Course selection matters if you are completing coursework at a community college or another institution before coming to NIU.
For pre-health students, it is important to look beyond whether a course simply transfers to NIU. Which NIU course it transfers as can affect what you are able to take next.
Before registering, use NIU's transfer articulation tables to review established course equivalencies between NIU and your current institution.
If you begin biology before transferring, look for courses that transfer to NIU as:
When possible, you may also consider completing courses equivalent to:
Do not assume that any introductory biology course will provide the same preparation. A biology course may transfer to NIU for credit without being equivalent to the BIOS 208/210 sequence needed to continue into many upper-level biology courses.
If you begin chemistry before transferring, look for a general chemistry course and laboratory that transfer to NIU as:
If you continue the sequence before transferring, look for coursework equivalent to:
Introductory chemistry coursework that transfers as CHEM 110/111 may provide useful preparation but generally does not replace the general chemistry sequence required for many pre-health pathways.
Students pursuing healthcare professions that require a full anatomy and physiology sequence should consider completing Anatomy and Physiology I and II before transferring to NIU.
NIU does not offer a traditional two-semester Anatomy and Physiology I and II sequence, so completing the full sequence at your community college can simplify prerequisite planning for professional programs that specifically require two semesters of anatomy and physiology.
When possible, complete both courses at the same institution and include laboratory components when required by your intended professional programs.
If your intended healthcare pathway requires physics, consider completing Physics I and Physics II with laboratories before transferring.
Completing the full physics sequence at one institution provides continuity and can simplify your remaining science course planning after you arrive at NIU. When possible, avoid splitting Physics I and Physics II between institutions.
Statistics is required or recommended for many health-professions programs. If you plan to complete statistics before transferring, consider selecting a course that transfers to NIU as:
Psychology and sociology coursework can also be useful to complete before transferring, depending on your intended profession.
Courses such as introductory psychology, lifespan or developmental psychology, abnormal psychology and introductory sociology may satisfy prerequisites for some professional programs or provide useful preparation for entrance examinations such as the MCAT.
Completing transferable general education requirements before coming to NIU can create more room in your NIU schedule for science prerequisites, upper-level sciences, major requirements and experiences outside the classroom.
This can give you greater flexibility to pursue clinical experience, shadowing, research, community service, leadership, student organizations and other activities important to your pre-health development.
Course titles alone are not enough to determine whether a class will transfer as the NIU course you need. Before registering for coursework at another institution, use NIU's Transfer Articulation Tables to confirm established equivalencies.
This is particularly important for biology and chemistry. For example, a course called “General Biology” at another institution may not necessarily transfer as BIOS 208/210, and a course called “General Chemistry” may not necessarily transfer as CHEM 210/212.
Checking before you register can help prevent delays in beginning the next course in your science sequence after transferring.
It is important to note that NIU transfer credit and professional school requirements are not the same thing. An NIU course equivalency tells you how coursework transfers to NIU. It does not guarantee that the course will satisfy the prerequisite requirements of every professional school.
Medical, dental, physician assistant/associate, pharmacy, veterinary and other professional programs establish their own admission requirements and policies regarding:
As you begin developing a professional school list, research the requirements of the individual programs you are considering rather than assuming that all schools follow the same policies.
Medical schools vary in how they evaluate prerequisite coursework completed at a community college.
The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) provides a Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR) report on community college coursework (PDF) that allows students to review policies reported by individual M.D. programs.
Students planning for medical school should use this information as part of their school research and continue to verify current prerequisite requirements with individual medical schools.
Pre-health Professions Program
prehealth@niu.edu