Your postbaccalaureate program is tailored to meet your individual needs and is reevaluated each semester based on your progress. Science courses are taught by leading members of the Faculty of Arts and Science. You will attend your classes and laboratory sessions with the undergraduates from the College of Arts and Science. Please be aware that the classes are offered only during the weekday daytime hours, although there may be a few evening sections and some chemistry labs on Saturdays. This may be an inconvenience to you while you are here, but it does ensure that when your application is being considered at medical schools, they have a larger number of our students with whom they can compare you directly. Our program is deliberately designed with this in mind, and medical schools agree with our policy. It takes most postbacc students eighteen to twenty-four months to complete the prehealth requirements. After completing your course work, you will take the spring or summer MCAT and apply to enter medical school in September of the following year.
Courses |
|
Prerequisite for the science curriculum |
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MATH-UA 9 Algebra and Calculus I |
4 credits |
Mathematics – (medical schools vary on this requirement – please see individual medical school admissions requirements) |
|
MATH-UA 121 Calculus I |
4 credits |
|
|
CHEM-UA 125 General Chem I & Lab |
5 credits |
CHEM-UA 126 General Chem II & Lab |
5 credits |
CHEM-UA 225 Organic Chem I & Lab |
5 credits |
CHEM-UA 226 Organic Chem II & Lab |
5 credits |
|
|
BIOL-UA 11 Principles of Biology I |
4 credits |
BIOL-UA 12 Principles of Biology II |
4 credits |
BIOL-UA 123 Principles of Biology Lab |
1 credit |
|
|
PHYS-UA 11 General Physics I & Lab |
5 credits |
PHYS-UA 12 General Physics II & Lab |
5 credits |
|
|
ENGL-UA XX |
4 credits |
ENGL-UA XX |
4 credits |
|
|
CHEM-UA 881 Biochemistry I |
4 credits |
The postbacc program requirements are based upon the general requirements established by most schools of the health professions. Some schools of the health professions may require additional courses, so you should familiarize yourself early with those schools to which you think you may apply.
The weekly in-class time commitment for each course is substantial. For chemistry lectures and lab, you should count on ten scheduled hours each week; for biology, about five and a half hours; for physics, about six hours. If you are working in addition to attending classes, you will need a position with flexible or evening or weekend hours.
Special Note for Preveterinary Students: Requirements for veterinary school are usually much more extensive than those listed above. It is essential to start early in researching the schools to which you will ultimately apply in order to plan your curriculum accordingly. Veterinary schools also require extensive experience, particularly with large animals.
Summer Coursework
If you plan to take courses during the summer, plan on it being a full-time endeavor for a full, twelve-week period.
Homework/Study
We recommend that you study a minimum of 15 hours per week for each prehealth science course in which you are enrolled. Obviously, some people will have to study more, while others can study less. The important thing to remember is that prehealth studies are unlike many non-science undergraduate programs and are extremely demanding and detail-oriented. A good study schedule is essential from the very first day of class.
We encourage you to form study groups, and remind you of the importance of academic honesty and integrity.
If you find that you must use all of your waking hours to do well in your prehealth courses, a career in the health professions may not be the right choice for you. The work only gets more demanding. If this problem arises, please speak to a prehealth adviser.
Transcripts
Your coursework will appear on a regular College of Arts and Science transcript which will be sent to any graduate or professional schools to which you apply. Requests can be made through your NYU Albert account. Because you cannot officially "transfer" to this program, coursework done at any other school will not appear on your College of Arts and Science transcript, which you can view on Albert.
Academic Policies and Standards
Please note that students may not continue in the program for longer than three years (9 consecutive semesters including summers).
Postbacc students are held to the same academic standards as our undergraduates, and are subject to academic discipline and/or dismissal if these standards are not met. Students in the NYU Postbacc Program must maintain a current and cumulative grade point average of at least a 3.0 (B). Two semesters in which this standard is not met is cause for academic dismissal from our program.
As a prehealth student, you are encouraged to help fellow classmates. Often, group study can be beneficial and can reinforce the very ideas and concepts you are struggling to learn. There is, however, a big difference between helping your classmates or being helped, and academic dishonesty. A postbacc student caught cheating will neither be readmitted to the College nor be given a letter of evaluation from our office.
Once you matriculate at NYU as a postbacc student, you must complete each of your courses for the prehealth curriculum at NYU. You will be deemed to have withdrawn from our program when you enroll in science courses elsewhere, and will not have access to our Committee for a letter of evaluation. Please understand that completing the prehealth sciences at a single “home institution” is favored by medical schools, and it also preserves the integrity of our program as well as the confidence our Committee has to write on your behalf.