Pre-Professional Medical Sciences, Certificate, Post-Baccalaureate

Offered by the Department of Chemistry and Physics

---

Mansfield University’s Post Baccalaureate Pre-Professional School Programs provide the coursework, advising, and opportunities needed to meet a wide range of different student needs.

These programs are great for:

• Individuals who already have a Bachelor’s degree but are lacking the specific science prerequisites for professional school (considered a career change).  One to two-year program, depending on previous coursework.
• Individuals who have completed many of the prerequisite courses but are aiming to improve their understanding of the course material and thereby improve their GPA.  One to two-year program; specific to each individual’s previous grades.

These programs provide:

• Affordability:  Courses for each program were hand-selected as an important requirement for admittance to Professional Schools.  For reach required course, courses previously taken will be accepted if a B or better was earned as part of a BS or BA degree.
• Individuality:  Each student will work with an advisor to determine and create a program catered to each student’s needs.  The student’s long term goals and previous transcripts will be discussed to create an individualized program plan.
• Option to boost GPA:  For those students who have already earned a BS or BA in Biology or a related field, students can retake specific courses.  Each student will work with an advisor to create an individualized program plan and will have a choice as to which and how many courses should be retaken.

Mansfield University’s Post Baccalaureate Pre-Professional School Programs Include a Post Baccalaureate Certificate in:

• Pre-Dentistry
• Pre-Medicine / Biomedical Studies
• Pre-Physician Assistant
• Pre-Veterinary Medicine

General Course Requirements:  Year One

                                                    Fall:                              Spring:

Biology Requirement:                     Genetics                        Cell Biology

Physics Requirement:                     General Physics 1*          General Physics 2*

Chemistry Requirement:                 General Chemistry 1        General Chemistry 2

*In the Pre-Physician Assistant Program, Human Anatomy & Physiology will be taken in place of Physics.

General  Course Requirements:  Year Two

                                                     Fall:                                      Spring:

Biology / Math Requirement:             Microbiology                          Calculus*

Biology Requirement / Elective:          Biochemistry*                       Elective 1

Chemistry Requirement:                   Organic Chemistry 1               Organic Chemistry 2

*In the Pre-Physician Assistant Program, Statistics will be taken in place of Calculus, and an additional Elective will be taken in place of Biochemistry.

Electives by Program:

• Pre-Dentistry:  Molecular Biology
• Pre-Medicine / Biomedical Studies:  Human Anatomy & Physiology, Immunology, Molecular Biology, Statistics, Nutrition
• Pre-Physician Assistant:  Nutrition, Behavioral Sciences such as Psychology
• Pre-Veterinary Medicine:  Physiology, Parasitology

Certificate Requirements:

A minimum of four out of the 12 required courses must be taken at Mansfield University (up to eight previously taken courses may be counted towards the certificate).  A minimum course grade of a B or better is required for each course to be counted towards the certificate.

Additional Benefits of Mansfield University’s Post Baccalaureate Pre-Professional School Programs include volunteer and shadowing opportunities.  Mansfield University has connections to Dentistry, Medical, and Veterinary Centers and we can provide referrals and placement in these centers.  Such positions enable students to gain invaluable first-hand experience in their field of interest.

Program Description:

The Post Baccalaureate Pre-Professional Program is designed to provide required and recommended coursework for applying to professional programs in the medical sciences.  The Post Baccalaureate Pre-Professional Program has two tracks:  Career Change or Career Enhancer.  The Career Change track includes a variety of basic science programs for those students who never had the coursework in biology, chemistry, and physics that graduate and professional schools require.  The Career Enhancer track is an advanced science program for students who already hold a BS or BA in Biology or Chemistry or other related field but did not earn high enough grades to be a competitive graduate or medical school applicant.

Program Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of this programs, students will have a strong foundation in the knowledge and skills required to enter into a professional program in the medical sciences.

• Each student will demonstrate an appropriate level of conceptual understanding of biological and chemical concepts.
• Instrumentation Skills - Each student will be able to operate the various scientific instruments in the Biology and Chemistry departments correctly, and without help, to collect experimental data.  All students will be monitored in laboratory classes (using a checklist) to ensure that they have appropriate levels of skills using laboratory instrumentation.  Students will show the appropriate level of proficiency for each scientific instrument.
• Laboratory Skills - Each student will use correct laboratory techniques to collect data All students will show the appropriate level of proficiency for each laboratory skill (technique).