A Look at Yale School of Medicine Prerequisites

If you’re planning to apply to a U.S. MD program, one of the first questions you’ll probably ask is:

“What courses do medical schools actually require?”

Unlike some countries, the United States doesn’t have a fixed “pre-med major.” Instead, medical schools expect applicants to complete a set of foundational science courses during their undergraduate studies.

To make things concrete, let’s use the requirements from the Yale School of Medicine as an example.

According to Yale’s admissions guidelines, applicants must complete several core science courses with laboratory work before matriculating. These courses build the scientific foundation needed for medical training.

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Core Prerequisite Courses for Yale MD Applicants

The required coursework includes:

• General Biology (2 semesters)
• General Chemistry (2 semesters)
• Organic Chemistry (1 semester)
• Biochemistry (1 semester)
• General Physics (2 semesters)

These courses must typically be taken at a U.S., U.K., or Canadian university before entering medical school.

Below is what these courses usually look like at a typical U.S. university.

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Typical University Courses That Fulfill These Requirements

Medical School Requirement	Example Course Code	Course Title	Example Course Description
General Biology I	BIOL 110	Principles of Biology I	Introduces cellular structure, genetics, molecular biology, and evolution. Includes laboratory experiments exploring cell processes and biological systems.
General Biology II	BIOL 111	Principles of Biology II	Covers organismal biology, physiology, ecology, and biodiversity. Lab sections often include microscopy and organism studies.
General Chemistry I	CHEM 131	General Chemistry I	Fundamental chemical principles including atomic structure, chemical bonding, stoichiometry, and thermodynamics. Laboratory focuses on basic analytical techniques.
General Chemistry II	CHEM 132	General Chemistry II	Topics include chemical kinetics, equilibrium, acids and bases, electrochemistry, and molecular structure. Lab emphasizes quantitative analysis.
Organic Chemistry	CHEM 241	Organic Chemistry I	Study of carbon-based molecules, functional groups, stereochemistry, and reaction mechanisms. Lab work focuses on synthesis and structural analysis of organic compounds.
Biochemistry	BIOL 280 / CHEM 310	Biochemistry	Explores the chemistry of living systems including proteins, enzymes, metabolism, DNA replication, and cellular signaling pathways.
General Physics I	PHYS 2030	University Physics I	Introduces mechanics, energy, motion, and forces. Often includes examples relevant to biological systems.
General Physics II	PHYS 2040	University Physics II	Covers electricity, magnetism, optics, and wave phenomena, with laboratory experiments on circuits and electromagnetism.

These course sequences are typical across U.S. universities and often follow similar numbering systems such as BIOL 101/102 or CHEM 101/102 depending on the institution.

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Recommended (But Not Always Required) Courses

Although Yale only lists a few formal prerequisites, many pre-med advisors recommend taking additional courses such as:

• Statistics or Biostatistics
• Genetics
• Cell Biology
• Physiology
• Psychology and Sociology

These subjects appear on the MCAT exam and help students better understand medical science.

For example, Yale recently noted that biostatistics will become recommended starting in the 2026–2027 application cycle.

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Want to know more about how medical schools evaluate your applications as an international applicant? Check out these posts: Which U.S. Medical Schools (MD) Accept International Students in 2024? and U.S. Medical Schools with Real International Student acceptance and matriculation (24-25).