Preparation for a health professions school will be accomplished during your four years at Duke, and sometimes even after that. There is no rush. Here are general guidelines.

The goal of your first year is to begin. See how successful you are in your courses - what is easy, what is more challenging. Begin to develop the characteristics that will make you an effective physician or health care provider.

  • Register with the Office of Health Professions Advising so you receive announcements, tips, opportunities.
  • Attend our workshops or review the recordings.  These will be advertised in our weekly newsletter and posted to our Events page.
  • If you haven't yet, work your way through the Explore section of this website.
  • Identify a major that interests you; it does not need to be in a science.
  • Develop a strong relationship with professors with whom you share interests.
  • Meet with your Prehealth Advisor each year to review requirements and plans.
  • If you are not doing as well as you'd like academically, seek advice from your professors, the Academic Resource Center and your Prehealth Advisor. 
  • Find experiences where you can interact with patients and families, or individuals who deal with health problems, to see what health care is like for individuals.
  • Find experiences where you shadow a doctor or other health professional, to see what the lifestyle, challenges and rewards are like for the kind of health professional you might wish to become.
  • If you have time and interest, look for research experience as a volunteer in a lab, a volunteer on a project, work/study student, or in paid employment, summer fellowship or research independent study.
  • Gain an understanding of other cultures and work on your confidence and ability to communicate with individuals unlike you.
  • If you are interested, join a student prehealth group.
  • Look for summer experiences that will enable you to continue to explore the biomedical sciences and health professions, or extend your strengths and interests.
  • Begin to check the websites of health professions schools in your home state (or ones that you are interested in) to see what they look for in applicants and their requirements and policies.  

OVERALL... Learn for the love of learning.  Get involved.  Serve those in need.  Volunteer.  Lead.  Enjoy your time at Duke and grow.

If you are new to prehealth:

  1. Register with HPA to receive announcements and updates.
  2. Learn about diverse health professions to strengthen your understanding of how healthcare careers collaborate.
  3. Review the Prepare section of our website as you begin to explore health professions.    
  4. Use course planning resources to help you decide on courses to take.

If you have been following along since first year, follow the sophomore curriculum below. 

  1. HPA 101: Prehealth Welcome Event - If you're considering a path in the health professions, this is a foundational orientation experience you won’t want to miss. If you were unable to attend, please listen to the recording and check-in before attending drop-in advising.
  2. HPA 120: Creating a Prehealth BluePrint -This session is designed for first-year students or students who are new to prehealth at Duke. HPA advisors will discuss common course and experience requirements; dive into the Core Competencies; help you think about your values and priorities so you can make plans. We’ll bust some common myths and increase your confidence in making choices that are best for you. Use this session to get a jump start on planning your prehealth journey.  If you were unable to attend, please listen to the recording.
  3. HPA 130-Prehealth Foundation: What to do and Why- Do you want to pursue a research opportunity or a volunteer role with patients this spring?  Find experiences near home or apply to programs elsewhere this summer?  The choices ahead can feel overwhelming, but only YOU are qualified to create your unique path toward a career in healthcare.  HPA advisors will help you understand the WHY behind categories of experiences, WHAT constitutes a quality endeavor, and HOW to start recording and reflecting upon each activity.  We will also share resources for finding summer opportunities.
  4. HPA 140-Four-Year Planning Workshop- First-year students and anyone new to prehealth are invited to join advisors at the Four-Year Planning Workshop, where you will create a flexible four-year plan focused on prehealth coursework. During the workshop, you will explore whether you can complete prehealth requirements alongside different combinations of majors, minors, and certificates. You’ll also see how experiences such as study abroad, DukeEngage, research, or other high‑impact opportunities can fit into your academic and personal priorities. In addition, the workshop will help you think through how to use your summers, when to take standardized tests, and how a gap year might strengthen both your Duke experience and your professional school application. To prepare, review the requirements for your intended health profession (see Course Requirements by Career Type. [Click here to access the workshop materials
  • If you are new to prehealth, register with HPA to receive announcements and updates; and set up an introductory appointment with your assigned advisor.
  • Begin or continue research; consider enrolling in a research independent study for credit, or complete an honors thesis and graduate with distinction.
  • Watch the prehealth email listserv for announcements and opportunities.
  • Check the websites of schools in your state and any others you may apply to for changes in required courses or experience, in case you need to add courses or experiences..
  • Keep in contact with professors from previous years and get to know your professors this year; begin to think about who you will ask for letters of recommendation.
  • If you are not doing as well as you'd like academically, seek advice from your professors, the Academic Resource Center and your Prehealth Advisor. 
  • If you intend to apply to health professions schools soon, read the Apply Section. The HPA curriculum begins in the fall in preparation for summer applications .
  • Decide when you will take the MCAT or other standardized exam and allow sufficient time to review for it.
  • Make plans for a gap year if appropriate.
  • Use a non-Duke email address when you apply to schools, as your Duke email address is discontinued a year after you graduate.