Each year, many of our graduates attend professional schools in areas such as veterinary medicine, law, pharmacy, dentistry, and more. If you are interested in pursuing a similar path, we offer pre-professional advising services.
Our pre-professional advisors will assist you with:
- Listing required courses for respective professional schools
- Scheduling pre-professional courses alongside your major requirements
- Suggesting supplemental coursework
- Connections to student organizations, volunteer work, shadowing experiences, etc.
- Preparatory information for admission tests
- Navigating the application process
Are you comfortable being around sick people? Do you understand the nature of the work on a daily basis? Do you have the "stomach" for it?
Gaining this experience assures professional school admission committees that you do understand the pressure and demands of the work. Without first-hand experience, how can you be sure this is the career for you?
Beginning your freshmen year, get involved with science and health care outside of the classroom. Explore various paths within your chosen field. Consistent involvement over a period of years demonstrates commitment to the goal of becoming a health care professional.
There are several ways to become involved. You may contact a health care professional you know and arrange a shadowing experience. Being in the office with patients, or on rounds in the hospital allows you to experience some of the daily life of a health care professional. In addition to these settings, please remember that any setting involving the care and treatment of patients can be a fruitful environment for you. Examples include a nursing home, health department, free clinic, etc.
The University runs a number of email listservs for students interested in purusing a professional program. These mailing lists share important information such as prepatory workshops, test dates, career and networking events, and more.
To join one of these mailing lists, follow the instructions below.
- Pre-Health (Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry, etc.)
Subscribe to listserv by emailing a message to listserv@lsv.uky.edu. In the body of the text type: SUBSCRIBE PRE-MED-L. To unsubscribe type UNSUBSCRIBE PRE-MED-L in the body of the text. - Pre-Law
Subscribe to the pre-law listserv by emailing a message to listserv@lsv.uky.edu. In the body of the text type: SUBSCRIBE PRE-LAW-L. To unsubscribe type UNSUBSCRIBE PRE-LAW-L in the body of the text. - Pre-Vet
To subscribe to the pre-vet listserv, send a message to listserv@lsv.uky.edu. In the body of the text type: SUBSCRIBE UKPREVET-L yourfirstname yourlastname. Subscribers should use their uky email address.
Competition for admission to professional schools can be very intense.
Professional school admissions committees certainly consider grades and admission test scores, but they also give serious consideration to many other factors.
What does the competitive applicant "look like"? Every school is different, but they do consider your cumulative GPA, science GPA (chemistry, biology, physics, and math) and corresponding entrance exam score (e.g., MCAT, DAT, OAT, etc).
Other factors considered by admission committees:
- demonstrated leadership
- exposure to the profession in patient-care settings
- involvement in service work to benefit the community
- independent study or research
- strong, well-written letters of evaluation from faculty
- a clear, authentic answer to why the student wants to pursue the profession
- strong interpersonal communication skills evident in the interview
Advisors can provide guidance and support as you work to achieve your goal. Remember that it is your academic performance, your admission test scores, and your overall credentials that will determine your success.