Some people know they want to be a doctor in high school while others don’t decide until a year or two into college. Either path is completely okay. However, if you do know you want to be a doctor early on, why not take advantage of it? This could mean to already tackle some of the recommended high school courses for pre-med students, take on a more rigorous course load, but also adding to your resume with volunteering, leadership roles, or participating in summer research at a local university.
The biggest questions right now though: Which courses are actually required to apply for medical school that can be taken in high school? And are there any other courses you would want to go through to best prepare yourself on the premed path? We will cover all of that in this blog post!
This post is all about recommended high school courses for pre-med.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you. Full disclosurehere.
Your List of Recommended High School Courses for Pre-Med
Is Pre-Med a Major? Can you Take it in High School?
Pre-med is an abbreviation of the term pre-medical. Pre-medical refers to a person or time in your life where you have not entered medical school yet but you are preparing too, like working on a college degree and the MCAT. Pre-med is not a degree you can get from a university and it is not a class any college offers.
Instead, pre-med is the cumulation of all the important components of prepping for medical school. So anyone planning to apply to medical school can call themselves pre-med.
What you need to know as a pre-med in high school
First let’s start with a few important concepts you need to understand before diving into the recommended pre-med courses.
Advanced Placement (AP) Classes
The College Board is a non-profit organization that oversees the creating, distributing, and scoring of PSAT, SAT, and AP exams. These exams are all standardized and used nationally. An AP course would be a class you take in high school with a high school teacher. At the end of the year, you would take the associated AP exam. Scores 3-5 are considered passing which means you would get college credit for this exam. Take note though, if you fail the exam college credit would not be received.
Dual Enrollment (DE) Courses
When taking such a class, you receive a high school credit and college credits . Also, you often get to schedule it into your high school day so no night classes. Two main differences between DE and AP is that you could be taught by a college professor at your local community college in a DE class. However, there is no standardized exam you need to pass to receive college credit. A grade of B or higher may be required for the transfer of these courses.
Virtual Course Options
An Asynchronous Online Course is provided completely virtually and does not require a specific time to meet via zoom. Most courses will include required readings, lecture videos, PowerPoints and assignments for each week. This provides a lot of flexibility since you can work around your other classes and work or extracurriculars.
Synchronous Online Courses are also virtual where you will have a scheduled meeting time on zoom. It’s being held anywhere from once a week to 5 times a week. This still allows for more flexibility than an in person class but less than an asynchronous class. Assignments will be completed on your own time and submitted virtually but your lectures will be on zoom.
Transferring Courses / Credits
If you take a DE or AP course, you will receive college credit from the community college that your high school is under contract with (usually it’s the closest community college to your school and you can ask your counselor to be sure). This college credit will transfer to your undergraduate university. For this, it can be transferred in one of two ways:
- As an elective course which would decrease the total amount of credits you take at the university but you may have to repeat the course or take an exam to meet a certain degree requirement.
- Or it will be transferred like you took the class at the university freshman year and will count as a degree requirement.
Both are valuable but if it can transfer as a degree requirement, it will allow you more choice in what classes you take during undergrad.
Please note:
- Advanced math can be skipped before proceeding to precalculus with a high grade in algebra 2 and/or a teacher recommendation
- You can take calculus after precalculus if you only have room for one more math in your schedule. But if you have room for 2 math classes you can take statistics then calculus
- General Chemistry(AP/DE) and General Biology(AP/DE) can be taken in whichever order you prefer
Recommended High School Courses for Pre-Med Students
Math Classes
Most people wanting to pursue a degree in the premed field have finished their required math classes to graduate before senior year. Sure you could take a year or two off of math classes. But you could also take DE or AP math classes that would fulfill requirements for your future undergrad degree.
Recommended Math classes:
- Statistics
- Calculus
Statistics and Calculus are required or recommended for most medical schools across the U.S. Keep in mind that Precalculus is required as a prerequisite for calculus. Make sure so take that into account when planning future courses.
The AP test is available for both statistics and calculus. However, make sure to check with your high school counselor. It’s necessary to see if your specific school offers this class. Also, check if there’s teacher certified to teach advanced placement classes. If this is not available at your school, you can take a dual enrollment class through the local community college. This may be available as an asynchronous online course, a synchronous online course, or an in person course. Unlike AP, there is no national exam you need to pass to get credit for the course. But for transferring these credits and for medical school admission purposes, it is important that you get a high enough grade. You should be aiming for B or higher. You can apply this guideline for all dual enrollment or advanced placement classes in high school.
English Classes
Most high schools offer the opportunity to take Language and Literature. Usually, these are the college freshman and sophom*ore level courses in English. For most majors in the science field, this will fulfill all English requirements . This means you could graduate high school and never have to take an English class again (Amazing right? Or maybe that’s just me, haha).
Recommended English classes:
- Language & Composition
- Literature & Composition
These courses can be offered as AP and/or DE. Sometimes these dual enrollment courses can be taught by a teacher in your high school, which is very convenient. While you can get these requirements out of the way quickly, they are highly valuable. They will help you craft your writing ability. This ability will be put to use with the plethora of essays that come with applying to medical school.
