Health Professions (pre-med)
Health Professions at W&L
Washington and Lee is vitally concerned with the undergraduate education of students who wish to enter medical, dental and veterinary schools, as well as other health professions. W&L has an excellent record of placing these students into professional schools, in fact, over the past ten years, over 90% of students who applied to medical schools from W&L secured placement. In addition, education at a liberal arts university along pre-health preparation allows candidates a wide range of post-graduate options.
Why Study Health Professions
The Health Professions Advisory Committee provides advice to guide students to be prepared to take the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT), Dental Admission Testing Program (DAT) and the GRE. Competition for acceptance to health professional graduate schools is fierce, so individualized planning, attention and preparation is at the core of this program. Planning can begin in a student's first year with the advice of a faculty member experienced in advising health career students. Follow up counseling includes appropriate choice of major, scheduling of courses required for admission and available summer opportunities.
The Liberal Arts at Work
"Coming into college I knew I wanted to be pre-med... The neuroscience major allowed me the freedom to choose the area that most interested me and take courses that aligned with those interests."
Sample Courses
Evolutionary Medicine
An intensive investigation of scientific thought and communication, examined in the context of major concepts such as evolution, ecology, physiology, population dynamics, and biochemistry. This course examines the underlying principles of evolution and genetics as applied to human health and medicine, like how clonal evolution gives rise to antibiotic resistance, how population genetics can explain exceptionally high rates of heritable diseases like cystic fibrosis or sickle cell anemia in subsets of the human population, and the environmental changes accounting for the recent rise of asthma.
Biochemistry
A study of the structure, function, biosynthesis and breakdown of biomolecules, including amino acids, carbohydrates, and lipids. Further study of enzymes, biological membranes and membrane transport, signal transduction, and regulation of metabolism.
Mathematical Statistics
An introduction to the world of statistics: sampling distributions, point and interval estimation, testing hypotheses, regression and correlation, and analysis of variance.
Courses of Your Choosing
The primary benefits of preparing your career in health professions at W&L is the expansive liberal arts curriculum and individualized attention. That means that, besides the basic requirements, your health profession preparation can be tailored to your desired path. Your curriculum, determined with your advisor, could bring you to courses in Sociology, Anthropology, Psychology, Poverty, Writing, and more!