Pre-Health “Check-Up”

For Class of 2013

and Their Parents

May 1, 2010

Lee Witters & Stacy Barton

Some Demographics of the Dartmouth Pre-health Student

• ~30% of each entering class (= 300 students) attends the “pre-health” meeting during orientation

• The Nathan Smith Society has a membership of ~1100 students

• ~160-170 applicants per year to medical school (# alumni > seniors by 4:1)

• ~80-85 % success rate in first application; no differences in success between various majors, between science & non-science majors or between seniors and alumni

• There is no pre-health major at Dartmouth

The Dartmouth Pre-health Student

and Alumnus/a

Health Professions Advisory Committee (HPAC)Faculty advisors (DC)

DMS faculty and Admissions Office; DMS studentsClass Deans

Peer Advising; Alumni AdvisingTucker Foundation

Pre-health Advising SystemPre-health Advising System

Career ServiceHealth Professions

Advisors

Stacy BartonAnnette Hamilton

Faculty Advisorof

Nathan SmithSociety

Lee A. Witters

Nathan Smith

1762-1829

www.dartmouth.edu/~nss

Nathan Smith Society Events Spring Term 2010

• DHMC Shadowing Program• Community Veterinary

Shadowing Program• Community Dental Shadowing

Program• Dartmouth Ears (a patient

visiting program at DHMC)• ‘Dinner with a

Doc/Vet/Dentist’ Program• NSS Research Opportunities

Database• DMS “Interest Groups” &

Alumni Workshops

• ‘Take a Med Student to Lunch’ Program

• “Mock Admissions”• Paying for Medical School

(DMS Financial Aid office)• Senior Night• DC/DMS Night• “Dance for a Dream” (annual

fund-raiser for selected charity)

• Workshops on Medical/Dental/Vet School Application

Emerging Changes in Assessing Candidacy of the Medical School Applicant

Revisiting the Medical School Educational Mission at a Time of Expansion Report from the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, January 2009

Evaluating Beyond Grades,MCAT/DAT/GRE Scores and

Prior Experiences in Health

• Active listener• Problem solver• Communicator

(oral, written)• Critical thinker• Multilingual

• Resiliency• Integrity• Adaptability• Persistence• Motivation• Intellectual curiosity• Empathy• Altruistic service

Skills & Abilities Personal & Professional Characteristics

Things to Pay Attention To• Get sound advice from an experienced advisor; beware of

“anecdotes”; get a “first year checkup”• Most students from Dartmouth and country-wide are applying to

medical/vet/dental school after they graduate. • Make a four year schedule for the required science courses

needed to apply to medical school. • Students are accepted into medical school with any

undergraduate major, but displaying aptitude in the sciences is very important. Many students “stub a toe” in early science courses; that does not disqualify a student from the health professions!

• Many students complete courses or strengthen their classroom credentials in a post-bacc program

Things to Pay Attention To

• Utilize resources that can help you succeed in the curriculum (Academic Skills, course TAs, office hours with professor)

• GET TO KNOW PROFESSORS

Things to Pay Attention To• Participate in extracurricular activities that demonstrate

your humanism (e.g. volunteer activity, advocacy organizations), your interest in medicine (e.g. shadowing), your scholarship (e.g. research), and your leadership/creativity. Do these in a sustained way over several terms, not just for a few weeks. BUT don’t overextend your commitments to the detriment of classroom performance.

• Participate in activities of the Nathan Smith Society• Don’t plan your life at Dartmouth exclusively around

pointing to medical or graduate school; take advantage of a liberal education in and out of the classroom both in Hanover and elsewhere

Application “Wheel”

MCAT GPA/BCPM

Letters of Evaluation

Motivation

Experience - Clinical-

Research

- Service