Science Classes
Some medical schools are particular about science courses being DE or AP. Make sure to check the schools you are thinking about. Or be willing to retake a class or two when you get to college. However, there is no harm in being well prepared. So if you take a DE science course and it does not transfer or a medical school does not take it, you can retake it with a very good foundation for that topic which should result in a high grade. There are many courses offered as advanced placement or dual enrollment:
- General Biology 1 and 2
- General Chemistry 1 and 2
- Physics 1 and 2 (Non-Calculus Based)
- Psychology
There are other science courses you can take in high school. These would provide a good foundation, but may not count as college credit. These include:
- Medical Terminology
- Anatomy & Physiology
- Human Biology
- Exercise Science
History/Social Science Classes
Similarly to English, by taking DE or AP history classes your junior and senior years of high school you could fulfill all history requirements for an undergraduate degree in a science field.
U.S. History is usually taken by all high school juniors, but by taking it as DE or AP credit, you could fulfill your freshman level history course for college. U.S. Government & Politics can be taken senior year for college credit and could fulfill the college sophom*ore level course for your degree.
Recommended classes for history/social science:
- US History
- US Government & Politics
- Intro to Philosophy(or any other entry-level)
- Intro to Sociology(or any other entry-level)
Some community colleges offer dual enrollment philosophy or sociology courses that could fulfill requirements for your degree. For this class, it’s important to check with your future college to see if that credit could be transferred as a degree requirement. Nevertheless, these classes can help you communicate with patients you see while shadowing or to help you on the MCAT.
If there are no AP/DE opportunities at your high school, you can consider taking summer and winter courses at the local community college. This would mean less free time but could be important if you want to get into a competitive college. Keep in mind that summer and winter courses are often abbreviated due to time constraints, so that these classes move at a fast pace. Therefore, you usually just take one or two classes per break.
Getting started with honors classes
Advanced placement and dual enrollment classes are great options to show academic rigor, passion for the science field, and maybe take a semester off of undergrad. However, these are not always available. A good alternative of these would be to take a high school course as an honors class.
Many high schools have honors classes for English 9 & 10 since you are not eligible for AP or DE yet. This should be taken advantage of as much as possible. By junior year of high school you are eligible to take AP/DE courses so you should take these courses if offered. If an AP/DE psychology course is not offered at your high school, but honors psychology is, you should definitely consider taking this to prepare yourself for college psychology classes and to prove academic rigor to your future college.
Associate’s degree: A great option to get ahead?
One opportunity that has started to roll out in various states across the country in the last 10 years is the ability to get an Associate’s degree while in high school. Some community colleges have partnered with high schools to provide an associate’s degree that can be completed mostly through DE classes with 4-6 summer classes spread throughout the summers in high school. This is a great option to show academic rigor and get a lot of credits knocked out of the way. It is also a cost-saving option since high schools usually cover the cost of DE and it can save you two years worth of tuition, books, rent, and food at a college.
However, this is a very intense process and it is not worth it if you might struggle to get high grades in these classes all while keeping up with your other responsibilities.
What High School GPA is Needed for Pre-Med?
GPA in high school is very important. By receiving a high GPA, along with high standardized test scores, you will be able to get into more competitive colleges and/or specific pre-med programs plus you may be eligible for scholarships based on a high GPA. A weighted GPA of 4.0 or higher (or an unweighted GPA of 3.8) is a fantastic place to be when applying to colleges as a future science major. By achieving high grades in high school you will be better prepared for college classes by knowing you have a foundation of knowledge to build upon throughout your entire medical career. It also means you have figured out how to study the best way you know how and it shows you have invested yourself in the start of this journey.
If your GPA isn’t as competitive yet, no worries. There is still plenty of time to improve your study routines, commit more time to improving your grades and get ready for medical school throughout the next few years.
Other Ways to Prepare for Pre-Med in High School
If you already want to prepare ahead and dedicate yourself to the career in the medical field, apart from taking the right courses, there are also other ways you can become a better med school applicant and future physician.
Showing your Commitment through Volunteering
Volunteering is definitely something you want on your medical school application. It’s not about the number of hours on a page, it is about your commitment to helping others and the valuable experiences you draw from them. Some volunteering opportunities in high school include working at a local food pantry, joining service-based organizations, getting involved at the VFW, or helping out at a nursing home. In high school, volunteering does not have to be medical-based (clinical) so choose whatever opportunity you are excited about!
Engaging in Leadership Roles
Being a president of an organization or a captain of a sports team is great practice on working well with others while also making sure you are being a competent leader. By fine tuning your leadership skills in high school, you can more easily jump into these types of roles in college. Leadership experience shows colleges and medical schools that you are organized. This also shows you communicate effectively, provide great support for your peers, and the ability to get things done.
Taking on Extracurriculars
Joining any organization shows that you have interest outside of science and you may think this would be a bad thing because you want to show that medicine is your entire life. But actually you want to do the opposite. Medical schools do not want premed robots who have perfect grades and an MCAT score, but no life and no ability to work with patients. By having outside interests, you show colleges and medical schools that you connect with people based on similar interests or life experiences that can help you connect with future patients. It also indicates you are a well-rounded person.
Final thoughts on the recommended high school courses for pre-med STUDENTS
As a pre-med in high school, there are already a lot of different course options that can prepare you ahead of time for a successful path towards medical school. Overall, focusing on a high GPA and standardized test scores can allow yourself more opportunities for your undergrad studies. But it’s not all about numbers and stats. By volunteering, participating in clubs or other organizations, or being a leader in your community, you can show your commitment to working with and leading people in diverse backgrounds. In the end, medical schools are looking for well-rounded applicants so make sure to follow your personal interests, gain valuable life experiences and also enjoy your time in high school.
Related Posts
How To Get Into Medical School: A Comprehensive Guide
A Pre-Med 4-Year Plan: How to Best Prepare for Medical School
