University of Maryland School of Medicine: How to Get In

Mission Statement

“The University of Maryland School of Medicine is dedicated to providing excellence in biomedical education, basic and clinical research, quality patient care and service to improve the health of the citizens of Maryland and beyond. The School is committed to the education and training of medical, MD/PhD, graduate, physical therapy and medical and research technology students. We will recruit and develop faculty to serve as exemplary role models for our students.”

The fact the statement mentions “biomedical education” and “basic, and clinical research” tells you that it is proud of its well-earned reputation for advances in translational medicine and science. The USCOM boasts close to 50 different research centers on campus and counts several distinguished professors, physicians, and research scientists among its faculty including winners of the Albert E. Lasker Award in Medical Research.

Want to know how to improve your MCAT CARS score in 1 week? Watch this video:

Admissions Statistics

Overall Acceptance Rate: 2.2%

In-State Acceptance Rate: 10.5%

Out-of-State Acceptance Rate: 0.8%

Average MCAT of Incoming Students: 513

Average GPA of Incoming Students: 3.77

Preference for master’s or PhD: No

 Accepted Applicants Experience

Eligibility

The UMSOM is very open about its wide-ranging candidate profile, as it accepts out-of-state students, Canadian applicants, and applicants with DACA status (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), even though it does also show a preference for Maryland residents. International students may apply, but must, at least, complete either the requisite course work or a bachelor’s degree at a university or college in North America to be given serious consideration. Based on the latest medical school acceptance rates, the UMSOM rarely admits international students, especially if they do not have an academic history in the US or Canada.

Selection Factors

Average MCAT of Incoming Class: 513

Average Overall GPA of Incoming Class: 3.77

The UMSOM does not have either a minimum GPA or MCAT score that students must meet to be considered. The school takes a holistic approach to considering all medical school applications and reviews several factors beyond your GPA and MCAT when making admissions decisions. It does look at the progression of your GPA, as well as your graduate GPA so you should be aware of that should you pursue a Master’s or a PhD. The fact that the UMSOM does not have a minimum GPA means you do not have to search for how you can get into medical school with a low GPA, since your entire academic history will be judged, not only your current score.

Coursework and Undergrad

The UMSOM does have a preference for applicants with a bachelor’s degree but it does not make it a requirement for applicants. In keeping with the school’s drive to create a more diverse and inclusive class of medical students, it does not have any specific degree or credit requirements, but does have a list of medical school prerequisites and competencies that students should have above-average familiarity with such as science and math.

As it encourages non-traditional medical school applicants to apply, the school also accepts online coursework, community college credits and advanced placement courses as acceptable ways to meet the prerequisites. However, preference will be shown to candidates who have a bachelor’s degree, have completed their course work in-class, at a four-year institution and have completed the course work in the five years prior to applying.

Prerequisites and Recommended Courses

The school has a list of required subjects based on the AAMC Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students that students must demonstrate some facility with to apply to the medical school. Students show their competency for these subjects through their official transcripts, GPA and MCAT scores. But also, through letters of recommendation from former professors or a pre-medical advisory committee, as well as through extracurriculars for medical school, such as how many clinical hours for medical school you have.

The Committee on Admissions requires all applicants to show competency in the following subjects:

• One year of Biological Sciences w/lab work
• One year of Chemical Sciences (general/inorganic) w/lab work
• One year of Organic Chemistry or half a semester of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry w/lab work
• One year of Physical Sciences w/lab work
• One year of English or writing-heavy course

The school also publishes a list of recommended courses for students to take if they want to improve their chances of acclimating to the medical school curriculum. Those courses are:

• Immunology
• Biochemistry
• Physiology
• Microbiology
• Genetics
• Epidemiology

AMCAS Work and Activities

The school considers several factors when deciding who to admit to the MD program. It expects all applicants to excel academically so it is more interesting in other unique qualities that a candidate possesses that set them apart. One unique aspect of the school’s application requirements is the required clinical (shadowing, observing, scribing, or interpreting) and non-medical volunteer experience it makes mandatory for all applicants.

These experiences give the Committee on Admissions a fuller picture of your “appropriate motivation for a career in medicine” and your “empathy and concern for helping others”, which are only two of the qualities the school looks for in all candidates, along with “leadership qualities”, “intellectual curiosity”, and “commitment to excellence”.

Candidates can expound further on which of these qualities they embody and how they have embodied them in the AMCAS personal statement aka AMCAS Personal Comments, and AMCAS Most Meaningful Experiences section. The UMSOM participates in the AMCAS application service, which is used by all medical schools in the US, except for osteopathic medical school applications and medical schools in Texas, who use the AACOMAS and TMDSAS, respectively.

