Admission Requirements and Application Process

For admission to Loma Linda University School of Medicine, applicants are expected to have completed a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university in the United States or Canada prior to matriculation. The degree can be in any field of study with the recommendation that the applicant advance beyond the basic courses of the chosen field.  No major field is given preference. A curriculum that includes the study of humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences is recommended to provide a solid preparation for the MCAT, medical school, and the future role as a physician.

Students currently in a degree-granting program must complete all degree requirements and provide documentation of graduation or completion of requirements prior to matriculation.

On rare occasions, academically exceptional applicants may be considered for admission who have completed a minimum of 90 semester/135 quarter hours at an accredited college or university in the United States or Canada.

Required courses must be completed at an accredited college or university in the United States or Canada. We recommend the required courses be taken at a four-year institution. The following courses are required for consideration:

 NOTE:  CLEP and pass/fail performances are not acceptable for the science required courses. However, an exception is made for pass/fail coursework taken during the winter/spring 2020 academic terms. Additionally, science credits earned in professional schools (e.g., allied health professions, business, dentistry, nursing or pharmacy) do not fulfill requirements for admission to medicine. Advanced Placement (AP) credits for the required science courses generally are not accepted; but, if the applicant’s undergraduate institution has accepted the AP credits, upper division science courses in the same area may be substituted for the required credit hours. Online coursework and labs taken at accredited institutions are acceptable.

All applicants must complete the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) prior to consideration by the Admissions Committee.  The MCAT tests for knowledge gained from the required science courses. The test must be taken no later than September of the year prior to anticipated matriculation. MCAT scores older than three years from the date of matriculation are not considered. For the 2026 application cycle, the earliest MCAT accepted is one taken any time in 2023.

Applicants are required to obtain physician shadowing experience and direct patient care exposure to better inform their decision for a career in medicine.

Loma Linda University School of Medicine candidates for the MD degree must have abilities and skills of five varieties, including: observation; communication; motor; intellectual (conceptual, integrative, and quantitative); behavioral and social. Technological compensation can be made for some disabilities in certain areas, but a candidate should be able to perform in a reasonably independent manner without the use of a surrogate.

OBSERVATION: The student must be able to observe demonstrations and experiments in the basic sciences, including but not limited to high-fidelity simulations, microbiologic cultures, and microscopic studies of microorganisms and tissues in normal and pathologic states. A student must be able to observe a patient accurately at a distance and close at hand. Observation necessitates the functional use of the senses of vision, touch, hearing, and somatic sensation. It is enhanced by the functional use of the sense of smell.

COMMUNICATION: A student must be able to speak, to hear, and to observe patients in order to elicit information; describe changes in mood, activity, and posture; and perceive nonverbal communications. A student must be able to communicate effectively and sensitively with patients, colleagues, and other personnel. Communication includes not only speech but also reading and writing. The student must be able to communicate effectively and efficiently in oral and written form with all members of the health care team.

MOTOR FUNCTION: Students must have sufficient motor function to elicit information from patients by palpation, auscultation, percussion, and other diagnostic maneuvers. A candidate should be able to do basic laboratory tests (urinalysis, CBC, etc.); carry out diagnostic procedures (intravenous line placement, paracentesis, etc.); and read EKGs and X-rays. A candidate should be able to execute motor movements reasonably required to provide general care and emergency treatment of patients. Examples of emergency treatment reasonably required of physicians are cardiopulmonary resuscitation, the administration of intravenous medication, the application of pressure to stop bleeding, the opening of obstructed airways, the suturing of simple wounds, and the performance of simple obstetrical maneuvers. Such actions require coordination of both gross and fine muscular movements, equilibrium, and functional use of the senses of touch and vision.

INTELLECTUAL-CONCEPTUAL, INTEGRATIVE, AND QUALITATIVE ABILITIES: These abilities include measurement, calculation, reasoning, analysis, and synthesis. Problem solving, the critical skill demanded of physicians, requires all of these intellectual abilities. In addition, the -student must be able to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and to understand the spatial relationships of structures.

BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL ATTRIBUTES: Medical students must possess the emotional health required for appropriate utilization of their intellectual abilities, the exercise of good judgment, and the timely completion of all responsibilities attendant to their academic work, teamwork, and patient care. They must demonstrate the ability to develop mature, sensitive, and effective professional relationships with peers, faculty, staff, members of the health-care team, and patients. Medical students must demonstrate empathy, and concern for others while respecting appropriate personal and professional boundaries. Medical students must demonstrate integrity as manifested by truthfulness, acceptance of responsibility for one’s actions, accountability for mistakes, and the ability to place the well-being of the patient above their own when necessary. They must be able to tolerate demanding workloads and to function effectively under stress. They must be able to adapt to changing environments, to display flexibility and to learn to function in the face of uncertainties inherent in the medical education and clinical practice settings. 

Federal and state law and Loma Linda University policy require the School of Medicine to provide students who have disabilities, and who are able to meet the technical standards of the School of Medicine, reasonable accommodation in its academic programs.