What are the academic credentials that count? 

When considering an applicant’s academic credentials, admissions committees look at a variety of materials, including academic transcripts, MCAT® scores, and volunteer and extracurricular experiences. Your transcripts provide medical school admissions committees with information about the coursework you have completed, and regardless of your major, show whether you have completed courses that provide a sufficient foundation in science to begin medical school (biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics). By working with your prehealth advisor, you can be confident you have prepared well.

MCAT scores offer admissions committees a “standardized” measure for comparison, and therefore are another way to measure academic preparedness. Finally, nonscience coursework and activities such as research experience can be important academic credentials for medical school.

For More Information:

• Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR™)
  Published by the AAMC, this book is the most authoritative guide for applying to medical school. This accurate, thorough, and reliable resource is the only complete guide to U.S. and Canadian medical schools fully authorized by the schools themselves.  In it you will find information on application procedures and deadlines, selection factors (including MCAT® scores and grade-point averages), medical school class profiles, education costs and financial aid packages, and much more.