Personal Statement

A medical school personal statement is where you can honestly state your motivations for pursuing a career in medicine to the Committee on Admissions, should you not make it to the interview stage. The AMCAS application service has a dedicated section on its online application for students to write their personal statement or Personal Comments essay, which is what AMCAS calls it, and is a mandatory requirement of completing the AMCAS application.

Students need to type an essay no longer than 5300 characters detailing what personal experiences led them to choose a career in medicine and what they have done in the interim to prepare for medical school and life as a doctor. Typically, you can use the personal statement to answer questions such as “why do you want to be a doctor”, “why should we choose you?”, and the “tell me about yourself” medical school interview question.

Secondary Essays

The school sends secondary applications to all primary AMCAS applicants, so it does not screen applicants based on their primary application. The UMSOM sends an email with the details, prompts and other documentation to all students who have submitted their complete AMCAS application on time. All students have until December 1 to submit their secondary application, or two weeks if they have been sent a secondary application after December 1.

Students must also write a medical school secondary essay based on one of the following medical school secondary essay prompts:

1. If you’ve experienced academic problems while in college and/or graduate or professional school please describe and explain below. Please be sure to include withdrawals, incompletes, poor grades, etc. (1000 characters)
2. If a specific medical school application activity was impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak, please describe the activity, the time period during which it was to take place, and any relevant contact information. (1000 characters)
3. Please explain what you will be doing during the 2022-2023 academic year. If you graduated/will graduate in 2022, what are your plans during this gap year? (1000 characters)
4. Please let us know if you have a specific reason you are interested in attending the University of Maryland School of Medicine, and/or if you have any special ties to our institution (optional). (1000 characters)
5. Briefly describe your most important exposure to clinical medicine. (1500 characters)
6. Briefly describe your most satisfying experience related to community service. (1500 characters)
7. Without limiting the discussion to your own identity, please describe how you envision contributing to the core values of diversity and inclusion at our School of Medicine, and in the medical profession. (1500 characters)
8. What does it mean to you to enter into a profession? (1500 characters)

Sample Answer to Question #4

When my mother found a lump in her breast, she found it early. Her doctor prescribed hormone blockers. She started treatment on Tamoxifen and she improved. Eventually, her cancer went into remission and we all breathed a sigh of relief at my mother’s luck. A year later the cancer came back. 

This time the cancer was aggressive. That’s when Aromasin came into my life. Aromasin stood out because it was the one that my mother complained about the most. It had the most painful side effects but I told her that it was an effective drug, especially for her women her age whose cancers have come back. Her cancer went into remission yet again, and has been for some time now.

When she was taking the drug, I looked it up and found that Angela Brodie developed steroidal aromatase inhibitors here at the Greenebaum Cancer Center and that is my connection to the UMSOM. My mother’s life, and by extension, mine, would not be the same if those drugs had not been developed and I want to carry on the work done by scientists such as Angie Broadie so more mothers can survive a cancer diagnosis.

Recommendation Letters

The school does have specific requirements for medical school recommendation letters, and prefers students submit a single letter from a premedical advisory committee, although it does make accommodations to students who cannot obtain or provide this letter. In lieu of a premedical advisory committee letters, the school requires students to submit at least three letters from previous undergrad or graduate faculty, in any combination of science and non-science instructors (a minimum one science faculty member; a minimum of one non-science faculty member).

For applicants who have been out of school for a long time, the school makes a few accommodations. If that is the case, you can submit recommendation letters from long-time employers or supervisors, but you should make every effort to get a recommendation letter from an academic source, as well. If you have been in the military, the school will accept a letter from your commanding officer. But all applicants should refrain from submitting letters written by friends, family members or public figures such as politicians.

Interview Format(s)

Medical school interviews have been held virtually for the duration of the pandemic, but the UMSOM may soon have in-person interview days in the next application cycle. Similar to many other medical schools, the UMSOM hold a special “Interview Day” for all invited applicants to attend a presentation by the Dean of the Medical School, attend information sessions, take a tour of the campus and lunch with current medical school students.

The interview format consists of two panel interviews with either a faculty member and a current student or two faculty members. The interview is open-file so your interviewers will have your full application package (primary, secondary, MCAT, GPA) in front of them during the interview.

Sample Interview Questions

1. “Why our school?”
2. “How is climate change a medical issue?”
3. “If you could change one thing about health care, what would you change?”

