Cyclios

MD · Washington, District of Columbia · private

George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences prerequisites

What George Washington asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 6 lines differ from the standard medical school set, marked below.

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Coursework

  • Biology with labrequireddiffers

    1 semester · 4 credits · lab

    Most medical schools ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.

    One course with lecture and lab, not the usual two semesters. GW asks that it cover cellular and molecular biology as well as the structure and function of living organisms.

  • General chemistry with labnot required here

    General chemistry does not appear on GW's requirements page. Take it anyway: it is the gateway course for the organic chemistry and biochemistry GW does require, and virtually every other school on your list will want the full year.

  • Organic chemistry with labrequireddiffers

    1 semester · 4 credits · lab

    Most medical schools ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.

    One course with lecture and lab. GW does not ask for the second semester of organic that most schools require.

  • Biochemistryrequired

    1 semester · 3 credits

    One course. Lecture is required and GW asks for the lab only if your institution offers one.

  • Physics with labrequireddiffers

    1 semester · 4 credits

    Most medical schools ask for 2 semesters · 8 credits · lab.

    One course, not the usual full year. Lecture is required and the lab only if your institution offers one.

  • English or writing-intensivenot required here

    No English or writing course appears on GW's requirements page.

  • Statisticsnot required here

    No mathematics or statistics course appears on GW's requirements page.

  • Calculusrecommended

    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.

  • Psychologyrecommended

    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.

  • Sociologyrecommended

    1 semester · 3 credits

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

  • Geneticsrecommended

    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.

Experience hours

  • Clinical experiencerecommended

    150+ hours

    Almost no school publishes a number, but admitted applicants typically report a few hundred hours. 150 is the point where you can speak about patient care from experience rather than in the abstract; sustained hours over years read better than a summer sprint.

  • Physician shadowingrecommended

    50+ hours

    Aim for 40-50 across more than one specialty, including primary care. DO programs weigh shadowing more heavily and several ask for hours with a DO specifically. If DO schools are on your list, get those hours and the letter early.

  • Non-clinical volunteeringrecommended

    150+ hours

    Service with no medical angle. Committees are reading for a habit, not a total, so one commitment held for two years beats five one-off events.

  • Researchrecommended

    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.

Also on the school’s page

GW publishes one of the shortest prerequisite lists in the country, and its own FAQ points to this page as "a full list of our course requirements". Four courses, one semester each: biology, organic chemistry, biochemistry, and physics. General chemistry, English, and mathematics are simply not rows on that list. Everything must be finished by June 2027, and GW is unusually relaxed about how you earn it: graded or pass/fail, AP, online, and community college coursework are all accepted.

School

smhs.gwu.edu

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