How to Get Into Medical School

Most people know it’s tough to get into medical school, but do you know how tough?

The national acceptance rate for medical school was 41% in 2022, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). Last year, there were 55,188 applications to 172 medical schools. Each applicant applied to 18 schools, on average.

Those numbers are a bit of a doozy. But that’s to be expected. Again, nobody said getting into medical school would be easy. First, it may help to have a solid understanding of how to get into medical school.

Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.

Most medical schools share a lot of the same admission requirements. For example, nearly all medical schools require you to have a bachelor’s degree, clinical experience, test scores, and a handful of recommendation letters.

But admissions standards can sometimes vary depending on the individual school. For example, you may need three recommendation letters at one school and five at another.

How exactly does that work? BestColleges researched past exam scores, GPA data, and admission rules to recap what you may need to get accepted into most medical schools:

Medical school is very competitive. Admissions standards will be rigorous wherever you apply. How do you improve your chances of getting accepted, aside from meeting all the admission requirements?

Tips for Getting Into Medical School

One method is to think holistically about your application. According to the AAMC, nearly all medical schools use a holistic review to screen applicants.

A holistic review considers the “whole” applicant, determining how your academic metrics, experiences, and attributes align with an institution’s goals and values. For example, one medical school may want students with experience providing care in rural areas. Another might prefer students who are passionate about working in urban settings.

Another consensus is focusing on quality over quantity. Many schools don’t ask for a specific number of clinical hours but rather recommend gaining “quality” experience before applying. In practice, that means looking for opportunities to gain meaningful exposure to medical settings. Princeton’s Office of Health Professions Advising recommends choosing activities that can provide lessons aligning with your career goals rather than unrelated experiences.

Finally, you can go above and beyond your school’s admission requirements. According to the AAMC, 37% of medical schools require applicants to have research experience. Some schools require the CASPer test.

Doing both, even when not required, can give you a boost. According to Kaplan, an exam prep site, admissions committees look favorably on research experience.

Medical school may require between 100 and 150 hours of clinical experience. The exact number of hours depends on the school you’re applying to. Some may require you to meet minimum hours of shadowing to be considered for admission. To be a competitive applicant at other schools, you must volunteer for a certain number of hours.

How many schools you apply to may come down to the strength of your application. If you’re confident about your application, you won’t need to apply to as many schools as others. But, based on AAMC data, the average person applied to 18 schools in 2022.

Medical school is about four years long. You’ll spend the first two years doing classroom and lab work, taking classes in basic sciences, and learning how to interview and examine a patient. The final two years prioritize clinical experience and doing rotations at hospitals and clinics.