Georgia has some of the very best pre-med schools in the entire country.
By signing up for pre-med, a student agrees to take a set of predetermined courses that prepare them for any medical school. Beyond these designated courses, a student can take any major that they wish.
Often, students find themselves signing up for a major in the sciences, like biology or chemistry, but this does not have to be the case.
There are, in fact, many successful doctors and health practitioners all over the world that majored in something besides science for their undergraduate degree.
When a medical school selection committee reviews a student’s application, they want to see that the student is prepared for medical school – good grades and a solid MCAT score – and they also want to see that the student is passionate about working with them people.
Taking advantage of the opportunities of an undergraduate college program. and the community that the school is in, is just as important as the courses you take and the grades you receive.
Many schools that offer a pre-med course load know this and have skilled advisors that help them seek out quality internships and community service opportunities that look good on medical school admissions applications.
Each of the schools we list offers a pre-med track within the major that the student wishes to pursue an undergraduate degree in. These schools have a proven track record of providing quality programs that successfully prepare students for the rigors of medical school.
And, they’re all in Georgia.
On our list today of pre-med schools, numbers 1-9 are based on the total number of applicants each school supplies to medical school as measured by the AAMC. Number 10 was selected by College Gazette for its excellence in pre-medicine.
Here are the 10 bests pre-med schools in Georgia.
10. Georgia College (Milledgeville, GA)
Georgia College has been offering a specific mentoring program for pre-med students since 2008. The Georgia College Pre-Med Mentoring Program was designed by doctors for future doctors and medical practitioners.
The Pre-Med Program at Georgia College offers students an individualized and tailored program to ensure that each student is successful in medical school and develops critical interpersonal skills.
Each year, the Pre-Med Program admits 8-10 students to work closely with faculty and working professionals at partnering clinics and hospitals.
The Georgia College Program is so successful that since it was created 14 years ago, 100% of its students have been admitted into medical school upon graduation!
Currently, students enrolled in the Pre-Med Program at GCSU will work with Dr. Ashok Hegde, who runs the program, is a neuroscientist with decades of experience, and serves as the mentor for each student during their education.
9. Augusta State University (Augusta, GA)
Augusta State University offers students a choice in how they want to prepare for medical school in the future. Students may choose to enroll in any major they are interested in and take pre-med courses after their first two years of a successful school.
At this point, they are given a pre-med specific advisor who will help them along the path to placement in a medical school of the student’s choosing.
The other option students have at Augusta State University is to apply for the Professional Scholars Programs, where students are placed on a rigorous and successful track through medical school in 7 years.
Students who are accepted into this program take the majority of their courses in a cohort that works together to prepare for medical school and a career in medicine both in and out of the classroom.
Upon entering the program, students will take an accelerated course load to receive a BS in Cell and Molecular Biology. Students in ASU’s Professional Scholars Programs may then choose between the Medical College of Georgia or the Dental College of Georgia based on their desired field of practice.
8. Kennesaw State University (Kennesaw, GA)
Kennesaw State University has a wide variety of options for students to consider as a major while pursuing medical school.
The most common track for pre-med students at Kennesaw State is to earn a Bachelor of Science in Biology degree and a concentration in Pre-Med.
An undergraduate degree path in biology offers students access to the extensive expertise of the faculty, including advisors, and participation in the extraordinary research work being done in biology at Kennesaw State University.
Being a part of this research means opening the door to a world of opportunities such as scholarships like the Birla Carbon Scholars Program.
7. Georgia Southern University (Statesboro, GA)
Students interested in going pre-med at Georgia Southern University have access to the office of Pre-Professional Advising on the GSU campus even before they apply to the school.
This office has a team of experienced advisors who will guide students on a successful path to placement in a medical school of their choice.
Being a pre-med student at Georgia Southern University means having an advisor and a track specific to the needs of pre-med.
It also means to have a guaranteed interview to go to medical school with a partner school to Georgia Southern University. Currently, the school offers a partnership with the University of Medicine and Health Sciences on the Caribbean island of St. Kitts.
The UMHS and GSU partnership allows students to go to a high-achieving medical school in a beautiful and inspiring location.
