Health Professions Program
PRE-HEALTH ADVISING
SIX TIPS FOR GETTING STARTED and
POINTS OF CONTACT AND RESOURCES
1. Meet with a Health Professions Advisor in the Health Professions Program (HPP) at
Dartmouth early on (Sarah Berger and Andrew Welch). We have regular walk in hours
every week, and we make appointments as well. Check the NSS site for info!

There ARE MANY WAYS to prepare for a career in the health professions – each individual path is
different. A combination of experiences both in and out of the classroom will offer you the
opportunity to decide whether you want to proceed in the direction of a health career and the
timetable over which you want to do that.

To “chart” your own individual experience, it is imperative to interact with your knowledgeable
pre-health advisors—starting at the beginning and then throughout your time at Dartmouth. You
will need to both test your interest in the health professions and become prepared to be a
successful applicant based on academic and extracurricular experiences. While you will receive
“advice” from many as you think about these things (parents, peers, departmental faculty, deans,
administrators, popular press); while there is value in each of these opinions, ALWAYS confirm that
advice with an experienced advisor!
2. Consider any major. Successful medical school and health program applicants have
majored in every discipline available at Dartmouth.

Dartmouth does not have a standard "pre-health" curriculum, even though there are medical
school pre-requisite classes. Choose courses and a major that you enjoy and want to explore.
Specific courses are, however, required for admission. The demonstration of scientific aptitude
through good performance in these courses is essential for successful application. Work with a
knowledgeable advisor to schedule and pace your science courses according to a plan that best suits
your educational needs.
3. Be prepared to adapt to new study habits and learning strategies.
4.

This is a rigorous, fast-paced, curriculum, that is unlike high school. You may need different study
strategies and you may need to identify them with help. Be prepared to shift your expectations of
the time necessary to study well for these classes, and how to use that time best. Your capacity to
learn continues to grow and evolve!!

If you have any struggles in the required science courses, seek the advice of one of the HPP advisors
early. Make use of the Academic Skills Center for either tutoring help or for one-on-one
appointments with Carl Thum or Leslie Schnyder, Dartmouth's Academic Skills advisors. HPP is
collaborating with the ASC to provide, at least once a term, a workshop on studying for the sciences.
Planning your potential path(s) and your “pace” through Dartmouth EARLY with an experienced
advisor is paramount!
Consider your timeline and keep an open mind to a “gap year”
 Most students come in thinking that the norm is to "go straight through to medical school." This
is a misconception! 80% of students apply to medical school or other health programs the summer
after graduation or beyond. That naturally creates one "gap" year or more. (That said, some
students are able to apply at the end of Junior year.) Have conversations with your advisors! *It
will always be more important to learn how to proceed well, than just quickly.
 This allows you all four years to complete the many pre-requisite classes, develop as a scholar,
prepare for the MCAT (or other tests), and have developed through your extracurricular experiences.
Some students choose to complete course work after graduation in post-baccalaureate programs or
to use post-graduate course work to strengthen their classroom credentials (and preparedness of
MCAT/DAT/GRE exams). Follow your own interests and do not sacrifice courses, off-campus
programs, or extracurricular activities in order to rush through the pre-health requirements.

Delaying one’s application may actually be an advantage to some, in that one has “extra time” to
build one’s classroom and extracurricular credentials and get to know potential letter writers
better. At the very least, discuss your timeline EARLY with one of the HPP advisors to see which
time frame(s) might be best for you. There is NO ONE WAY to be successful in your eventual
application. Get the very best education Dartmouth College has to offer! It is not uncommon to
adjust the time frame over the first one or two years at Dartmouth.
5. Get to know your professors as you proceed through the Dartmouth curriculum.

The faculty are a rich resource of advice and guidance for any Dartmouth student, and definitely the
pre-health student. In addition, the eventual application process for medical school and other
health-related professional schools relies heavily on letters of recommendation from faculty and
others. Take the time to develop relationships with your faculty, so that at the time you need letters,
they can write one that reflects how well they know you as a person and not just by your performance
in a class. Utilize office hours and other contacts to get to know the faculty better. We can help
coach you how to "break the ice" connecting with your professors. A good rule of thumb: Get to
know ONE faculty member well each term.
6. Plan to participate in extra-curricular activities involving medicine and health careers,
and in service to others, throughout your time at Dartmouth.

Participation in extracurricular activities is perhaps the best way to let you decide whether a career
in the health-related professions is something that you will aim for. These activities range from
volunteering in a clinic or hospital, doing research with a professor (in virtually any discipline, even
"non-scientific"), observing patient care close-up while shadowing a physician, dentist or vet (note
that for the latter, schools will require a certain number of hours of work with a vet), working in
groups that assist patients or their families or doing a internship in a health- or non-health humanservice related field. *You don’t have to start everything, however, your first term!

