Pre-Health

Certificate Overview

Fairfield University offers a Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Health (PBPH) certificate program that helps students become qualified to apply to medical schools. The PBPH certificate is for students who have not previously prepared to become competitive applicants for medical school matriculation. PBPH applicants have already earned undergraduate degrees in any discipline, but have not yet taken the many science and math courses required to qualify for medical school admission. The certificate program is not an applicant “strengthening” program and does not accept students intending to retake math and science courses to improve their GPA. 

Requirements

A student enrolling in the PBPH program with absolutely no prior math or science courses would need over 50 credit hours at Fairfield University to be prepared for standardized exams and to meet the basic curricular requirements of most medical school programs. PBPH faculty work with each student to customize a course schedule. Students must complete at least 35 credit hours of math and science course work at Fairfield University to complete the Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Health certificate.

While enrolled in the PBPH program, students must obtain a 3.2 or better GPA with no grade below a B- to take advantage of interviewing with and obtaining a letter of evaluation from the pre-health advisory committee.

Courses of Study

A typical plan of study for a student with none of the required math and science courses is shown below and can be completed within two years. If a PBPH student has already taken some of the courses outlined, then upper level biology, psychology, chemistry or health studies electives may be taken in order to meet the 35 credit requirement. All credit transfers of previously taken courses must be approved by the PBPH program prior to program acceptance.

Admission Requirements

Fall semester start, Application Deadline: August 1

Summer semester start, Application Deadline: April 1

The PBPH certificate program has a fall semester start only. Admission notification is on a rolling basis with decisions given after the student’s application is completed.

In order to apply to Fairfield University’s Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Health (PBPH) certificate program, students must submit:

• Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate college work
• A two-page essay describing your interest in pursuing a career in medicine. In the essay, please address how your previous work or educational experiences and the Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Health certificate program fit into your plan to be successful in the medical field.
• A one-page resume
• SAT/ACT score report or GRE or equivalent
• Two letters of recommendation

For more information, contact program coordinator Jillian Smith-Carpenter, PhD, at jsmith-carpenter@fairfield.edu

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