Course Requirements
The academic curriculum of the Postbaccalaureate Premedical Program is designed to fulfill the prerequisites required for medical school admission. There are some slight variations in these requirements from school to school and state to state. Therefore, the following curriculum is prescribed for students in the Postbaccalaureate Premedical Program to prepare them to train and practice anywhere in the nation:

• One year of college English or the equivalent. (Most postbaccalaureate students have completed this requirement as undergraduates and do not need to complete course work in English at Columbia.)


• One year of college mathematics beyond precalculus, including at least one term of calculus. Statistics is recommended as the second mathematics course.


• One year of general physics, including laboratory.


• One year of general chemistry, including laboratory.


• One year of organic chemistry, including laboratory.


• One year of biology, including laboratory, and with an emphasis on molecular and cellular biology.

Reading the Body Colloquium
In recent years, Postbac Premed students interested in humanistic issues in medicine have enrolled in the spring semester Reading the Body colloquium. During biweekly meetings of the colloquium, students ponder the experiences of physicians and of patients and their families as recounted in narrative works and the representation of illness and medicine in literary works and in culture.

Previously Completed Coursework

In some cases, Postbac Premed students may have completed one or two of the prerequisites required for medical school admission. Depending on when such coursework was completed, and the grades achieved, students may be advised to repeat the course or to take an advanced-level science course in order to be a more competitive applicant to medical school.

Once a student matriculates within the Program, all subsequent premedical sciences courses must be completed at Columbia University, unless an exception is made based on a petition submitted to the Premedical Committee. As there are some variations in requirements from school to school and state to state, students are advised to consult individual medical schools and healthcare programs for specific prerequisites that would be in addition to this basic premedical curriculum. Students coming from professional-focused undergraduate schools (e.g., engineering, culinary, visual or performing arts, nursing, business) who lack sufficient grounding in liberal arts are advised to address this deficiency through additional non-science coursework in order to be competitive candidates for medical school. 

Preparatory Coursework
For students who are not prepared to go directly into these required science courses, Columbia offers courses in pre-physics, pre-chemistry, and pre-calculus, which are offered Pass/Fail. Placement tests and the counsel of a Postbac Premed advisor will help students decide whether preparatory courses are needed.

The following placement tests are offered during the summer and during Orientation Week:

Math Placement Test
Postbaccalaureate Premedical students needing to assess their math skills should take the Math Placement Test administered by the GS Academic Resource Center (ARC).

Chemistry Placement Test
Administered by the ARC, the Chemistry Placement Examination helps students determine whether they are ready to begin general chemistry or need to take “Preparation for College Chemistry” first.