Special Programs

Junior Year Abroad Program
The Junior Year Abroad (JYA) Program presents a magnificent educational opportunity, and most realistic medical school aspirants qualify. It provides not only exceptional experiences for students, but also makes their credentials stand out from those of other applicants.

Participation in JYA takes careful long-range planning on the part of premedical students. You must ensure that you have completed all the basic premedical courses before going abroad. Scheduling the MCAT also requires careful planning. Some students take the MCAT before going abroad; some take the exam while abroad; and others wait until they return to take the exam. All students, whether or not they participate in JYA, are advised to take the exam by the end of the junior year.

Plan ahead to obtain faculty evaluations. Many students ask faculty members they had as teachers in their junior year (and who also may have taught them in earlier years) to write evaluations. However, evaluations from instructors abroad or the Tulane Professor-in-Charge of JYA usually are not valuable. The solution for JYA participants is to get at least some of their evaluations from Tulane professors before leaving. The Creative Premedical Scholars Program provides another solution: acceptance through this program assures the student of a place at Tulane School of Medicine before going abroad.

Creative Premedical Scholars Program
Through the Creative Premedical Scholars Program, a limited number of well-qualified creative students are guaranteed acceptance to Tulane's School of Medicine following their sophomore year of college. The certainty of having a reserved place in medical school frees the student from the stresses and concerns associated with the competition for entrance. Furthermore, it allows students to take maximum advantage of educational opportunities they might be reluctant to experience if still concerned about gaining acceptance, such as studying aboard.

To be eligible students must chose a nonscience major, complete both their freshman and sophomore years at Tulane University, complete a minimum of 60 credits of undergraduate work and all of the premedical course requirements during the regular academic year (not summer) of their freshman and sophomore years: one year each of general biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, and physics, all with laboratories. Students who receive advanced placement credit in general biology upon entry to Tulane can use this for the Creative Scholar Program but will be expected to take at least one year of advanced course work in biology if they chose to apply to other medical schools, even if accepted to Tulane Medical School. A minimum grade-point average of 3.6 is required; if accepted the MCAT examination is not required for Tulane Medical School.
Students who have completed more than two years of undergraduate work and have transferred to Tulane from another college are not eligible.

Application materials are available during the first week of February in the Preprofessional Office. The completed application, including a transcript of work through the first semester of the sophomore year, faculty evaluations, and all other required materials, must be submitted to the Preprofessional Office by April 1 of the year in which the student applies. As a component of the application, the student must submit a carefully devised academic plan for their third and fourth undergraduate years. The Nominating Committee conducts interviews with applicants at the end of April and selects students to Tulane Medical School by mid June; this is also when the students receive a letter stating the Committee’s decision. The Admissions Committee of Tulane School of Medicine generally notifies candidates with an additional letter of acceptance in the early fall.