Sample Answer #2

Climate change is most definitely a medical issue if it threatens the continuation of all human life on this planet. As it is “man-made” the only ones to face the lasting consequences of climate change will be us, since the planet and other forms of life will continue long after people are gone. But, even in the short-term, the respiratory problems faced by people living in over-polluted cities who live in buildings and apartment blocks that trap heat or the fact that hazardous waste and chemical plants are routinely located in economically depressed areas means that climate change is not only a medical issue, but a social, cultural and economic issue as well. 

Acceptance and Waitlist Information

The school uses a rolling admissions policy to notify applicants of their status following their medical school interview. Following your interview, the Committee on Admissions will review every application carefully and make a decision based on several factors, such as the ones already discussed. Students who have interviewed will be notified in writing of their application status, which will either be: acceptance; waitlist; rejection.

The school takes anywhere between four to six weeks to notify applicants of their status and it discourages students from contacting the school, Office of Admissions or any other school representative on the status of your application. Students are waitlisted if they meet or exceed the stated requirements but there are not enough spots to accommodate them (every class typically has 150 spots).

Students who do end up on the medical school waitlist will be told where they rank (first or second-tier) and are encouraged to send any academic or non-academic updates to the Office of Admissions if they have any, such as completion of an outstanding prerequisite or a new clinical experience.

According to official data, up to 15 students are admitted from the waitlist every year, although that figure may change with the number of applicants and whether accepted students decline or accept their offers. Rejected students are encouraged to consult with a premed advisor to review their failed application, as the school will not provide any advice or counsel for rejected applicants, although it does encourage them to re-apply.

Application Timeline

Primary AMCAS Application Deadline: November 1

Secondary Application Deadline: December 1 or two weeks after receiving application

Like all medical schools, the UMSOM recommends all applicants submit their applications well before official deadlines. Applicants should take into the account the number of applications the Office of Admissions takes in every year (close to 6000 last year) when thinking about when to submit their application and whether they want a prompt response or not. The school reviews all applications up to late January, which is when it also begins sending out initial interview dates. The Committee on Admissions begins sending out acceptance by March continuing until April.

Tuition and Debt

In-State Tuition: $ 38,573

Out-of-State Tuition: $ 68,249

Average Yearly Cost-of-Living Expenses (in-state and out-of-state): $ 26,500

Average Debt of Graduating Students: $151,725

Funding Opportunities

There are many funding opportunities and financial advising services available to all medical students to find out how to pay for medical school. Close to $150 million in financial aid is distributed to medical students annually from a variety of sources including federal and state loans, private contributions, scholarships, grants, and work-study programs. The school and its various benefactors also provide medical school scholarships to exceptional students who either excel academically, demonstrate financial need or a combination of both.

1. Hans R. Wilhelmsen Memorial Scholarship Fund for Dental and Medical Education

This scholarship is only for dental school graduates who have decided to pursue a medical degree afterward, and vice-versa. Medical school graduates who also wish to become dentists can also apply. The second degree in either case must be taken at the UMSOM or UMSOD, but the first degree can be from any accredited school. The scholarship is also based on financial need and every successful applicant receives an award of $1200.

2. Jon Christian Merkel Scholarship Fund

The Jon Cristian Merkel Scholarship is that rare scholarship that combines three eligibility categories: academic excellence, service-oriented, and financial need. Students who demonstrate all three categories can apply for this scholarship, which is available to all students at the UMSOM. The prize amounts to $2000 per student.

3. Lois Young-Thomas Memorial Scholarship and Leadership Guild Endowment

Any full-time student enrolled at any of the professional health sciences school, undergraduate or graduate program at the UM Baltimore can apply for this scholarship, although first-year students are given preference. However, the scholarship is open only to residents of Maryland and preference will also be given to those applicants who desire to practice in the state. Eligible applicants must also demonstrate financial need and show leadership and community service achievements to qualify for the $7500/per student prize.

4. PNC (Mercantile) Scholarship Endowment

This endowment has only a few eligibility requirements including students enrolled at either the UMSOM or the University of Maryland Baltimore as an undergraduate or graduate student enrolled in a professional program. Students who demonstrate financial need and express an interest in performing community service are given preference for the $1500/per student prize.

5. Presidential Scholarship Fund for the University of Maryland

Students enrolled at the UMSOM or the entire University of Maryland school system can apply to this scholarship. The award is intended to recognize academic excellence in eligible applicants as well as support those who show financial need to pay for college or medical school. Applicants who also show a demonstrated interest in serving the community at large are also given preference.

