Certificate in Pre-Health Professions
The goal of the Pre-Health Professions Certificate Program (PHPCP) is to guide participants through the entire preparation and application process so that they will be competitive applicants to graduate health profession schools. The program is intended for students who have already earned a B.A./B.S. degree and wish to apply to allopathic medicine, osteopathic medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, physical therapy, physician assistant, veterinary or optometry schools. Students wishing to apply to graduate schools or nursing schools may also be considered. The program is suited for students who need to take introductory science prerequisites, upper-division science electives, or a combination of both to be competitive in the admission process for health profession schools. Taking auxiliary coursework in the form of discussion sections and Health Professions Colloquia is strongly encouraged. In addition to providing comprehensive academic and application guidance, the Director and Co-Directors jointly write a committee letter that may be submitted with the student's health profession school application. Federal and/or private loans may be available to program participants.
Program Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate an understanding of the scientific vocabularies and concepts necessary for their being competent health care providers.
- Gain the necessary tools to perform well on standardized national exams.
- Communicate effectively in speech and writing.
- Understand the application process for health professions schools.
Admission Requirements and Application Process
Applicants must have graduated from an accredited institution of higher learning with a baccalaureate or higher degree and a GPA of 2.5 or above for their most recent 60 semester units (90 quarter units) of coursework. However, because of the limited number of students that can be accommodated by the program, applicants with higher GPAs will have an advantage in being admitted.
Applicants must apply through Cal State Apply; instructions can be found at https://cpage.sfsu.edu/prehealth/how-to-apply. Official transcripts from all colleges and two letters of recommendation are also required. Admissions decisions are made by the PHPCP and admission offers are issued by the SF State Division of Graduate Studies.
Students whose primary language is not English must earn a minimum score of 550 on the paper version of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or a minimum score of 213 on the computer-based version.
Admission Dates
| Start Semester | Cal State Apply Application Open | Application Deadline |
| Summer | October 1 – March 1 | March 1 |
| Fall | October 1 – April 15 | April 15 |
| Spring | August 1 – October 1 | October 1 |
Pre-Health Professions Certificate — 40 units
Required Courses (40 units)
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| SCI 695 | Health Professions Colloquium | 2 |
An additional 38 units of courses from the list below. Note: A maximum of 20 units may be transferred in from courses taken at accredited undergraduate institutions prior to entering the PHPCP.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 210 | General Microbiology and Public Health | 3 |
| BIOL 211 | General Microbiology and Public Health Laboratory | 1 |
| BIOL 212 | Principles of Human Physiology | 3 |
| BIOL 213 | Principles of Human Physiology Laboratory | 1 |
| BIOL 230 | Introductory Biology I | 5 |
| BIOL 240 | Introductory Biology II | 5 |
| BIOL 328 | Human Anatomy | 4 |
| BIOL 350 | Cell Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 355 | Genetics | 3 |
| BIOL 382 | Developmental Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 401 | General Microbiology | 3 |
| BIOL 420 | General Virology | 3 |
| BIOL 430 | Medical Microbiology | 3 |
| BIOL 435 | Immunology | 3 |
| BIOL 442 | Microbial Physiology | 3 |
| BIOL 453 | General Parasitology | 3 |
| BIOL 609 | Physics in Medicine | 3 |
| BIOL 612 | Human Physiology | 3 |
| BIOL 615 | Molecular Pathophysiology | 3 |
| BIOL 616 | Cardiorespiratory Physiology | 3 |
| BIOL 618 | Biology of Aging | 3 |
| BIOL 619 | Pathophysiology | 3 |
| BIOL 620 | Endocrinology | 3 |
| BIOL 621 | Reproductive Physiology | 3 |
| BIOL 623 | Pharmacology | 3 |
| BIOL 627 | Biophysics | 3 |
| BIOL 640 | Cellular Neurosciences | 3 |
| BIOL 642 | Neural Systems Physiology | 3 |
| BIOL 760 | Cancer Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 782 | Developmental Biology | 3 |
| CHEM 101 | Survey of Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 102 | Survey of Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| CHEM 115 | General Chemistry I | 4 |
| CHEM 215 | General Chemistry II | 4 |
| CHEM 233 | Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 234 | Organic Chemistry I Laboratory | 2 |
| CHEM 335 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 336 | Organic Chemistry II Laboratory | 2 |
| CHEM 349 | General Biochemistry | 3 |
| MATH 124 | Elementary Statistics | 3 |
| MATH 199 | Pre-Calculus | 4 |
| MATH 226 | Calculus I | 4 |
| NUTR 253 | Nutrition, Health, and Disease | 3 |
| PH 221 | Health and Social Justice - Burning Issues, Taking Action | 3 |
| PH 414 | Women's Health | 3 |
| PH 810 | Public Health and Principles of Community Organizing | 3 |
| PHYS 111 | General Physics I | 3 |
| PHYS 112 | General Physics I Laboratory | 1 |
| PHYS 121 | General Physics II | 3 |
| PHYS 122 | General Physics II Laboratory | 1 |
| PSY 431 | Developmental Psychology | 3 |
| SCI 111 | Science Concepts: Physics I | 1 |
| SCI 115 | Science Concepts: Chemistry I | 1 |
| SCI 121 | Science Concepts: Physics II | 1 |
| SCI 124 | Mathematics Concepts: Elementary Statistics | 1 |
| SCI 215 | Science Concepts: Chemistry II | 1 |
| SCI 230 | Science Concepts: Biology I | 1 |
| SCI 235 | Science Concepts | 2 |
| SCI 240 | Science Concepts: Biology II | 1 |
| SCI 333 | Science Concepts: Organic Chemistry I | 1 |
| SCI 335 | Science Concepts: Organic Chemistry II | 1 |