The demonstration of your care and concern for others is also extremely important (whether in a
medical environment or not). Plan to do these things throughout your time at Dartmouth, not just
for a term or two. Such participation is looked on very favorably at the time of application, for they
demonstrate your interest and commitment in/to science, medicine, others and society, and they
help you develop essential qualities for medicine, ie: connecting with others, understanding,
communication, empathy, compassion, patience, etc.
IMPORTANT POINTS OF CONTACT AND INFORMATION
RESOURCES FOR THE PRE-HEALTH STUDENT
PRE-HEALTH ADVISING AND HEALTH PROFESSIONS PROGRAM
Who: Pre-Health Advisors Sarah Berger and Andrew Welch; Program Coordinator, Annette Hamilton
What: Your Advising Team that helps you to navigate the many academic (class choices, study strategies etc), and
extracurricular moving parts of the pre-health journey AND the actual Med/Vet/Dental School
Application Process.
Where: PARKER HOUSE: Walk out the back of Novack/the library, and it is a small white house on the right on the
way to McLaughlin.
How to Contact: Walk-in office hours every week (see Nathan Smith Society website for hours); Appointments
can be arranged by contacting Annette Hamilton (646-3377).
On-line Resources: Nathan Smith Society: www.dartmouth.edu/~nss
NATHAN SMITH SOCIETY
Who: YOU, and ~1200 undergraduates IE: ANY and ALL pre-health students who sign in!! All are included!
Leadership by student-run Exec Committee (Dr. Lee Witters faculty advisor)
What: A Major hub of Pre-Health opportunities, connections and communications, for a great deal of information
concerning Pre-Health throughout the year. Also, source of many activities to support your journey
(Shadowing, Dinner w/ a Doc; Take a Med student to lunch, etc)
Where: 123 Class of 1978 Life Sciences Center
How to Contact: Blitz: Nathan.Smith.Society@dartmouth.edu to join mailing list
On-line Resources: Nathan Smith Society: www.dartmouth.edu/~nss
PRE-HEALTH MENTOR CORPS:
Who: Contact through Sarah Berger, or Student Leaders Melissa Cantave, Katherine Bach, Hersh Trivedi
What: Fosters Pre-Health Community. A group of your Upper Level Peers who are here to help you navigate your
pre-health questions or aspirations
How to Contact: Contact any of the people above, You will soon find BIOS on NSS website and can contact any
mentor directly (they welcome it! ) And---Come to Pre-health Community Events!!!
PATHWAYS TO MEDICINE, AND MAPS (Minority Association of Premedical Students)
Who: Contact for MAPS, Irene Cofie ’16, Anthony Chicaiza ’17. Contact for Pathways, Sarah Berger
What: Programs that support pre-health/ future medical students from Under-Represented backgrounds
How to Contact: MAPS@Dartmouth.edu, and, Marcus Gresham to join the Pathways Facebook page.
ACADEMIC SKILLS CENTER
Who: Carl P. Thum, PhD, Alphonso Saville, Holly Potter
What: Learning strategies: time management, reading improvement, note taking; peer tutors, and study groups
PE Class-Learning at Dartmouth: fall term course for '18s only
Where: 224 Baker
How to Contact: 646-2014; blitz ‘Academic.Skills.Center@Dartmouth.edu’
On-line Resources: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~acskills/ (Click on **18s link on the bottom of this page for
important information about fall term study skills course)
UNDERGRADUATE DEANS AND STUDENT CONSULTANTS
Who: Your assigned Dean is posted on your Banner Page—they will also be GREAT resources!!!
Where: Student Academic Support Center, Suite 125, Carson
How to Contact: Dean.of.Undergraduate.Students@Dartmouth.edu or (603) 646-2243
On-line Resources: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~upperde/
Dean’s Office Student Consultants (DOSCs): A group seniors who provide academic peer advising.
Pre-Dental: Dr. Robert Keene, faculty adviser (dmdsmile@gmail.com),
Pre-Veterinary: (prevet.society@dartmouth.edu)
AND, MORE ON BACK!!
OTHER WONDERFUL, RELEVANT, RESOURCES ON CAMPUS

UGAR: Office of Undergraduate Advising and Research, wonderful resources (including info about
funding) for developing experience with scholarship and research. Located in Parker House.
o WISP: Women In Science Project: a great program to help women get started in research
experiences.

RWiT: Students are encouraged to use the Student Center for Research, Writing, and Information
Technology (RWiT) to develop their writing and verbal skills. The medical school application
process will evaluate these skills

Center for Professional Development: Along with HPP, C4PD can help with off-term internship
& job opportunities and is the source for general support in contemplating careers, looking at
strengths and interests, resume writing etc.

Tucker Foundation & Dickey Center: Students are encouraged to explore the resources of the
Tucker Foundation and Dickey Center to identify health-related internships and service
opportunities.