DO · Stratford, New Jersey · public
Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine prerequisites
What Rowan-Virtua asks for in the 2026-27 cycle, as read from the school's own admissions page. 7 lines differ from the standard medical school set, marked below.
Coursework
- Biology with labrequired
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.
- General chemistry with labrequired
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.
- Organic chemistry with labrequired
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.
- Biochemistryrecommendeddiffers
1 semester · 3 credits
Most medical schools ask for 1 semester · 3 credits and list it as required.
Strongly recommended rather than required here. Take it anyway: most of the rest of your list will want it.
- Physics with labrequired
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.
- English or writing-intensiverequired
2 semesters · 6 credits
Three semester hours of English composition plus three additional hours taken from the English department. Unlike most schools, Rowan-Virtua does not accept a writing-intensive course from another department for the second half.
- Statisticsrecommendeddiffers
1 semester · 3 credits
Most medical schools ask for 1 semester · 3 credits and list it as required.
Statistics is not required on its own, but it can cover up to three of the six required college mathematics hours. See the college mathematics line above.
- College mathematicsrequiredextra here
2 semesters · 6 credits
Six semester hours of college-level mathematics. Computer science or statistics may be used to satisfy up to three of those hours, so half the requirement still has to be maths proper.
- 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.
- Social sciences and humanitiesrequiredextra here
2 semesters · 6 credits
Six semester hours of behavioural science: psychology, sociology, or cultural anthropology. Required, not recommended.
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
Rowan-Virtua publishes no shadowing or clinical hours figure, and its required letters are academic: a pre-medical committee letter, or two from science faculty who taught you. The osteopathic pull is in the admissions FAQ (https://som.rowan.edu/education/admissions/faq.html): "Letters from D.O. physicians are strongly recommended." That letter is an addition to the required set, not a substitute for it.
- Non-clinical volunteeringrecommended
150+ hours
No hours. Rowan-Virtua names what it weighs: "We value students who have demonstrated resiliency, continual improvement in undergraduate and graduate coursework, athletics, medically related experiences, leadership skills, community service, cultural sensitivity, volunteering to assist those in need and veteran status," and adds that it expects "a high level of selfless motivation of intense lifelong service to their patients."
- 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.
Letters
- Committee letterrecommendedextra here
No published minimum
"A Pre-medical Advisory Committee recommendation is preferred. In lieu of this recommendation, or in addition to, you can submit two letters from science faculty." The required letters are academic: no physician letter is required at all.
- Science faculty letterrequiredextra here
2 letters
"Two letters from science faculty (Biological Sciences, Chemistry, etc.), who can attest to your qualifications for medical school" is the alternative to a committee recommendation. "Deadline to submit letters of recommendation is March 15 of the year of anticipated enrollment."
- Osteopathic physician letterrecommendedextra here
No published minimum
"Letters from D.O. physicians are strongly recommended." Note Rowan-Virtua names a D.O. specifically rather than "a physician", and this letter is an addition to the required academic set, not a substitute for it. Rowan-Virtua publishes no shadowing or clinical hours figure.
Also on the school’s page
Rowan-Virtua's science block is the standard one (eight semester hours each of biology, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, and physics, all with lab), but three of its other requirements are heavier than most. Six semester hours of college-level mathematics, six of behavioural science, and six of English of which three must be composition and the other three must come from the English department. That English-department condition matters: a writing-intensive course in another subject will not cover the second half here. Biochemistry is strongly recommended rather than required. All prerequisite coursework must be completed at a regionally accredited US institution, a baccalaureate degree is required, and foreign coursework must go through WES, Josef Silny, AACRAO, or ECE before AACOMAS will accept it.
School
som.rowan.eduCheck your transcript against this list
Cyclios keeps this list beside your coursework and tells you what Rowan-Virtua still needs from you.
See it for medical school