An undergraduate degree and all required course work must be completed prior to matriculation into the College of Medicine. Work with your premedical advisor at your institution for help in planning your specific course work that will meet the following requirements. 
Required Course Work:
- Anatomy - one quarter or semester; lab preferred, but not required (beginning with the entering class of 2012, see details below).
- Biochemistry - one quarter or semester(beginning with the entering class of 2011).
- Biology - one year.
- General Chemistry - one year that consists of a general chemistry series including laboratory (incorporating both quantitative and qualitative analysis).
- Organic Chemistry - one year of an organic chemistry series that includes a laboratory.
- Physics - one year with a laboratory.
New 2011-2012 Anatomy Requirement
The revised curriculum in our College of Medicine will begin in the Fall of 2012, and we have some very exciting changes for our students. Among the changes will be the unique aspect of first year medical students seeing patients in the office that they will follow longitudinally for four years. We will also teach anatomy in an integrated manner with the other basic science and clinical disciplines. It will thus be critically important for our students to have been at least introduced to the academic discipline of anatomy prior to matriculating, and so we are adding anatomy to our list of prerequisites beginning with the entering class of 2012. In an attempt to make it as easy as possible for prospective students to fulfill this requirement, we have several options:
(Lab preferred, not required. Dissection or exposure to prosected specimens preferred, not required.)
Option 1:
Any quarter or semester of Anatomy (minimum 2-6 hours) with or without a laboratory experience. This does not have to be Human Anatomy, though that would be preferred. This can be taken at your home school or a community college. For OSU undergraduates: Courses offered by The Ohio State University that provide excellent preparation include Anatomy 199, Anatomy 200, and EEOB 235.
Option 2:
Combined Anatomy and Physiology course, 3 quarters or 2 semesters necessary.
Option 3:
Online Anatomy courses. On-line examples approved by our Anatomy team include the following.
Option 4:
Community College course. (Courses offered by Columbus State Community College in Columbus Ohio that provide excellent preparation include BIO261.) Other Anatomy Courses at your local and other community colleges will also be accepted.
Option 5:
The College of Medicine is exploring other options for students at this time. Please contact the Office of Admission at medicine@osu.edu or call (614) 292-7137 if you have any questions or concerns.
Recommended Course Work:
- Writing/Speech - courses that emphasize written and/or verbal communication.
- Social Science - courses such as history, economics, anthropology, psychology, etc.
- Humanities - courses in art, music, drama, literature, languages, etc.
- Diversity/Ethics - courses that focus on the culture, history and/or current circumstances of different populations.
Courses in mathematics, statistics, physiology, human behavior, and computer literacy are also recommended, but are not required.
What About Online Courses?
Courses completed in a classroom setting have several potential advantages over on-line courses: the material may be covered in a greater level of detail; the instructor, an expert or at least someone very knowledgeable in the field, is available for questions at the time the material is presented; spontaneous intellectual debate and dialog with the instructor and the other students can greatly enhance the educational experience. The OSU College of Medicine and the Admissions Committee prefers that courses be completed in a classroom setting. However, the Committee will consider on-line coursework as fulfilling our listed prerequisites for lecture courses only (not laboratory courses), provided the following guidelines are met:
- The online course must be offered under the auspices and supervision of the institution at which you have completed your other premed coursework or at another, not-for profit, college or university accredited by one of the six regional accrediting associations; Middle States, New England, North Central, Northwest, Southern, Western.
- The sponsoring institution of the online course must have a history of offering the same course(s) in a classroom setting.
- Examinations must be "closed book", in a classroom setting proctored by employees of the college or university sponsoring the course.
- Items 2 and 3 must be easily validated by the description of the course in the official course catalog or attested to by the course instructor in a letter to the Admissions Committee.
If you are completing undergraduate courses in Ohio, the Professional Admissions Office maintains the Prerequisite Evaluation Coursework for a number of Ohio schools. Click here for the most current listing.