The childhood dream of yours to become a doctor is finally on the horizon. However, getting accepted into med school for your master’s is a huge challenge in itself. Much of the med school planning process begins well before the application deadline and during your undergraduate years. Ensuring you’re prepared to make that leap into grad school requires months of planning and research, which will increase your chances of getting into the school you prefer.

Pay attention to prerequisites

For McGill University med student Vijitha Sivakumar, she says it’s important to make sure you’ve completed the proper prerequisites during your undergrad. “First, they must complete a list of basic science courses,” she says. “Every school has slightly different requirements and students need to look up each school’s requirements and make sure they have covered the necessary courses. Some schools may require certain non-science courses as well.”

To ensure all the proper undergrad coursework is completed, Sivakumar says it’s important to avoid working on the application at the last minute. “For students to avoid surprises, like finding out that they failed to complete one required course, it is best for students to start doing research on each school as early as possible.”

Get good grades

It’s something that has been ingrained in our minds since the introduction of report cards in the first grade, so maintaining a high average (or GPA) is no different in med school. “What they need to do in order to prepare for medicine is to do everything they can to make sure their grade point average is high,” says Dr. Bruce Fleming, associate dean, admissions at the University of British Columbia.

Depending on which med school you choose, averages vary. “GPA cut-offs vary from school to school, and from year to year, [but] students are responsible for looking up the most current cut-offs,” says Sivakumar.

Don't drop the extra-curricular activities

Just because you play recreational basketball every Thursday night and you’re president of your school’s student group, doesn’t mean you can’t get into med school. In fact, it’s applauded. “We consider academic and non-academic qualities on an equal footing at UBC in terms of an application for medicine,” says Dr. Fleming. “If an applicant comes to us and they’ve done something exceptional in terms of a level of performance in regards to the arts or athletics, we value that as well.”

Take initiative

Don’t just sit in your apartment and read textbooks all day; go out and get some valuable hands-on experience. While many undergrad degrees have placements within its coursework, Sivakumar says students should take the time to get out in the field. “This could be by volunteering at hospitals, doing research, or shadowing doctors. These are good ways to see whether you would enjoy working in the field and personally evaluate whether you have the capacity to work in a high-stress environment.”

This experience will help you determine whether you have the skills and attributes needed to interact with patients and practice medicine, says Sivakumar. “Also, these extra initiatives you take to get as much exposure as possible show medical schools how interested and serious you are about pursuing medicine.”

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