Health Professions
Informational Meeting
Fall Semester
How to spend your years at
Trinity preparing for a career in
the Health Professions
What It Takes to be a Successful
Applicant to a Health Professions
Graduate School*
• Science Competencies
• Intrapersonal Competencies
• Interpersonal Competencies
• Thinking and Reasoning Competencies
*- 15 Core Competencies, AAMC Admissions Initiative – www.aamc.org – July 2015
Science Competencies
Living Systems
Human Behavior
Apply knowledge and skill
in the natural sciences to
solve problems related to
molecular and
macrosystems including
biomolecules, molecules,
cells, and organs
Apply knowledge of the
self, others, and social
syustems to solve
problems related to the
psychological, sociocultural, and biological
factors that influence
health and well-being.
Intrapersonal Competencies
• Ethical Responsibility to Self and Others
• Reliability and Dependability
• Resilience and Adaptability
• Capacity for Improvement
Interpersonal Competencies
• Service Orientation
• Social Skills
• Cultural Competence
• Teamwork
• Oral Communication
Thinking and Reasoning
Competencies
• Critical Thinking
• Quantitative Reasoning
• Scientific Inquiry
• Written Communication
What It Takes to Be a Successful
Health Professions School Applicant *
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•
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•
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•
•
•
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Well-rounded College Education
Classes Related to the Study of Human Beings
Good Academic Performance (High GPA)
Exceptional Development of Indicated Competencies
Evidence of Leadership, Initiative, Lifelong Learning, etc…
Strong Letters of Evaluation
Relevant Healthcare Experiences
Laboratory or Clinical Research Experience
Commitment to Community Service
Maturity and Self-reflection
Preparation and Timely Completion of Entrance Exams
Timely Applications to Health Professions Schools
*- adapted from American Medical Association (2005) and Self-assessment Guide, Brown Univ. (2011)
Curriculum
One of the over-riding values that the Deans wanted to
see in their applicants was a life-long commitment to
learning…essential for students to develop the
information gathering skills…applicants demonstrate
intellectual curiosity and passion for their chosen
discipline is really a mechanism for measuring the
applicant’s commitment to a life of continual learning
and educational renewal.
Want their incoming students to have
the broadest possible education
experience, not just in the sciences, but
in the humanities and the arts as well…
-taken from the article “Admission Deans’ Roundtable: Medicine as a Liberal Arts” published in The
Advisor March 2003
Health Care Campuses
all within a 10 minute walk
Connecticut Children’s
Medical Center
Hartford Hospital
Institute of Living
Olin Neuropsychiatry
Research Center
Community
Important that students develop broad cultural
sensitivity and ability to appreciate customs and
values which may differ from their own…through a
wide variety of humanities courses and volunteer
work with populations different from the student’s
own background.
Academics
•
•
•
•
•
Major
Graduate School Requirements
GPA
Electives
Special Programs
– Study Abroad
– Health Fellows
– Internships
“ Speaking for one medical school, students should feel free to study what
they wish, be it science or non-science. Demonstrating self-insight
(knowing what they like) and ownership of their education is valued by
our admissions committee. We don’t care what the major is; we only
ask that if the student is a science major, that they take enough nonscience so that they learn to think through ethical, cultural, and social
issues and complications with the same ease that they determine how
mass falls from a tree, and visa-versa. And to this, of course, add the
social and interpersonal skills learning so important to health
patient/physician relationship that comes from career exploration, service
to others, leadership.”
David M. Owen, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid
University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine
“…we are looking for a strong science background (and recommend that
non-science majors take at least two upper division basic science courses
beyond the minimum premed requirements), depth of academic
exploration (in whatever area) and enriching life experiences.
Liliano Montano, Assistant Dean of Admissions, Weill Cornell Medical College
Majors of Trinity Students
Attending Medical School
•
•
•
•
•
•
Biology
Chemistry
Neuroscience
English
Mathematics
Political Science
• Religion
• Classics
• International
Relations
• Psychology
• Environmental
Science
Medical School Pre-requisite Courses
Trinity College Course Equivalent
1 year of Introductory Chemistry with Lab
CHEM 111L (fall); CHEM 112L (spring)
1 year of Organic Chemistry with Lab
CHEM 211L (fall); CHEM 212L (spring)
1 year of Introductory Biology with Lab
BIOL 182L (fall); BIOL 183L (springl)
1 year of Physics with Lab
PHYS 101L (fall); PHYS 231L (spring) *
1 year of Mathematics §
MATH 131 (fall); MATH 107 (spring)
1 year of English
Typically a writing intensive course and a
literature course
It is strongly recommended that a course
in genetics and/or biochemistry be taken
BIOL 224; BIOL 317
* - PHYS 131L and PHYS 231L (calculus-based physics) can serve as substitute courses; please consult the chair of
the HPAC.
§ - a fair number of schools do not have a mathematics requirement, please consult the chair of the HPAC
YEAR BY YEAR ENROLLMENT
Fall Semester
Spring Semester
First Year
CHEM 111L; BIOL 182L; MATH 131
CHEM 112L; BIOL 183L; English Writing
Sophomore Year
CHEM 211L; BIOL 224; English Lit.
CHEM 212L; MATH 107
Junior Year
PHYS 101L; BIOL 317
PHYS 102L
Senior Year
Electives; Internships
Electives; Internships
To Take Calculus or Not?
• Only 13% of US medical schools require a
semester or more of Calculus (UCLA, Johns Hopkins,
Brown, Harvard, UT at Austin, Duke)
• Over 40% of US medical schools do not
require any college math course
(Tufts, Yale, Emory, Columbia, Wake Forest, UVa)
Data obtained from the 2010-2011 Medical School Admission
Requirements, AAMC, Washington DC
The stronger your academic transcript, the better…as long as
the grades are good!!
