• UNM 2010-2011 Catalog
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Doctor of Medicine

The School of Medicine has gained national and international recognition for its constantly evolving curricular innovations which have aimed at adapting adult learning theory to medical education. Educational emphasis has shifted from the learning of facts to teaching students the skills they will need to be effective lifelong learners. Current educational initiatives are aimed at improving the integration of the basic sciences and clinical medicine, shifting teaching and learning to ambulatory and community settings, integrating problem-based learning throughout the curriculum and emphasizing computer literacy and information management skills.

The four-year curriculum, incorporates successful aspects of conventional (lecture-based) medical school curricula with innovative aspects of small group learning found in problem-based curricula. These aspects include problem-based and student-centered learning; early clinical skills learning coupled with sustained, community-based learning; the incorporation of a population and behavioral perspective into the clinical years; peer teaching; computer-assisted instruction; and biweekly seminars on professional responsibility. The new curriculum also addresses the historically unmet as well as changing health care needs of our population and changing learning needs of future physicians.

Admissions

See http://hsc.unm.edu/som/admissions for additional information regarding the application and admission process.

B.A./M.D. Combined Program

For information on the B.A./M.D. program, see the Health, Medicine and Human Values Program in the Arts and Sciences section of this Catalog.

M.D./M.P.H. Dual Degree Program

The dual status M.D./M.P.H. requires five years of integrated learning. This integrated learning enhances opportunities for medical students to acquire public health knowledge and skills with the goals of 1) reducing disparities in health status within New Mexican populations 2) strengthening physician advocate y and leadership skills in health policy development 3) fostering evidence-based interventions and 4) using assessment skills to better determine population needs and interventions. Each M.D./M.P.H. student would be able to successfully complete both degrees in an integrated fashion.

Student applies simultaneously to both the M.D. and the M.P.H. programs and indicates on the two application that they are applying for dual status. Students must meet the requirements of both programs and be accepted into both programs in order to be considered dual status.

General Information

The School of Medicine is publicly supported and has an implied obligation to train students who are likely to serve the State’s expanding medical needs. For this reason, residents of New Mexico are given primary consideration for admission to the school. The university is also a member of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE). Therefore, secondary consideration is given to residents of participating states that at present have no medical schools (i.e., Montana and Wyoming). WICHE applicants and residents of other states (including former New Mexico residents) must have at least the average MCAT/GPA threshold as the last years entering class, to be given consideration for admission. The 2006 entering class average MCAT composite was 28.4 and the average GPA composite was 3.61

Premedical Requirements

The School of Medicine encourages applications from all interested students who meet the requirements given above, regardless of their area of academic study. Each applicant must
complete the prerequisites listed below:

• 8 semester hours general biology or zoology including lab
• 8 semester hours general chemistry including lab
• 8 semester hours organic chemistry including lab
• 6 semester hours general physics
• 3 semester hours biochemistry

Note: Combined organic chemistry/biochemistry courses are inadequate. The biochemistry course must be at the junior/senior level.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to take courses in microbiology and anatomy/physiology prior to entering Medical School. (The lecture portion of an anatomy course is adequate.)

Other science courses that the student may find helpful in preparing for medical school include genetics, cell physiology, histology and immunology and computer science. Advanced placement (AP) credit with scores of 4 or better is acceptable for the prerequisite courses in general physics, general
chemistry and general biology. However, individuals exempted from the general biology prerequisite through advanced placement are required to take at least an equivalent number of college credits in more advanced biology courses with laboratory. CLEP credits are not acceptable nor can pass/fail courses or survey courses be used to satisfy the prerequisites.

Although there is no specific language requirement, competence in spoken and written English is necessary. A facility in conversational Spanish or a Native American language will be an advantage for students intending to remain in the Southwest.

In developing a premedical studies program, the student should keep in mind that a physician needs a broad educational background. Therefore, the student should not concentrate on the physical and biological sciences to the exclusion of the humanities and social sciences.

To optimize the chances of admission, the student should plan his/her course of study so that at least most of the prerequisite courses are completed prior to taking the Medical College Admission Test and before submitting an application to the medical school.

While applications from college juniors who have completed at least 90 semester hours are considered, in the last several years, all accepted applicants have earned at least a Bachelor’s degree. Applicants are strongly encouraged to finish any degree programs they have begun prior to medical school matriculation.

The Committee on Admissions believes that each applicant should have been involved in some type of medically related experience prior to applying to medical school in which the applicant was able to interact in some way with those who are in need of care. The purpose of this is to help the applicant prove to himself or herself, and to the Committee on Admissions, that medicine is the profession in which the individual wishes to study and work.

Application Procedure

The University of New Mexico uses the centralized American Medical Colleges Application Service (AMCAS) that is supported by the Association of American Medical Colleges. Applicants for the medical school will apply using a web application at the following Web site: http://www.aamc.org/students/amcas/start.htm. The AMCAS applications of those applicants who wish to apply to The University of New Mexico School of Medicine will be electronically forwarded to this school.

Application Dates
Regular application earliest date: June 1, latest: November 15.