So you want to be a...

Physician - Dentist - Pharmacist - Physician's Assistant - Pathologists Assistant - Surgical Assistant - Physical Therapist - Athletic Trainer - Occupational Therapist

Most graduate level professional health programs do not require a specific undergraduate major.* They do require:

A bachelors degree
Prerequisite coursework, typically with minimum grades of B or B- or higher
A minimum GPA, typically at least 3.0 but many programs have an average GPA of 3.5 or higher for admitted students
Shadow/Volunteer/Patient Contact Experience in a setting related to your specific field of interest (STRONGLY RECOMMENDED if not required)

Admissions requirements vary from school to school, so you should ALWAYS do your research to make sure you have a plan to meet all of the requirements needed for your schools of interest.

*Exception to this include Nursing and Dental Hygiene. To become eligible for graduate nursing programs such as Nurse Anesthesia or Family Nurse Practitioner, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) with unencumbered RN licensure is required. To become eligible for a Master of Science in Dental Hygiene, a student must be a registered dental hygienist (RDH) with a bachelor's degree.

What major should I choose? The Health Pathways page provides information about all of the health related programs at ODU. This is a good place to start exploring options to make sure you've chosen your best fit major.

Regardless of major, the Pre-Health Advisory Committee (PHAC) assists students with the application process for graduate professional health programs: https://www.odu.edu/sci/academics/advising/pre-health

What Do I Need to Apply?

Always check with your schools of interest to see which specific prerequisites they require, and which ones they recommend. The following links provide directories of accredited programs you can use to search for information about admissions requirements.

Allopathic Medicine (MD): Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR)

Osteopathic Medicine (DO): American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM)

Dentistry: American Dental Education Association (ADEA) list of Dental Schools

Pharmacy: Pharm D. Directory

Physician Assistant/Associate: American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA) and Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA)

Pathologists' Assistant: American Association of Pathologists' Assistants

Surgical Assisting: National Surgical Assistant Association (NSAA)

Physical Therapy: American Physical Therapy Association (APTA)

Athletic Training: Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE)

Occupational Therapy: American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA)

Veterinary: American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)

The table below lists common prerequisites:

How will my GPA be evaluated?

You'll apply through a Centralized Application Service, or CAS. The links below explain how GPAs are calculated:

Medical School (Allopathic - MD)	AMCAS
Medical School (Osteopathic - DO)	AACOMAS
Dental School	AADSAS
Physician’s Assistant	CASPA
Pharmacy	PHARMCAS
Athletic Training	ATCAS
Occupational Therapy	OTCAS
Physical Therapy	PTCAS
Veterinary Medicine	VMCAS
Other	GRADCAS

Related Student Organizations: