The following is a list of the minimum course requirements for admission to the University of Colorado Medical School. For the required courses for admission to other medical schools, consult Medical School Admission Requirements, published by the Association of American Medical Colleges, or go to http://www.aamc.org/students and click on the MSAR link.

General Chemistry (CHE 1800, 1810, 1850)	2 semesters
Organic Chemistry (CHE 3100,3110,3120,3130)	2 semesters
General Biology (BIO 1080,1090, 1081,1091)	2 semesters
Mathematics (MTH 1110,1120)	2 semesters
Physics (PHY 2010,2020,2030,2040)	2 semesters
English Composition (ENG 1010, 1020)	2 semesters
Literature	1 semester

Highly recommended courses, although not required, include Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology, Genetics, Anatomy, Calculus, Quantitative mathematically oriented physics, ethics, statistics, and computer courses.

Selection factors at the University of Colorado Medical School: Places are offered to the applicants who appear to be the most highly qualified in terms of intellectual achievement, character, motivation, maturity, and emotional stability. For this assessment, college grades, MCAT scores, recommendations from college instructors and others, and required personal interviews are used. No one will be accepted without a personal interview. Of the approximately 150 places in each class, most will be awarded to Colorado residents. Thereafter, preference will be given to a very few certified applicants from certain western states participating in the WICHE program and a small number of applicants from other states.

The acceptance rate is the same for men and women applicants. A wide variety of undergraduate majors are considered acceptable in the selection of applicants. Demonstration of good performance in the prerequisite sciences is needed. Accepted students in 2006 had a mean GPA 3.72, mean total MCAT 33P, mean age of 25. Colorado applicants with at least 3.5 GPA and over 9-10 average MCAT score will likely be granted an interview. No student will be admitted without an interview.
The University of Colorado Medical School does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, creed, national origin, age or handicap.

Financial Factors: The cost of attending medical school is very high and it is important to consider your financial situation before going to medical school. Your debts need to be minimal (e.g. paying off all credit cards) before you enter medical school. It is important that you visit this website to look at medical school costs and student debts. http://www.aamc.org/studentdebt

Early Decision Program: If you are a very highly qualified applicant, it may be to your advantage to participate in this program. Your AMCAS application form must be submitted by August 1. You may submit your application to only one school at this time. Applicants must have taken the Spring MCAT prior to applying to the Early Decision Program. By October 15, you will be notified if you have been accepted, put into the general pool, or rejected. If accepted, you must agree to attend this school. If you are put into the general pool or rejected, you may submit your application to other schools.

MCAT: You should plan on completing the required courses by the end of your Junior year so that you will be prepared to take the MCAT in the spring of your Junior year. The MCAT must be taken before the application deadline of November 1. This test is described in "The New MCAT Student Manual," published by the AAMC and is available in the Auraria Book Center; obtain this early in your pre-med career. Test results must be no older than 3 years old. You may take this exam more than once.

Changes to MCAT in 2007: The MCAT will be administered exclusively by computer and will be offered more frequently. The number of questions will be decreased with the test lasting about 5.5 hours. There will only be one essay question, rather than 2. Results will be reported in one month, or perhaps in 2 weeks starting in 2008. Click on this link www.aamc.org/students/mcat/start.htm to find out where and when the computerized MCAT exams will be offered.

The application to take the MCAT should be made online at www.aamc.org/students/mcat/start.htm .The MCAT includes sections on Physical Sciences, Biological Sciences, Verbal Readings and a Writing Sample. You MUST prepare for this exam. The MCAT requires one full day of testing and is administered in four sections described below. The first three sections are multiple choice tests which are graded on a 1 (low) - 15 (high) scale with a score of 9 being around the 60% range. The Essay section is graded on a scale of J (low) to T (high) with a score of P being around the 60% range.

a. Physical Sciences - measures the ability to understand basic concepts and solve problems in the areas of physically related chemistry and physics.

b. Biological Sciences - measures the ability to understand basic concepts and solve problems in the area of biology and biologically related chemistry. This section is 75% biology and 25% organic chemistry and now contains additional items on DNA and genetics.

c. Verbal Reasoning - measures the ability to understand, evaluate, and apply information and arguments presented in prose texts.

d. Writing Sample - measures skill in developing a central idea; synthesizing concepts and ideas; presenting ideas cohesively and logically; and writing clearly, following accepted practices of grammar, syntax, and punctuation consistent with timed, first-draft composition.

For more MCAT information, including official deadlines, free student manual,and access to online MCAT registration, go to the AAMC: www.aamc.org/students/mcat/start.htm

Kaplan http://www.kaplan.com/, Princeton Review http:www.review.com/ and for MCAT online practice, try http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/practicetests.htm or http://www.studytips.org/

Preparing for your interview: Career services will provide mock interviews to help you develop your interview skills. Contact them for an appointment at 303-556-3664 or stop by in CN 203. Make sure to reread your application before your actual interview. Your evaluation criteria at CU medical school consist of the following: 1)capacity to think critically; 2)capacity for self-directed learning; 3)capacity to self-reflect; 4)communication and interpersonal skills; 5)capacity for flexibility; and 6)knowledge of the profession.

In preparation for the interview, consider writing an in-depth self-reflective essay on one of these topics:

1. Challenges to your values and beliefs as you have encountered experiences outside of your comfort zone, including ability to detail experience and talk about exploration of values and beliefs.

2. Challenging life experiences that required creative thinking to develop solutions and be able to detail each situation and describe why the solution was considered creative.

3. A self-reflection piece that provides insight into your demonstrated conscientiousness.

4. An example of an experience in which communication proved difficult and an analysis of how the situation might have been handled differently.

5. A description of the means by which you learned about commitment to medicine, providing the reader insight into the knowledge and understanding gleaned from the experience.

6. Moral and ethical dilemmas that arose out of interpersonal relationships and how they were handled and what lessons were learned.

7. Leadership positions that taught a lesson.

8. An experience in which cultural diversity or lack thereof made a difference.