With small class sizes, affordable tuition, and a 96% retention rate, the University of Medicine and Health Sciences provides four semesters of quality medical school instruction before an additional year at an affiliate school in another state of the student’s choosing.
6. Spelman College (Atlanta, GA)
Spelman College is a private women’s college that has a high success rate and a proven track record for providing quality students to medical schools across the US.
The success of Spelman College is due to its specific Health Careers Program, which trains students toward a medical career.
Participation in the Health Careers Program means individualized guidance in both a student’s plan of study and their extracurricular activities. Spelman College sets up countless opportunities for its pre-medical students to interact with working medical professionals, gaining powerful connections and insight into the profession.
The Spelman College Health Careers Program has placed over 800 women into high-quality medical schools since its inception in the 1970s!
5. Mercer University (Macon, GA)
Students interested in pre-med at Mercer University will be placed with an advisor in their specific Pre-Health Programs Advising Office.
Even though students at Mercer University want to go into the medical field can earn any bachelor’s degree, their pre-health advisor will keep them on track toward medical school.
Pre-Med students at Mercer University can also apply to take part in their Special Considerations Programs, which creates an express track for students to be accepted into Mercer University School of Medicine during their undergraduate coursework.
It is no wonder that Mercer University has a much higher acceptance rate into medical school than the national average.
4. Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta, GA)
Even though Georgia Tech is best known as a top engineering and technical school, it also offers a highly sought-after pre-medical track that has a reputation for placing students in top medical schools.
The Georgia Tech Pre-Med Advising Office provides students with placement and career-specific information to help students create a medical school application that will get noticed. With a strong emphasis on community, Georgia Tech believes that the key to success is having the support of others.
The Pre-Med Advising Office runs an online platform called Piazza, that allows students to connect with pre-health faculty and other students to ask questions as they come up.
In addition, the Advising Office holds daily group advising sessions for pre-med students and has open office hours for students to show up in person at their convenience.
3. Georgia State University (Atlanta, GA)
The US News & World Report in 2022 ranked Georgia State the number 2 school in the US for undergraduate teaching and the number 2 most innovative university in the US.
A pre-med student at Georgia State University can choose to follow a degree path specific for enrolling in medical school upon graduation.
With all coursework pre-determined, students can feel confident they are completing everything they need for a quality med-school application.
When bumps in the road toward medical school come up, students have a variety of resources available to them, including workshops, seminars, and a specific pre-medical advisor.
The Pre-Med Advising Office also organizes the Health Professions Fair that happens annually, bringing in medical practitioners to speak about their careers and talk with students one-on-one.
2. Emory University (Atlanta, GA)
Emory University is well known for being a leader in health and science research. In addition to having one of the nation’s best medical schools, Emory University also has an outstanding Pre-Health Advising Program.
Emory has recognized that successful medical professionals possess nine core qualities that are of the utmost importance for people wishing to pursue a career in medicine.
The Pre-Med Program at Emory focuses specifically on the development of these competencies to ensure student success as medical professionals.
Students taking a pre-med track at Emory are regularly exposed to a wide variety of fields and opportunities. In a partnership with the Emory School of Medicine, pre-med students can learn about 12 different health fields they could choose to specialize in and tailor their course load accordingly.
1. University of Georgia (Athens, GA)
The Pre-Professional Advising Office at the University of Georgia has organized specifically what each student will need to study for a successful career in medicine.
Their Pre-Health Matrix gives students a general overview of the work that is required of them in each chosen career path. This transparency helps students work toward specific academic goals.
Pre-Med students at the University of Georgia are encouraged to be involved in as much as possible throughout the length of their undergraduate course.
The large University of Georgia campus has specialty student organizations that find opportunities to participate in the community. These volunteer activities, and membership in the organizations, are extremely valuable to a medical school application.
The University of Georgia allows its pre-med students to focus on any bachelor’s degree they choose but has created a specialty track for medical school with its partner school, the Medical College of Georgia.
Through the AU/UGA Partnership, the schools give students the ability to take their undergraduate coursework at UGA with special consideration and reduced tuition at the Medical College of Georgia upon completion and acceptance. This program has been running since 2009 in hopes of addressing the State of Georgia’s shortage of medical professionals.
