Advisers: M. Yates, L. Marsh, J. Jagodnik, K. Felipe
Professional advisers in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Advising Center administer programs designed to support students’ efforts to prepare for and apply to professional health sciences programs. Pre-professional health sciences programs at Portland State University are not majors. Rather, they are programs in which students take advantage of advising, coursework and resources all designed to support and guide students’ efforts to apply to undergraduate and graduate health sciences programs offered at other institutions. There are two types of pre-professional health sciences programs at Portland State – 1) transfer programs, and 2) bachelor’s degree programs.
Transfer programs are those in which students complete a set of prerequisite courses at Portland State and then transfer to undergraduate professional health sciences programs at other institutions to complete their bachelor’s degrees. The students’ focus at Portland State is on fulfilling the admissions requirements of receiving institutions. Transfer programs include the following:
Dental Hygiene
Nursing
Radiation Therapy
Students choosing to continue at PSU, rather than pursue a pre-professional transfer program should meet with a faculty adviser to determine PSU graduation requirements.
Bachelor’s degree programs are those designed to prepare students for masters and doctoral programs in the health sciences that require or recommend completion of a bachelor’s degree prior to entry. However, pre-professional bachelor’s degree programs at Portland State are not majors. Thus, students must a) select a major and fulfill Portland State’s graduation requirements, and b) fulfill the prerequisite coursework required by the professional graduate programs to which they plan to apply. Majors commonly selected by pre-professional health sciences students include biology, chemistry, health studies, science, social science and psychology. However, a student can select any major offered at Portland State, as long as he or she completes both Portland State’s graduation requirements and those of the receiving professional institutions. Professional schools do not prefer one major over another. They do look for students who perform well in prerequisite coursework and who are broadly educated; this can be accomplished with any major.
Professional health sciences programs that require or recommend that applicants earn a bachelor’s degree before matriculating include the following:
Allopathic and Osteopathic Medicine
Chiropractic Medicine
Dentistry
Naturopathic Medicine
Occupational Therapy
Optometry
Pharmacy
Physical Therapy
Physician Assistant
Podiatric Medicine
Veterinary Medicine
A typical pre-professional health sciences program, whether it is a transfer or a bachelor’s degree program, includes but is not limited to coursework in mathematics, biology, chemistry, physics, English composition, and sometimes social science. However, coursework varies, depending on the admissions requirements of the institutions granting the professional degrees. It is essential that a student’s academic program be planned with a College of Liberal Arts & Sciences health sciences adviser.
College of Liberal Arts & Sciences health sciences advisers work closely with students to facilitate their ability to plan coursework and activities strategically; to integrate personal, academic, and career goals; to develop the ability to evaluate options and make decisions; and to be aware of the available resources across campus that can support their efforts to gain admission to professional health sciences programs. Advisers also provide students with guidance on selecting a major, preparing for graduate admissions tests such as the MCAT and GRE, organizing letters of evaluation, and writing the personal statement for admissions applications.
Postbaccalaureate Pre-Medical Program
For students who already have a bachelor’s degree but are lacking the specific science prerequisites for medical school, PSU offers a loosely structured postbaccalaureate program. Students have the option of completing the core sciences for the program in one year (including summer term) of intensive study. Postbaccalaureate students, with sufficient background, start with general chemistry in the summer and continue by taking year-long sequences of organic chemistry, biology, and physics simultaneously during the academic year. They then complete remaining prerequisite coursework such as genetics and biochemistry (required by Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine) after applying to medical school. Some postbaccalaureate students elect to spread the pre-med curriculum out over two years and then apply. This enables them to have more coursework completed before applying and gives them more time to accrue relevant experience.
The postbaccalaureate pre-medical program is not a certificate program. Many postbaccalaureate pre-medical students do, however, easily complete a degree in science (science is an interdisciplinary major at Portland State) while completing prerequisite coursework for medical school. Most students need only add two to three classes to the pre-medical coursework in order to finish the degree. Pursuing a second degree while working on pre-professional coursework often enables postbaccalaureate students to receive financial aid for a longer period of time. For more information, contact a health sciences adviser.