would take the MCAT during spring of senior year or the summer just after graduation, taking at least one year off before medical school.

PLAN C
This plan would suit those with 2 units of AP in chemistry and math.

With this plan, you are able take the MCAT as early as summer before junior year.

¹Ideally, this upper-level Biology course has a lab attached—medical schools prefer to see labwork.  However, our Biochemistry course at Princeton does not have a lab, and students with AP in Biology who have taken Biochem for their upper-level course have had no problem when applying to medical school.

PLAN D
This plan might suit those with 2 units of AP in biology.

With this plan, you are able to take the MCAT in the spring of junior year or summer just after.

PLAN E
This plan might suit those with 2 units of AP in physics.

With this plan, you are able to take the MCAT as early as summer before junior year.

PLAN F
This plan might suit those pursuing their BSE in the School of Engineering.

¹If engineers have AP credit in any of the pre-med sciences, they should follow the guidelines in the Plans above that describe how to proceed into upper-level work.   Note:  Taking Physics and General Chemistry together as a freshman is demanding; engineers without AP credit in Chemistry will want to speak to an adviser about their options.

PLAN G

SUMMER COURSES
We are often asked about taking one of the pre-med courses during summer school.  While each of you is different and has different circumstances, we can generalize to this extent:  taking requirements in the summer is not encouraged.  Medical schools prefer that you do your pre-medical courses at your home institution (Princeton) in conjunction with a full course load during the academic year.  This method of completing the courses best simulates what the heavy load of science in medical school will be like.  It is a good idea to talk to us about summer courses, especially in the required sciences for med, vet, and dental school.

Biochemistry

Biochemistry - REQUIRED
University of California, Irvine
University of Southern California (Keck)
Florida State University
University of Florida
University of Hawaii
University of Michigan
Mayo Medical School
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis and Duluth
University of Nebraska
University of New Mexico
Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine
Oregon Health & Science University
University of Texas, San Antonio
University of Wisconsin