Sample four-year schedule for a pre-medical student in BMS

Please Note: Medical schools vary in their expectations of the academic background and course requirements for "acceptable" and "competitive" applicants to their programs. Therefore, students planning to apply to a particular medical school must be aware of that school's requirements, considerations, and policies. Particulars to look out for include: "difficulty level" of course loads, minimum hours of college mathematics, calculus requirements, calculus-based physics requirements, restrictions on accepting AP credits, requirements and recommendations for those using AP credits, mathematics-based statistics requirements, biochemistry requirements, English course requirements, restrictions of acceptance of courses taken at a junior college or community college, use of required courses taken in the evening (and summer), acceptance of required courses that are transferred into the home institution (particularly organic chemistry and physics), and acceptance of required distance and on-line learning courses. Generally, if a restriction is not stated in their literature it should be safe to assume that there is no restriction, but it is probably safest to have your pre-medical advisor check. Top pre-medical students and Honors College pre-medical students who plan to apply to the more prestigious medical schools should pay particular attention to the stated requirements of those schools, particularly regarding AP credits, and plan their schedules accordingly.

First Year (Fall Semester) Total Credit Hours = 15

BMS 110/111 Concepts in the Biomedical Sciences/Lab
CHM 160 General Chemistry I
ENG 111 Composition
GEP 101 Introduction to University Life or UHC Freshman Honors Seminar
PSY 121 Introduction to Psychology

Students in the Honors College should enroll in the UHC 110 and an Honors Section of either CHM 160, PSY 121, or BMS 110 during their first freshman semester.

First Year (Spring Semester) Total Credit Hours = 15-17

BMS 231 Human Genetics with Laboratory
CHM 170 General Chemistry II
CHM 175 General Chemistry Lab
ENG 120 Composition
KIN 100 Fitness for Living
BMS 195 Intro to the Health Professions

Second Year (Fall Semester) Total Credit Hours = 15-17

MTH 135 (College algebra), MTH 181 (Trigonometry), or MTH 287 (Calculus)
CHM 310 Organic Chemistry
BMS 321 Biomolecular Interactions
COM 115 Fundamentals of Public Speaking

You must complete or be enrolled in the following courses in order to be formally admitted into the biomedical sciences major: BMS 110, BMS 231, CHM 160, IDS or UHC 110, ITC 101 or CSC 101 or CSC 111, COM 115, ENG (or Writing I options), MTH 135 or higher, and KIN 100.
If you are following this schedule and did not take CSC 101 during your first semester, you will need to enroll for the course in the spring semester of your sophomore year.

Second Year (Spring Semester) Total Credit Hours = 16-18

CHM 311 Organic Chemistry
BMS 307 Human Anatomy
BMS 521 Molecular Cell Biology
PLS 101 American Governments I
CSC 101 Intro to Personal Computers

Third Year (Fall Semester) Total Credit Hours = 14-17

BMS 525 Molecular Biology
Humanities or Social Science Elective
MTH 287 (or continue math sequence if necessary or BMS 308 (Human Physiology)
PHY 123 or 203 (a physics course)

Third Year (Spring Semester) Total Credit Hours = 17

BIO 310 Microbiology
Humanities or Social Science Elective
PHY 124 or 204 (a physics course)
BMS 582 Embryology
BMS 494 Senior Seminar in Cell and Molecular Biology

Fourth Year (Fall Semester) Total Credit Hours = 17

BMS 585 Histology or other BMS elective
BMS 529 Molecular Genetics or other BMS elective
SOC 150 Principles of Sociology
BMS 308 Human Physiology
HST 121 History of the United States

Fourth Year (Spring Semester) Total Credit Hours = 16

BMS 569 Neurobiology or BMS 561 Pathophysiology
BMS 524 Virology or BMS 558 Recombinant DNA Techniques
HST 121 History of the United States or other elective
Biomedical Science or Other Electives
Humanities or Social Science Elective

For more information

Contact one of the following pre-medical advisors:

Dr. Colette Witkowski* 417-836-5603, Kampeter Health Sciences Hall, Room 404

Dr. Scott Zimmerman* 417-836-6123, Kampeter Health Sciences Hall, Room 353

Dr. Jianjie Wang 417-836-6140, Kampeter Health Sciences Hall, Room 339

* indicates current member of the Pre-medical Committee

Biomedical Sciences Programs
Missouri State University
901 South National Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65897
417-836-5603