Importance of Good Grades and Getting off to a Good Start
Acceptance rate for
applicants, 2005-2007
(aggregated)
GPA
Total
Total MCAT Scores
All
5-14
15-17
18-20
21-23
24-26
27-29
30-32
33-35
36-38
39-45
Acceptance rate %
>3.80
3.6
9.1
19.2
27.9
47.8
74.1
85.5
89.4
91.9
93.0
74.1
3.60-3.79
2.8
4.7
13.2
21.0
35.3
59.6
76.8
83.7
86.0
88.8
58.5
3.40-3.59
2.5
4.1
10.6
16.1
27.5
45.9
63.2
73.3
76.1
83.7
44.3
3.20-3.39
1.1
2.9
8.9
16.2
20.7
32.9
46.2
55.1
61.0
70.9
30.3
3.00-3.19
0.6
2.6
7.3
13.8
18.4
25.8
34.8
38.4
52.1
54.1
21.4
2.80-2.99
0.7
1.9
4.1
13.0
16.8
20.7
25.6
27.4
38.6
54.2
15.1
2.60-2.79
0.3
2.4
6.1
10.2
12.4
16.9
22
26.6
36.4
50.0
11.4
2.40-2.59
0
1.6
2.2
6.7
9.9
11.0
20.3
25.0
16.7
0
7.2
2.20-2.39
0
2.0
3.0
6.7
7.9
7.7
12.8
8.3
16.7
100
4.7
2.00-2.19
0
6.4
0
9.4
0
5.3
8.3
22.2
0
0
3.8
1.47-1.99
0
4.5
6.7
0
6.7
0
16.7
0
0
0
3.8
28
119
617
2,088
5,586
12,793
15,208
10,218
4,708
1,483
52,848
2,705
3,565
6,602
12,077
19,401
26,164
23,260
13,541
5,715
1,682
114,712
1.0
3.3
9.3
17.3
28.8
48.9
65.4
75.5
82.4
88.2
46.1
Acceptances
All
Applicants
Acceptance
rate %
-data table adapted from original data supplied by AMCAS
MCAT/GPA and Acceptance to Medical School Correlation –
Percentage of Trinity College Applicants Accepted
2002-2014
MCAT
GPA
<22
22-24
25-27
28-30
31-33
34-36
>36
50
100
87
100
100
20
70
67
91
100
86
>3.8
3.6-3.79
3.4-3.59
0
20
46
83
69
86
75
3.2-3.39
0
20
15
46
78
67
50
3.0-3.19
0
33
42
34
38
75
100
<3.0
25
33
16
38
50
33
100
Resources to help get off to a
good start
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Academic Advisor
HPAP Advisor (including Prof. Church)
Uperclass HPAP peers
College Resources
Time Management and Study Skills
(Scheduler)
RESEARCH
The Deans’ felt that research was an excellent way for a student to
demonstrate intellectual maturity, independence of thought,
creativity, love of learning…all highly desirable qualities in a medical
student….the area of research was unimportant.
They want the student to demonstrate a genuine passion for the
research and a depth of understanding which showed that he or she was
not simply a pair of hands…in the lab.
Extracurricular Activities
Gaining an Understanding of
the Profession
RESEARCH ASSOCIATES PROGRAM
INTERNSHIPS
Summer
Experiences
(SMDEP)
Importance of Self-assessment
Read up on Profession
Trinity’s Health Profession
Advising Program (HPAP)
• Advising
• Informational Seminars
• Coordination of Health professions
Internships
• Summer Healthcare Experiences
• Advice and Guidance before and during
the Application Process
Health Profession Advising
Committee
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9 Faculty members
Course planning
Overall Application Advising
Letter of Evaluation
The Deans agree that the premedical evaluation
letter was one of the most important
components of their admission process. They
considered it to be the single most valuable
means to explain and expand upon the
applicant’s important personal qualities that
cannot be gleaned from a transcript.
HPAC Letter of Evaluation
• Required by most medical and dental
schools
• Written by HPAC Interviewer following
Committee discussion
• Edited and signed by Chair of HPAC
HPAC Letter of Evaluation
“It’s OK if you fall down as long as you learn something as you get up.”
- John Maxwell
“Mistakes offer us the continual opportunity to learn and evolve.
Without them there would be no growth, no reason to change.”
- on the wall in Dr. Church’s Research Lab
Tell me about the road
you have travelled to
get where you are now.
E-portfolio
BEWARE
the Pre-med Grape Vine
http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2011/05/science-medical-school.html
Utilize “HPAP-approved”
Websites
http://www.adea.org/GoDental/Pages/default.aspx
Developing the Skills Needed in
Health Care
Excellent interpersonal skills were absolutely
essential…emotional and social maturity was just as
important as intellectual maturity.
Students who had shown leadership, persistence,
empathy, an ability to overcome adversity, and a
willingness to accept responsibility for their own lives and
the lives of others…they were clearly able to demonstrate
that they possessed the requisite maturity. This is where
the student who has significant real life experience and
achievements has a real advantage over the student who
can only present academic accomplishments.
At Trinity, real life is lived every day…
on and off campus
Helpful Things You Can Start
Doing Tonight!
Sign up for the Health Professions Advising Program (HPAP) Utilize all of the resources available to you as a result.
Attend all Mandatory Meetings of the HPAP – meeting with your
HPAP advisor and Prof. Church often.
Develop Excellent Study and Time-management skills
(the Scheduler program available on HPAP website).
Read articles in the professional journals:
NEJM , JAMA, ADEA, etc.
Read Articles in the General Press and
Professional Journals ALL THE TIME
Develop good study habits and
academic/social activities and behavior
Thanks for coming and…
Questions Anyone?