A.T. Still University Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine prerequisites

2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

Two semesters with lab. The single most universal prerequisite: essentially every MD and DO program asks for it, and it is the foundation the MCAT assumes.

2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

Two semesters with lab. Take it early: organic chemistry, biochemistry, and most upper-division biology all sit behind it, so a late start pushes the whole sequence past your MCAT date.

2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

Two semesters with lab at most schools. A meaningful and growing minority accept one semester of organic plus one of biochemistry. Do not drop the second semester on that assumption until you have checked the schools you actually want.

1 semester · 3 credits

One semester, lab rarely required. Roughly two thirds of schools require it outright and the MCAT tests it heavily, so treat it as required even where it technically is not, and take it before you sit the exam.

2 semesters · 8 credits · lab

Two semesters with lab. Algebra-based is accepted almost everywhere; take the calculus-based sequence only if your major needs it or a target school names it.

2 semesters · 6 credits

Two semesters of English or writing-intensive coursework. Many schools accept writing-intensive courses from any department, but a few name English specifically. If your writing credits come from elsewhere, confirm before you count them.

1 semester · 3 credits

One semester. Most schools with a math requirement accept statistics or calculus; statistics is the more widely accepted of the two and the more useful for reading clinical research, so the baseline tracks it here. If a target school names calculus, its own requirements will say so.

1 semester · 3 credits

One semester. Required outright at a minority of schools (several of them highly selective) and accepted in place of statistics at most of the rest. Take it if calculus is already in your major's path.

1 semester · 3 credits

One semester. A minority of schools require it, but a quarter of the MCAT is psychological and social foundations: this is the cheapest points on the exam.

1 semester · 3 credits

One semester. Same reasoning as psychology: required by fewer schools, tested directly on the MCAT.

1 semester · 3 credits

One semester. Required by a small number of schools and a common way to fill the upper-division science coursework that strengthens a science GPA.

100+ hours

Most medical schools ask for 150+ hours.

KCOM groups clinical experience and shadowing into one line, 'significant clinical shadowing or experience (100 hours strongly recommended)', so the 100 hours can be met by either, or a mix.

100+ hours

Most medical schools ask for 50+ hours.

KCOM asks for 'significant clinical shadowing or experience (100 hours strongly recommended)'. It is not a hard cutoff, but the school publishes the number, so treat 100 as the figure your application is read against. One of your two required letters must come from a licensed physician unrelated to you (DO or MD), so build the shadowing relationship with someone willing to write it.

100+ hours

Most medical schools ask for 150+ hours.

'Significant leadership and service to the underserved (100 hours strongly recommended).' Note the framing: KCOM wants service to the underserved specifically, and leadership within it, not general volunteering.

100+ hours

Effectively expected at research-heavy MD programs and genuinely optional at many DO and community-focused schools. If research is not your path, put those hours into clinical work and say so clearly rather than padding a semester in a lab.

No published minimum

The academic half of KCOM's two-letter requirement may come from "a pre-medical committee/health professions advisor, or science faculty member": the three are interchangeable.

No published minimum

Stands in for the pre-medical committee or health professions advisor letter as the academic half of KCOM's two letters. KCOM's own advice on letters: avoid "getting letters of evaluation from individuals who have only known the applicant for a short period of time. Build relationships!"

No published minimum

"Two letters of recommendation: one letter from a pre-medical committee/health professions advisor, or science faculty member, and one letter from a licensed physician unrelated to the applicant (DO or MD)." Either degree is accepted, and with only two letters required the physician letter is half your file, so build the shadowing relationship with someone willing to write it.