Residency Match Rates

The school reports a near-perfect match rate for its students of a 99% of all UMSOM graduates matched to their first-choice on their rank order list. Based on the latest statistics, many UMSOM graduates opted for primary care specialties to complete their residency training. Many students chose either a family medicine residency, internal medicine residency but others opted for something more specialized such as anesthesiology and neurology.

Review of Available Programs

1. Four-Year MD Program

The UMSOM has implemented a new curriculum that is shorter than the previous one. The new curriculum integrates clinical skills, medical foundations and basic science courses into single modules allowing the school to shorten the pre-clerkship phase to 68 weeks from the previous 73 weeks.

The Renaissance Curriculum also allows students to take electives that promote inclusivity in medicine, such as the START Track, which aims to educate students on the special needs of at-risk LGTBQ+ youth through a series of lectures by endocrinology experts along with in-person educational sessions with HIV and transgender patients.

Students can also take pre-clerkship and clerkship rotations electives with a distinct focus on issues affecting minority groups in health care, such as providing outpatient care to people living with HIV. Third and fourth-year students can also participate in two symposiums examining themes of Social Justice and Humanism in Medicine.

The rest of the curriculum resembles others in terms of subject matter and focus, as it uses the first two years of medical school to introduce students to medical science and hone their professional medical skills such as patient interaction and documenting histories. Something else that is unique to the UMSOM curriculum is the Foundations of Research and Critical Thinking thread that extends through all four years of medical school, and is an outgrowth from the school’s storied history as a center of innovation and medical breakthroughs.

Students learn about both the systems of the body and their abnormalities within the same module, which is what has shortened the first two years of medical school for UMSOM students. For example, students’ first such module is the Blood & Host Defense module followed by the Brain & Behavior, and then Digestion & Hormones to finish the first year.

The pre-clerkship phase was reduced, in part, to extend the clerkship phase from 40 weeks to 44 weeks to give medical students more opportunities to apply their learning in a wide variety of rotations and in a variety of medical specialties. They will learn how to prepare for clinical rotations spanning all of the basic medical specialties such as Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Surgery, and Family Medicine.

In their final year, students will combine various requirements and electives to graduate, while also preparing for their USMLE Step I and USMLE Step II board examinations. One of the requirements of the final years is the Back-to-Basics modules that are refresher science courses aimed at helping students refine their science skills to prepare them for how to choose a medical specialty.

2. MD/PhD

The MD/PhD program at UMSOM received close to 300 applications last year and admitted only 8 students but successful applicants benefit from the world-class research facilities and expert faculty who can pursue their interests in any of the six specialties within the program, which are:

• Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
• Epidemiology and Human Genetics
• Molecular Microbiology and Immunology
• Molecular Medicine
• Neuroscience and Bioengineering

All applicants must indicate on their primary AMCAS application whether they want to apply to the dual MD/PhD program, since it has two separate admission processes and you must submit a separate personal statement saying why you want to enter the program. Applicants must meet all the academic requirements of the MD program and the graduate school to be admitted. Students also interview for both programs, separately.

3. MD/MPH

One of the many dual-degree programs offered at UMSOM, the MD/MPH program offers interested students a chance to learn about the principles of public health, public health policy and other population-wide health care issues. Students take courses in one of three concentrations - Community and Population Health, Epidemiology, and Global Health - along with taking their medical school courses.

4. MD/Master in Clinical Research

This dual-degree program hopes to train future physicians in specialist research so they can formulate and carry-out their own research projects. The program aims to educate medical students in the basics of clinical research but also to perform other key functions of medical research such as interpretating data, conceptualizing new avenues of research, and writing grant and funding applications.

5. MD/Master in Cellular & Molecular Biomedical Science

Students interested in translational medicine and exploring how other aspects of biomedical science can improve human health can apply for this dual degree program. The program establishes a foundation of basic clinical research skills at the outset, but also delves into specific biomedical subjects and research areas such as physiology, cancer biology, genomics, and neuroscience.

6. MD/Master in Bioengineering

This degree program is a cross-collaboration between the UMSOM, A. James Clark School of Engineering, and the Fischell Department of Bioengineering, the latter both located at the University of Maryland College Park branch campus. This program is intended for students with science and engineering backgrounds and gives them advanced training in biomedical sciences so they can further research and discoveries in fields such as tissue fabrication, drug bioavailability, and imaging and diagnostics.

