Saint Louis University School of 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

Eight semester hours with a laboratory course, but SLU allows biochemistry to fulfil one of those two semesters, which is a useful swap if biochemistry is already on your schedule.

1 semester · 3 credits

Most medical schools ask for 1 semester · 3 credits and list it as required.

SLU highly recommends coursework in biochemistry or cellular biology rather than requiring it. Its real value here is that biochemistry can stand in for a semester of organic chemistry.

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.

SLU's semester-hour requirements cover biology, chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, English, and humanities and behavioural sciences. No mathematics or statistics course is among them.

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.

4 semesters · 12 credits

Twelve semester hours of humanities and behavioural sciences beyond the six hours of English, roughly four courses. Required, not recommended, so build it into your degree rather than leaving it to a final year.

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.

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.

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.

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.