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Advanced Placement (AP) Credit & the Pre-Med Student For most medical schools, Advanced Placement (AP) credit cannot be used to fulfill the pre-medical requirements. If you have AP credit in courses required for medical school (Biology, Chemistry, English, Mathematics, and Physics) you need to take additional courses in those areas to complete the medical school admission requirements. Students enrolled in the To find out about requirements for all of the medical schools in the Some Note that Harvard will accept one semester of AP credit in Physics and Chemistry for those applying to their New Pathway Program. Johns Hopkins will also accept one semester of AP credit in Physics and Chemistry. By and large, though, it is best to follow the safest path, and take the additional courses. After all, some medical schools require some additional science courses for all candidates. For example, the Also, note that through the AP program you can earn credit for the lecture components of science courses but not for the laboratory components, required by all but one of the 125 M.D. programs in the Please use the following menu to navigate this page:
Those who have AP credit for Bio 91 should start with Bio 121 (The Molecular Biology of Life). To finish the two semesters of Biology lecture and lab required by medical schools, students should then take Bio 124, a .5 credit unit lab course that covers topics in vertebrate physiology, diversity and anatomy as well as other whole organism and population level topics. Additionally, students should take any 200-level lecture course. We especially recommend Bio 202 (Cell Biology and Biochemistry) or Bio 215 (Vertebrate Physiology), as these cover topics important for MCAT and medical school preparation. If a student receives credit for Bio 101 and 102 by passing the department placement exams, they should take any two intermediate or advanced lecture courses and either the stand alone introductory labs, Bio 123 and 124, or a one credut unit lab course. One credit unit Biology lab courses that may be of interest to Pre-Meds include: Bio 306 Histology (CGS); Prerequisites: Bio 101 or 121 and 102 and 202 preferred. Bio 330 Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy and Evolution; Prerequisite: Bio 101 or 121 and 102. Bio 425 Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics Superlab; Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Bio 399 Independent Study provided that the Biology Department faculty sponsor certifies it as a suitable lab experience. Pre-med students who plan to count a Bio 399/499 for a lab course might want to get a letter certifying that the course fulfills the Biology lab pre-med requirement. PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT SOME MEDICAL SCHOOLS REQUIRE THREE OR EVEN FOUR SEMESTERS OF BIOLOGY. In order to see if any of the medical schools you are interested in require more than the traditional two semesters of introductory Biology, consult the Medical School Admissions Requirements. Copies of MSAR are available at Career Services. For more information about Biology courses offered at Penn, and about the policies concerning AP credit for Biology, contact the Undergraduate Biology Office, 898-7121 or visit their web site.
If you are a pre-med with AP credit for Chem 91, you should take the departmental exam when you arrive on campus as a freshman or transfer student. If you do not receive credit for Chem 101 and 102, you should take those courses along with their corresponding labs (Chem 53 and 54). Students who receive departmental credit for both Chem 101 and 102 should take additional Chemistry courses to supplement that credit. This can be done by taking Chem 015 (Honors Chemistry), a freshman course offered only in the fall semester which primarily covers Chem 101 material at a more advanced level, and Chem 55, a lab course offered only in the spring semester. They should also take Chem 251 (Biological Chemistry), sometime after freshman year. Of course, students majoring in either Chemistry or Biochemistry can fulfill their pre-medical requirement by taking any two upper level chemistry courses within their major. Since ALL med school applicants take Organic Chemistry, those with AP Chemistry credit cannot satisfy the additional course requirement with Organic Chemistry. For more information, consult the Undergraduate Chemistry Office, 573-8311 and view their web site.
Students who receive AP credit of Physics 5/6 may convert the AP credit into credit for Physics 101/102 or Physics 150/151. To get the credit converted, students must either have their AP Physics notebooks reviewed by the Physics Department, or complete the lab portion of the appropriate Penn courses. Most students upgrade their AP credit by taking the Physics lab courses at Students can also elect to take Physics 101/102 or 150/151 for a grade. We encourage students to take at least one Physics course at Penn, and not rely on AP credit alone. Those who have a strong physics background, are eager science students, and earned a 5 on the Physics C exam, could consider Honors Physics (170 and 171) for a very challenging introductory sequence. For Physics course suggestions, contact the Undergraduate Physics Department at 898-8141, or view their web site.
If you are a pre-med with AP credit in Mathematics (Math 104), you should take an additional Math course for the semester of AP credit you have earned. Since only one semester of Math credit is given, students will need to take either Math 115 or 114. You need not take Math 240, but instead can take a course in statistics to supplement your AP credit. Some medical schools have a flexible Math requirement, and allow students to take a statistics course to fulfill the Math requirement. Statistics provides a good foundation for medical study and practice, which requires the interpretation of research reports and data. Interested students may also choose to take Math 210 (Mathematics in the Age of Information), a new course that integrates statistics, linear algebra, and Web programming techniques. For help in choosing Math courses, you should consult the Mathematics Department Undergraduate Office, which has prepared an information sheet to help students with AP credit choose appropriate Math courses. The Class Handbook, published by the College Office, also contains information to help students select appropriate Math courses. For more information, contact the Undergraduate Mathematics Office at 898-8178 and view their web site.
If you are a pre-med with AP credit in English, you should select additional English courses to strengthen your skills in analyzing literature and in writing. Penn offers a wide array of interesting courses in English and Comparative Literature. The English Department offers a robust selection of Freshman Writing Courses (courses numbered 001 - 013). In addition, writing courses are available through the Writing Across the University Program (WATU), 898-8525. The Pre-Med English Requirement is a loose one, which can be filled with courses that medical schools would recognize as English courses, literature courses, or writing courses. Thus, you can fill the Pre-Med English requirement with any combination of traditional English courses, Freshman Writing Courses, or Freshman English Seminar courses. This differs from the
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