7. MD/Master in Health Administration

Students who want to enter administrative roles within public or private health care sectors are the main demographic for this dual degree program. The entire program teaches students how to liaise between various interests in the sphere of health care ranging from public and private institutions, local, state and federal agencies, as well as community groups and other stakeholders.

8. MD/Master in Public Policy

For students interested in affecting the way health care is delivered at various levels, the UMSOM, in collaboration with its branch campus at UM Baltimore, created this dual degree program to train medical students on the quantitative assessment of research data to affect public health policy. Students will also train on how to research the health care needs of various populations, while also studying the effects of current health care policies.

Campus and Faculty

The famed Davidge Hall, the oldest medical school building still in use in the US, is the centerpiece of the entire University of Maryland campus located in downtown Baltimore. The School of Medicine sits next to the School of Nursing and across the street from the other crown jewel in the university health system, University of Maryland Medical Center.

The UMMC is also across from the Baltimore Veterans Administration hospital, which is one more location where students perform their clinical rotations. The entire campus has over 50 different buildings consisting of educational facilities such as classroom, seminar and lecture rooms, along with the various research institutes located on campus.

There are also various student residences located on campus if incoming students are not able to secure medical school housing on their own. Being located in the heart of one of the oldest cities in the US, students at UMSOM can also take in the sites of old Baltimore and visit cultural artifacts such as the gravesite of Edgar Allen Poe or take in an Orioles game at Camden Yards.

Affiliated Teaching Hospitals

• Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital
• Baltimore VA Medical Center
• Frederick Health Hospital
• Greater Baltimore Medical Center
• Holy Cross Hospital
• Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center
• Johns Hopkins Suburban Hospital
• Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center
• MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center
• MedStar Georgetown University Hospital
• MedStar Good Samaritan Hospital
• MedStar Harbor Hospital
• MedStar Montgomery Medical Center
• MedStar Saint Mary's Hospital
• MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center
• MedStar Union Memorial Hospital
• MedStar Washington Hospital Center
• Mercy Medical Center
• The National Institutes of Health
• The Johns Hopkins Hospital
• University of Maryland Capital Region Health
• University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Hospital Center
• University of Maryland Harford Memorial Hospital
• University of Maryland Medical Center
• University of Maryland Pathology Associates, P.A.
• University of Maryland Rehabilitation and Orthopedic Institute
• University of Maryland Saint Joseph Medical Center
• University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Medical Center

Research Fields

• Center for Advanced Research Training & Innovation (CARTI)
• Center for Biomedical Engineering and Technology
• Center for Biomolecular Therapeutics (CBT)
• Center for Integrative Medicine
• Maryland Psychiatric Research Center
• Center for Research on Aging
• Center for Shock, Trauma and Anesthesiology Research
• Center for Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine
• Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health (CVD)
• Center for Vascular & Inflammatory Diseases
• Center for Blood Oxygen Transport & Hemostasis (CBOTH)
• Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health & Brain Development

Notable Faculty

Robert Gallo, Professor in the Department of Medicine (1996-present) - Professor Gallo is distinguished for being the only physician scientist to be awarded the prestigious Lasker Award for Medical Research twice, as he discovered that HIV was the virus that caused AIDS, along with discovering the first known human retrovirus.

Robert Redfield, Professor in Translational Medicine (1995-2005) - Dr. Redfield became well-known during the worldwide pandemic as the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as he became the face of the national response to the virus.

Theodore Woodward, Professor of Medicine (1948-1981) - Dr. Woodward was nominated for the Nobel Prize for his work on discovering a cure for typhoid fever and typhus.

R Adams Cowley, Professor of Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgery – Dr. Cowley was a professor of thoracic surgery when he founded the world's first Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Dr. Cowley also pioneered trauma as a field of medicine and is considered to be the founder of emergency medicine.

Contact Information

‌‌‌University of Maryland School of Medicine

655 West Baltimore Street

Baltimore, Maryland 21201 1559

410-706-3100

Office of Admissions

685 West Baltimore Street, Suite 190

Baltimore, MD 21201

Phone: 410-706-7478

Email:

[email protected]

FAQs 

To your success,

Your friends at BeMo

BeMo Academic Consulting

Want more free tips? Subscribe to our channels for more free and useful content!

TikTok

YouTube

Instagram

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

LinkedIn

Twitter

Disclaimer: BeMo does not endorse or affiliate with any universities, colleges, or official test administrators. The content has been developed based on the most recent publicly available data provided from the official university website. However, you should always check the statistics/requirements with the official school website for the most up to date information. You are responsible for your own results.