F-104 Veterinary Medical Center
East Lansing, MI 48824-1314
Fax No. (517) 353-3041
E-mail: admiss@cvm.msu.edu
MSU CVM Admissions Office
F-104 Veterinary Medical Center East Lansing, MI 48824-1314
Telephone: (517) 353-9793 or 353-9794
Fax No. (517) 353-3041
E-mail: admiss@cvm.msu.edu
Prerequisite Science Requirements
I - Biological and Physical Sciences, Mathematics
You are not required to have completed all of the required courses before you apply to the DVM program. However, you must have completed them with at least 2.0 passing grade before the DVM program starts in August.
Regular applicants are required to have 50 percent of the required science coursework completed by the October 1 deadline. Additionally, any regular applicant who completed required science coursework 8 years or more before applying will be reviewed by the associate Dean and Director of Admissions in consultation with members of the Committee on Student Admission to determine the need to update his or her science coursework. Failure to comply with these requests will result in automatic withdrawal of your application. See Guidelines for more information.
College credit and numerical or letter grades must be earned for all courses described below. In addition to the stated credit minimums, equivalency of course content and level is critical in determining whether courses fulfill these requirements. Michigan applicants, visit this website.
A minimum of three (3) semester credits of lecture and laboratory work in general or inorganic chemistry that must include atoms, molecules, and ions; chemical calculations; reactions and energy changes; gases; periodic properties of elements; chemical bonds; states of matter; aqueous reactions and ionic equations; atomic and molecular chemical kinetics and equilibria; acids and bases; electrochemistry; coordination and stereo-chemistry—with laboratory.
Organic Chemistry:
A minimum of six (6) semester credits of lecture and laboratory work in organic chemistry that must include common classes of organic compounds with emphasis on nomenclature and structural principles, reaction, reaction mechanisms, and polyfunctional compounds.
Biochemistry:
A minimum of three (3) to four semester credits in an upper-division biochemistry course that must include the structure and function of major biomolecules, metabolism, and metabolic regulation.
General Physics:
A minimum of eight (8) semester credits of lecture and laboratory work that must include mechanics, Newton’s Law, momentum, energy, conservation laws, heat, electricity, magnetism, wave motion, sound, light, and modern developments. Physics courses must be based on mathematics equivalent to college algebra and trigonometry or higher.
General Biology:
A minimum of six (6) semester credits of lecture and laboratory work that must include biological diversity and organismal biology; principles of evolution, population biology, and community structure; cell structure and function; macromolecular synthesis; energy metabolism; molecular aspects of development; and principles of genetics.
Math:
A minimum of three (3) semester credits in college algebra and trigonometry or higher; precalculus or calculus will fulfill this requirement. Note that statistics does not meet this requirement.
Nutrition:
A minimum of three (3) to four (4) semester credits of lecture including the principles and practices of nutrition for cattle, horses, poultry, sheep, and pigs; metabolism of protein, minerals, and vitamins; diet formulation; performance prediction; nutritional maladies.
Microbiology with Lab:
A miminum of four (4) semester credits of lecture and laboratory work that must include the fundamentals of microbiology, including microbial structure and function, nutrition and growth, death and control; importance and applications of major microbial groups; methodology of microbiology: laboratory work should include the methodology of microbiology including microscopy, staining, aseptic technique, culture media, quantification, and laboratory safety; prerequisites to this course should be completion of general biology and organic chemistry (or taking concurrently).
Eukaryotic Cell Biology:
A minimum of three (3) semester credits of lecture that must include the structure and function of nucleated cells, emphasis should be on the molecular mechanisms that underlie cell processes; no laboratory is required; prerequisites to this course should be completion of general biology and organic chemistry; biochemistry should be completed or taken concurrently.
Genetics:
A minimum of three (3) semester credits of lecture that must include the principles of heredity in animals, plants and microorganisms; classical and molecular methods in the study of gene structure, transmission, expression and evolution should be emphasized; prerequisites should include completion of general biology.
II) - General Education
MSU CVM reviews all general education requirements for those applicants that do not have a degree posted on their transcript at the time the application is submitted. Applicants with an undergraduate degree posted on their transcript are considered to have completed the necessary general education.
Arts and Humanities:
Two courses with a minimum of three (3) semester credits each that must include two or more of the following subject areas: history, literature, art history or appreciation, music history or appreciation, theater history or appreciation, philosophy, and religion.
Social Science:
Two courses with a minimum of three (3) semester credits each that must include two or more of the following subject areas: cultural anthropology, economics, human geography, political science, psychology, and sociology.
English:
One or more courses with a minimum total of three (3) semester credits of English composition.
It is of the utmost importance that you meet with an advisor to discuss your academic plan long before you apply so that prerequisite coursework is completed in a reasonable schedule and with competitive grades.
Advanced Placement - AP and CLEP
Applicants satisfying prerequisite science coursework through Advanced Placement, College Level Examinations Program, or similar examinations must submit official documentation of their results to the Office of Admissions by the October 1 deadline; a copy sent from your school (Registrar's Office) will be acceptable.
MSU Bachelor's Degree Programs
A bachelor's degree is not required for admission to the DVM program in veterinary medicine. However, a majority of those accepted to the DVM program have exceeded the minimum requirements and, in many cases, have earned a degree. Consequently, if you are planning to earn your bachelor’s degree while in the DVM program, consult MSU transfer credit policy for information on transfer credits in the event you decide to complete a baccalaureate degree using DVM credits. You must meet all the university general education requirements for graduation. These are outlined in the academic programs book that may be found at the registrar's website or visit the academic programs page. Please contact the undergraduate advising center at 517/355-6510 or prevet@cvm.msu.edu to discuss the possibility of earning a bachelor’s degree concurrently with a DVM program.